What local government is
Below the Bangsamoro Government sit three levels of local government: the province, the city or municipality, and the barangay. In BARMM that is 5 provinces, 108 cities and municipalities and 2,185 barangays.
Each one elects its own officials, passes its own budget and runs the services the Bangsamoro Local Governance Code gives it. None takes orders from the level above on how to run its affairs. What ties them together is money and oversight: the national and regional governments send shares down, and each level checks that the one below it stays within its powers.
This page follows that story: who you elect at each level, what each one does for you, who runs it, and what it may charge you. Where its money comes from and how its budget is made are on Local budgets.
The levels, and who you elect
From the region down to the barangay, each level has its own elected officials. The Bangsamoro Parliament sits above them but does not replace any of them.
| Level | What it is | Voters elect |
|---|---|---|
| Region | BARMM — an autonomous regional government, not a local government unit. | Members of Parliament (80 seats) |
| Province | Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Tawi-Tawi — plus the Special Geographic Area. | GovernorVice-GovernorSangguniang Panlalawigan members |
| City or municipality | The town or city hall — 3 cities and 105 municipalities across the region, Sulu excluded. | MayorVice-MayorSangguniang Panlungsod or Sangguniang Bayan members |
| Barangay | The basic political unit — 2,185 of them across the units in this directory. | Punong Barangay7 Sangguniang Barangay membersSK Chairperson and 7 SK members |
So a voter in BARMM fills two separate ballots: one for these local offices, on the national local-election schedule, and one for the Bangsamoro Parliament.
What each level does for you
Each level has its own job. Knowing which one handles what saves a wasted trip to the wrong office.
| Level | What it provides |
|---|---|
| Barangay2,185 in BARMM | Frontline servicesBarangay clearance and certificates of residency and indigency; Barangay health station and day care center; Katarungang Pambarangay — a lupon of 10 to 20 members mediates disputes before they reach court |
| CommunityBarangay tanod and peace and order at street level — one tanod per 200 residents, 30 at most; Maintenance of barangay roads, footpaths and water supply; Solid waste segregation at source; Agricultural support — planting materials and farm produce collection and buying stations | |
| Money it handlesA tax of up to 1% on stores with gross sales under ₱50,000 in a city or ₱30,000 in a municipality; Its share of the real property tax — 25% of what the province collects on property in it; 10% of its general fund set aside for the Sangguniang Kabataan; Its own annual budget, reviewed by the city or municipal council within 90 days | |
| City or municipality108 in BARMM | HealthRural health units, health centers and barangay health stations; Primary health care, maternal and child care, communicable disease control; Purchase of medicines and medical supplies |
| Social servicesDay care centers and child and family welfare; Programs for women, the elderly and persons with disabilities; Nutrition, family planning and community-based rehabilitation | |
| Infrastructure and public worksMunicipal or city roads, bridges, drainage and flood control; School buildings, health centers, public markets and slaughterhouses; Water supply systems and communal irrigation; Sites for the police and fire stations and the municipal jail | |
| Permits, records and regulationBusiness permits and licensing; Building permits and zoning enforcement; Civil registry — birth, marriage and death certificates; Real property assessment and tax collection; Reclassifying farmland — capped at 15% of the town’s agricultural land, 10% or 5% in smaller classes | |
| Agriculture, environment and safetyAgricultural extension, seed farms and fisheries; Solid waste collection and disposal; Community-based forestry projects; Fire and police coordination, and disaster risk reduction | |
| Province5 in BARMM | HealthProvincial and district hospitals; Health services beyond what a municipality can provide; Purchase of medicines and medical supplies |
| Social and environmentSocial welfare services, including rebel returnee and evacuee relief; Enforcement of forestry, small-scale mining and pollution control law; Relief in calamities and disaster preparedness | |
| Infrastructure and economyProvincial roads and bridges, inter-municipal water works and drainage; Investment support, industrial research and development; Agricultural extension and on-site research; Dispersal of livestock and poultry | |
| Land and recordsProvincial land use planning; Upgrading and modernisation of tax information and collection; Settling boundary disputes between the municipalities in it — 60 days to try, then the Regional Trial Court |
Who runs it day to day
Every local government has the same set of offices, fixed by the Bangsamoro Local Governance Code: elected officials who lead it and pass its ordinances, and appointed department heads who do the daily work.
Elected positions
| Level | Position | What it does | Term, age and pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Province | Governor | Chief executive of the province. | Salary grade 30. Must be 23 on election day. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) |
| Vice-Governor | Presides over the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, the provincial board. | Salary grade 28. Must be 23 on election day. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) | |
| Sangguniang Panlalawigan members | The provincial board. Members are elected by district, so a province with more districts seats more of them. | Must be 23 on election day. (Code s. 42) | |
| City | City Mayor | Chief executive of the city. | Salary grade 30 in a highly urbanised city. Must be 23 on election day there, 21 in a component city. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) |
| City Vice-Mayor | Presides over the Sangguniang Panlungsod. | Salary grade 28. Must be 23 on election day, 21 in a component city. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) | |
| Sangguniang Panlungsod members | The city council — 10 regular members in each of the region’s three cities, plus the ex officio seats for the barangay and youth federation presidents. | Must be 18 on election day, 23 in a highly urbanised city. (Code s. 42) | |
| Municipality | Municipal Mayor | Chief executive of the municipality. | Salary grade 27. Must be 21 on election day. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) |
| Municipal Vice-Mayor | Presides over the Sangguniang Bayan. | Salary grade 25. Must be 21 on election day. (IRR art. 187, Code s. 42) | |
| Sangguniang Bayan members | The municipal council — 8 regular members, plus the ex officio seats for the barangay and youth federation presidents. | Must be 18 on election day. (Code s. 42) | |
| Barangay | Punong Barangay | The barangay captain, and its chief executive. | Paid an honorarium, not a salary: at least ₱5,000 a month, up to the first step of salary grade 14. Must be 18. (Code s. 424, IRR art. 45) |
| 7 Sangguniang Barangay members | The barangay council, elected at large across the barangay. | At least ₱3,000 a month, up to the first step of salary grade 10. Must be 18. (Code s. 424, IRR art. 45) | |
| SK Chairperson and 7 SK members | The Sangguniang Kabataan — the youth council, elected by and from residents aged 15 to 30. | The chairperson sits on the barangay council and is paid as its members are. Must be 18 to 24 on election day. The SK gets 10% of the barangay’s general fund. (Code s. 42, IRR arts. 45, 83, 624) |
Appointed offices
The department heads a governor or mayor appoints. The Code says which each level must have and which it may add.
| Office | Province | City | Municipality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary to the sanggunians. 523 | Required | Required | Required |
| Treasurers. 524 | Required | Required | Required |
| Assessors. 526 | Required | Required | Required |
| Accountants. 528 | Required | Required | Required |
| Budget officers. 529 | Required | Required | Required |
| Planning and development coordinators. 530 | Required | Required | Required |
| Engineeralso the building official in a city or municipality · s. 531 | Required | Required | Required |
| Health officerss. 481, 532 | Required | Required | Required |
| Civil registrars. 533 | — | Required | Required |
| Administrators. 534 | Required | Required | Required |
| Legal officers. 535 | Required | Required | Optional |
| Agriculturists. 536 | Required | Required | Required |
| Social welfare and development officers. 537 | Required | Required | Required |
| Environment and natural resources officers. 538 | Required | Required | Required |
| Information officers. 540 | Required | Required | Required |
| Cooperatives development officers. 541 | Required | Required | Required |
| Veterinarians. 543 | Required | Required | Optional |
| General services officers. 544 | Required | Required | Required |
| Nutrition action officers. 548 | Required | Required | Required |
| Tourism officerrequired where there are major tourism industries · s. 546 | Required | Optional | Optional |
| ICT officers. 545 | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Local women’s development officers. 547 | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Librarians. 549 | Optional | Optional | Optional |
A barangay appoints a secretary and a treasurer, and has its lupon tagapamayapa for settling disputes, barangay health workers, purok leaders and tanods: 1 for every 200 residents, never more than 30 (Code ss. 413, 414).
What you pay
The most a city or municipality and its barangays may charge you, and when it is due. Each sets its own rates by ordinance and may charge less, so the town hall has the actual figure.
| Charge | The most it may be | When |
|---|---|---|
| Community tax certificate — the cedulaIRR arts. 452, 454 | ₱20, plus ₱1 for every ₱1,000 of income, up to ₱5,000 in all | Accrues 1 January, due by the last day of February. 24% a year on what is late. |
| Real property tax — the amilyarIRR arts. 530, 531, 540, 541 | Up to 1% of assessed value in a province, up to 2% in a city, plus 1% for the Special Education Fund | In full by 31 March, or in four instalments due 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December. Up to 20% off for paying early. |
| Business taxIRR arts. 439, 444 | Graduated by gross sales — a retailer pays 2% on the first ₱400,000 and 1% above it | Within the first 20 days of January, or of each quarter. |
| Professional taxIRR art. 447 | Up to ₱1,300 a year, and it covers practice anywhere in the country | By 31 January, or before you begin to practice. |
| Transfer of landIRR art. 437 | Up to 0.5% of the price or the fair market value, whichever is higher | Within 60 days of the deed, or of the death of the owner. |
| Barangay clearanceIRR art. 457 | A reasonable fee the barangay council sets by ordinance | On application. The barangay also collects a store tax of up to 1% from the smallest shops. |
| Filing a complaint at the barangayIRR arts. 64, 65, 78 | Free — the katarungang pambarangay charges no filing fee | Mediation runs 15 days, then 15 more before the pangkat. |
| Paying any local tax lateIRR art. 459 | A surcharge of up to 25%, plus up to 2% a month, capped at 36 months | Runs from the day the tax fell due. |