Senator Sergio Osmeña III yesterday said he will complete the refinements on the Senate version of the proposed Sugarcane Act in two weeks.

Osmeña told the DAILY STAR that the refinements are needed in line with the country’s international trade commitments, and he is doing it in consultation with industry stakeholders.

He will then send the proposed bill, with his suggested refinements, back to Senator Cynthia Villar, chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture.

It will be up to Villar whether to adopt the refinements when she reports the bill out to the plenary for approval, he said.

He cannot say when it will be put up for voting at the Senate plenary session because it will depend on the traffic on the floor, he said.

Osmeña also said he would like the measure to be called the Sugar Industry Act and not Sugarcane Industry Act, which, he said, will probably be passed into law before the end of the year.

The Lower House has already approved House Bill No. 4633, or the “Sugarcane Industry Development Act”, authored by Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) that will be reconciled with the approved Senate version.

HB 4633 seeks to provide the local sugar industry protection against the impact of the lowering of the tariffs on imported sugar by 2015, as provided by the ASEAN Free Trade Area – Common Effective Preferential Tariff Scheme.

The proposed measure aims to enhance and promote the value of sugarcane through diversification, and comprehensive and assured sources of financing, Benitez said.*CPG

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