CEBU CITY (April 29, 2024) – The City must update the fair market value (FMV) in the assessment of real properties for taxation, if only to realize the BARUG CEBU CITY program of government of the administration.
“Nindot kaayo ang damgo, apan kining tanan di ni nato makab-ot if mo-stick lang ta sa atong tax rates nga karaan pa’s Mampor,” quipped city treasurer Mare Vae “Ivy” F. Reyes.
“Kung mag-tan-aw ta sa vision nato for Cebu City, makasabot gyu’d ta nganong kinahanglang diay,” she added during the maiden cast of Money Talks, the teleradyo program of the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) last Friday, April 26.
Reyes underscored the reality that that City updated the schedule of FMV yet in 2003 but the operating expenses of the local government has increased, and it needs to pursue projects for the benefit of the constituents.
While she acknowledged that some oppose the adjustment on real property taxes (RPT), she pointed out that “seguro, wala lang nato matarong og pasabot.”
“Karaan na kaayo ang ordinance, 2003 pa. Naa sa balaud (Local Government Code) dapat every three years. Apan wala nato mapatuman,” she explained.
Reyes cited as an example a property at the Ayala-developed business park that are likely assessed at P20,000 to P50,000 based on the 2003 ordinance.
“Pero, kung imo na karon’g ibaligya sa market, pila kaha na? P200,000? P300,000? Dako kaayo ang disparity (that taxes will be anchored on the value 20 years ago),” she pointed out.
Reyes said the taxpayers, especially businessmen and top corporate executives, would ask “where will our taxes go?”
The answer, she added, is in the BARUG CEBU CITY program of government of Mayor Mike Rama with Vice Mayor Raymond Garcia and their allies.
Karaan na kaayo ang ordinance, 2003 pa. Naa sa balaud (Local Government Code) dapat every three years. Apan wala nato mapatuman.
City Treasurer Ivy Reyes
She praised the mayor for strongly pushing for the general revision, pointing out that the city needs resources to realize the people’s vision of a Singapore-like with Melbourne features Cebu City.
“Mayor, thank you so much. You are so brave sa pagsang-at sa Sanggunian,” she said during the CTO online program aired over Sugboanon Channel simultaneously on Facebook and YouTube.
“Dili tanang mayor ang naa’y kaisug, bisan pa kung election season, importante mapakita nato kung asa padu’ng ilang buhis,” she said.
With the members of the Local Finance Committee, including Reyes, Rama has had a series of bilateral conference with the legislators to discuss about the general revision of FMV.
Reyes said Councilor Noel G. Wenceslao, chairman of the committee on budget and finance, is supportive of the general revision but with a staggered implementation that Rama agreed.
The Mayor previously asked the Council to pass the ordinance by the end of March but discussions continued, apparently still for another round of bilateral conference.
Regardless of new projects, the city treasurer noted that cash incentives for senior citizens and persons-with-disabilities have doubled, as these increased from P500 to P1,000 per month.
The same is true, she added, on honorariums for barangay officials, lupon, tanod, garbage loaders, health workers and street sweepers, as well as incentives to some national government employees, like the Police, judges and prosecutors.
“These have increased since 2003, yet the source of funds did not increase,” she said, adding “how can we sustain if we do not increase sa atong source?”
Should the RPT be updated after the general revision of FMV, the city could raise funds to clear river easements and resettle thousands of dwellers and others in the aspiring sector into medium-rise buildings for socialized housing.
The city could acquire equipment and systems to become a global SMART City, establish needed mass transit system, as well as build a new City Hall, legislative center and its own college campus.
The rest are defined in the BARUG CEBU CITY program of the Rama-Garcia administration. It covers:
- Better Business Environment and Employment Opportunities;
- Adequate Water Supply;
- Resettlement and Housing;
- Urban and Upland Development;
- Good Governance, Peace and Order, Public Safety and Disaster Resiliency;
- Comprehensive Educational Support;
- Environmental Management and Sustainability;
- Barangay Welfare and Community Development;
- Universal Health Care and programs for the Elderly and PWD;
- Cultural, Historical, Arts, Tourism and Spiritual Upliftment;
- Infrastructure and Technology Advancement;
- Traffic Management and Mass Transit; and
- Youth, Children and Sports Development.
| RMN/cte
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