• CHERYL G. CRUZ
Mayor Alfredo Benitez said Sept. 4 that next year’s proposed budget is P4.4 billion, or an increase of P800 million from the current P3.6 billion appropriation.
Benitez, who led the 2025 budget deliberation in Bangkok, Thailand, along with several councilors, department heads, other city officials, and Bacolod Rep. Greg Gasataya, from Aug. 30 to Sept. 2, said he will submit the Local Expenditure Program to the Sangguniang Panlungsod by end of this month, or first week of October.
He said the Social Services sector will remain as top priority, adding there will be budget increases for the Bacolod City Comprehensive Health Program (BacCHP) implementation; the Bayad Agad, or the expedited release of financial assistance to individuals in crisis, like fire and typhoon survivors; and burial assistance.
This year, the Social Services sector has been allocated P1.24 billion, or 34.61 percent of the budget pie.
Benitez said the National Tax Allotment (NTA) share for 2025 is around P2.2 billion, from P1.97 billion this year.
He said the increase in next year’s budget was because of the city’s extensive focus on revenue generation, adding that tax mapping activities continue as well as other revenue generating measures.
Forty-five percent, or P1.63 billion of this year’s appropriation, came from local sources.
Tax mapping refers to the “adoption of a generalized and unitary system of appraisal and assessment of real property for tax purposes,” the city said, adding the program aims to ensure a consistent and strengthened system of tax collection. | CGC
