Local officials in Negros Occidental are looking forward to the increase of its share from the National Tax Allotment (NTA).
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said it is a big help, especially in the small towns and cities.
"It is a recognition of the role of the local government unit in nation-building. I hope it is in addition to What the Mandanas-Garcia ruling benefited the LGUs," Lacson said.
Victorias City Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez, president of the Association of Chief Executive-Negros, said "it is very positive."
"As you know there is a devolution and transition plan. There should also be a devolution of funds as there are devolved functions," Benitez pointed out.
The mayor said that he has talked to some mayors and they are supporting it because that is a promise of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his first months in office.
House Speaker Martin Romualdez in his message during the 2024 League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) General Assembly on February 27 in Pasay Citysaid that upon the directive of President Marcos, the House of Representatives is working to provide local government units with a bigger share of the national budget to support their development efforts.
Romualdez said a budget hike will allow LGUs to foster local development projects.
The NTA automatically appropriated a share of local government units, aggregately corresponding to 40 percent of the national taxes based on the collection of the third fiscal year preceding the current fiscal year.*