LGUs to get P1.19T NTA next year — Recto

Various local government units (LGUs) in the country will receive P1.19 trillion in National Tax Allotments (NTA), the constitutionally mandated share of national government tax collections given to LGUs to fund basic services and local development.

In a statement, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said this year’s NTA reflects an increase of P129.32 billion, derived from a non-partisan, formula-based allocation that will be highlighted in next month’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“As a former local executive official himself, the President sees and honors these as people’s entitlements. These are guaranteed plowbacks that will go from big cities to the remotest barangays,” Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said.

He said the amount for 2027 is based on the 2024 internal revenue collections, or three years prior, as mandated by law.

“That indexation is set in stone, beyond alteration. As such, they are in the nature of automatic appropriations,” Recto said.

“Ang sabi kasi ng batas at mga reglamento na ang dividends ng mga lokal na pamahalaan ay batay sa koleksyon ng mga pambansang buwis,” Recto added.

Further, Recto said the amount will be one of the “biggest ticket items” in the proposed 2027 national budget that the Department of Budget and Management is finalizing.

Under the Constitution, the President has a month after delivering the SONA to submit next year’s national budget to Congress.

Under the established formula in NTA allocation, 83 provinces will share P303.56 billion; 149 cities, P303.56 billion; 1,491 towns, P448.84 billion; and 41,912 barangays, P263.97 billion, Recto said, citing a DBM memorandum.

An LGU’s share will be primarily determined by its population and land area.

Recto said among the cities, Davao City received the largest allocation of P10.1 billion in 2026, or almost 15 percent higher than last year’s.

In NCR, the biggest recipients for 2026 included Quezon City (P9.82 billion, 15% increase), Manila (P6.09 billion, 14% increase), Caloocan City (P5.5 billion, 14% increase), Taguig City (P4.40 billion, 18% increase), and Pasig City (P3.05 billion, 17% increase).

As to the funding source of the P1.19 trillion NTA, P990.68 billion will come from Bureau of Internal Revenue collections, P329.09 billion from Bureau of Customs collections, and P63.6 million from other collections certified by the Bureau of the Treasury.

On top of the NTA, President Marcos also raised the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF) to a record-high P57.87 billion for 2026.