Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Chairman Junie Cua appealed for the reduction of documentary stamp tax (DST) on lotto tickets from 20 percent to 5 percent.

During the House of Representatives' Committee on Appropriations budget hearing on Aug. 30, Cua pointed out that the current DST "has practically paralyzed the agency."
As of the latest count, the DST for 2023 is estimated to reach P11 billion leaving only less than a billion for PCSO's charity fund, Cua highlighted.
The agency's budget for its Medical Access Program (MAP) was reduced by P7 billion because of DST, Cua said.
Since the increase of DST from 10 percent to 20 percent last 2019, PCSO's MAP was only able to provide P5.9 billion worth of assistance to 517,696 Filipinos.
Meanwhile, in 2020, the agency provided P1.8 billion for 250,850 individuals.
In 2021, MAP released assistance worth P2.1 billion for 272,130 individuals.
So far in 2022, PCSO has released P850 million budget for MAP and benefited 110,403 individuals.
These figures shed light on the gap in the PCSO's MAP fund way back in 2018 which amounted to P8.6 billion and helped 528,190 individuals.
Cua is hopeful that this dilemma can be addressed by Congress.