Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines

Section 64

Charges, fees and bonds. The Department Head, upon recommendation of the Director, shall fix the amount of charges, rental, bonds and fees for the different kinds of utilization, exploitation, occupation, possession, or activity inside forest lands, the filing and processing of applications therefor, the issuance and renewal of license agreements, licenses, leases and permits, and for other services; Provided, That all fees and charges presently being collected under existing laws and regulations shall continue to be imposed and collected until otherwise provided; Provided, further, That timber taken and removed from private lands for commercial purposes shall be exempt from the payment of forest charges.

Section 65

Authority of Department Head to impose other fees. In addition to the fees and charges imposed under existing laws, rules and regulations, the Department Head is hereby authorized, upon recommendation of the Director and in consultation with representatives of the industries affected, to impose other fees for forest protection, management, reforestation, and development, the proceeds of which shall accrue into a special deposit of the Bureau as its revolving fund for the aforementioned purposes.

Section 66

Collection and Disbursement. The collection of the charges and fees above-mentioned shall be the responsibility of the Director or his authorized representative. The Director shall remit his monthly collection of fees and charges mentioned in Section 64 to the Treasurer of the Philippines within the first ten (10) days of the succeeding month; Provided, That the proceeds of the collection of the fees imposed under Section 65 and the special deposit heretofore required of licensees shall be constituted into a revolving fund for such purposes and be deposited in the Philippine National Bank, as a special deposit of the Bureau. The Budget Commissioner and the National Treasurer shall effect the quarterly releases out of the collection accruing to the general fund upon request of the Director on the basis of a consolidated annual budget of a work program approved by the Department Head and the President. In the case of the special deposit revolving fund, withdrawals therefrom shall be effected by the Department Head on the basis of a consolidated annual budget prepared by the Director of a work program for the specific purposes mentioned in Section 65.

Section 67

Basis of Assessment. Tree measurement shall be the basis for assessing government charges and other fees on timber cut and removed from forest lands, alienable or disposable lands, and the civil reservations; Provided, That until such time as the mechanics of tree measurement shall have been developed and promulgated in rules and regulations, the present scaling method provided for in the National Internal Revenue Code shall be used. The Director may, with the approval of the Department Head, prescribe a new method of assessment of forest products and collection of charges thereon based upon the result of production cost and market studies undertaken by the Bureau; Provided, That such charges shall not be lower than those now imposed. (Incorporating Sections 230 to 238 and 297 of the NIRC of 1977 into P.D. No. 705, Republic Act No. 7161, [October 10, 1991])