SP to create measures for taxpayers affected by new Revenue Code
BACOLOD CITY -- The Sangguniang Panglungsod of Bacolod City will study and design measures in order to answer problems arising from the implementation of the city’s new Revenue Code this 2009.
Councilor Al Victor Espino, chairman of the Committee on Finance, said maybe the people did not anticipate the sudden increase of their payments when the taxes was increased by 10% and when it comes to fees, the provisions of Local Government Code of 1991 was already followed.
“It’s been fifteen years when the city slept on its Revenue Code, contrary to the guidelines of the Department of Budget and Management that it must be updated once every five years,” Espino added.
City Treasurer Annabelle Badajos said their office received various complaints regarding the implementation of the new Revenue Code, likewise some isolated cases on the wrong computations made by the assessment division.
“Bacolod City has just shifted from Tracks system to Oracle that’s why in the first and second weeks of the implementation we encountered minor problems,” she added.
Badajos said the issue on over assessment on about twenty individual taxpayers was already resolved and they are on the process of refunding it.
She is amenable that the computation this year is very different compared to last 15 years or that was 1993 but the public should remember the inflation of today versus last years.
“Payments of fees like in the manufacturers, wholesalers, hospitals, banks and other financial institutions got the highest increase when the city implemented the Revised Revenue Code,” Badajos said.
It is long overdue for the city to do the increase because it very awkward that highly-urbanized city like Bacolod has lower taxes and fees compared to component cities and even municipalities in the province.
She exampled the payment by a manufacturer when it reached over P6.5 million they will collect the tax due on the basis of percentage. Wholesalers will experience the same when the gross receipts reached over P2 million.
“Riverside Medical Center which only pays the city 5% of 1% gross receipts in previous years, should now pay 2% of its gross receipts,” Badajos added.
From common tricycle drivers up to the owners of large companies lodged their grievances to media and even to city officials, questioning the act of the city in implementing the revision of the code, allegedly without public hearing.
But Espino justified that together with his committee, Committee on Ways and Means headed by Councilor Diosdado Valenzuela, Local finance Committee and Vice-Mayor Jude Thaddues Sayson conducted series of public hearings last year, a week before the Masskara Festival on October.