By Tara Yap
ILOILO CITY — The Department of Finance (DOF) is urging local government units (LGUs) across Western Visayas to support the reform program for property valuation.
A high vantage point of downtown Iloilo City, the regional capital of Western Visayas. The Department of Finance (DOF) is urging local governments in the region to support the reform program for real property valuation. (Tara Yap/Manila Bulletin)
“What we want to do is (to) standardize real property transactions. Right now, there are more than 20 agencies and even LGUs conducting their own valuations,” said DOF Assistant Secretary Tony Lambino II.
In an interview with Manila Bulletin, Lambino underscored the importance of changing the valuation process to avert delays of government projects, at the same time generating more income for LGUs.
The DOF previously found that provincial and city LGUs were losing about P30 billion in revenues by using the outdated Schedule of Market Values (SMVs) of real properties.
Lambino noted that the Duterte administration’s third package for tax reform aims to depoliticize the SMVs updating, which should be done every three years.
Under the new setup, the DOF’s Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) will be the approving agency. Values of properties will first be computed by an LGU’s assessor then submitted to BLGF.
Herminigilda Garsula, acting BLGF Western Visayas regional director, said the property valuation reform program can only be fully implemented once the law is passed.
A House of Representatives Committee has approved a consolidated bill last month, but a counterpart bill in the Senate is still pending.
A high vantage point of downtown Iloilo City, the regional capital of Western Visayas. The Department of Finance (DOF) is urging local governments in the region to support the reform program for real property valuation. (Tara Yap/Manila Bulletin)
“What we want to do is (to) standardize real property transactions. Right now, there are more than 20 agencies and even LGUs conducting their own valuations,” said DOF Assistant Secretary Tony Lambino II.
In an interview with Manila Bulletin, Lambino underscored the importance of changing the valuation process to avert delays of government projects, at the same time generating more income for LGUs.
The DOF previously found that provincial and city LGUs were losing about P30 billion in revenues by using the outdated Schedule of Market Values (SMVs) of real properties.
Lambino noted that the Duterte administration’s third package for tax reform aims to depoliticize the SMVs updating, which should be done every three years.
Under the new setup, the DOF’s Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) will be the approving agency. Values of properties will first be computed by an LGU’s assessor then submitted to BLGF.
Herminigilda Garsula, acting BLGF Western Visayas regional director, said the property valuation reform program can only be fully implemented once the law is passed.
A House of Representatives Committee has approved a consolidated bill last month, but a counterpart bill in the Senate is still pending.