The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday approved bills seeking to extend by four years tax cuts for people replacing diesel-fuel trucks in a bid to reduce air pollution and carbon emissions.
The bills, which need to pass second and third readings in the legislature, would extend a tax cut of up to NT$400,000 on purchases of new trucks to replace diesel-fuel vehicles until the end of 2026.
Ruling and opposition legislators forwent cross-party discussions to speed up the passage of the bills, as the tax cut is set to expire at the end of this month.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Policymakers said there is still need for the tax reduction, first introduced in August 2017, as about 78,000 aging diesel trucks remain on the roads and should be replaced, an Environmental Protection Administration estimate showed.
The proposed revisions aim to save energy, curb carbon emissions and improve air quality without adding financial burdens on taxpayers, the Cabinet has said.
Sales taxes are expected to miss the budget target this year due to this and other tax cuts to help stabilize consumer prices, the Ministry of Finance has said.
Separately, Minister of Finance Su Jain-rong (蘇建榮) said he would discuss with state-run banks about whether to extend preferential interest rates on purchases of first homes by young people.
Despite preferential interest rates, mortgages among young people have declined in the past few years even though overall mortgage operations continue to expand, legislators said.
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