LGUs to receive P12.8b in national wealth share

A lawmaker said local government units (LGUs) hosting mineral mining and energy development activities stand to receive P12.8 billion as their combined share of the national treasury’s income from the use of natural resources.

Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel on Sunday also said: “The P12.8 billion has been appropriated in the 2024 national budget that the House of Representatives recently approved on the third and final reading.”

“The amount is 27% greater than the P10.1 billion that provincial, city, municipal, and barangay governments are getting this year as their ‘national wealth use’ share,” Pimentel said, adding that “the money will enable local governments to pursue new projects that will create additional employment and livelihood opportunities for their communities.”

Under the Local Government Code of 1991, local governments are entitled to 40% of the national treasury’s gross earnings from mining taxes, royalties from mineral reservations, forestry charges, and fees and revenues from energy resources generated from their areas.

Under the law, the share is allocated as follows: 20% to the province; 45% to the component city or municipality; and 35% to the barangay.

In cases of highly urbanized or independent component cities, 65% goes to the city and 35% to the barangay.

Under the law, local government must appropriate the funds to bankroll local development and livelihood projects.

As to local governments obtaining their shares from the extraction of hydrothermal, geothermal and other energy assets, at least 80% of the money must be spent to lower electricity prices in the communities that supplied the resources.

A total of 39 mining companies operating around the country produced nearly $2 billion (P112.7 billion) worth of metallic minerals from January to June this year, up almost 40% compared to the output in same semester in 2022, according to the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).

The MGB attributed the huge increase in production value to the strong prices of nickel, gold and copper.

Nickel accounted for P51.32 billion of the value produced. Gold and copper accounted for P46.44 billion and P12.84 billion, respectively, while the combined