Republic Act No. 3068

This Act shall be known as the Revised Charter of the City of Tacloban.

The City of Tacloban constitutes a political body corporate and as such is endowed with the attribute of perpetual succession and possessed of the powers which pertain to a municipal corporation, to be exercised in conformity with the provisions of this Charter.

The city shall have a common seal, and may alter the same at pleasure, and may take, purchase, receive, hold, lease, convey, and dispose of real and personal property for the general interests of the city, condemn private property for public use, contract and be contracted with, sue and be sued, and prosecute as well as defend itself to final judgment and execution in actions where its interests are involved, and exercise all the powers hereinafter conferred.

The city shall not be liable or held for damages or injuries to persons or property arising from the failure of the Mayor, the Municipal Board or any other city officer or employee, to enforce the provisions of this Charter, or of any other law or ordinance, or from the negligence of said Mayor, Municipal Board or other city officers or employees while enforcing or attempting to enforce said provisions: Provided, however, That nothing herein contained shall prevent any aggrieved party from filing a personal action in the proper court against any official or employee of the city government for any act or omission in the performance of his duties.

The City of Tacloban shall comprise the territorial jurisdiction of the former Municipality of Tacloban in the Province of Leyte and shall be divided, for all administrative and other municipal purposes, into barrios in accordance with Republic Act Numbered Two thousand three hundred and seventy.

The jurisdiction of the City of Tacloban for police purposes only shall be co-extensive with its territorial jurisdiction; and shall extend to the mid-channel of the San Juanico Strait and three miles from the shore into San Pedro Bay; and for the purpose of protecting and insuring the purity of the water supply of the city, such police jurisdiction shall also extend over all territory within the drainage area of such water supply, or within one hundred meters of any reservoir, conduit, canal, aqueduct or pumping station used in connection with the city water service. The municipal court of the city shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the justice of the peace court of the respective municipalities, to try crimes and misdemeanors committed within said drainage area, or within said spaces of one hundred meters. The court first taking jurisdiction of such an offense shall thereafter retain exclusive jurisdiction therefor. The police force of the several municipalities concerned shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the police force of the city for the maintenance of good order and the enforcement of ordinances throughout said zone, area and spaces. But any license that may be issued within said zone, area or space shall be granted by the proper authorities of the municipality concerned, and the fees arising therefrom shall accrue to the treasury of the said municipality concerned and not to that of the city.

The Mayor shall be the chief executive of the city. He shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the city. No person shall be eligible for the position of Mayor unless at the time of the election he is at least twenty-five years of age, a resident of the city for at least two years prior to his election, and a qualified voter therein. He shall hold office for four years, unless sooner removed for just cause and with due process of law, and shall receive a salary of nine thousand six hundred pesos per annum. The Municipal Board may appropriate such sum of money as may be necessary for the house allowance of the Mayor, not to exceed two hundred pesos monthly, or commute the same in addition to his salary.

There shall be elected a Vice-Mayor who shall perform the duties and exercise the powers of the Mayor, in the event of the death, sickness, absence or other temporary incapacity of the Mayor, or in the event of a definite vacancy in the position of Mayor, until said office shall be filled, in accordance with law. The Vice-Mayor shall be elected in the same manner as the Mayor and shall at the time of his election possess the same qualifications as the Mayor.

If, for any reason, the Vice-Mayor is temporarily incapacitated for the performance of the duties of the office of the Mayor, or said office of the Vice-Mayor is vacant, the duties and powers of the Mayor shall be performed and exercised by a member of the Municipal Board who obtained the largest number of votes among the incumbent councilors in the local election immediately preceding. If for some reason the councilor who obtained the largest number of votes in the local election immediately preceding is incapable of assuming the office of the Mayor, the councilor who obtained the next largest number of votes in the last election immediately preceding shall assume office of the Mayor, and so on until said office of the Mayor is filled. Whenever the Vice-Mayor performs the duties and exercises the powers of the Mayor, he automatically ceases to be the presiding officer of the Municipal Board. Where a member of the Municipal Board exercises the functions of the Vice-Mayor, said member ceases temporarily to take part in the deliberations of the Board except to preside. Where the offices of the City Mayor and the Vice-Mayor are left vacant by virtue of the death or permanent disability of the incumbents, vacancies shall be filled by appointment by the President of the Philippines with the consent of the Commission on Appointments.

The Vice-Mayor shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him by the Mayor or prescribed by law or ordinance. He shall receive a salary of not less than four thousand eight hundred nor more than five thousand four hundred pesos per annum.

The Mayor shall have immediate control over the executive and administrative and administrative functions of the different departments of the city, subject to the supervision of the President of the Philippines. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

The Mayor shall appoint one secretary who shall have the rank of a department head and who shall have charge and custody of all records and documents of the city and of any office or department thereof for which provision is not otherwise made; shall keep the corporate seal and affix the same with his signature to all ordinances and resolutions signed by the Mayor and all other official documents and papers of the government of the city as may be required by law or ordinance; shall attest all executive orders, proclamations, ordinances and resolutions signed by the Mayor and shall perform such other duties as the Mayor may require of him; shall, upon request, furnish certified copies of all city records and documents in his charge which are not of a confidential nature, and collect and receive such fees as may be prescribed by law or resolution of the Municipal Board. He shall also perform such duties as are required by the heads of departments of the city government by Section twenty-one hereof. The position of the secretary shall be regarded as within the unclassified civil service but may be filled in the manner in which classified positions are filled, and if so filled, the appointee shall be entitled to all the benefits and privileges of classified employees, except that he hold office only during the term of the appointing Mayor and until a successor in the office of the secretary is appointed and qualified, unless sooner separated. He shall receive a salary of four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum.

The Municipal Board shall be the legislative body of the city, and shall be composed of the Vice-Mayor, who shall be its presiding officer, and eight councilors who shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the city. The Vice-Mayor shall have no right to vote except in case of a tie.

If the Vice-Mayor or a member of the Municipal Board shall be a candidate for office in any election, he shall be disqualified to act with said body in the performance of the duties thereof relative to such election, and if, for such reason, the number of members should be unduly depleted, the President shall appoint any disinterested voter of the city, belonging to the political party of the disqualified member, to act in his place in such matters.

The members of the Municipal Board shall receive a salary of not more than five thousand pesos each per annum.

The members of the Municipal Board shall, at the time of their election, be qualified electors of the city, residents thereof for at least two years immediately prior to their election and not less than twenty-three years of age. Such members may be suspended or removed from office under the same circumstances, in the same manner, and with the same effect, as elective provincial officers, and the provisions of law governing the suspension or removal of elective provincial officers are hereby made applicable in the suspension or removal of said members.

Elections for members of the Board shall be held on the date of the regular election for provincial and municipal offices, and elected members shall assume office on the first day of January next following their election, upon qualifying, and shall hold office for four years and until their successors shall have been duly elected and qualified. The eight candidates receiving the greatest numbers of votes shall be declared elected.

A vacancy in the Municipal Board shall be filled in accordance with the provisions of the Revised Election Code.

The Board shall have a secretary, who shall be elected by it to serve during the team of office of the members. A vacancy in the office of secretary shall be filled temporarily or for the unexpired term in like manner.

The secretary shall be in charge of the records of the Municipal Board. He shall keep a full record of the proceedings of the Board, and file all documents relating thereto; shall record, in a book kept for that purpose, all ordinances, and all resolutions and motions directing the payment of money or creating liability, enacted or adopted by the Board, with the dates of passage of the same, and of the publication of ordinances; shall keep a seal, circular in form, with the inscription "Municipal Board City of Tacloban", in the center of which shall be placed the arms of the city, and affix the same, with his signature, to all ordinances and other official acts of the Board, and shall present the same for signature to the presiding officer; shall cause each ordinance passed to be punished as herein provided; shall, upon request, furnish certified copies of all records of public character in his charge under the seal of his office; and collect and receive therefor such fees as may be prescribed by resolution of the Board; and shall keep his office and all records therein which are not of a confidential nature open to public inspection during usual business hours. The compensation of the secretary shall be four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum.

The Board shall hold two ordinary sessions for the transaction of business during each week on days which it shall fix by resolution, and such extraordinary sessions, as may be called by the Mayor. It shall sit with open doors unless otherwise ordered by the affirmative vote of a majority of all the members. It shall keep a record of all its proceedings and determine its rules of procedure not herein set forth. A majority of all the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day and may compel the immediate attendance of any member who is absent without good cause by issuing to the police of the city an order for his arrest and production at the session under such penalties as shall have been previously prescribed by ordinance. The affirmative votes of a majority of all the members shall be necessary for the passage of any ordinance, or of any resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability, but other measures shall prevail upon the majority votes of the members present at any session duly called and held. The ayes and nays shall be taken and recorded upon the passage of all ordinances, upon all resolutions or motions directing the payment of money or creating liability, and, at the request of any member, upon any other resolution or motion. Each approved ordinance, resolution or motion shall be sealed with the seal of the Municipal Board, and recorded in a book kept for the purpose and shall, on the day following its passage, be posted by the secretary at the main entrance of the city hall and in at least two other public places, and shall take effect and be in force on and after the tenth day of following its passage unless otherwise stated in said ordinance, resolution or motion or vetoed by the Mayor as hereinafter provided. A vetoed ordinance, if repassed, shall take effect ten days after the veto is overridden by the required votes unless otherwise stated in the ordinance, resolution or motion or again disapproved by the Mayor.

Each ordinance and each resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability enacted or adopted by the Board shall be forwarded to the Mayor for his approval. Within ten days after the receipt of the ordinance, resolution or motion, the Mayor shall return it with his approval or veto. If he does not return it within that time, it shall be deemed to be approved. If he returns it with his veto, his reasons therefor in writing shall accompany it. It may then be enacted by a two-thirds vote of all the members of the Board, and again forwarded to the Mayor for his approval, and if within ten days after its receipt he does not again return it with his veto, it shall be deemed to be approved. If within said time he again returns it with his veto, it shall be forwarded forthwith to the President for his approval or disapproval, which shall be final.

The Mayor shall have the power to veto any particular item or items of an appropriation ordinance, or of an ordinance, resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability, but the veto shall not affect the item or items to which he does not object. The item or items objected to shall not take effect except in the manner heretofore provided in this section as to ordinances, resolutions or motions returned to the Board with his veto; but should an item or items in an appropriation ordinance be disapproved by the Mayor, the corresponding item or items in the appropriation ordinance of the previous year shall be deemed re-enacted.

The Municipal Board shall have the following legislative powers:

No commercial sign, signboard, or billboard shall be erected or displayed on public lands, premises or buildings. If, after due investigation, and having given the owners an opportunity to be heard, the Mayor should consider any sign, signboard or billboard displayed or exposed to public view as offensive to the sight or is otherwise a nuisance, he may order the removal of such sign, signboard or billboard, and if same is not removed within ten days after he has issued such order, he may himself cause its removal, and the sign, signboard, or billboard shall thereupon be forfeited to the city and the expenses incident to the removal of the same shall become a lawful charge against any person or property liable for the erection or display thereof.

In each barrio there shall be organized a barrio council which shall be composed of a barrio lieutenant who shall be its chairman, a sub-barrio lieutenant who shall assist the barrio lieutenant in the discharge of his duties, a councilman for livelihood, a councilman for education, and a councilman for health who, in addition to their duties, will look after the enforcement of laws, ordinances and resolutions, pertaining to matters comprised within their respective offices and the promotion of the welfare of the barrio. They shall be elected at a meeting to be attended by at least one-third of all the residents of the barrio who are qualified voters. The election shall take place annually not earlier than the third Saturday of January and not later than the second Saturday of February. The councilor assigned to the barrio shall convoke and preside over the meeting. He shall appoint a board of inspectors and canvassers to conduct the election. The manner of election shall be by secret ballot. Those who obtain the highest number of votes for the position for which they are candidates shall be declared elected and shall assume office immediately: Provided, however, That no person shall be eligible as a candidate for the barrio council unless he has been a resident of the barrio for at least six months immediately prior to the election, at least twenty-one years of age at the time of the election, able to read and write and possesses the necessary training, experience and fitness for the position. Any person who is a resident of the barrio and is twenty-one years of age or even and is able to read and write is eligible to vote in the election, provided he has been a resident of the barrio for at least three months prior to the election.

The members of the barrio council shall hold office for one year or until their successors are duly elected and qualified. But in no case can he be re-elected for more than four consecutive terms, unless two years have elapsed from the expiration of his last term, in which case he shall again be eligible for election to any barrio office. The councilor may, for cause, recommend to the Municipal Board the suspension or dismissal of any of the members of the barrio council. They shall not receive any compensation or emolument of any kind.

The barrio council shall have power to promulgate rules not inconsistent with law or ordinances of the Municipal Board and, subject to the approval of the latter, shall be operative within the barrio. The council shall be responsible for the planning, budgeting and spending of funds belonging to the barrio treasury and shall have the following powers and duties:

The barrio lieutenant shall assist the councilor assigned to such barrio in the performance of his duties. In the absence or incapacity of the barrio lieutenant, his duties shall be performed by the sub-barrio lieutenant.

There shall be a barrio police force whose members shall be appointed by the Mayor and who, together with the members of the barrio council, shall be deemed agents of persons in authority.

There shall be the following city departments over which the Mayor shall have direct control and supervision, any existing law to the contrary notwithstanding:

1. Department of Finance 2. Department of Engineering and Public Works 3. Law Department 4. Department of Health 5. Police Department 6. Fire Department 7. Department of Assessment The Municipal Board may from time to time make such readjustment of the duties of the several departments as the public interest may demand, and, with the approval of the President, may consolidate any department, division or office of the city with any other department, division or office.

Each head of department of the city government shall be in control of such department under the direction and supervision of the Mayor, and shall possess such powers as may be prescribed herein or by ordinance. He shall certify to the correctness of all payrolls and vouchers of his department covering the payment of money before payment, except as herein otherwise expressly provided. At least four months before the beginning of such fiscal year, he shall prepare and present to the Mayor an estimate of the receipts and appropriation necessary for the operation of his department for the ensuing fiscal year, and shall submit therewith such information for purposes of comparison as the Mayor may desire. He shall submit to the Mayor as often as required reports covering the operation of his department.

In case of the absence or sickness, or inability to act for any other reason, of the head of one of the city departments, or in case of temporary vacancy, the officer next in charge of that department shall perform the duties of the department head concerned.

The President of the Philippines, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, shall appoint the judge and auxiliary judge, the city treasurer, the city engineer, the city fiscal and his assistants, the chief of police, the city health officer, the city assessor, the chief of the fire department, the city superintendent of schools, and other heads of such city departments as may be created. Said officers shall not be suspended or removed except in the manner and for causes provided by law.

Subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Law, the Mayor shall appoint all other officers and employees paid out of city funds, and they shall be suspended or removed in accordance with law.

It shall be unlawful for any city officer, directly or indirectly, individually or as a member of a firm, to engage in any business transaction with the city, or with any of its authorized officials, boards, agents or attorneys, whereby money is to be paid, directly or indirectly, out of the resources of the city to such person or firm; or to purchase any real estate or other property belonging to the city, or which shall be sold for taxes of assessment, or by virtue of legal process at the suit of the city; or to be surety for any person having a contract or doing business with the city, for the performance of which security may be required; or to be surety on the official bond of any officer of the city, and shall not be financially interested in any transaction or contract in which the National Government or any subdivision or instrumentality thereof is an interested party.

The Auditor General shall receive and audit all accounts of the city, in accordance with the provisions of law relating to Government accounts and accounting. The city auditor shall be appointed by the Auditor General and shall receive a salary of seven thousand two hundred pesos per annum, one-half to be paid by the National Government and the other half by the city.

There shall also be an assistant city auditor who shall receive a salary of four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum. He shall perform the duties assigned to him by the city auditor and exercise the powers of the city auditor, in the event of sickness, absence or other temporary incapacity of the city auditor.

The Director of Public Schools shall exercise the same jurisdiction and powers in the city as elsewhere in the Philippines, and the city superintendent of schools shall have all the powers and duties in respect to the schools of the city as are vested in division superintendents in respect to schools of their division: Provided, That the operational expenses of primary and intermediate schools shall be borne by the National Government.

The Register of Deeds of the Province of Leyte as City Register of Deeds of the City of Tacloban. The Register of Deeds of the Province of Leyte shall act as City Register of Deeds ex officio of the City of Tacloban with an additional compensation not exceeding one thousand two hundred and sixty pesos per annum payable from the funds of the city.

The purchasing agent shall purchase and supply in accordance with law all supplies, equipment, materials and property of every kind, except real estate for the use of the city and any of its departments or offices. But contracts for completed work of any kind for the use of the city or any of its departments or offices, involving both labor, and materials, where the materials are furnished by the contractor shall not be deemed to be within the purview of this section.

The city superintendent of schools shall make a quarterly report of the conditions of the schools and school buildings of the city to the Mayor, and such recommendations as seem to him wise relative to improving the schools or school buildings of the city.

There shall be a city treasurer who shall have charge of the department of finance and shall act as chief fiscal officer and financial adviser of the city and custodian of its funds. He shall receive a salary of seven thousand two hundred pesos per annum. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

There shall be a city engineer who shall have charge of the department of engineering and public works. He shall receive a salary of seven thousand eight hundred pesos per annum. He shall have the following powers and duties:

There shall be an assistant city engineer who shall assist the city engineer in the discharge of his official duties. He shall be appointed by the Mayor, upon the recommendation of the city engineer and subject to the approval of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications. He shall receive a salary of four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum. In the absence of the city engineer, the assistant city engineer shall assume his powers and duties.

All repair or construction of any work or public improvements, except parks, boulevards, streets or alleys, involving an estimated cost of three thousand pesos or more shall be awarded by the Mayor upon the recommendation of the city engineer to the lowest responsible bidder after public advertisement by posting notices of the call for bids in conspicuous places in the city shall and other public places, which shall not be less than ten, and by publication in the Official Gazette, both for not less than ten days: Provided, however, That the city engineer may, upon the approval of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications, execute by administration any such public work costing three thousand pesos or more.

In case of public works involving an expenditure of less than three thousand pesos, it shall be discretionary with the city engineer either to proceed with the work himself or to let the contract to the lowest bidder after such publication and notice as shall be deemed appropriate or as may be, by regulations, prescribed.

The law department of the city shall consist of a city fiscal and assistant city fiscals who shall discharge their duties under the general supervision of the Secretary of Justice. The city fiscal shall receive a salary of seven thousand two hundred pesos per annum. The first assistant city fiscal shall receive a salary of four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum, the second assistant city fiscal four thousand two hundred pesos per annum and the third assistant city fiscal four thousand two hundred pesos per annum.

The city fiscal shall be the chief adviser of the city and all offices and departments thereof. He shall have the following powers and duties:

There shall be a city health officer who shall have charge of the department of health and who shall receive a salary of seven thousand two hundred pesos per annum. He shall have the following powers and duties:

There shall be an assistant city health officer who shall act as city health officer in the absence or incapacity of the city health officer, and shall perform such other duties as may be imposed upon him by the city health officer or prescribed by law or ordinance. He shall be appointed by the Mayor upon the recommendation of the city health officer and subject to the approval of the proper department head, and shall receive a salary of four thousand eight hundred pesos per annum.

There shall be a chief of police who shall have charge of the police department and shall receive a salary of six thousand six hundred pesos per annum. He shall have the following powers and duties:

There shall be a deputy chief of police whose duties shall be to act as chief in the absence or incapacity of the chief of police and, under the direction of the chief of police, to look after the discipline of the police force and perform such other duties as may be imposed upon him by the chief or prescribed by law or ordinance. He shall receive a salary of three thousand six hundred pesos per annum.

There shall be a chief of the secret service who shall, under the chief of police, have charge of the detective work of the department and of the detective force of the city, and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him by the chief of police or prescribed by law or ordinance.

The chief of the secret service shall receive a salary of three thousand six hundred pesos per annum.

The Mayor, the chief of police, the deputy chief of police, the chief of the secret service, and all officers and members of the city police and detective force shall be peace officers. Such peach officers are authorized to serve and execute all processes of the municipal court and criminal processes of all other courts to whomsoever directed within the jurisdictional limits of the city or within the police limits as hereinbefore defined; within the same territory, to pursue and arrest, without warrant, any person found in suspicious places or under suspicious circumstances reasonably tending to show that such person has committed, or is about to commit, any crime or breach of the peace; to arrest or cause to be arrested, without warrant, any offender when the offense is committed in the presence of a peace officer or within his view; and in such pursuit or arrest to enter any building, ship, boat, or vessel or take into custody any person therein suspected of being concerned in such crime or breach of the peace, and any property suspected of having been stolen; and to exercise such other powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. They shall detain an arrested person only in accordance with the provisions of existing laws relative to such detention. Whenever the Mayor shall deem it necessary to avert danger or to protect life and property, in case of riot, disturbance, or public calamity, or when he has reason to fear any serious violation of law and order, he may call upon the provincial commander or other members of Armed Forces of the Philippines. Except upon the occurrence of any of such conditions, police jurisdiction and supervision and the preservation of peace and order shall pertain exclusively to the peace officers herein mentioned, and existing law to the contrary notwithstanding.

There shall be chief of fire department who shall have the management and control of all matters relating to the administration, organization, government, discipline, and disposition of the fire forces. He shall receive a salary of five thousand four hundred pesos per annum and shall have the following powers and duties:

There shall be a deputy chief of the fire department whose duties shall be to act as chief in the absence or incapacity of the chief of the fire department, and, under the direction of the chief of the fire department, to look after the discipline of the fire and perform such other duties as may be imposed upon him by the chief or prescribed by law or ordinance. He shall be appointed by the Mayor upon the recommendation of the chief of the fire department and shall receive a salary of three thousand six hundred pesos per annum.

There shall be a city electrician who shall under the direction of the chief of the fire department, have charge of the enforcement of all laws, ordinances and regulations relating to electrical connections within the city, and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him by the chief of the fire department or prescribed by law or ordinance. He shall be appointed by the City Mayor and shall receive a salary of three thousand pesos per annum.

There shall be a city assessor who shall have charge of the department of assessment and who shall receive a salary of six thousand six hundred pesos per annum. The city treasurer shall act as city assessor ex officio until the Municipal Board, by ordinance, provides otherwise, at which time the city assessor shall be appointed as heretofore provided. The city assessor shall have the following powers and duties:

The following shall be exempted from taxation:

It shall be the duty of each person who, at any time, acquires real estate in the city, and of each person who constructs or adds to any improvements on real estate owned by him in the city, to prepare and present to the city assessor within a period of sixty days nest following such acquisition, construction or addition, a sworn declaration setting forth the value of the real estate acquired or the improvement constructed or addition made by him and a description of such property sufficient to enable the city assessor readily to identify the same. Any person having acquired real estate who fails to make and present the declaration herein required within the period of sixty days shall be deemed to have waived his right to notice of the assessment of such property and the assessment of the same in the name of its former owner shall, in all such cases, be valid and binding on all persons interested, and for all purposes, as though the same has been assessed in the name of its present owner.

Action when owner makes no returns, or is unknown, or ownership is in despite or in doubt, or when land and improvements are separately owned. If the owner of any parcel of real estate shall fail to make a return thereof, or if the city assessor is unable to discover the owner of any real estate, he shall nevertheless list the same for taxation, and charge the tax against the true owner, if known, and if unknown then as against an unknown owner. In case of doubt or dispute as to the ownership of real estate, the taxes shall be levied against the possessor or possessors thereof. When it shall appear that there are separate owners of the land and the improvements thereon, a separate assessment of the property shall be made.

If it shall come to the knowledge of the city assessor that any taxable real estate in the city has escaped listing, it shall be his duty to list and value the same at the time and in the manner provided in the next succeeding section and to charge against the owner thereof the taxes due for the current year and the last preceding one year, and the taxes thus assessed shall be legal and collectible by all the remedies herein provided, and if the failure of the city assessor to assess such taxes at the time when they should have been assessed was due to any fault or negligence on the part of the owner of such property, the penalties shall be added to such back taxes as though they had been assessed at the time when they should have been assessed.

The city assessor shall during the first fifteen days of January of each year add to his list of taxable real estate in the city the value of the improvements placed upon such property during the preceding year, and any property which is taxable and which has theretofore escaped taxation. He may during the same period revise and correct the assessed value of any or all parcels of real estate in the city which are not assessed at their true money value, by reducing or increasing the existing assessment as the case may be.

The city assessor shall, after the list shall have been completed, inform the public by notice published for seven days in a newspaper of general circulation in the city, if any, and by notice posted for seven days at the main entrance of the city hall, that the list is on file in his office and may be examined by any person interested therein, and that upon the date fixed in the notice, which shall not be later than the tenth day of February, the city assessor will be in his office for the purpose of hearing complaints as to the accuracy of the listing of the property and the assessed value thereof. He shall further notify in writing each person the amount of whose tax will be changed by such proposed revision by delivering or mailing at least thirty days in advance of the date fixed in the notice, such notification to such person or his authorized agent at the last known address of such owner or agent in the Philippines.

It shall be his duty carefully to preserve and record in his office copies of said notice. On the day fixed in the notice, and for five days thereafter, he shall be present in his office to hear all complaints filed within the period by persons against whom taxes have been assessed as owners of real estate, and he shall make his decision forthwith and enter the same in a well-bound book, to be kept by him for that purpose, and if he shall determine that injustice had been done or errors have been committed he is authorized to amend the list in accordance with his findings.

The city assessor shall authenticate each list of real estate valued and assessed by him as soon as the same is completed, by signing the following certificate at the foot thereof:

| "I hereby certify that the foregoing list contains a true statement of the piece or pieces of taxable real estate belonging to each person named in the list, and its true cash value, and that no real estate taxable by law in the City of Tacloban has been omitted from the list, according to the best of my knowledge and belief. | | | --- | --- | | | (Signature) City Assessor" |

In case any owner of real estate, or his authorized agent, shall feel aggrieved by any decision of the city assessor under the preceding sections of this Article, such owner or agent may, within thirty days after the entry of such decision, appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals. The appeal shall be perfected by filing a written notice of the same with the city assessor, and it shall be the duty of that officer forthwith to transmit the appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals with all the written evidence in his possession relating to such assessment and valuation.

There shall be a City Board of Tax Appeals which shall be composed of five members to be appointed by the President of the Philippines, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments. Three members of the Board shall be selected from among government officials in the city other than those in charge of assessment and they shall serve without additional compensation.

The two other members shall be selected from among property owners in the city and they shall each receive a compensation of ten pesos for each day of session actually attended. The Chairman of the Board shall be designated in the appointment and shall have the power to designate any city official or employee to serve as the secretary of the Board without additional compensation.

The members of the City Board of Tax Appeals shall hold office for a term of two years unless sooner removed by the President of the Philippines.

The members of the City Board of Tax Appeals shall hold office for a term of two years unless sooner removed by the President of the Philippines.

Before organizing as such, the members of the City Board of Tax Appeals shall take the following oath before the municipal judge or any other officer authorized to administer oaths:

| "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will bear and determine well and truly all matters and issues between taxpayers and the city assessor submitted for my decision. So help me God. (In case of affirmation the last words are to be stricken out.) | | | --- | --- | | | (Signature) Member of the City Board of Tax Appeals" | | "Subscribed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me this ____________ day of ___________________, 19_______ | | | | Signature and title of officer administering oath" |

The City Board of Tax Appeals shall hold such number of session as may be authorized by the Secretary of Finance, and shall hear and decide all appeals duly transmitted to it. It shall have authority to cause to be amended the listing and valuation of the property in respect to which any appeal has been perfected by order signed by the Board or a majority thereof, and transmit it to the city assessor who shall amend the tax list in conformity with said order. It shall also have power to revise and correct, with the approval of the Department Head first had, any and all erroneous or unjust assessments and valuations for taxation, and make a correct and just assessment and state the true valuation, in each case when it decides that the assessment previously made is erroneous or unjust. The assessment when so corrected shall be as lawful and valid for all purposes as though the assessment had been made within the time herein prescribed. Such reassessment and revaluation shall be made on due notice to the individual concerned who shall be entitled to be heard by the City Board of Tax Appeals before any reassessment or revaluation is made. The decision of the City Board of Tax Appeals shall be final unless the Department Head declares the decision reopened for review by him, in which case he may make such revision or revaluation as in his opinion the circumstances justify. Such revision when approved by the President of the Philippines shall be final.

A tax, the rate of which shall not exceed two per centum ad valorem to be determined by the Municipal Board, shall be levied annually on or before the second Monday of January on the assessed value of all real estate in the city subject to taxation. All taxes on real estate for any year shall be due and payable annually on the first day of January and from this date such taxes together with all penalties accruing thereto shall constitute a lien on the property subject to such taxation.

Such lien shall be superior to all other liens, mortgages or encumbrances of any kind whatsoever; and shall be enforceable against the property whether in the possession of the delinquent or any subsequent owner, and can only be removed by the payment of the tax and penalty.

At the option of the taxpayer, the tax for any year may be valid in two installments to be fixed annually by the Municipal Board simultaneously with the rate per centum of ad valorem taxation: Provided, That the time limit for the first and second installments shall be set at not later than thirty-first day of May and the thirty-first day of October of each year, respectively.

Any person, who on the last day set for the payment of the real estate tax as provided in the preceding paragraphs, shall be within the premises of the City Hall willing and ready to pay the tax but is unable to effect it on account of the large number of taxpayers therein present shall be furnished a properly inscribed card which will entitle him to pay the tax without penalty on the following day.

The words "paid under protest" shall be written on the face of the real estate tax receipt upon the request of any person willing to pay the tax under protest. Confirmation in writing of an oral protest shall be made within thirty days.

At the expiration of the time for the payment of the real estate tax without penalty, the taxpayer shall be subject, from the first day of delinquency, to the payment of a penalty at the rate of two per centum for each full month of delinquency that has expired, on the amounts of the original tax due, until the tax shall have been paid in full or until the property shall have been forfeited to the city as provided in this Act: Provided, That in no case shall the total penalty exceed twenty four per centum of the original tax due.

In the event that the crop is extensively damaged or that a great lowering of prices of products is registered in any year, or that a similar disaster extends throughout the province, or for other good and sufficient reason, the Municipal Board may, by resolution passed on or before the thirty-first day of December of such year, extend the time for the collection of the tax on real estate in the city for a period of not to exceed three months, or remit wholly or in part the payment of the tax or penalty for the ensuing year, but such resolution shall have to specify clearly the grounds for such extension or remission and shall not take effect until it shall have been approved by the Department Head.

The President of the Philippines may, in his discretion, remit or reduce the real estate taxes for any year in the city if he deems this to be in the public interest.

After a property shall have become delinquent in the payment of taxes and said taxes and the corresponding penalty or penalties shall remain unpaid ninety days after payment thereof shall have become due, the city treasurer of his deputy, if he desires to compel payment through seizure of any personal property of any delinquent person or persons, shall issue a duly authenticated certificate, based on the records of his office, showing the fact of delinquency and the amount of the tax and penalty due from said delinquent person or persons or from each of them. Such certificate shall be sufficient warrant for the seizure of the personal property belonging to the delinquent person or persons in question not exempt from seizure; and these proceedings may be carried out by the city treasurer, his deputy, or any other officer authorized to carry out legal proceedings.

The following personal property shall be exempt from seizure, sale and execution for delinquency in the payment of the real estate tax:

The owner of the personal property seized may redeem the same from the collecting officer at any time after seizure and before sale by tendering to him the amount of the tax, the penalty, and the costs incurred up to the time of tender. The costs to be charged in making such seizures and sale shall only embrace the actual expense of seizure and preservation of the property pending the sale, and no charge shall be imposed for the services of the collecting officer or his deputy.

Unless redeem as hereinbefore provided, the property seized through proceedings under Section fifty-six hereof, shall, after due advertisement, be exhibited for sale at public auction and so much of the same as shall satisfy the tax, penalty and cost of seizure and sale shall be sold to the higher bidder. The purchaser at such sale shall acquire an indefeasible title to the property sold.

The advertisement shall state the time, place and cause of sale, and be posted for ten days prior to the date of the auction, at the main entrance to the city hall and at a public and conspicuous place in the district where the property was seized.

The sale shall take place, at the discretion of the city treasurer or his deputy, either at the main entrance of the city hall or at the district where the property was seized. If no satisfactory bid is offered in the aforementioned places, another auction shall be had upon notice published anew.

The officer directing the sale under the preceding section shall forthwith make return his proceedings, and note thereof shall be made by the city treasurer in his records. Any surplus resulting from the sale, over and above the tax, penalty and cost, and any property remaining in possession of the officer shall be returned to the taxpayer on account of whose delinquency the sale has been made.

Upon the expiration of one year from the date on which the taxpayer became delinquent, and in the event of continued default in the payment of the tax and penalty, all private rights, titles and interest in and to the real estate on which said tax is delinquent shall be indefeasibly vested in the city government, subject only to the rights of redemption and repurchase hereinafter provided for: Provided, That the title acquired by said city government to real estate shall not be superior to the title thereto of the original owner prior to the seizure thereof.

At any time after the delinquency shall have occurred, but not after the expiration of ninety days from the date of the publication of the advertisement provided for in the next succeeding section, the owner of his lawful representative, or any person having any lien, right, or any other legal or equitable interest in said property, may pay the taxes and penalties accrued and thus redeem the property. Such redemption shall operate to divest the city government of its title to the property in question and to revert the same to the original owner, but when such redemption shall be made by a person other than the owner, the payment shall constitute a lien on the property, and the person making such payment shall be entitled to recover the same from the original owner, or if he be a lessee, he may retain the amount of said payment from the proceeds of any income due to the owner of such property: Provided, That the person exercising the right of redemption shall not acquire a title to said property better than that of the original owner prior to the seizure.

Notice of the seizure of real estate shall be given by posting notices at the main entrances on the city hall, the provincial capitol building, and all the municipal buildings in the Province of Leyte, in English and Spanish and in the dialect commonly used in the locality, and a copy of said notice shall be sent by registered mail to the owner of the property. A copy of said notice shall also be posted on the property subject to seizure. Such notices shall estate the name of the delinquent person, the date on which such delinquency commenced the amount of the taxes and penalties then due, and shall state that unless such taxes and penalties are paid within ninety days from the date of the publication of such notice, the forfeiture of the delinquent real estate to the city government shall become absolute.

After the expiration of ninety days from the date of the publication of the notice of delinquency provided for in the next preceding section, the city treasurer, or his deputy, may issue to the Mayor or to other officers authorized by law to execute and enforce the laws, a certificate describing the parcel of real estate on which the taxes have been declared delinquent, stating the amount of taxes due, and the penalties and costs accrued by reason of the delinquency, and requesting him to eject from said property all the tenants and occupants thereof. Upon receiving such certificate, the Mayor or any other official authorized to enforce the law shall forthwith have all the tenants and occupants who refused to recognize the title of the city expelled from the property in question, and to that end he may use the police force: Provided, however, That if the property so seized is or includes a residential home, the occupant thereof shall be given sufficient time, not exceeding ten days from the date of the notice of ejectment, to vacate the premises.

After the title to the property shall have become vested in the city government in the manner provided for in the preceding sections, and at any time prior to the sale or the execution of the contract of sale by the city treasurer to a third party, the original owner or his authorized representative or any person having any lien, right, or other legal interest or equity in said property, shall have the right to redeem the entire property in question, by paying the full amount of the taxes and penalties due thereon at the time of the seizure, and if the city treasurer shall have entered into a lease of the property, the redemption shall be made subject to such lease: Provided, however, That the payment of the price of sale may, at the discretion of the purchaser, be made in installments, extending over a period not exceeding twelve months, but the initial payment, which must be made on the date of the filing of the application for redemption, and every subsequent payment, shall not be less than twenty-five per centum of the entire sum due, and shall in no case be less than two pesos, unless the total or the balance of the amount due on all seized property in the name of the taxpayer is less than two pesos. The purchaser may occupy the property after paying the first installment, and the usual taxes on the property shall be payable in the year after that in which the application for redemption was approved. Any failure of the purchaser to pay an installment on the date it is due shall have the effect of a forfeiture to the city government of any partial payment made by said purchaser, and in case he has taken possession of the property, he shall forthwith surrender the same to the city government. In case the purchaser should fail to relinquish possession of said property, the city treasurer or his deputy shall forthwith adopt measures to eject therefrom all the tenants or occupants thereof as provided for in this Act: Provided, however, That the original owner of any real estate seized prior to the approval of this Act, who redeems the same within six months subsequent to its approval, is hereby released from any obligation he may have to the Government for rent for the use of such property: Provided, finally, That the provisions of this section shall apply to redemption of real estate seized for delinquency in the payment of taxes thereon and not redeemed up to the date of the approval of this Act.

At any time after the forfeiture of any real estate shall have become absolute, the treasurer, pursuant to the rules of procedure to be promulgated by the Department Head, may announce the sale of the real estate seized on account of delinquency on the payment of taxes thereon, for the redemption of which no application has been filed. Such announcement shall be made by posting a notice for three consecutive weeks at the main entrances of the city hall and all the municipal buildings of the province, in either English or Spanish, and in the dialect commonly used in the locality, and by publishing the same once a week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the city. Copies of such notice shall be sent immediately by registered mail to the delinquent taxpayer at the latter's home address, if known. The notice shall state the amount of the taxes and penalties so due, the time and place of sale, the name of the taxpayer against whom the taxes are levied, and the appropriate area, the lot number and the location by district and street and the street number and district or barrio where the real estate to be sold is located.

At any time during the sale or prior thereto, the taxpayer may stay the proceedings by paying the taxes and penalties to the treasurer or his deputy. Otherwise the sale shall proceed and shall be held either at the main entrance of the city hall or on the premises of the real estate to be sold as the city treasurer or his deputy may determine. The payment of the sale price may, at the option of the purchaser, be made in installments covering a period of not more than twelve months, but the initial payment which shall be made at the time of the sale, and each subsequent payment shall not be less than twenty-five per centum of the sale price, and shall in no case be less than two pesos, unless the total or the balance of the amount due on all seized property in the name of the taxpayer is less than two pesos. The purchaser may occupy the property after paying the first installment, and the usual taxes on the property shall be payable in the year following that in which the sale took place. Any failure of the purchaser to pay the total price of the sale within twelve months from the date thereof, shall be sufficient ground for its cancellation, and any part payment made shall revert to the government and if the purchaser has taken possession of the property he shall forthwith surrender the same to the city government. In case the purchaser should fail to relinquish possession of the property, the city treasurer or his deputy shall immediately take steps to eject the tenants or occupants of the property in accordance with the procedure prescribed in Section sixty-four of this Act.

The city treasurer or his deputy shall make a report of the sale to the Municipal Board within five days after the sale and shall make the same appear on its records. The purchaser at this sale shall receive from the city treasurer or his deputy a certificate showing the proceedings of the sale, describing the property sold, stating the name of the purchaser, the sale price, the conditions of payment, the amount paid and the exact amount of the taxes and penalties.

Within one year from and after the date of the sale, the delinquent taxpayer or any other person in his behalf, shall have the right to redeem the property sold by paying to the city treasurer or his deputy the amount of the taxes, penalties, cost and interest at the rate of twelve per centum per annum on the purchase price, if paid in whole or on any portion thereof as may have been paid by the purchaser, and such payment shall invalidate the certificate of sale issued to the purchaser, if any, and shall entitle the person making such payment to a certificate to be issued by the city treasurer of his deputy, stating that he has thus redeemed the property, and the city treasurer or his deputy, upon the return by the purchaser of the certificate of sale previously issued to him, shall forthwith refund to the purchaser the entire sum paid by him with interest at twelve per centum per annum, as provided for herein, and such property shall thereafter be free from the lien of such taxes or penalties.

In case the delinquent taxpayer shall not redeem the property sold as herein provided within one year from the date of the sale, and the purchaser shall then have paid the total purchase price, the city treasurer, as grantor, shall execute a deed in form and effect sufficient to convey to the purchaser so much of the real estate against which taxes have been assessed as has been sold, free from all liens or encumbrances of any kind whatsoever, and said deed shall succinctly recite all the proceedings upon which the validity of the sale depends. Any balance remaining from the proceeds of the sale, after deducting the amount of the taxes and penalties due, and the costs, if any, shall be returned to the original owner or his representatives.

The taxes and penalties to be paid by way of redemption or repurchase, shall comprise in all cases only the original tax by virtue of the failure to pay which the seizure was made, and its incidental penalties, up to the date of the forfeiture of the real estate to the government.

for Public Improvements

Of the internal revenue accruing to the National Treasury under Chapter II, Title XII of Commonwealth Act Numbered Four hundred sixty-six, and other taxes collected by the National Government and allotted to the various provinces, as well as the national aid for schools, the city shall receive a share equal to what it would receive if it were a regularly organized province.

The Municipal Board may, by ordinance, provide for the levying and collection, by special assessment of the lands comprised within the district or section of the city specially benefited, of a part not to exceed sixty per centum of the cost of laying out, opening, constructing, straightening, widening, extending, grading, paving, curbing, walling, deepening, or otherwise establishing, repairing, enlarging, or improving public avenues, roads, streets, alleys, sidewalks, parks, plazas, bridges, landing places, wharves, piers, docks, levees, reservoirs, waterworks, water mains, watercourses, esteros, canals, drains and sewers, including the cost of acquiring the necessary land and public improvements thereon, as hereinafter provided.

In case of national public works the Municipal Board, as an agency of the National Government shall, when the President of the Philippines so directs it, provide for the levying and collection by special assessment of the lands within the section or district of the city specially benefited of the cost or a part thereof to be determined by the President, of laying out, opening, constructing, straightening, widening, extending, grading, paving, curbing, walling or deepening, or otherwise repairing, enlarging, or improving national roads and other national public works within the city, including the cost of acquiring the necessary land and improvements thereon.

The amount of the special assessment shall be apportioned and computed accordingly to the assessed valuations of such lands as shown in the books of the city assessor. If the property has not been declared for taxation purposes, the city assessor shall immediately declare it for the owner and assess its value, and such value shall be the basis of the apportionment and computation of the special assessment, due thereon.

All lands comprised within the section or district benefited, except those owned by the Republic of the Philippines, shall be subject to the payment of the special assessment.

The ordinance providing for the levying and collection of a special assessment shall describe with reasonable accuracy the nature, extent, and location of the work to be undertaken; the probable cost of the work; the percentage of the cost which shall be subject to the payment of the special assessment, the limits whereof shall be stated by metes and bounds if practicable, and by other reasonable accurate means if otherwise, and the period, which shall not be less than five nor more than ten years, in which said special assessment shall be payable without interest. One uniform rate per centum for all lands in the entire district or section to the payment of all the special assessment need not be established, but different rates for different parts or sections of the city according as said property will derive greater or less benefit from the proposed work, may be fixed.

It shall be the duty of the city engineer to make the plans, specifications, and estimates of the public works contemplated to be undertaken.

The proposed special assessment ordinance shall be published, with a list of the owners of the lands affected thereby, once a week for four consecutive weeks in any newspaper published in the city, one in English, one in Spanish, and one in the local dialect, if there be any, and in default of local papers, in any newspaper of general circulation in the city. The said ordinance in English, Spanish, and the local dialect shall also be posted in places where public notices are generally posted in the city and also in the district or section where the public improvement is constructed or contemplated to be constructed.

The Secretary of the Municipal Board shall, on application, furnish a copy of the proposed ordinance to each landowner affected or his agent and shall, if possible, send to all of them a copy of said proposed ordinance by ordinary mail or otherwise.

Not later than thirty days after the last publication of the ordinance and the list of landowners, as provided in the preceding section, the landowners affected may file with the Municipal Board a protest against the enactment of the ordinance. The protest shall be duly signed by them and shall set forth the addresses of the signers and the arguments in support of their objection or protest against the special assessment established in the ordinance. If no protest is filed within the time and under the condition above specified, the ordinance shall be considered approved as published.

The Municipal Board shall designate a date and place for the hearing of the protest filed in accordance with the next preceding section and shall give reasonable time to all protestants who have given their addresses and to all landowners affected by any protest or protests, and shall order the publication once a week for two consecutive weeks, of a notice of the place and date of the hearing in the same manner herein provided for the publication of the proposed special assessment ordinance. All pertinent arguments and evidences presented by the landowners' interest or their attorney shall be attached to the proper records. After the hearing, the Municipal Board shall either modify its ordinance or approve it in toto and send notice of its decision to all interested parties who have given their addresses, and shall order the publication of the ordinance as approved finally together with a list of the owners of the parcels of land affected by the special assessment, three times weekly, for three consecutive weeks, in the same manner hereinabove prescribed. The ordinance finally passed by said body shall be sent to the Mayor with all the papers pertaining thereto, for his approval or veto, as in the case of other city ordinances. If the Mayor approves it, the ordinance shall be published as above provided, but if he vetoes it, the procedure in similar cases provided in this Charter shall be observed.

Upon the expiration of thirty days from the date of the last publication of the ordinance as finally approved, the same shall be effective in all respects, if no appeal therefrom is taken to the proper authorities in the manner hereinafter prescribed.

Any time before the ordinance providing for the levying and collection of special assessment becomes effective in accordance with the preceding section, appeals from such assessment may be filed with the President of the Philippines in the case of public works undertaken or contemplated to be undertaken by the National Government, and with the Secretary of Finance in case of public works undertaken or contemplated to be undertaken by the city. In all cases the appeal shall be in writing and signed by at least a majority of the owners of the lands situated in the special assessments zone whose holdings represent more than one-half of the total assessed value of the lands affected. The appellant or appellants shall immediately give the Municipal Board a written notice of the appeal, and the secretary of the Municipal Board shall, within thirty days after receipt of the notice of appeal, forward to the officer who has jurisdiction to decide the appeal an excerpt from the minutes of the Board relative to the proposed special assessment and all the documents in connection therewith.

Only appeals made with the time and in the manner prescribed in this Act shall be entertained, and the officer to whom the appeal is made may call for further hearing or decide the same in accordance with its merits as shown in the papers or documents submitted to him. All appeals shall be decided within sixty days after receipt by the appellate officer of the docket of the case, and such decision shall be final.

As soon as the ordinance is in full force and effect, the city treasurer shall determine the amount of the special assessment which the owner of each parcel of land comprised within the zone described in the ordinance levying the same is to pay each year during the prescribed period, and shall send to each of such landowners a notice thereof by ordinary mail. If upon completion of the public works it should appear that the actual cost thereof is smaller or greater than the estimated cost, the city treasurer shall without delay proceed to correct the assessment by increasing or decreasing, as the case may be, the special tax on each parcel of land affected, for the balance of the unpaid annual installments. If all annual installments have already been paid, the city treasurer shall fix the amount of credit to be allowed to, or the additional special tax to be levied upon the land, as the case may be. In all cases, he shall give notice of such rectifications to the parties interested.

All sums due from any landowner or owners as the result of any action taken pursuant to this Article shall be payable to the city treasurer in the same manner as the annual ordinary tax levied upon real property, and shall be subject to the same penalties for delinquency and be enforced in the same manner as said annual ordinary tax; and all said sums together with any of said penalties shall, from the dates on which they were assessed, constitute special liens on said land, with the sole exception of the lien for the non-payment of the ordinary real property tax. If, upon recomputation of the amount of the special assessment in accordance with the next preceding section, it appears that the landowner has paid more than what is correctly due from him, the amount paid in excess shall be refunded to him immediately upon demand; in the other case, the landowner shall have one year within which to pay without penalty the amount still due from him. Said period shall be counted from the date the landowner received the proper notice.

The proceeds of the special assessment and penalties thereon shall be applied exclusively to the purpose or purposes for which the assessment was levied. It shall be the duty of the city treasurer to turn over the National Treasury all collections made by him from special assessment levies for national public works.

At least four months before the beginning of each fiscal year, the city treasurer shall present to the Mayor a certified detailed statement by department of all receipts and expenditures of the city pertaining to the preceding fiscal year, and to the first seven months of the current year together with an estimate of the receipts and expenditures for the remainder of the current fiscal year; and he shall submit with this statement a detailed estimate of the revenues and receipts of the city from all sources for the ensuing fiscal year. Upon receipt of this statement and estimate and the estimates of department heads as required by Section twenty-one of this Charter, the Mayor shall formulate and submit to the Municipal Board at least two and a half months before the beginning of the ensuing fiscal year, a detailed budget covering the estimated necessary expenditures for the said ensuing fiscal year, which shall be the basis of the annual appropriation ordinance: Provided, however, That in no case shall the aggregate amount of such appropriation exceed the estimate of revenues and receipts submitted by the city treasurer as provided above.

Supplemental budget formulated in the same manner as the annual budget may be adopted when special or unforeseen circumstances make such action necessary.

Whenever the Municipal Board fails to enact an appropriation ordinance for any fiscal year before the end of the previous year the appropriation ordinance for such previous year shall be deemed reenacted, and shall go into effect on the first day of July of the new fiscal year as the appropriation ordinance for that year, and such appropriation ordinance shall be deemed reenacted from year to year, and take effect on the first of July, each fiscal year, as the appropriation for that year, until a new appropriation ordinance is duly enacted.

There shall be a municipal court for the City of Tacloban for which there shall be appointed a municipal judge and an auxiliary municipal judge. The Municipal Board may, when the circumstances so warrant and subject to the approval of the Secretary of Justice, appropriate an amount for the establishing of another branch of the municipal court, the judge and auxiliary judge thereto to be appointed as herein provided.

The municipal judge may, upon proper application to the Secretary of Justice, be allowed a vacation of not more than thirty days every year with salary. The auxiliary municipal judge shall discharge the duties of the municipal judge in case of absence, incapacity, or inability of the latter until he resumes his post, or until a new judge shall have been appointed. During his incumbency, the auxiliary municipal judge shall enjoy the powers, emoluments and privileges of the municipal judge who shall not receive any remuneration therefor except the salary to which he is entitled by reason of his vacation provided for in this Charter.

In case of absence, incapacity or inability, of both the municipal judge and the auxiliary municipal judge, the Secretary of Justice shall designate the justice of the peace of any of the adjoining municipalities to preside over the municipal court, and he shall hold office temporarily until the regular incumbent or the auxiliary judge thereof shall have resumed office, or until another judge shall have been appointed in accordance with the provisions of this Charter. The justice of the peace so designated shall receive his salary as justice of the peace plus fifty per cent of the salary of the municipal judge whose office he has temporarily assumed. The municipal judge shall receive a salary of seven thousand two hundred pesos per annum.

There shall be a clerk of the municipal court who shall be appointed by the municipal judge in accordance with the Civil Service Law, rules and regulations, and who shall receive a compensation of three thousand pesos per annum, to be fixed by ordinance approved by the Secretary of Justice. He shall keep the seal of the court and affix it to all orders, judgments, certificates, records, and other documents issued by the court. He shall keep a docket of the trials in the court, in which he shall record in a summary manner the names of the parties and the various proceedings in the civil cases, and in criminal cases, the name of the defendant, the charge against him, the names of the witnesses, the date of the arrest, the appearance of the defendant, together with the fines and costs adjudged or collected in accordance with the judgment. He shall have the power to administer oaths.

The clerk of the municipal court shall at the same time be sheriff of the city and shall have, as such, the same powers and duties conferred by existing law upon sheriffs. The Municipal Board may provide for such number of clerks in the office of the clerk of the municipal court as the needs of the service may demand. Said clerks shall be appointed by the Mayor subject to Civil Service rules and regulations.

The municipal court shall have the same jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases and the same incidental powers as conferred by law upon municipal courts of chartered cities.

In a prosecution for the violation of any ordinance, the first process shall be a summons; except that a warrant for the arrest of the offender may be issued in the first instance upon the affidavit of any person that such ordinance has been violated; and that the person making the complaint has reasonable grounds to believe that the party charged is guilty thereof, which warrant shall conclude: "Against the ordinance of the city in such cases made and provided." All proceedings and prosecutions for offenses against the laws of the Philippines shall conform to the rules relating to process, pleading, practice, and procedure for the judiciary of the Philippines, and such rules shall govern the municipal court and its officers in all cases insofar as the same may be applicable. An appeal from the municipal court to the Court of First Instance shall be governed by the provisions of the Rules of Court.

Preliminary examinations in the city fiscal's office, municipal court and Court of First Instance. Every person arrested shall, without necessary delay, be brought before the city fiscal, the municipal court or the Court of First Instance for preliminary hearing, release on bail, or trial. In cases triable in the municipal court the defendant shall not be entitled as of right to a preliminary examination, except to summary one to enable the court to fix the bail, in any case where the prosecution announces itself ready and is ready for trial within three days, not including Sundays, after the request for an examination is presented. In cases triable only in the Court of First Instance the defendant shall not be entitled as of the right to preliminary examination in any case where the fiscal of the city, after a due examination of the facts, shall have presented an information against him in proper form. But the Court of First Instance may make such summary investigation into the case as it may deem necessary to enable it to fix the bail or determine whether the offense is bailable.

There shall be taxed against and collected from the defendant, in case of his conviction in the municipal court, costs and fees as may be prescribed by law in criminal cases in justice of the peace courts. All costs, fees, fines and forfeitures shall be collected by the clerk of court, who shall keep a docket of those imposed and of those collected, and shall pay collections of the same to the city treasurer, for the benefit of the city, on the next business day after the same are collected, and take receipts therefor. The municipal judge shall examine said docket each day, compare the same with the amount receipted for the city treasurer and satisfy himself that all such costs, fees, fines and forfeitures have been duly accounted for.

No person shall be confined in the prison by sentence of the municipal court until the warden or officer in charge of the prison shall receive a written commitment showing the offense for which the prisoner was tried, the date of the trial, the exact terms of the judgment or sentence, and the date of the order of the commitment. The clerk shall, under seal of the court, issue such a commitment in each case of sentence to imprisonment.

The incumbent Mayor, Vice-Mayor and members of the Municipal Board shall continue in office as the Mayor, Vice-Mayor, and members of the Municipal Board of the city, respectively, until the expiration of their present terms of office.

Election of Provincial Governor and members of the Provincial Board of the Province of Leyte. The voters of the City of Tacloban shall be qualified and entitled to vote in the election of the Provincial Governor and the members of the Provincial Board of the Province of Leyte.

Until otherwise provided by law, the City of Tacloban shall continue as part of the first representative district of the Province of Leyte.

The City of Tacloban shall continue to be the capital of the Province of Leyte and the seat of the Government of the Province of Leyte until otherwise provided.

The salaries of all city officials herein provided shall be implemented by an ordinance enacted by the Municipal Board duly approved by the Mayor authorizing the payment in accordance with the schedule so prescribed.

Republic Act Numbered Seven hundred sixty, as amended, and all laws or part of laws inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed.

This Act shall take effect upon its approval.