BUENAVISTA, Bohol – Less classified local government units (LGUs) in terms of income should have more share in National tax Allotment (NTA), formerly Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA).
Mayor Atty. Dave D. Duallo of this port town has proposed for an equitable NTA shares to LGUs. He told BT that those 4th to 6th class municipalities should have bigger NTA shares and less those ‘well-off,’ like the highly-urbanized cities or towns.
He said this way, the less classified towns could improve more their lot like those highly-urbanized cities/towns whose earnings from local taxes may be enough for their development.
This surfaced NTA for next year (2023) to every local government unit (LGU) in the country is being slashed, Bohol Provincial Budget Officer Peter Ross Retutal said.
NTA is the source of 20% development Fund of every single LGU.
The NTA cut, which is 14.47% decrease, is an offshoot of the reduced tax collection in 2020 by agencies concerned, like the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), due to the pandemic, he added.
COVID -19 pandemic instigated the shutdown of businesses in the country, including Bohol, when government enforced lockdown in past two years.
This prompted the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to issue Local Budget Memorandum No. 85, on June 15, 2022, guidelines on the preparation of the fiscal year 2023 annual budget of the LGUs.
The Provincial Government of Bohol’s share amounted to P3,302,823,605.00 for this year (2022) but reduced to P2,824,908,290.00 for 2023, or a slash of P477,915,315.00, data of the budget office showed.
Tagbilaran City’s NTA share will lose a total of P99,537,249.00 as a result from P688,583,478.00 (2022) down to P588,946,129.00 for 2023.
Ubay town’s share, the biggest aside from the city, is expected to receive P302,036,642.00 for 2023 from P353,134,915.00 in 2022, a difference of P40,998,273.00.
Sikatuna town, the smallest in terms of NTA share, would only be expecting to have P70,717,003.00 for 2023 from this year’s P82,680,838.00, a difference of P11,963,725.00.
Retutal said that 2023 NTA shares to LGUs are based on the tax collection in 2020 and this year’s (2022) from tax collection in 2019. (rvo)
