Police pledge to review new vehicle tax rule

JAKARTA (JP): National Police Spokesman Brig. Gen. I Gusti Ketut Ratta said the authorities will review the new policy requiring motorists to put a special sticker on car license plates as proof the yearly registration tax has been paid.

"The policy is now being reviewed by the police headquarters to identify the problems in securing the special sticker, which the public face," Ratta said on Tuesday.

City Police Chief Maj. Gen. Mochammad Hindarto said the city police will review the new policy due to growing public complaints that the policy is inefficient and too complicated.

"If the new policy burdens the public so much, then we will reassess it, or maybe we will even make some necessary changes," Hindarto said on Tuesday.

The new policy, which took effect on Sept. 17, requires motorists, whose vehicle ownership documents (STNK) have expired, to go to the Samsat (Vehicle Documents Service) office to obtain special stickers, which must be put on their license plates.

Under the old policy, vehicle ownership documents were only valid for one year. After a year, motorists would have to obtain new license plates after paying the vehicle tax and other required fees.

Under the new policy, vehicle documents and license plates are valid for five years, but the motorist's annual obligation to pay the tax and traffic accident insurance fees is unchanged.

The new policy also requires a motorist to pass through five phases of procedures, handled at five different counters, to obtain the new special sticker.

The complexity of the new policy is worsened by the city revenue office's announcement requiring that people whose automobile documents have expired should bring their identification cards, previous car tax receipts, previous traffic accident fund receipts and other documents needed to the Samsat building in the police headquarters complex.

Public transportation vehicle owners must also have their route permits, business permits, certificates of vehicle inspection and previous traffic insurance receipts.

Hindarto said the five-phase procedure should be simplified because the new policy should be simplifying the process.

Aberson

An even stronger remark on the matter was made by Aberson Marle Sihaloho, a House of Representatives member from the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI). He said that the additional costs, such as the special sticker fee and the administrative fees applied under the new policy are "unconstitutional".

"Collecting an extra fee from the process of a tax payment is similar to collecting double taxes," he said, adding that the practice should be stopped once and for all.

Councilor Helmy A.R. Syihab, head of the City Council's Commission C on finance, said that the reassessment is a must because the people's awareness of the need to pay tax should not be frustrated by unreasonable bureaucratic procedures.

Councilor Helmy of the Golkar faction said that the police should use the services of a bank to simplify the annual payment of vehicle taxes.

"The people who want to pay the annual vehicle tax could go to the bank and later on they could give the police the bank payment receipt in order to get the new special sticker," he said.

He added that quick and convenient procedures for tax payment would improve the people's sense of responsibility toward paying their taxes. (03)