DAVAO CITY—The local government here mulls reviewing the real property tax of the city after 10 years of no increase in their business and real property taxes.
Councilors Danilo Dayanghirang, committee chairman for finance, ways and means, said during their Executive and Legislative Agenda meeting in Cebu that they discussed the need to increase the local taxes.
He said the last time the city increased the local taxes was in 2005 during the term of now President Rodrigo Duterte.
He said the LGU noticed the little increase of the local taxes in the city for this year, which only reached 3.7 percent resulting in a minimal increase in the 2017 budget.
“We only have a 3.7-percent increase in our local collection, that is why we only have a small increase in our 2017 budget,” Dayanghirang said.
He said if the local taxes had been increased in the past years, the 2017 budget might have reached P7.2 billion, instead of P6.9 billion.
“There was a proposal before to increase the local taxes to 2000 percent; however, the local government of Davao did not agree to it, for it might affect the business sector,” he said.
Since 2005, Davao City has remained investor-friendly following the no increase in the local taxes.
New investors had an exemption to pay local taxes for three years under the Davao Investment Promotion, which was also aimed at inviting more investors in the city.
Councilor Bernard Al-ag, the city council’s majority floor leader, said they had discussed with the executive department the increase of the local taxes.
“We are now waiting for a recommendation from the executive department as to how much would the increase be, but we already have a concensus that it is now time to increase the local taxes,” Al-ag said.
The executive department has also created a tax tracking committee to assess the revenue collection of the city and how much increase does the city need to implement.
He said the city can implement a minimal increase for the next 10 years until it reaches the 100 percent increase that the city needs.