The city government is confident it can generate the PHP3.65 billion operational budget for 2026 through internally raised revenues, its share of the national tax allocation (NTA), and other mandated income sources.

Vice Mayor Faustino Olowan said Thursday that the council-approved PHP3,651,592,560 budget under Ordinance 90-2025 is “realistic.”

Olawan said the budget was based on the actual 2024-2025 collections vetted by the city treasurer.

“This is a conservative estimate based on funds available to the city. We are confident these resources will be accessible for 2026,” he said.

Olawan mentioned other steady revenue streams, among them the newly turned-over Maharlika Livelihood Center, rental fees from commercial stalls, Botanical Garden entrance collections, roadside and designated parking charges, and the city’s increased NTA share under the Mandanas ruling, where local government units will receive a 40 percent share of all national tax collections, not just those from internal revenue collections.

The city also receives income from the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

Olawan also said that the city government is pressing the Bases Conversion and Development Authority and the John Hay Management Corp. to honor their obligations, which require them to remit Baguio’s 25 percent share of lease rentals and allocate a portion of revenues for city development projects.

Meanwhile, for next year’s budget, the bulk of appropriations will go to social services, the City Engineering Office, the City Environment and Parks Management Office, the City Building and Architecture Office, and the General Services Office, particularly personnel services and waste management, with the city still hauling garbage to Central Luzon.

The budget, he said, was crafted strictly according to the city’s revenue capacity.

“There are no insertions or questionable items. Every peso has a specific purpose under the appropriations ordinance,” he said.

The 2026 budget is roughly PHP600 million higher than this year’s annual allocation. (PNA)