Title Caltex Phils vs COA, Commisioner
Fernandez and Commisioner Cruz Caltex
GR 92585
Date May 8, 1992
KEYWORDS
OPSF cannot be offsetted, Unremitted
collections, General Welfare,
DOCTRINE
Taxation is no longer envisioned as a measure to
raise revenue to support the existence of the
gov´t; taxes may be levied with a regulatory
purpose to provide means for the rehabilitation
and stabilization of the threatened industry
which is affected with public interest as to be
within the police power of the state. No doubt
that the oil industry is greatly imbued with
public interest as it vitally affects the general
welfare
CASE:
OPSF was created under Sec 8 of PD no. 1956 as
amended by EO No. 137 wherein it will create a
Trust Acct for the purpose of minimizing frequent
price changes brought about by exchange rate
adjustments and world market prices.
COA sent a letter to Caltex directing it to remit to
the OPSF its collection, excluding that unremitted
for the years 1986 & 1988 of the add´tl tax on
petroleum authorized under sec 8 of PD No 1956
which amounted to P335, 037,000+ and informed
that all pending claim claims for reimbursement
from OPSF will be withheld.
The grand total of its unremitted collection is
P1,287,000+. Caltex submitted to COA a proposal
for the payment of the collections and the recovery
of the claims. COA accepted the proposal but
prohibited Caltex from further offsetting
remittances and reimbursements for the current
and ensuing years.
filed an Omnibus Motion for
Reconsideration of the said decision but was
denied. Hence, petition.
Issue: WoN the amount due from Caltex to OPSF
may be offsetted against Caltex´s outstanding
claims from said fund.
SC: NO. COA´s decision is affirmed except that
portion disallowing Caltex´s claim for
reimbursement of underrecovery arising from
sales to NAPOCOR.
It is settled that a taxpayer may not offset taxes
due from the claims that he may have against the
government. Taxes cannot be the subject of
compensation because the gov´t and the taxpayer
are not mutually creditors and debtors of each
other and a claim for taxes is not such a debt,
demand, contract or judgment as is allowed to set-
off.
In respect to the taxes for the OPSF, the oil
companies merely acts as a gents for the gov´t in
the latter´s collection since taxes are, passed unto
the end-users – the consuming public.
Caltex has the primary obligation to account for
and remit taxes collected to the administrator of
the OPSF. This duty stems from the fiduciary
relationship between the two. Caltex cannot be
considered merely as a debtor. In respect to its
collection for the OPSF vis-a-vis its claim for
reimbursement, no compensation is likewise legally
feasible. RA 6952 does not authorize oil companies
to offset their claims against their OPSF
contributions. It prohibits the gov´t from paying
any amount from the Petroleum Price Standby
Fund to oil companies which have outstanding
obligations with the gov´t, without said obligation
being offset first subject to the rules on
compensation in the CC.
Any unregulated increase in oil prices could hurt
the lives of the majority of the people and cause
economic crisis of untold proportions. It would
have a chain reaction, hence, the stabilization of oil
prices is of prime concern which the state via its
police power, may properly address.