LGUs granted extension to meet BuB requirements

THE BUDGET department has extended the period for local government units (LGUs) to comply with requirements set in order to tap funds allocated under the government’s bottom-up budgeting (BuB) program.

The agency through Joint Memorandum Circular No. 6-A allows the provisional release of BuB funds to towns and cities, provided that they meet the standards required of them by end-September this year. The original deadline was set on March 2015.

The circular was jointly signed by the heads of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the National Anti-Poverty Commission, which covers fund allocations under the 2015 national budget.

LGUs must secure good governance conditions as certified by the national government before they can access additional funding through the BuB scheme, where local governments, civil society and community organizations identify and propose poverty reduction programs that may be funded by the national government.

LGUs can tap as much as P20 million for a poverty reduction project within their locale each year since it was launched in 2013 by outgoing Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad.

However, incoming Budget chief Benjamin E. Diokno said in a television interview that the BuB was merely used as a “political tool” under the Aquino administration.

Should an LGU fail to achieve the requirements outlined under the BuB program by the end of the third quarter, the funds for the local projects will be released either to the provincial government where the area is located, or to a concerned participating agency for implementation, the circular read.

However, the province that will receive the funds must also meet the Good Financial Housekeeping standard required of any LGU, as well as a letter expressing their “willingness” to carry out the project for the concerned city or municipality.

The Budget department allocated P24.7 billion for BuB projects under the P3.002-trillion national budget this year, with plans to raise the allocation to P35 billion in 2017. -- M.L.T. Lopez

source:  Businessworld

PNoy men face raps for misused P800B

Outgoing officials of the Aquino administration may be charged with technical malversation over unreleased Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) amounting to P800 billion for Local Government Units (LGUs), Batangas Gov. Hermilando “Dodo” Mandanas said.

Named as respondents in the case submitted for resolution were Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr., the National Treasurer and chiefs of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and Bureau of Customs (BOC). According to Mandanas, they were involved in approving the release of the IRA but allegedly withheld and misused part of it for national government programs, instead of automatically releasing the entire amount to the LGUs in accordance with the law.

“But all of them will say they’re just following orders, just like [in the case of] the DAP [Disbursement Acceleration Program]. The Executive Secretary [Ochoa] is included in the case because you cannot sue the President [Benigno Aquino 3rd]. He [Ochoa] has agreed with me that it has to be paid. He knew it because he was a former city administrator of Quezon City [Metro Manila],” Mandanas told The Manila Times after he spoke with town mayors during the League of Municipalities of the Philippines’ (LMP) executive committee meeting on Friday night at the New World Hotel in Makati City (also in Metro Manila).

“The money really belongs to the local government units and knowingly the national government used the money for their own projects, so using somebody else’s money is technical malversation. It’s really in bad faith,” the Batangas governor explained.

Mandanas, however, said the late Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo could not be held liable for diverting the IRA because the former Cabinet official had agreed that the funds should be given to the LGUs.

Before he was appointed as head of the Department of Interior and Local Government, Robredo had served as long-time mayor of Naga City, Camarines Sur.
He was the husband of Vice President-elect Leni Robredo.

“I did not include him [Robredo] in the case because this guy had good faith. He referred this to the DBM [Department of Budget and Management],” Mandanas said.

The governor filed a case with the Supreme Court on January 10, 2012 while the funds were still at P500 billion.

He said the case has already been submitted for resolution.

The High Court, meanwhile, ordered the automatic release of IRA as sought by Mandanas and former senator Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. in 2003 wherein a total of P60 billion in allotment backpay had been received by the LGUs.

Mandanas, former chairman of the House ways and means committee, said the Aquino administration should recognize in 2016 an increase of approximately P800 billion in IRA for local government units as IRA backpay from 2010 to 2016.

“That amount now which is unreleased in the portion of the just share, right now is already P800 billion, that much. If we want to translate it to what we are supposed to be getting, the national government has been withholding approximately 25 percent of the IRA that should go to us every year,” he told the town mayors.

Mandanas noted that the Internal Revenue Allotment should be released automatically and unconditionally as stated in the 1987 Philippine Constitution.

“As we all know, this is the lifeblood of the local government units. This is the one that really gives life. Without this, we do not have the local autonomy,’ he said.

“The share of the local government units should be 40 percent, according to the Local Government Code,” the Batangas governor added.

When he discovered that there is some P400 billion in unreleased IRA in 2010, Mandanas said he immediately presented this to the House committee and then he was referred by Robredo to Abad where the Budget secretary also agreed but he told him that they will use it instead because the Liberal Party was in power, and this was normally done by past administrations.

“I said to him [Abad] we’re from daang matuwid, we have to give this to the local government units because growth has to be inclusive which means that this has to reach the barangay [villages],” Mandanas said.

Daang matuwid or straight path is the good-governance mantra of the Aquino administration.

Mandanas, also a former member of the ruling Liberal Party, said he was ousted as chairman of the House ways and means committee because he was advocating the automatic release of the IRA and he did not also sign an impeachment complaint against then-Chief Justice Renato Corona.

He said he wants to save the Aquino administration from legal trouble.
If the outgoing President recognizes the law, Mandanas added, he should order the automatic release of the IRA.

“If he [Aquino] recognizes I, then there is good faith, and once there is good faith, then there is no malice. If there is no malice, there is no cause for action,” he said.

Mandanas pressed the Supreme Court to immediately release its decision compelling the outgoing administration to distribute the funding to the local government units before the term of President Aquino expires on June 30.

“We will encourage the SC to release its decision on this, do not be afraid,” he said.
LMP president Leonardo Javier expressed support for Mandanas in his fight to recover the money taken by the national government from the local government units.

“We’re all behind him [Mandanas] now that we realized how important this is for our all-inclusive growth,” Javier, Mayor of Javier town in Leyte province, said in an interview.

He will also encourage other mayors to support this advocacy, he said

“We are going to inform them and will let them join our crusade,” Javier said.

He noted that having a just share of the IRA for the local government units would not only boost autonomy but also inclusive growth in rural areas, especially the poor sectors of the country.

“We will push for this kind of fund because this will not only provide livelihood in the rural areas, it will also help decongest Metro Manila,” he said.

source:  Manila Times

Local government officers’ pay to rise amid increased BuB activity

THE BUDGET department will upgrade the salaries of some local government positions next year, part of an expansion of programs entailing the allocation of more national funds to local government units (LGUs).

In a statement issued yesterday, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) announced the reclassification of some Local Government Operations Officer (LGOO) items under the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“Essentially, this is part of the national government’s overall investment in strengthening LGUs,” Department of Budget and Management Secretary Florencio B. Abad said in the statement. 

“We are supporting the oversight agencies and personnel who will be working with LGUs for the almost P100-billion funds intended for performance-based, direct download programs.” 

The government will reclassify LGOO IV personnel, who function as cluster heads, to LGOO VII positions. The change involves a two-step bump in salary to grade 24.

A cluster head assists a provincial DILG office in operations management, planning and supervision of seven to 15 city or municipal LGOOs.

Meanwhile, LGOO V positions, posted to municipalities, will be reclassified to LGOO VI with a corresponding change in the salary grade to 22 from 20. 

Cluster heads will continue to receive representation and transportation allowances equivalent to what a division chief receives. LGOO VI assigned to municipalities can receive the same allowance given to those in independent and component cities. 

Mr. Abad noted the implementation and eventual expansion of the Bottom-up Budgeting (BuB) and other performance-based programs for LGUs present an additional workload for LGOOs. 

The BuB initiative, first implemented in 2013, provides for a participatory budgetary process by allowing local stakeholders to select priority poverty reduction programs the national government will fund.

The DBM is setting aside P35 billion of next year’s P3.35-trillion national budget for BuB projects. This marks a 42% increase from the P24.7 billion programmed this year, as the government expands the program to cover 12,000 barangays initially.

LGOOs are expected to generate baseline conditions in the first-wave barangays, assist in project development, initiate monitoring and risk management, and complete four visits per project for no less than 30% of barangays per municipality.

In 2012, LGOOs provided technical assistance on project development and monitoring to 573 projects. In 2015, the number ballooned to 17,623 projects under the DILG and other national government agencies. 

“The performance management part of their job has become more complex,” Mr. Abad noted. 

“They now have to manage executive-legislative collaboration, and their monitoring and reporting requirements have multiplied, such as inter-agency requirements, program performance, and risk management. In addition, they now also ensure that CSO (civil society organization) assemblies and forums for BuB are convened.” -- Keith Richard D. Mariano

source:  Businessworld

Oceana Philippines calls for stronger protection measure for Tañon Strait

MOST local government units (LGUs) within the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS) still do not have an updated or long-term Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) and Integrated Coastal Resource Management Plan (ICRMP), an ocean-conservation advocacy group said.

Oceana Philippines is calling on LGUs that share jurisdiction over the 521,000-hectare protected seascape between the provinces of Cebu and Negros to come up with CLUPs and ICRMP to strengthen the Tañon Strait against destructive human activities.

While crafting their CLUPs and ICRMP, LGUs should also declare a moratorium on development projects that threaten one of the country’s most important fishing ground and priority conservation areas, Gloria Estenzo Ramos, vice president of Oceana Philippines, said in an interview.

Tañon Strait, declared as a protected area by virtue of Presidential Proclamation 1234, signed by President Fidel V. Ramos on May 27, 1998, pursuant to RA 7586, or the National Integrated Protected Areas System  Act, is threatened by “unbridled” development and other destructive human activities, such as unchecked commercial-fishing operations until now, she warned.

The proclamation placed the entire Tañon Strait Protected Seascape under the administrative jurisdiction of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). LGUs, according to Ramos, need to do more to help enforce various environmental laws, such as the RA 9147, or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act; and the RA 8550, or the Philippine Fisheries Code.

Destructive development projects, particularly the ones that require massive land reclamation, she added, should be stopped to conserve the Visayas’s most important coastal ecosystem.

“Why are LGUs in charge of protecting the municipal waters are not implementing these laws?  They have no updated or long-term CLUPs.  LGUs should be doing that,” Ramos said.

She added the Office of the Ombudsman should look into the failure of the LGUs to protect the Tañon Strait in the same breadth it is now moving against LGUs that failed to implement the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.

“Unfortunately, Tañon Strait, there are coal-fired power plants, mining, depot of oil and gas.  Water in Tañon Strait is contaminated with mercury,”  Ramos said.

Oceana Philippines is batting for the approval of the General Management Plan for Tañon Strait (GMPTS) that was crafted by the various stakeholders, led by the DENR Region 7 (Central Visayas) last year.

In an interview, DENR 7 Regional Director Isabelo Montejo said GMPTS for Tanon Strait is now waiting for final approval of the environment  secretary. He expects LGUs to come up with an updated CLUPs and ICRMP to be in harmony with the GMPTS.

According to Oceana Philippines, Tañon Strait is one of the most important habitats for dolphins and whales in the Philippines. Of the 27 dolphins and whales found nationwide, 14 species have been observed in Tañon Strait.

Meanwhile, the DENR is hosting a conference that aims to strengthen efforts toward sustainability of protected areas in the country. Around 200 protected-area managers and stakeholders from LGUs, indigenous communities and civil society are taking part in the conference in Mandaluyong City, from April 26 to 28.

source:  Business Mirror

PPA told: Share largesse with LGUs

The chairman of the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education on Sunday said the state-run Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) should share with provinces, cities and municipalities the income the PPA generates from local shipping port operations.

Rep. Roman Romulo of Pasig City, in a news statement released over the weekend, said local government units (LGUs) could get their slice from the 50-percent portion of the PPA’s annual net income remitted to the National Treasury as cash dividends.

The PPA is one of several state-controlled corporations required by law to declare as dividends and transfer at least 50 percent of its yearly net profits to the National Treasury.

“Thus, the PPA will still get to keep at least 50 percent of its annual net profit for reinvestment in port improvement and expansion,” Romulo said.

“Local governments are entitled to their fair share of the earnings from commercial seaports in their areas,” he said. “Our proposal will not diminish in any way the PPA’s mandate and financial capability to continuously modernize and upgrade public port operations countrywide.”

Romulo added that due to a rapidly growing economy and increased shipping traffic, the PPA has been raking in bigger profits every year. “The PPA posted a net income of P4.26 billion on gross revenue of P12.57 billion in 2014,” he said.

He added that net income was up 15.1 percent, from P3.7 billion in 2013, while gross revenue was up 13.5 percent from P11.07 billion.

“The PPA has yet to report its 2015 figures. However, the agency previously reported a net income of P2.54 billion on gross revenue of P4.45 billion from January to April 2015 alone,” he said.

“Net income was up 22.1 percent, from P2.08 billion in the same four-month period in 2014, while gross revenue was up 20.2 percent, from P3.7 billion,” the lawmaker added.

Attached to the Department of Transportation and Communications, the PPA is especially charged with financing, managing and running public ports.

As such, the agency also collects all the revenue from port activities and services, including those from passenger terminals.

source:  Business Mirror

Local gov’ts struggle to collect share of oil, gas, mining taxes

LOCAL GOVERNMENT units (LGUs) have raised concerns over the delayed release of their share in state revenue from mining, oil and gas companies.

In an e-mailed statement dated March 1, Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, Inc. (ULAP) Executive Director Czarina Medina-Guce said “there are accounts that... LGUs [are experiencing] delays in the receipt of their shares and, in some cases, LGUs do not receive any share at all.”

ULAP has recorded cases of delayed remittance during a road show conducted for the Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (PH-EITI) in the Caraga Region, Palawan, Cebu, Davao and National Capital Region from July 15 to Aug. 20 last year.

“In the documentation report made by ULAP, participants from all the areas covered by the road show raised the said issue on the delay in the release of LGU shares,” Ms. Medina-Guce said.

“Furthermore, the road show also identified the following LGUs which have large-scale mining sites which still have not received their LGU shares, but this list is definitely not encompassing of all LGUs experiencing this difficulty.”

The province of Siquijor, for one, has received no share from the national government’s mining revenues for the last 20 years while MacArthur, Leyte has waited for such funds since 2012, Ms. Medina-Guce said.

Ms. Medina-Guce also cited Cantilan, Surigao del Sur, the province of Palawan, Guian, Samar and all municipalities of Dinagat Islands as experiencing delays in the receipt of their share from the national government.

Sec. 290 of Republic Act (RA) No. 7160 or An Act Providing for a Local Government Code of 1991 states that LGUs should receive a 40% share in mining taxes, royalties, forestry and fishery charges, and other similar fees collected in the preceding year.

The law further provides for the automatic release of such funds “without need of any further action... on a quarterly basis within five days after the end of each quarter, and which shall not be subject to any lien or holdback that may be imposed by the national government for whatever purpose.”

“The DBM (Department of Budget and Management) has already [started] implementing this year an easier way to download the shares of LGUs,” Finance Assistant Secretary and PH-EITI Focal Person Ma. Teresa S. Habitan earlier said on the sidelines of the launch of the 2nd PH-EITI Country Report on Feb. 16.

“But we also need to do work on the LGUs concerned so that they will also be able to reflect in their books how much exactly, as a share of revenue, are they receiving as shares in national wealth,” Ms. Habitan added.

According to data collected by the multi-stakeholder initiative, the DBM booked a P684.4-million share for LGUs hosting extractive operations in 2013. The LGUs, however, reported having received P410.38 million only.

Ms. Habitan noted the PH-EITI was unable to reconcile the amounts reported by DBM and LGUs because both had no disaggregated data, which could show the specific source of the mining revenues, for instance.

“As far as the LGUs are concerned, a lot of technical capacity has to be introduced into the way that they are doing the reports and we are only starting to introduce that this year,” Ms. Habitan said.

Citing the PH-EITI report, Ms. Medina-Guce of ULAP also noted that LGUs are unable to determine the portion of their share in the national wealth attributed to mining, oil and gas operations.

“LGUs are not aware where the mining company pays taxes. Some mining companies pay directly to Large Taxpayers Assistance Division of the Bureau of Internal Revenue in Manila, so release of share is to the head offices,” Ms. Medina-Guce added.

To tackle delays in remitting the share of LGUs, Nickel Asia Corp. President and Chief Executive Officer Gerard H. Brimo said LGUs should receive payments directly from mining, oil and gas companies.

“Why should the local government unit wait for a year or two to get their share of the funds? That certainly should be a feature of the new mining tax regime,” Mr. Brimo, who represents the mining industry in the PH-EITI multi-stakeholder group, said during a press conference held for the 2nd PH-EITI Country Report’s launch.

Ms. Medina-Guce said the delayed release of the LGU share in the national government’s mining revenues could impact service delivery and pose social costs.

“The shares from extractive industries are important to LGUs given that these shares are utilized to finance their local development and livelihood projects for their constituents especially for those affected by extractive industries,” Ms. Medina-Guce said.

source:  Businessworld

Local gov’t units urged to protect 415 caves

Local government units and concerned agencies are required to protect 415 caves which have been recently classified to preserve and ensure their sustainable use, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said.

“As with other natural resources, caves are natural treasures that we need to protect for the future generations, because they are important wildlife habitats and possess significant geological, cultural, historical and archaeological values,” Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said.

DENR Memorandum Circular 2015-08 has classified an additional 51 caves to guide communities on their responsible management.

It is pursuant to Republic Act 9072, also known as the National Caves and Cave Resources Management and Protection Act, that tasks the DENR to formulate, develop and implement a cave management program to conserve and protect the country’s cave resources.

“This circular will guide the DENR, particularly the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), and other concerned agencies and offices, including local government units on how to use our caves and cave resources appropriately,” Paje added.

Earlier, 354 caves had already been classified by the agency according to their characteristics.

Of the 51 newly classified caves, six are in the Ilocos region (Region I); nine in CALABARZON Region (Region 4A); 19 in the Davao region (Region 11); three in South Central Mindanao (Region 12); 14 in the Caraga Region (Region 13).

Seven were categorized as Class I for their delicate and fragile geological formations and threatened species. These include the Nical Cave in Dasol, Pangasinan; the Sung Wan and Kaping Caves in Tayabas City, Quezon; and the Burial Cave in Caraga, Davao Oriental.
Class I caves are limited to mapping, photography, educational and scientific purposes, and are closed for ecotourism activities.

The memo circular also categorized 36 Class II caves. These have sections with hazardous
conditions and high quality ecosystems that are highly sensitive to human activities, making it necessary to close these sections either seasonally or permanently except for experienced cavers and guided tours or visits.

Class II caves, meanwhile; include the Capilan Bat Cave in Sultan Kudara, Licup Cave in Samal Island, Davao, and Guano Cave in Bangui, Ilocos Norte.

Class III caves has no known threatened species within them or significant archaeological, geological, natural history, cultural and historical values. Such caves are open to inexperienced yet guided visitors. They may also open to guano extractors and birds’ nest collectors, if any.

Eight caves were categorized as Class III, which include Balite Cave in Samal Island, and six Punta Diwata Caves in Carmen City, Agusan del Norte.

With the classification, BMB personnel in the respective DENR field offices will coordinate with the Protected Area Management Board, concerned local government unit or land owner in the preparation and implementation of a management plan on related activities within the caves.

source:  Manila Times