THE House of Representatives on Monday passed House Bill 24-13, which proposes to remove the penalties associated with filing fees at the Department of Commerce.
All 18 House members present voted in favor of H.B. 24-13, which was authored by Rep. Thomas John Manglona, chair of the House Committee on Commerce. Rep. Malcolm Omar and Rep. Danny Aquino were excused.
In January, the Department of Commerce reduced its filing fees by 25%. The agency is authorized to reduce fees in compliance with the sunset provision of Public Law 21-37, which increased business filing fees about six years ago. However, the sunset provision does not apply to penalties; therefore, removing them requires legislation.
H.B. 24-13 eliminates the $10-per-day penalty for failure to file annual reports by March 2, while maintaining the 25% reduction in filing fees.
Commerce Secretary Remedio C. Mafnas and Registrar of Corporations John David A. Reyes worked closely with Manglona to repeal the penalty fees outlined in P.L. 21-37.
Reyes said the penalties need to be re-evaluated because not all businesses are the same.
“Bigger businesses can deal with penalties much easier than small businesses,” he said. “And it’s even more difficult for non-profit organizations because, obviously, they don’t make money — and any penalty has to come out of the pockets of members or directors.”
