KMT unveils wish list for coming legislative session

The KMT legislative caucus unveiled a list of 45 bills it says should take priority when the legislature meets later this month.

The bulk of the bills, proposed by big-money interests, are intended to create a more favorable investment environment through relaxed regulations and tax cuts.

Topping the list is a measure to provide tax credits to encourage industrial development, KMT lawmaker Liu Kwang-hua (劉光華) said yesterday after the party's caucus meeting.

The party also wants to pass legislation that will make corporate mergers and break-ups easier, Liu said.

The KMT's think tank, the National Policy Foundation, prepared yesterday's wish list.

Another priority bill is a proposal to halve a capital gains tax on property transactions for two years, which business leaders say is necessary to stimulate the real estate market and reduce bad bank loans.

With the KMT's blessing, the proposed tax cut is expected to pass the legislature soon after the fall session opens on Sept. 18 -- despite protests from the People First Party and New Party.

What's probably most notable about yesterday's list is not what it includes, but what it doesn't include. Missing are 15 bills which need to be passed before Taiwan's WTO entry.

In addition, the KMT's list is just a fraction of the more than 400 bills the Cabinet has designated as priority.

Earlier in the day, KMT legislative leader Lee Cheng-chong (李正宗) said the Cabinet was being unreasonable by asking the legislature to pass so many bills in a single session.

"It's impossible for the legislature to pass all 410 bills as suggested by the Cabinet," Lee said. "There will not be enough time to read through them all, let alone study them."

Lee urged the DPP government to whittle down its list.

Past legislatures have passed no more than 63 bills in a single session, the lawmaker said, and 400 was "mission impossible."

Secretary-General of the Cabinet, Chiou I-jen (邱義仁), said the legislature could bundle the bills and review them in larger lots in order to simplify the process.

Also, in order to save time, the DPP legislative caucus has proposed suspending interpellation sessions until after the December elections.

DPP legislative whip Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said he would seek support for the idea during upcoming cross-party talks. Opposition parties have said they're against the proposal.