Makati on track to hit 2019 revenue target of P17.1B

MANILA, Philippines — Despite being warned by the Commission on Audit for failing to collect billions of pesos in property taxes last year, the Makati City government has already met 83 percent of its annual revenue target of P17.1 billion as of last month.

Based on the report of city treasurer Jesusa Cuneta, Makati’s revenue collection totaled over P14.2 billion on July 30. The bulk came from business taxes amounting to P7.8 billion, and real property taxes worth P4.8 billion.

The city has also derived income from other sources, including fees and charges (P627.9 million), economic enterprises (P95.9 million), interest income (P142.6 million) and Internal Revenue Allotment (P691.8 million).

According to the city’s Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO), 3,466 new businesses were registered as of Aug. 22, with a combined capital investment totaling P34 billion.

A totsl of 34,755 others renewed their business permits, with combined gross sales of P1.4 trillion.

Earlier this month, Mayor Abby Binay was lauded by members of the Makati Business Club for the city government’s competitiveness, particularly in the processing and issuance of business permits.

As ordered by Binay, the BPLO streamlined the process for business permit application or renewal to just three steps. As a result, those with complete requirements could get their business permits within 35 minutes.

Three consecutive years

In a recent statement, Binay expressed confidence the city would again surpass its revenue target for 2019, just as it did in the past three years.

Last year, the city treasurer reported a revenue collection of P17.8 billion, surpassing its target by 14 percent.

“Business tax remains to be our biggest share of revenues, and I am glad that our efforts to make it easier and more convenient to do business in the city have translated to sustained revenue growth,” Binay said.

“We are expecting the figures for realty tax to go higher in the coming months, especially since we will soon publish the list of delinquent properties that will be put up for public auction sometime this November,” she added.