• THERESA MAE DULMAN
Bacolod Mayor Greg Gasataya has officially directed all barangays in Bacolod City to immediately cease and desist from assessing or collecting unauthorized business taxes and related exactions.
The Executive Order No. 08, Series of 2026 was prompted by complaints from the business sector regarding certain barangays imposing fees and taxes that exceed their legal authority.
City Administrator Atty. Mark Steven Mayo said the directive seeks to prevent local officials from exceeding their legal authority and to protect them from potential liability exposure.
Mayo warned that while some officials justify their collections through barangay ordinances, they could still face lawsuits if those ordinances are later declared void or unconstitutional.
He said criminal and administrative liabilities may arise depending on the complainant’s actions, but since administrative liability is a certainty, this executive order was issued to prevent such a scenario.
Mayo said that several business establishments are currently struggling with unauthorized fees, particularly instances where barangays impose business taxes based on gross sales.
He said that since the city government already collects these taxes, any additional levy by the barangay constitutes double taxation.
“The bottom line is that the barangays do not actually have the authority to collect that; hence, that is why there is an executive order reminding and urging them not to exceed what is only authorized for them under the law,” he said.*
