Shorter wait for barangays to get community tax share

Barangays may soon be able to immediately appropriate and utilize their share in community tax collections for the provision of basic services to the people without having to wait for long periods for remittance of such share from the municipal or city government.

This as the Committee on Local Government under Rep. Emilio Macias II of the 2nd district of Oriental Negros decided recently to consolidate the three bills that seek for the automatic retention by the barangay of its 50 percent share in the community tax it collects.

Association of Barangay Council-Cebu City vice president Sisinio Andales, in an interview, told The FREEMAN that the bills, in effect, propose to amend Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991.

The measures are House Bills 106, 355 and 5324, filed by Reps. Juan Edgardo Angara (Aurora), Roseller Barinaga (2nd district, Zamboanga del Norte) and Iggy Arroyo (5th district, Negros Occidental), respectively.

Andales, who is a lawyer by profession, supported the move of the bills since barangays can efficiently and effectively provide and deliver the basic services and facilities to constituents if the share in community tax collections be directed to them.

The barangay's daily collection from the barangay community tax collections or clearances is immediately remitted to the city treasurer's office, and that it would take at least two months before the share is released to the barangay.

In pushing for the passage of bills, the authors underscored the need to amend Section 164 of RA 7160 to "expressly provide when the barangay gets to enjoy its share of the community tax collections."

Section 164 of RA 7160 provides, among others, that proceeds of the community tax collected through the barangay treasurers shall be apportioned as follows - 50 percent to the general fund of the city or municipality concerned; and the other 50 percent to the barangay where tax is collected.

The authors averred that the provision of the law is silent as to when the barangay shall receive its share in the community tax collections. In practice, they said the city or municipality concerned releases to the barangay its share only when the latter asks for it. - Garry B. Lao