By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) of Bacolod City has yet to pass the third and final reading of the city’s proposed P3 billion budget for 2020.

During the SP’s session on Monday, some of the members of the council were worried if the city can come up with this budget since more than half of it will come from local funds, real property tax and business registrations, equivalent to 52 percent.

Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia said one factor that could help reach the budget for next year is the updating of the “tax code.”

He explained that he has received reports that Bacolod’s tax code is cheaper compared to other cities in Negros Occidental.

“It is really a very cheap city to deal with, which is also not healthy,” Leonardia pointed out.

Leonardia further stated if the city needs to be in line of good governance, the price should be reasonable and realistic.

“The alternative is to improve our collection efforts, our efficiency and our effectiveness, because we can compensate for it,” he pointed out.

City Treasurer Giovanni Balalilhe recommended that the city will have to be efficient in terms of the tax collection.

He pointed out it must conduct inspection in the establishments that has no business permit; auction the delinquent stall owners in the city’s public markets; collection of arrears in real property tax; and tax contractors based outside of Bacolod like the SM, Ayala, among others.

Earlier this year, the city’s Internal Revenue Allotment is P1.4 million but this constitutesonly 45 percent of the total proposed budget./DGB, WDJ