BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Negros Occidental is getting a reduction in its National Tax Allotment (NTA), formerly known as the Internal Revenue Allotment, by more than P100 million, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson disclosed yesterday.
This is because the Department of Budget and Management cited the 2020 census of population as basis for the NTA reduction, Lacson said.
“Many of us in the League of Provinces of the Philippines were affected. So there is a move right now to return, if possible, to the 2015 census. At least we can regain that P100 million,” he added.
As of this time, Lacson said there is no definite figure yet for the NTA of Negros Occidental.
The provincial government of Negros Occidental is now finalizing its proposed 2022 budget, based on the NTA it will receive from the national government.
But Lacson said earlier that the proposed budget may be increased from P4 billion to P5 billion next year, because of the Mandanas ruling.
In 2018, the Supreme Court granted and reaffirmed a year later the petitions of Batangas Gov. Hermilando Mandanas and former Bataan Gov. Enrique Garcia Jr., which stated that the local governments’ IRA should come from 40 percent of the collection of all national taxes—the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) tax take—as well as the Bureau of Customs’ (BOC) collections of import duties and other taxes.
While Negros Occidental is getting an increase of not less that P1 billion in NTA starting next year because of the implementation of the Mandanas ruling, Lacson said they will still be fighting to prevent the P100 million reduction.
Asked if there are still remaining logistics for use by the provincial government in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic, Lacson said they still have funds up to the end of 2021.
Lacson added that he issued an order to make sure that necessary medicines, which are now becoming scarce, are available.*
