President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is considering issuing an executive order (EO) defining the parameters of the functions, services, and facilities to be devolved to the local government units (LGUs). 

“This year, we also target to issue the [order] amending Executive Order No. 138, s. 2021, with clearer parameters on the functions, services, and facilities that are to be devolved,” Marcos said during the local governance summit 2024 at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City on Friday. 

EO 138, signed by former President Rodrigo Duterte in June 2021, ensures the implementation of the Supreme Court ruling on the Mandanas-Garcia case and strengthens the autonomy and empowerment of LGUs.

It also mandates the full devolution of certain functions of the executive branch to the LGUs.

Marcos said the government has been seeking to make devolution work equitably. 

“We have been working on this for a good long while and I think we have found a formula wherein we divide the funding according to the way that we determine services belong to—as a responsibility to the national government, other services belong to the local government,” said Marcos. 

Marcos noted that once the devolution parameters are “clearly defined,” the LGUs will have “greater capability to implement and localize” the national government’s Sustainable Development Goals.

“And in that way, we are able to satisfy the needs as best as we can for both the national government and most importantly for the local government as the Mandanas ruling really directs itself towards the improvement in the local government situation,” he added. 

Marcos previously ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to come up with a list of the basic functions and services based on the devolution transition plans of various LGUs.

Under EO 138, the full devolution of the national government of the functions, services, and facilities to the LGUs shall be done not later than the end of 2024. 

The Committee on Devolution (ComDev) is tasked to oversee and monitor the implementation of administrative and fiscal decentralization goals of the order. 

The Mandanas vs. Garcia ruling by the Supreme Court stated that a just share of LGUs from the national taxes is not limited to the national internal revenue taxes collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue but includes collections by the Bureau of Customs.

This significantly increased the tax base from which the share of the LGUs is computed, thus strengthening fiscal decentralization.