The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) cited the Angeles City local government unit under Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr.’s leadership for its “Good Financial Housekeeping” (GFH) in 2023.
The Angeles City LGU is among the 13 cities in Central Luzon given this recognition.
The list of GFH passers in 2023 signed by Bureau of Local Government Supervision Director Debbie Torres also includes six provinces in Central Luzon namely Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, and Tarlac.
A GHF seal meant that local governments passed the reporting guidelines of the Commission of Audit (COA) and declared their financial reports online and in conspicuous places in communities, according to the Full Disclosure Policy (FDP).
To be eligible for the GFH seal, an LGU must receive either an unqualified or qualified opinion from COA in its latest audit. It must also comply with the FDP, which involves the posting of financial documents in three conspicuous places, and in the FDP portal for all quarters of the previous years.
Mayor Lazatin maintains transparency in the financial standing of Angeles City, which collected nearly P3 billion revenues for 2023. For Fiscal Year 2023, it posted an actual income of P2,918,483,023.43 in local and external sources as the local economy registered a year-on-year increase.
Angeles City also recorded local sources of revenues amounting to P1,414,534,901.95 and external sources of revenues amounting to P1,503,948,121.48 for a total of P2,918,483,023.43, based on the report of the City Treasurer Jenifer Castro.
The year-on-year increase in revenues of Angeles City is anchored in the efficient tax collection scheme of Mayor Lazatin, who kept his promise not to increase local taxes in the wake of the pandemic.