Regional budget and management officials reported that there has been a 14.47 percent reduction in the national tax allocation (NATA), formerly internal revenue allotment, for all local governments in the country that will take effect next year.
In the case of the city, the Cordillera office of the Department of Budget Management officials disclosed that the projected NATA reduction will translate to P240,394,930 decrease from the current NATA of P1,661,344,644.00.
The basis for the said allotment is the third preceding fiscal year which is year 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the economy of the country.
It is expected that for the next few years, there will still be a decrease in the shares of all local government units so it is strongly recommended for LGUs to spend within their means, invest in right priorities and deliver measurable results despite this downward traction in LGU shares.
Maintenance and Operating Expenses and Capital Outlay of all departments will most likely be affected so departments are advised to prioritize their programs, projects and activities and closely review their mandates to ensure that major final outputs of all offices will be achieved given a limited budget to fund their operations.
Mayor Darwin C. Estra֮nero pointed out that the more than P240 million reduction in the local government’s NATA next year will definitely have a serious negative impact on the flagship programs, projects and activities that have been lined up for implementation.
However, he admitted that the city government will have to work on the available NATA that will be provided by the national government and increase the internally generated resources to be able to cope up with the difficult situation as reduced NATA will surely extend for a number of years until the country’s situation will improve.
The city chief executive pointed out that local governments will have to be resilient and innovative to be able to recover whatever losses that may be incurred with the NATA reduction to be able to sustain the city’s growth and development in the future. By Eisenhower Bucalen
