Legislators yesterday were unable to agree on the passage of a government proposal to issue a NT$6,000 (US$197.80) tax rebate, after Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers pushed for the amount to be raised to NT$10,000.
After three hours of debate, legislators halted discussion on the Executive Yuan’s proposal to distribute NT$140 billion of a NT$380 billion tax revenue surplus from last year in one-off cash payments.
Under the plan, announced on Thursday last week, the government would issue NT$6,000 to all citizens and three categories of foreign nationals — foreign nationals with permanent residency, resident spouses of Taiwanese and foreign diplomats.
During the debate, KMT legislators pushed a competing version of the bill that offered a cash handout of NT$10,000.
They said that if the increased amount could not be funded from last year’s tax surplus, the surplus from previous years could be used.
KMT caucus whip William Tseng (曾銘宗) said that his party proposed a larger cash distribution as there had been a NT$430 billion tax revenue surplus in 2021, and some of that money should be returned to Taiwanese after paying down government debts.
Tseng said the party hoped the bill could be passed as soon as possible.
On Friday last week, legislators agreed to extend the legislative session to today to allow for review of the competing bills, but after yesterday’s joint committee review, they referred the bills to a negotiating phase.
In the negotiating phase, legislators can only put the bills to a floor vote after one month should they not reach an agreement.
Democratic Progressive Party legislative caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said that under those procedures the cash payout would not be issued until April at the earliest.
The legislature is to begin its winter recess today, with the next session scheduled to open on Feb. 20.
HOT-SPRING RETREAT: A hotel in Japan incurred a loss of about US$1,846 after a Taiwanese man failed to show up for his reservation due to a misunderstood message A Taiwanese man who failed to show up for a hotel reservation in Japan has apologized and offered compensation, the hotel said yesterday. The man, surnamed Lee (李), reserved a room at the Yufuin Tsubaki hot-spring hotel in Oita for the Lunar New Year holiday, but failed to show up on Friday. Lee yesterday called the hotel to apologize and offered to compensate the losses caused by his failure to show up, a hotel employee surnamed Yashiro said. Lee’s wife also called on Sunday to apologize, she said. Lee had booked a two-night stay with upscale seafood and beef meals, the hotel said. His
Two Taiwanese Americans were among those killed in a mass shooting at a dance studio in Monterey Park, California, on Saturday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles (TECO LA) said it contacted local authorities, who confirmed that two of the 11 killed in the shooting were Taiwanese Americans. “TECO LA conveys our heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families, and sends our prayers to the injured for a speedy recovery,” it said in a statement. The office said it is assisting the relatives of one of the victims to travel from
A senior US senator on Monday questioned the willingness of some US allies to help defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. Although Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) expects the US and Japan to respond in a war in the Taiwan Strait, he was “a little less confident what our other allies would do,” US Senator John Cornyn said. Australia and New Zealand have voiced support for Taiwan, but it “is a far cry from committing troops to repel an invasion,” Cornyn said during a discussion on China, Russia and the state of US military readiness at a forum hosted
Whisky connoisseurs are a rapidly growing demographic in Taiwan, driving prices ever higher as collectors vie for the most coveted editions. Although not a new pastime, whisky collection has been picking up steam in recent years. According to the Scotch Whisky Association, Taiwan was the third-largest buyer of Scotch whisky in 2021 in monetary terms. One collector, surnamed Fu (傅), said there are many types of whisky that are ripe for collecting. One that has skyrocketed in price in recent years is the Macallan 12-year-old Gran Reserva, which bears a striking purple label, said Fu, who has more than 10 years of experience as