CEBU CITY, Cebu, March 8 (PIA) -- The Mandanas-Garcia Ruling of the Supreme Court, which started its implementation this year, will bring a significant increase in the budget allocation of the local government units (LGUs).

This after the ruling mandated that LGUs shall also receive a share from the national taxes aside from the national internal revenue taxes collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

The LGUs will now get a portion from the tax collections of the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and other collecting agencies.

According to the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), there will be a 38% increase in the national tax allotment for LGUs, from P695 billion in 2021 to P959 billion in 2022.

The said funding will be distributed to different LGUs in the country as they will get further resources from the national government that will be used to implement developmental projects for the benefit of their constituents.

During his DYLA Cebu Newsbreak radio program interview on March 7, NEDA-7 Senior Economic Development Specialist Carlo Gabriel Simbahon emphasized that this adjustment in the budget of the LGUs has a big implication especially on how they will operate their basic programs and services.

"This additional resources nga makuha sa atong mga LGUs will also bring them additional functions and responsibilities to implement various projects, plus there is also an additional expectation from the people, so kinahanglan gyud magamit og tarong sa LGUs ang (so the LGUs should utilize properly the) budget to also address their visions and plans,” Simbahon said.

He also stressed that the increase in the budget will provide more capabilities for the LGUs to establish well-planned projects and other interventions in the community, as several functions and responsibilities of the national government agencies will be transferred to them.

Among the functions that will be devolved to the LGUs are the local infrastructure services handled by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

The additional funding will be used as the provincial government will now be in charge of the development of provincial roads and bridges, waterworks and drainage, and controlled reclamation projects.

The municipal government will now also be tasked for the municipal road projects, water supply system, and facilities related to hygiene and sanitations while the barangays will now take part in the maintenance of the barangay roads and bridges.

The added financial resources will also be used by the LGUs for the procurement of equipment and medicines, construction of health facilities to improve the health services, and for the hiring of additional personnel who will work on the different projects, programs, and services. (RGC/PIA7)