The City Council, during last Monday’s regular session, created a task force to resolve and undertake the legal process for the cancellation of tax declarations of properties registered in the Tuba municipal assessor’s office but located in the city.
Under Resolution No. 548, series of 2020, signed by Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong, city legislators stated that the subsequent registration of the same properties for taxation purposes in the City Assessor’s Office shall also be facilitated by the task force.
The council added that the chairperson of the City Council Committee on Urban Planning, Lands and Housing shall head of the task force while the members will be the City General Services Officer, City Assessor, City Legal Officer, Tuba Municipal Assessor and Tuba Municipal Legal Officer.
The council stipulated a task force is necessary to come up with the required legal process that will undertake the rightful registration of the properties for taxation purposes in the city.
According to the council, there is an immediate necessity to register the properties earlier registered in Tuba, Benguet but are located in Baguio city in the City Assessor’s Office.
Earlier, Tuba Municipal Assessor Engr. Noel G. Tomin, upon invitation of the city legislative body, confirmed there are properties located in the city but are tax-declared and registered in Tuba.
He claimed Tuba Mayor Clarita Sal-ongan expressed her concern on the aforesaid matter and extended her full support and cooperation in resolving the matter to the best interest of both the neighboring local government units.
The council admitted the double tax declarations of the same properties are reportedly depriving the city government tax revenues that is also sowing confusion and are being used by unscrupulous persons to sell properties to any interested purchasers, especially those individuals wanting to own properties in the city and nearby localities.
The council directed the task force to immediately convene and undertake the required processes to ensure that properties within the metes and bounds of Baguio and Tuba will be rightfully declared and registered with the appropriate local government to prevent the double declaration and registration of the same.
The Tuba municipal assessor also vowed to cooperate with the task force to facilitate the smooth transfer of the list of properties supposedly within the jurisdiction of Baguio but are tax-declared and registered in the municipality to prevent the occurrence of double declaration and registration which is being used by unscrupulous individuals to sell.
The task force committed to immediately complete the legal process the soonest, especially that the payment of real property taxes pursuant to the Local Government Code is fast approaching so that both local government will be able to receive what is due them. By Dexter A. See