Tacloban council approves P1.41-B 2019 budget

TACLOBAN CITY, Dec. 25  -- The city council here has approved without modification the 2019 proposed PHP1.41-billion budget, as submitted by Mayor Cristina Romualdez.

The approved budget is slightly higher than the 2018 budget. The funding is mainly sourced from the city’s internal revenue allotment (IRA) and income generated from its various local sources.

Dolores Tan, officer-in-charge of the City Budget Office, said in a phone interview on Monday that the city remains to be slightly dependent on its IRA share from the national government.

Of the total, PHP720.511 million or 56 percent will be sourced from the city’s IRA share. About 54 percent or about PHP696.11 million will come from local sources.

“This is the second time that we will be having over a PHP1 billion city budget (after the onslaught of Super Typhoon Yolanda),” Tan said.

The current 2018 annual budget is about PHP1.4 billion, which is slightly higher by a percent from the recently-approved 2019 city budget.

Under the 2019 budget, allocation for maintenance and other operating expenses got 42 percent or in the amount of PHP598.35 million.

This was followed by allocation for personnel services amounting to PHP484.32 million, which accounts for 34 percent of the total.

About PHP263.77 million was earmarked for capital outlay or about 19 percent under the 2019 budget.

Under the allocation for capital outlay, about PHP2 million was set aside for the flood control program; PHP21 million for the citywide development program; and PHP4.14 million for the acquisition of vehicles, among others.

The city government also set aside PHP158.59 million for the economic development fund.

Meanwhile, about PHP 70.87 million was allotted for the calamity fund and PHP138,000 for aid to villages.

The City Mayor’s Office, under the 2019 budget, has an allocation of PHP187.45 million, which is relatively higher compared to the current budget of PHP186.81 million.

The 2019 allocation include funding for clean and green activities (PHP2 million); anti-drug abuse campaign (PHP9.9 million); health-related programs (PHP15 million); and livelihood programs (PHP9.13 million), among others.

The Sangguniang Panglungsod or the city council has an approved budget of PHP78.23 million for next year, higher than the current PHP60.38 million. (LAAA/PNA)