General Santos City – The local treasury has recorded an increase in its collection for the first quarter of this year compared to the same period the previous year.
City Treasurer's Office Chief Rodilon Lacap said in a press conference that this year's collection on the renewal of business permits reached P57 million, higher by P2 million compared to the same period last year.
Lacap said that as of January 21, total assessment of the amount collectible has managed to reach P119 million, which is higher by P17million compared to the same period the previous year.
Councilor Jong Gonzales, Committee Chairman on Finance during last week's council meeting, backed the treasurer's claim by reporting that there are a lot of new business registrations this year.
"Media reports that the city did not hit its target collection is not true", he said.
Lacap attributed the increase in revenue collections to the massive tax collection campaign launched by his office and the City Mayor's Office through their "One Stop Shop" Documentation at City Hall.
He is optimistic that his office could surpass this year's target set forth by the Department of Budget and Management.
The Permits and Licenses division has reported a total of 2427 printed permits as of today , 144 of which are new businesses. The figures shows that it is about the same trend last year in the same period.
More than 6,200 business permits were issued last year and has recorded 1,118 new applicants. It is expected that there were still other businesses that will come for renewal in the coming weeks. (GENSAN CPIO)
