By: Dolly Yasa
BACOLOD City – The Sangguniang Panlungsod’s (SP) committee on finance and appropriation has finished its four-day budget deliberations.
Bacolod City Councilor Cindy Rojas, finance committee chair, said almost all of the city’s departments got funding increase in 2020.
The City Health Office got P169 million, the Bacolod City College with P59 million, and the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office with P19.5 million.
The Department of Social Services and Development got P78 million in funds, while the Bacolod City Police Office has P8 million.
The proposed budget for 2020 is P3 billion, with 52 percent of the funds taken from local taxes, while another 48 percent from the internal revenue allotment.
Mayor Evelio Leonardia also called the 2020 proposed budget a “breakthrough” as Bacolod has finally breached the PHP3-billion mark, and for the first time, more than half of the budget or 52 percent is sourced from local funds.
In the proposed budget for 2020, only 48 percent will be sourced from the city’s IRA share, he said.
The 2020 budget is 19 percent higher compared to PHP2.52 billion in 2019.