P5 B cash in bank for Baguio’s priority development projects

The City Treasury Office announced that the local government has more than P5.047 billion in bank which had already been appropriated for the implementation of priority development projects, personal services, and delivery of basic services.
City Treasurer Alex Cabarrubias said that of the amount, more than P4.2B has been classified under general fund, approximately P120 million has been classified under the city’s special education fund, and more than P661M has been considered as the local government’s trust fund.
He said that the local government’s funds are deposited in the different depository banks of the city that include the Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, and Philippine Veterans Bank. 
Among the items included in the city’s general fund are budget earmarked by the local government for personal services, maintenance and operating expenses, capital outlay, the 20 percent local development fund, and  the five percent local disaster risk reduction fund.
The local government derives its funds from externally and internally generated revenue sources that range from its internal revenue allotment, collection from the implementation of local revenue measures, and fees that are levied on services and the city’ share from the operation of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.
 Cabarrubias said that the local government is in a good financial position because it has no outstanding debt with any financial lending institution coupled with the fact that the City Treasury Office is always able to exceed its income collection target annually despite the non-increase of taxes for over two decades now.
 However, he admitted that the excess in the city treasury’s tax collection efforts is not sufficient to fund the high impact development projects and contribute in the efforts of the local government to further improve the delivery of basic services to the city’s constituents. – PIO release