Brgys urged: Help collect tax

 CEBU, Philippines - In line with the plan of Mayor Michael Rama to increase property taxes, the City Council is calling on barangays to assist the city treasurer’s office in its tax collection efforts on real properties.

 Through a resolution penned by Councilor David Tumulak, the Council is urging barangay officials to help send out notices to owners of real property whose taxes are due.

 “It is the barangays that are in direct contact with the property owners and competently knowledgeable of the location of the properties in their respective areas, as well as the addresses of the owners,” the resolution reads.

 The Council has also directed the Association of Barangay Captains to coordinate with the city treasurer’s office so that efforts will be unified.

 Tumulak said the participation of barangays in collecting taxes is crucial especially that whatever the city will earn will also go back to the barangay where the property is located.

 Under Section 271 of the Local Government Code, the component barangays in the cities are entitled to 30 percent of the proceeds of real property taxes. Out of the 30 percent, half will accrue to the barangay where the property is located while the other half will accrue to all component barangays.

 “The more taxes collected, the more the share of the barangays and the more projects could be implemented,” the resolution reads.

 With its approval, copies of the resolution will be furnished to barangays, Office of the Mayor, City Treasurer, City Accountant, City Budget Officer and Association of Barangay Captains so they will be informed and guided accordingly.

 Earlier, the two top officials of the city expressed their desire to revise the city’s Schedule of Market Values which is said to be outdated by over a decade.

 SMV determines how much the property owners need to pay to the local government.

 Though Rama and Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella both opposed the idea as it would potentially impose higher taxes to owners, they said pushing for the revision would increase the city’s revenues to be able to finance more basic services.

 “The local officials are not inclined with the revision because it will increase real property taxes. But we have to comply with the mandates so that we could raise our collection. We have to update (our SMV), though it’s not an isolated case since other local government units are practicing this also,” Labella said.

 Rama has created a core group that would conduct the general revision of SMV following the “poor” rating given by the Bureau of Local Government Finance for the city’s 2012 fiscal performance.

The group is composed of the city’s chairman of committee on awards, local finance committee, barangay affairs unit head and former councilor Eduardo Rama Jr. and City Assessor’s Office Officer-in-Charge Ferdinand Cañete.  (FREEMAN)