QC: Tax hike to fund infra, drug rehab programs

The proposed increase in real property tax rates in Quezon City will help fund infrastructure projects, drug rehabilitation and other social development initiatives, an official said on Tuesday.

City Administrator Aldrin Cuña expressed hope that the proposed measure would be passed before the end of the year.

Proposed City Ordinance No. 20CC-141, which is pending before the city council, sets an assessment level of five percent for residential properties and 15 percent for commercial and industrial properties.

“We’re confident that it will be approved because it will not only raise revenue but will also fund development programs we have in line,” Cuña said in an interview.

“We have a lot of development projects that need to be supported from the taxes that will be generated,” he added.

The city government is expected to earn around P800 million once the tax adjustment is implemented by next year, based on projections of the Office of the City Assessor.

The proposed ordinance will correct outdated real property tax rates in the city, which were last increased 21 years ago despite the requirement of the Local Government Code to reassess real property every three years.

The increase in city revenue will be used to build more hospitals, schools and other infrastructure projects aimed at easing traffic congestion, according to Cuna.

Funding for social welfare packages for senior citizens and persons with disabilities, which make up at least one percent of the city’s budget, will also benefit from the increase in real property taxes.

Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte, head of the Quezon City AntiDrug Abuse Advisory Council, said the proposed tax hike is also expected to generate more funds for the city’s anti-drug program.

“We’re hoping to free up more funds, especially to hire more doctors. We have few doctors, we only have 10, servicing 10,000 drug surrenderees,” Belmonte said.

The local government is planning to put up more drug rehabilitation centers to accommodate the swelling number of drug surrenderees in the city.

Belmonte said the Quezon City Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Center or “Tahanan” in Payatas, one of the government- owned centers in the country, also needs to increase its current 300- bed capacity.