• CHERYL G. CRUZ
Mayor Greg Gasataya has ordered all 61 barangays of Bacolod to stop assessing or collecting “barangay business tax” or other business-related exaction, except the levy on stores or retailers with gross sales not exceeding P50,000.
In Executive Order 08-2026, Gasataya also mandated barangays to cease-and-desist from imposing or collecting any barangay clearance fee or similar charge based on, or tied to gross sales/receipts or capital investment.
Inconsistent barangay revenue ordinances or fee schedules should be amended or repealed to ensure lawful collections, the EO stressed.
“Nagapahanumdom kita sa aton mga barangay officials nga sa idalom sang Section 152 sang Local Government Code (LGC), puwede lang makasukot sang tax sa mga negosyo nga may income nga P50,000 panubo kada tuig, sa rate nga indi magsobra sa one percent,” Gasataya said in a post last night, April 16.
“Nagapangabay kita sa aton mga kabarangayan nga ululupod kita nga magbinuligay sa pagpasanyog sa aton ekonomiya, labi na guid sa pagprotekta sa aton business sector nga nagahatag sang palangabuhian kag negosyo sa aton pumulyo sa pihak sang krisis nga aton gina atubang,” he added.
The mayor said the city government has received complaints from the business sector that certain barangays have been assessing and collecting from the public and from applicants for barangay business clearance the so-called “barangay business taxes”, or similar exactions beyond legal authority, and/or barangay clearance fees computed using gross sales/receipts as a prerequisite in business permitting.
The EO said that under Section 152(a) of the LGC, a barangay may impose a tax only on stores or retailers with fixed business establishments, with gross sales or receipts of the preceding calendar year of P50,000 or less, at a rate not exceeding one percent on such receipts.
Gasataya explained that “what the EO prohibits are any business-related exactions beyond Section 152(a)…and any barangay clearance fee, or similar charge, computed using gross sales/receipts, or capital investment, including those structured through sales-based brackets or percentage schemes.”
This EO is issued primarily as a general advisory and guidance to barangay officials to ensure uniform adherence to law, protect the public, and help relieve barangay officials and personnel from avoidable exposure to complaints arising from continued collection of unauthorized exactions, he added. | CGC
