EVEN as Cebu City lawmakers are pushing for penalty waivers to help typhoon-hit businesses recover, the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) says granting tax relief needs an ordinance for it to be implemented.
This prompted a counter proposal from the CTO for a “sales adjustment” scheme instead.
The proposal came after the City Council approved a resolution urging Mayor Nestor Archival to order the waiver of penalties, surcharges and other fees for businesses affected by typhoon Tino, which struck the city on Nov. 4, 2025 and forced many establishments to suspend operations.
In a letter dated Nov. 27 and addressed to the City Council, the CTO said it could not unilaterally grant waivers without a duly enacted ordinance.
CTO officer-in-charge Emma Villarete cited Section 192 of the Local Government Code and its implementing rules, which require legislative authorization for any tax exemptions or relief.
Instead, the CTO proposed treating businesses in typhoon-hit barangays as having reduced or “no sales” from Nov. 4 to Dec. 31, with the adjusted figures to be used as the basis for computing business taxes and fees during permit renewals in 2026.
While expressing sympathy for affected business owners, the CTO said granting a blanket waiver of penalties and surcharges would be unfair to taxpayers who paid their obligations on time, adding that penalties imposed before typhoon Tino struck were already in effect under existing rules.
Villarete explained that a sales adjustment means the business’s gross receipts will be lower because there were days or even months when it was unable to operate due to the typhoon. As a result, lower declared sales would translate to lower taxes and fees to be paid.
She said this was their counterproposal to calls for a waiver of penalties, which the CTO cannot grant since the deadline for payment had already lapsed.
Villarete pointed out that businesses which opted to pay taxes through quarterly installments for 2025 were required to settle their fourth-quarter installment by Oct. 21.
Failure to pay by the deadline resulted in the automatic imposition of penalties and interest starting Oct. 22, prior to the onslaught of typhoon Tino.
She stressed that City Hall may consider a lower gross sales declaration during the renewal of business permits next year, noting that taxes and fees are based on the preceding year’s performance.
Resolution
Councilor Pastor “Jun” Alcover Jr., author of the measure, said the resolution forms part of the City’s broader post-disaster recovery effort aimed at reviving commerce and employment in typhoon-hit communities.
Under Alcover’s proposal, the Office of the Mayor would direct the CTO to implement a waiver program to ease the financial burden on business owners struggling to resume operations.
“This move will allow affected business owners to get back on their feet faster,” Alcover said, noting that typhoon Tino caused widespread damage to properties, destroyed inventories and forced the temporary closure of businesses in several barangays.
The resolution also cited the earlier declaration of a state of calamity in Cebu City, which enabled the local government to roll out immediate relief, recovery and rehabilitation measures.
As a legal basis, the measure invoked Section 192 of Republic Act 7160, which allows local government units to grant tax exemptions, incentives, or relief when public interest requires it.
However, such relief generally takes effect in the following calendar year and may be granted for a period not exceeding 12 months.
The resolution did not specify the number of affected establishments. Cebu City has more than 50,000 registered businesses, with permit renewals typically conducted in January.
A list earlier submitted by the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office identified the typhoon Tino-affected barangays as Adlaon, Agsungot, Babag, Bacayan, Binaliw, Bonbon, Budlaan, Buot-Taup, Busay, Cambinocot, Guba, Kalunasan, Lusaran, Mabini, Pamutan, Paril, Pit-os, Pulangbato, Sapangdaku, Sinsin, Sirao, Sudlon 1, Sudlon 2, Tabunan, Tagbao, Taptap and Toong. / CAV