FACT
In April 1947 the
Collector of Internal Revenue required Mr. Justice Gregorio Perfecto to pay
income tax upon his salary as member of the Court during the year 1946. After
paying the amount, he instituted an action in Manila Court of First Instance
contending that the assessment was illegal, his salary not being taxable for
the reason that imposition of taxes thereon would reduce it in violation of the
Constitution. It provides in its Article VIII, Section 9 that the members of the
Supreme Court and all judges of inferior courts “shall receive such
compensation as may be fixed by law, which shall not be diminished during their
continuance in office.
ISSUE
Whether or not the
imposition of an income tax upon this salary
in 1946 amount to a diminution.
HELD
Yes, the imposition of
the income tax upon the salary of Justice Perfecto amount to a diminution
thereof. The prohibition is general, contains no excepting words, and appears
to be directed against all diminution, whether for one purpose or another. The
fathers of the Constitution intended to prohibit diminution by taxation as well
as otherwise, that they regarded the independence of the judges as of far
greater importance than any revenue that could come from taxing their salaries.
Thus, taxing the salary of a judge as a part of his income is a violation of
the Constitution.
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