The highly-urbanized Bacolod City and the province of Negros Occidental will have higher annual budgetary allocations for 2024 with the increase in their respective National Tax Allotment (NTA) shares.

From P3.25 billion in 2023, Bacolod will have a total appropriation of P3.6 billion next year, while Negros Occidental will have a budget of P5.43 billion in 2024, from only P5.14 billion this year.

The city’s 2024 budget is higher by P350 million, or about 9.7 percent, than the current budget of P3.25 billion, which was just the same in 2022 due to the cut in the NTA share.

Councilor Jude Thaddeus Sayson, chair of the committee on appropriations and finance, said yesterday that the annual 2024 budget, approved on Wednesday afternoon, December 13, includes an increase in allocation for social services.

“Social services have a substantial budget. The mayor [Alfredo Abelardo Benitez] emphasized his promise for the senior citizens, persons with disability, and health services,” he said in an interview.

In 2023, Bacolod only had an NTA share of P1.85 billion. Next year, it will receive P1.97 billion, comprising 55 percent of the total budget, while 45 percent or P1.63 billion will come from local sources.

Benitez said in his budget message that 36 percent, or P1.32 billion, has been earmarked for general public services, comprising the executive and legislative services.

The allocation for the social services sector is P1.24 billion or 34.61 percent, mainly for education and manpower development, health services, housing and community projects, and social welfare.

Some P710 million, or 19.73 percent, is for other services, and P317.9 million, or 8.83 percent, for economic services.

“By prioritizing our commitment to the city and our constituents, our efforts at providing basic services, improved public use facilities, and development projects have remained uninterrupted and unwavering,” Benitez said.

In Negros Occidental, the P5.43 billion annual budget for next year, which was approved by the provincial board last week, has an increase of 5.66 percent from this year’s P5.14 billion due to its higher NTA share.

The lower NTA share reduced the province’s 2023 annual budget by 12.87 percent, or about P780 million, from P5.908 billion in 2022.

Of the total P5.43 billion allocation for 2024, some P5.24 million will be for the general fund and P190 million for the Economic Enterprise Development Department. (PNA)