Republic Act No. 5261




REPUBLIC ACT No. 5261 An Act Creating the City of Iriga Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippine Congress Assembled: Section 1. Title of Act.— This Act shall be known as the Charter of the City of Iriga. Aricle I General Provisions Section 2. Territory of the city.— The City of Iriga which is hereby created shall comprise the present territorial jurisdiction of the Municipality of Iriga in the Province of Camarines Sur. Section 3. Corporate character of the city.— The City shall constitute 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. Section 4. Seal and general powers of the city.— The city shall have a common seal which shall be used in all documents of official character, and may alter the same at pleasure. It may take, purchase, receive, hold, lease, convey, and dispose of real and personal property for public use, contract and be contracted with, sue and be sued, prosecute and defend to final judgment and execution actions where its interests are involved and exercise all the powers hereinafter conferred. Section 5. Liability for damages.— The city shall not be held liable for damages or injuries to persons or property arising from the failure of the City Council, the Mayor or any other city officers or employees, to enforce the provisions of this Charter, or any other law or ordinances, or from the negligence of said City Council, Mayor or other city officers or employees while enforcing or attempting to enforce the provisions thereof: Provided, 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. Section 6. Jurisdiction of the city.— The jurisdiction of the city for police purposes shall be co-extensive with its territorial jurisdiction; 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 city court shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the municipal court and respective municipalities, to try crimes and misdemeanors committed within said drainage area within said spaces of one hundred meters.1avvphi1 The court first taking jurisdiction of such an offense shall thereafter retain exclusive jurisdiction thereof. 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 space, 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 that of the city. Article II The Mayor and Vice-Mayor Section 7. The Mayor—His election, qualification and compensation.— The Mayor shall be the chief executive of the city. He shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the city during every general election for provincial, city and municipal officials in accordance with the provisions of the Revised Election Code. No person shall be eligible for the position of Mayor unless at the time of election he is at least twenty-five years of age, a resident of the city for at least five years prior to his election, and a qualified voter therein. The Mayor shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. He shall be provided, in addition to his salary, a commutable allowance of not less than one thousand two hundred pesos per annum. Section 8. The Vice-Mayor.— There shall be elected a Vice-Mayor who shall be the presiding officer of the City Council. 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. He shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. The Vice-Mayor shall perform the duties and exercise the powers of the Mayor, except the power of appointment and removal, in the event of the latter’s sickness, absence or other temporary incapacity to discharge the powers and duties of his office. In the event of a permanent vacancy in the office of the Mayor, the Vice-Mayor shall become Mayor for the rest of the unexpired term. In the event of a permanent vacancy in the office of the Vice-Mayor, the member of the City Council who received the highest number of votes in the last election shall become Vice-Mayor for the rest of the unexpired term. If the Vice-Mayor is temporarily incapacitated for the performance of his official duties, or is serving as acting Mayor, the member of the City Council who received the highest number of votes in the last election shall serve as acting Vice-Mayor and if the Vice-Mayor is, for any reason, temporarily incapacitated for the performance of the duties of Mayor, or if the office of the Vice-Mayor is vacant, the member of the Council who received the highest number of votes in the last election shall serve as acting Mayor and while so serving shall not perform any duty as a member of the Council which shall elect from among themselves the presiding officer. Whenever the Vice-Mayor performs the duties and exercises the powers of the Mayor, he automatically ceases to be the presiding officer of the City Council. Where a member of the City Council exercises the functions of the Vice-Mayor, said members ceases to take part in the deliberations of the Council except to preside. For acting as Mayor or as Vice-Mayor, the Vice-Mayor or member of the Council, respectively, shall receive a total compensation equivalent to the salary of the Mayor or Vice-Mayor, as the case may be, during the period of such service. The Vice-Mayor shall have no right to vote except in case of a tie. Section 9. General powers and duties of the Mayor.— The Mayor shall have immediate control over the execution 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: (a) To comply with and enforce and give the necessary orders for the faithful enforcement and execution of the provisions of this Charter and other laws and ordinances in effect within the jurisdiction of the city; (b) To safeguard all the lands, buildings, records, moneys, credits, and other properties and rights of the city, and subject to the provisions of this Charter, have control over all its property; (c) To see that all taxes and other revenues of the city are collected, and applied in accordance with appropriations to the payment of city expenses; (d) To cause to be instituted judicial proceedings to recover property and funds of the city, and otherwise to protect the interest of the city; (e) To see that the executive officers and employees of the city properly discharge their respective duties. The Mayor, may, in the interest of the service, transfer officers and employees not appointed by the President of the Philippines from one section, division, or service within the same department without changing the compensation they received; (f) To examine and inspect the books, records, and papers of all officers, agents, and employees of the city over whom he has executive supervision and control whenever occasion arises; (g) To give information and recommend such measures to the Council as he shall deem advantageous to the city; (h) To attend, if he wishes to do so, either in person or by a duly authorized representatives, the sessions of the Council and participate in its discussions, but not to vote; (i) To represent the city in all its business matters, and to sign all warrants drawn on the city treasury and sign all bonds, contracts, and obligations of the city made in accordance with laws and ordinances; (j) To submit to the City Council at least two months before the beginning of the ensuing fiscal year a budget of receipts and expenditures of the city; (k) To receive, hear, and decide as he may deem proper the petitions, complaints, and claims of the residents concerning all classes of city matters of an administrative and executive character; (l) To grant or refuse city licenses or permits of all classes and to revoke the same for violations of the conditions upon which they were granted, or if acts prohibited by law or city ordinance are being committed under the protection of such licenses or in the premises in which the business for which the same has been granted is carried on, or any other good reason of general interest; (m) To exempt, with the concurrence of the superintendent of city schools, deserving poor pupils from the payment of school fees or of any part thereof; (n) To take such emergency measures as may be necessary to avoid fires and to mitigate the effects of storms and other public calamities; (o) The provisions of any existing law to the contrary notwithstanding, to be the chairman of a committee of three, with the other two members being chosen by the members of the City Council from among themselves, to conduct administrative investigations of members of the city police department; (p) To exercise the power of veto, but any vetoed ordinance or resolution may be repassed by the affirmative vote of six members of the City Council; (q) Subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Law, to appoint all officers and employees of the city except those whose appointments are vested in the President of the Philippines, or otherwise provided by law; and he may suspend or remove any such officer or employee thus appointed by him in accordance with law. As herein conferred, the Mayor shall have the power to appoint employees whose duties are strictly confidential in nature, the same to hold office at his pleasure; (r) To request, if public interest and safety so require, the assistance of the Philippine Constabulary and other police agencies in maintaining peace and order in the city; and (s) To perform such other duties and exercise such other executive powers as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. Section 10. Secretary to the Mayor.— The Mayor shall appoint one secretary who shall hold office at the pleasure of the Mayor and who shall receive a compensation in accordance with existing laws. The secretary shall have the rank of a department head and 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 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; shall, upon request, furnish certified copies of all city records and documents in his charge which are not of a confidential nature and charge twenty centavos for each one hundred works including the certificate, the fees to be paid directly to the city treasurer. He shall also perform such duties as are required by heads of departments of the city government by Section eighteen hereof, and such other duties as the Mayor require of him. 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 holds 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 for or without cause by the Mayor. Article III The City Council Section 11. Constitution and organization of the City Council, compensation of members thereof.— The City Council 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 during every election for provincial, city and municipal officials of conformity with the provisions of the Revised Election Code and shall hold office for four years. In case of sickness, absence, suspension or other temporary disability of any member of the Council, or if necessary to maintain a quorum, the President of the Philippines may appoint a temporary substitute, belonging to the same political party as the temporarily incapacitated member, in the case of the elected councilors, who shall possess all rights and perform all the duties of a member of the Council until the return to duty of the regular incumbent. If any member of the City Council should be a candidate for office in any election, he shall be disqualified to act with the Council in the discharge of the duties conferred upon it relative to election matters, and in such case the other members of the Council shall discharge said duties without his assistance, or they may choose a disinterested elector of the city to act with the Council on such matters in his stead. The members of the City Council shall each receive a salary in accordance with existing laws: Provided, That they may engage in the practice of their profession, but shall not appear as counsel before any court in any civil case wherein the city or any instrumentality thereof is the adverse party, or in any criminal case wherein an officer or employee of the city is accused of an offense committed in relation to his office, or collect any fee for his appearance in any administrative proceedings in the city. Section 12. Qualifications, election, suspension and removal of members.— The members of the City Council 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 suspend or removed from office under 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 the elective members of the Council 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 number of votes shall be declared elected. Section 13. Secretary of the Council—His appointment, salary and duties.— The City Council shall have a secretary who shall be chosen by it after every election, to serve during the term of office of the members thereof. A vacancy in the office of the secretary shall be filled temporarily for the unexpired term in like manner. The secretary of the Council shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. The secretary shall be in charge of the records of the City Council. He shall keep a full record of the proceedings of the Council, 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 Council, with the dates of passage of the same, and of the publication of ordinances; shall keep a seal, circular in form, with the inscription "City Council—City of Iriga" and affix the same, with his signature, to all ordinances and other official acts of the Council, and shall present the same for signature to the presiding officer of the Council; shall, upon, request, furnish copies of all records of public character in his charge under the seal of his office and shall charge twenty centavos for each one hundred words including the certificate, the fees to be paid directly to the city treasurer; and shall keep his office and all records therein which are not of confidential character open to public inspection during usual business hours. Section 14. Method of transacting business by the Council—Veto—Authentication and publication of ordinances.— The Council shall hold two regular sessions, for the transaction of business during each week on the days which it shall fix by resolution and such special sessions, as may be called by the Mayor, or upon request of at least four members of the Council. It shall have 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 Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but 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 vote of a majority of all 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 any other measure shall prevail upon the majority vote 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 and 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 City Council, signed by the presiding officer and the secretary of the Council 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 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 within said time. Each ordinance enacted by the Council, and each resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability shall be forwarded to the Mayor for his approval within ten days from the date of enactment by the Council. If within said period the Council fails to transmit the said ordinance, resolution or motion, the same shall be deemed as not enacted. 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 reason therefor in writing shall accompany it. It may then again be enacted by a two-thirds vote of all the members of the Council, 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 of the Philippines 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 motion returned to the Council 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 reenacted unless otherwise expressly directed in the veto. Section 15. General powers and duties of the Council.— Except as otherwise provided by law, and subject to the conditions and limitations thereof, the City Council shall have the following legislative powers: (a) To provide for the levy and collection of taxes for general and special purposes in accordance with law including specifically the power to levy real property tax not to exceed one and one-half per centum ad valorem: Provided, That the maximum rate of one and one half per centum shall not be imposed during the first ten years from the effectivity of this Act: Provided, further, That in the case of machinery, which term shall embrace machines, mechanical contrivances, instruments, appliances, and apparatus attached to the real estate used for industrial, agricultural or manufacturing purposes, the tax shall not also exceed one and one-half per centum ad valorem; (b) To make all appropriations for the expenses of the government of the city; (c) To fix the number and salaries or officials and employees of the city not otherwise provided for in this Act: Provided, That the rate thereof shall not exceed the maximum salary provided by existing salary laws and orders issued by the President; (d) To authorize the free distribution of medicine to the employees and laborers of the city whose salary or wages does not exceed one hundred and eighty pesos per month or six pesos per day, and of evaporated or fresh native milk to indigent mothers residing in the city and of bread and light meals to indigent children ten years or less of age residing in the city, the distribution to be made under the direct supervision of the Mayor; (e) To fix the schedule of fees and charges for services rendered by the City or any of its departments, branches or officials; (f) To provide for the erection and maintenance or the rental in case of need, of the necessary buildings for the use of the city; (g) To establish and maintain or aid in the establishment and maintenance of vocational schools and institutions of higher learning conducted by the National Government or any of its subdivisions or agencies; and with the approval of the Director of Public Schools, or Director of Vocational Education to fix reasonable tuition fees for instructions of higher learning supported by the city; (h) To provide for and maintain an efficient police force for the maintenance of law and order in the city, and make all necessary police ordinance, with a view to the confinement and reformation of vagrants, disorderly persons, mendicants, prostitutes and persons convicted of violating any of the ordinances of the city; (i) To maintain the city court established by law which shall have jurisdiction of all criminal cases under the ordinances of the city, and such further jurisdiction as may be herein or hereafter conferred; (j) To provide for and maintain a city fire department and to establish and maintain engine houses, fire engines, hose trucks, hooks and ladders, and other equipment for the prevention and extinguishment of fire, and to regulate the management and use of the same; (k) To establish fire zones, determine the kinds of buildings or structures that may be erected within their limits, which shall not exceed in height the limitations set by the Civil Aeronautics Administration; regulate the manner of constructing and repairing the same, and fix the fees for permits for the construction, repair or demolition of buildings and other structures; (l) To regulate the use of lights in stables, shops, and other buildings and places and to regulate or restrict the issuance of permits for the building of bonfires and rockets and the use of firecrackers, fireworks, torpedoes, candles, skyrockets, and other pyrotechnic displays, and to fix the fees for such permits; (m) To tax, regulate and fix the amount of the license fees for the following: hawkers, peddlers, hucksters, not including hucksters or peddlers who sell only native vegetables, fruits, or foods personally carried by the hucksters or peddlers; barbers, collecting agencies, manicurists, hair dressers, tattooers, jugglers, acrobats, wrestlers, boxers, pelotaris and jockeys; shooting galleries, slot machines, except jackpot or one-armed bandit machines, merry-go-rounds and other similar riding devices, and the keeping, preparation, and sale of meat, poultry, fish, game, butter, cheese, lard, vegetable, bread and other provisions; (n) To tax, fix the license fee and regulate the business of hotels, motels, restaurants, refreshment places, cafes, lodging houses, boarding houses, brewers, distillers rectifiers, laundries, dyeing and cleaning establishments, beauty parlors, physical or beauty culture and fashion schools, clubs, livery garages, public warehouses, pawnshops, theaters, cinematographs and the letting or subletting of lands and buildings, whether used for commercial industrial or residential purposes; and further to fix the location of, and to tax, fix the license fee on, and regulate the business of, livery stables, boarding stables, embalmers, public billiard tables, public pool tables, bowling alleys, dance halls, public dancing halls, cabarets, night clubs, circuses and other similar parades, public vehicles, public ferries, race tracks, horse races, dog races, cockpits, dealers in second-hand materials or merchandise, junk dealers, theatrical performances, boxing contests, public exhibitions, blacksmith shops, foundries, steam boilers, lumber yards, shipyards, the storage and sale of gunpowder, tar, pitch, resin, coal, oil, gasoline, benzine, turpentine, hemp, cotton, nitroglycerin, petroleum or any of the products thereof, and all other highly combustible or explosive materials, and other establishments likely to endanger the public safety or give rise to conflagration or explosions, and, subject to the provisions of rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health in accordance with law, tanneries, renderies, tallow chandleries, bone factories, and soap factories; (o) To tax, regulate and fix the license fees on printers or bookbinders or both, tailor shops, milliners, manufacturers or jewelry, embroideries, sail or awning or both, rope, paper, leather goods including shoes, slippers, sandals, harnesses, and valises or bags, sporting goods, rubber goods, plastics and celluloid products, hardware including glassware and tinware, ceramics, and cement products, cooking utensils, electrical goods and construction materials, chemical products including drugs, perfumes, toilet articles, paints, dyes and inks, textiles, shell lamps or lamp shades or both, statuettes or tombstones or both, sacks, furniture of all kinds, including rattan goods, wire, brass beds or both, clothing, hats, eyeglasses or optical goods or both, fertilizers, and buttons; Manufacturers above-mentioned shall not be subject to the payment of any city tax or license fee as retail dealers of their own products. (p) To tax and fix the license fee on dealers in general merchandise, including importers and indentors, except those dealers who may be expressly subject to the payment of some other city tax under the provisions of this section; Dealers in general merchandise shall be classified as (a) wholesale dealers and (b) retail dealers. For purposes of the tax on retail dealers, general merchandise shall be classified into four main classes, namely; (1) luxury articles (2) semi-luxury articles, (3) essential commodities and (4) miscellaneous articles. A separate license shall be prescribed for each class but where commodities of different classes are sold in the same establishment, it shall not be compulsory for the owner to secure more than one license if he pays the higher or highest rate of tax prescribed by ordinance. Wholesale dealers shall pay the license tax as such, as may be provided by ordinance. For purposes of this section, the term "general merchandise" shall include poultry and livestock, agricultural products, fish and other allied products. (q) To tax, fix the license fee on and regulate the sale, trading in or disposal of intoxicating liquors, whether imported or locally manufactured, alcoholic or malt beverages, wines, and mixed or fermented liquors, including tuba, basi and tapuy offered for retail sale; (r) To impose a tax on all products or commodities manufactured or produced in the city and removed therefrom; (s) To impose a sales tax of not exceeding one per centum of the gross value in money of all articles sold, bartered, exchanged or transferred within the city; (t) To regulate the method of using steam engines and boilers, and all other motive powers other than marine steam engines, or those belonging to the Government of the Philippines; to provide for the inspection thereof, and fix a reasonable fee for such inspection and to regulate and fix the fees for the licenses of the engineers engaged in operating the same; (u) To provide for the prohibition and suppression of riots, affrays, disturbances, and disorderly assemblies, houses of ill-fame and other disorderly houses; gaming houses; gambling and all fraudulent devices for the purpose of obtaining money or property; prostitution, vagrancy, intoxication, fighting, quarrelling, and all disorderly conduct, and printing, circulating, exhibition, possession or sale of obscene pictures, books, or publications and for the maintenance and preservation of peace and good morals; (v) To prohibit, or regulate and fix the license fees for the keeping of dogs, and to authorize their impounding and destruction when running at large contrary to ordinances, and to tax and regulate the keeping or training of fighting cocks; (w) To establish and maintain city pounds; to regulate, restrain, and prohibit the running at large of domestic animals, and provide for distraining impounding, and sale of the same for the penalty incurred, and the cost of the proceedings; and to impose penalties upon the owners of said animals for the violation of any ordinance in relation thereto; (x) To prohibit, and provide for the punishment of cruelty to animals; (y) To require property owners by ordinance to construct or repair, at their expense, sidewalks, along the street or streets adjacent to their lots in accordance with the specifications of the city engineer as to quality, width and grade, and subject to his supervision and approval, providing that, in case of failure or inability of the property owners to comply with the requirement within a specified period of time after demand, the city engineer shall cause the work to be done and the cost thereof collected as a special assessment from such owners, who may choose to pay the same in full, or in ten equal yearly installments which shall be due and payable to the City of Iriga, in the same manner as the annual tax levied on real estate, and shall be subject to the same penalties for delinquency, and enforceable by the same remedies, as such annual tax; and all said sums and amounts shall, from the day in which they are assessed, constitute liens on the property against which the same were assessed and shall take precedence over any and all other liens which may exist upon such property excepting only such as may have been attached as a result on the non-payment of said annual tax; (z) To regulate the inspection, weighing, and measuring of brick, lumber hollow blocks, adobe stones, tiles, coal and other articles or merchandise; (aa) Subject to the provisions of existing law, to provide for the laying out, construction and improvement, and to regulate the use of streets, avenues, alleys, sidewalks, wharves, piers, parks, cemeteries, and other public places; to provide for lighting, cleaning, and sprinkling of streets and public places; to regulate, fix license fees and prohibit the use of the same for processions, signs, signposts, awnings, awning posts, and the carrying or displaying of banners, placards, advertisements, or hand bills, or the flying of signs, flags, or banners whether across, over, or from buildings along the same; to prohibit the placing, throwing, depositing, or leaving or obstacles of any kind, garbage, refuse, or other offensive matter, or matters liable to cause damage in any street or other public places and to provide for the inspection of, fix the license fees for, and regulate the openings of the same for the laying of gas, water, sewers, and other pipes, the building and repair of tunnels, sewers, and drain and all structures in and under the same and the erecting of poles and stringing of wires therein; to provide for and regulate crosswalks, curbs, and gutters therein; to name streets without a name and provide for and regulate the numbering of houses fronting thereon or in the interiors of the blocks; to regulate traffic and sales upon the streets and other public places; to provide for the abatement of nuisances in the same and punish the authors or owners thereof; to provide for the construction and maintenance, and regulate the use, of bridges, viaducts, and culverts; to prohibit and regulate ball playing, kite-flying, hoop rolling, and other amusements which may annoy persons using the streets and public places, or to frighten horses and other animals; to prohibit and regulate the operation of human powered driven vehicles, and locomotives within the limits of the city; to regulate the lights used on all such vehicles and locomotives; to regulate the locating, constructing and laying of tracks for horses, electric, and other forms of rail vehicles in streets and other public places of the city authorized by law; to provide for any change of the location, grade and crossing of railroads, and compel any such railroads to raise or lower its tracks to conform to such provisions or changes; and to require railroad companies to fence their property; or any part thereof, provide suitable protection against injury to persons or property, and to construct, and repair ditches, drains, sewers, and culverts along and under their tracks, so that natural drainage of the streets and adjacent property shall not be obstructed; (bb) To provide for the construction and maintenance of, and regulate the navigation on, canals and water courses within the city and provide for the cleaning and purification of the same; and to provide for or regulate the drainage and filling of private premises when necessary in the enforcement of sanitary rules and regulations issued in accordance with law; (cc) Any provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, to provide for the maintenance of waterworks for the purpose of supplying water to the inhabitants of the city, and for the purification of the source of water supply and the places through which the same passes, and to regulate the consumption and use of water; to fix subject to the provisions of the Public Service Law, and provide for the collection of rents therefor and to regulate the construction, repair and use of hydrants, pumps, cisterns and reservoirs; (dd) To provide for the establishment and maintenance and regulate the use of public drains, sewers, latrines and cesspools; (ee) Subject to the rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health in accordance with law, to provide for the establishment and maintenance and to fix the fees for the use of, and regulate public stables, laundries, and baths, and public markets, and to prohibit or permit by license granted upon such terms as shall be fixed by the Council, the establishment or operation within the city limits of public markets by any person, entity, association, or corporation other than the city; (ff) To establish or authorize the establishment of slaughterhouses, to provide for their veterinary or sanitary inspection, to regulate the use of the same, and to charge reasonable slaughter fees. No fees shall be charged for veterinary or sanitary inspection of meat from large cattle or other domestic animals slaughtered outside the city, when such inspection was held at the place where the animals were slaughtered; (gg) To regulate, inspect and provide measures preventing any discrimination or the exclusion of any race or races in or from any institution, establishment, or service open to the public within the city limits, or in the sale and supply of gas or electricity, or in the telephone service; to fix and regulate charges therefor where the same have not been fixed by national law; to regulate and provide for the condemnation, substitution or removal of the same when defective of dangerous; (hh) To declare, prevent and provide for the abatement of nuisances; to regulate the ringing of bells and the making of loud or unusual noises; to provide that owners, agents or tenants of buildings or premises keep and maintain the same in sanitary condition, and that, in case of failure to do so within sixty days from the date a written notice is served, the city health officer shall cause the same to be kept in a sanitary condition, and the cost thereof to be assessed against the owner to the extent of not to exceed sixty per centum of the assessed value which cost shall constitute a lien against the property; and to regulate and/or prohibit, of fix the license fees for the use of property on or near public ways, grounds, or places, or elsewhere within the city, for display by electric signs or the erection or maintenance of billboards or structures of whatever materials erected, maintained, or used for the display of posters, signs or other pictorial or reading, matter, except signs displayed at the place or places where the profession of business advertised thereby is in whole or in part conducted; (ii) To provide for the enforcement of the rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health, and by ordinance to prescribe penalties for violation of such rules and regulations; (jj) For the purpose of protecting and insuring the purity of the water supply of the city, to extend its ordinances over all territory within the drainage area of such water supply and within one hundred meters of any reservoir, conduit, canal, aqueduct, or pumping station used in connection with the city water service; (kk) To regulate any other business or occupation being conducted within the city not specifically mentioned in the preceding paragraphs, and to impose a license fee upon all persons engaged in the same or who enjoy privileges in the city; (ll) To fix and regulate the size, speed, and operation of motor and other vehicles within the city; to regulate the lights used on such vehicles, to establish bus stops and terminals; and prohibit and regulate the entrance of provincial public utility vehicles into the city, except those passing through the city; (mm) To fix the date of the holding of fiesta in the city not oftener than once a year and to alter, not oftener than once in three years, the date fixed for the celebration thereof; and (nn) To enact all ordinances it may deem necessary and proper for the sanitation and safety, the furtherance of the prosperity, and the promotion of the morality, peace, and good order, comfort, convenience, and general welfare of the city and its inhabitants and such others as may be necessary to carry into effect and discharge the powers and duties conferred by this Charter; and to fix penalties for the violation of ordinances, which shall not exceed to two hundred-peso fine or six months imprisonment, or both such fine and imprisonment for a single offense. The Council, by ordinance, may likewise divide the city into districts for administrative and other purposes, including the description of property. Section 16. Restrictive provisions.— 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 shall decide that any sign, signboard, billboard displayed or exposed to public view is 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 the removal, and the sign, signboard or billboard shall thereupon be forfeited to the city and the expenses incident to its removal shall become a lawful charge against any person or property liable for the erection or display thereof. Article IV Departments and Offices Section 17. City departments.— 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 Public Assessment. The City Council 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 of the Philippines, may consolidate any department, division or office. Section 18. Powers and duties of heads of departments.— Each head of department of the city government shall be in control of such department and shall possess such powers and obligations 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 each fiscal year, he shall prepare and present to the Mayor an estimate of the appropriation necessary for the operation of his department during 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 operations of his department. In case of absence or sickness, or inability to act for any other reason, of the head of any of the city departments, or in case of a temporary vacancy, the officer next in rank of that department shall perform the duties of the department head concerned. Section 19. Appointment and removal of officials and employees.— The President of the Philippines, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, shall appoint the city judge and auxiliary city judge, the city treasurer, the city engineer, the city fiscal and his assistants, the city health officer, the city superintendent of schools, the register of deeds, and other heads and their assistants of such city departments as may be created. They shall be removed or suspended only for cause as provided by law. All other officers and employees of the city whose appointment is not otherwise provided for by law or this Charter shall be appointed by the Mayor in accordance with the Civil Service Law and they shall be suspended or removed in accordance with law. Section 20. Officers not to engage in certain transactions.— 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, board, agents, or attorneys, whereby money is to be paid, directly, 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 or assessments, 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 any instrumentality thereof is an interested party: Provided, However, That the prohibition herein contained shall not apply to any city officer from acquiring such residential lot or lots of the public domain in the city to which he may be entitled under existing laws, rules and regulations. Article V Department of Finance Section 21. The city treasurer—His powers, duties and compensation.— 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 in accordance with existing laws. He shall have the following general powers and duties: (a) He shall collect taxes due the city, all licenses authorized by law or ordinance, all rents due for lands, markets and other property owned by the city, all further charges of whatever nature fixed by law or ordinance, and shall receive and issue receipts for all costs, fees, fines and forfeitures imposed by the city court. (b) He shall collect all miscellaneous charges made by the department of engineering and public works and by other departments the city government, and all charges made by the city engineer for inspections, permits, licenses, and the installations, maintenance and services rendered in the operation of the private privy system. (c) Unless otherwise specifically provided by law or resolution, he shall perform in and for the city the duties imposed by law or resolution upon provincial treasurers generally, as well as the other duties imposed upon him by law. (d) He shall purchase and issue all supplies, equipment or other property required by the city, through the purchasing agent, or otherwise, as may be authorized, subject to the general provisions of law relating thereto. (e) He shall be accountable for a ll funds and property of the city and shall render such accounts in connection therewith as may be prescribed by the Auditor General. (f) He shall disburse the funds of the city in accordance with duly authorized appropriations, upon properly executed vouchers bearing the approval of the chief of the department concerned, and on or before the twentieth day of each month he shall furnish the Mayor and the City Council for their administrative information a statement of the appropriation, expenditures and balances of funds and accounts as of the last day of the month preceding. Article VI Department of Engineering and Public Works Section 22. The city engineer—His powers, duties and compensation.— There shall be a city engineer who shall be in charge of the department of engineering and public works. The city engineer shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. He shall have the following general powers and duties: (a) He shall have charge and of all the surveying and engineering work of the city and shall perform such service in connection with public improvements, or any work entered upon or proposed by the city, or any department thereof, as may require the skill and experience of a civil engineer. (b) He shall ascertain, record, and establish monuments of the city survey and from thence extend the survey of the city, and locate, establish, and survey all city property and also private property, abutting on the same, whenever directed by the Mayor. (c) He shall prepare and submit plans, maps, specifications and estimates for buildings, streets, bridges, docks, and other public works, and supervise the construction and repair of the same. (d) He shall make such tests and inspection of engineering materials used in construction and repair as may be necessary to protect the city from the use of materials of a poor or dangerous quality. (e) He shall have the care of all public buildings, including markets and slaughterhouses and all buildings rented for city purposes, and of any system now or hereafter established by the city for lighting the streets, public places, and public buildings. (f) He shall have the care of all public streets, parks and bridges, and shall maintain, clean, sprinkle, and regulate the use of the same for all purposes as provided for by ordinance; shall collect and dispose of all garbage, refuse, the contents of closets, vaults, and cesspools, and all other offensive and dangerous substances within the city and in the event the disposal and collection of such garbage, refuse and other offensive substances has been awarded to a private contractor, the disposal and collection thereof shall be under the supervision of any city officer whom the City Council may designate. (g) He shall have the care and custody of all public docks, wharves, piers, levees, and landing places owned by the city. (h) He shall prevent the encroachment of private buildings and fences on the streets and public places of the city. (i) He shall have general supervision and inspection of all private docks, wharves, piers, levees, and landing places, and other property bordering on the harbor, river, esteros and waterways of the city, and shall issue permits, with the approval of the City Mayor, for the construction, repair and removal of the same, and enforce all ordinances relating to the same. (j) He shall have the care and custody of the public system of waterworks and sewers, and all sources of water supply, and shall control, maintain, and regulate the use of the same, in accordance with the ordinance relating thereto; shall inspect and regulate the use of all private system for supplying water to the city and its inhabitants, and all private sewers and their connections with the public sewer system. (k) He shall supervise the laying of means and connections for the purpose of supplying gas to the inhabitants of the city. (l) He shall inspect and report upon the conditions of public property and public works whenever required by the Mayor. (m) He shall supervise and regulate the location and use of engines, boilers, forges, and other manufacturing and heating appliances in accordance with law and charge fees at rates to be fixed by the Council for the sanitation and transportation services and supplies furnished by his department. (n) He shall inspect and supervise the construction, repair, removal, and safety of private buildings, and regulate and enforce the numbering of houses in accordance with the ordinance of the city. (o) With the previous approval of the Mayor in each case, he shall order the removal of buildings and structures erected in violation or ordinances; shall order the removal of the materials employed in the construction or repair of any building or structure made in violation of said ordinances; and shall cause buildings and structure dangerous to the public to be made secure or torn down. (p) He shall file and preserve all maps, plans, notes, surveys, and other papers and documents pertaining to his office. Section 23. Execution of authorized public works and improvements.— The city is hereby authorized to undertake and carry out any public works projects or improvements, financed by the city or any other fund borrowed from or advanced by private parties under the supervision of the city engineer, without the intervention of the Department of Public Works and Communications. The approval of the plans and specifications thereof by the City Mayor and the city engineer and/or architect with the favorable recommendation of the City Council, shall constitute sufficient warrant for the undertaking and execution of said projects or improvements. The city may, however, consult if it so desires, the Department of Public Works and Communications in connection with the preparation of the plans and specifications for the city public works projects either by administration or by contracts under the usual bidding procedure of the Government. Article VII Law Department Section 24. The city fiscal—His powers, duties and compensation.— There shall be a city fiscal, who shall be the chief legal adviser of the city, and three assistant city fiscals, who shall be known as the first, second and third assistant city fiscals. The shall each receive a salary in accordance with existing laws, which shall be payable by the National Government and shall be included in the annual appropriation of the Department of Justice: Provided, That the City Council may by ordinance create such position as it may find necessary upon recommendation of the city fiscal, for special counsel, who shall be under the supervision and control of the city fiscal. Such special counsel shall be appointed by the City Mayor with the confirmation of the City Council, and shall perform duties and functions as may be assigned to them by the city fiscal, with compensation as may be fixed in the ordinance in accordance with existing salary laws, payable from city funds. The city fiscal shall, subject to the general supervision of the Secretary of Justice, have the following general powers and duties: (a) He shall personally or through any assistant represent the city in all civil cases wherein the city, or any officer thereof, in his official capacity, is a party; and shall prosecute and defend all civil actions related to or connected with any duty officer or interest. (b) He shall, when directed by the Mayor, institute and prosecute in the city’s interest a suit on any bond, lease, or other contract and upon any breach or violation thereof. (c) He shall when requested, attend meetings of the Council, draw ordinances, contracts, bonds, leases and other instruments involving any interest of the city, and inspect and pass upon any such instrument already drawn. (d) He shall give his opinion in writing, when requested by the Mayor or the Council or any of the heads of the city departments, upon any question relating to the city or the rights or duties of any city officer thereof. (e) He shall, whenever it is brought to his knowledge that any city officer or employee is guilty of neglect or misconduct in office, or that any person, firm, or corporation holding or exercising any franchise or public privilege from the city, has failed to comply with any condition, or to pay any consideration mentioned in the grant of such franchise or privilege, investigate or cause to be investigated the same and report to the Mayor. (f) He shall investigate all charges of crimes, misdemeanors, and violations of laws and city ordinances and prepare the necessary informations or make the necessary complaints against the persons accused. He may conduct such investigation by taking oral evidence of reputed witnesses and for this purpose may, by subpoena or subpoena duces tecum, summon witnesses to appear and testify under oath before him, or produce documents and other evidence before him, and the attendance of, or the production of documents and other evidence by an absent or recalcitrant witness may be enforced by application for warrant of arrest to the city court or the Court of First Instance. (g) He shall have charge of the prosecution of all crimes, misdemeanors and violations of laws and city ordinances triable in the Court of First Instance and the city court, and shall discharge all the duties in respect to criminal prosecution enjoined by law upon provincial fiscals. (h) He shall cause to be investigated the causes of sudden deaths which have not been satisfactorily explained and when there is suspicion that the cause arose from unlawful acts or omissions of other persons or from foul play. For the purpose he may cause autopsies to be made in case it is deemed necessary and shall be entitled to demand and receive for the purpose of such investigation or autopsies the aid of the city health officer. (i) He shall at all times render such professional services as the Mayor or City Council may require, and shall have such powers and perform such duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. Article VIII Department of Health Section 25. The city health officer—His powers, duties and compensation.— There shall be a city health officer who shall have charge of the health department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws, which shall be payable by the National Government and shall be included in the annual participation of the Department of Health. The city health officer shall have the following general powers and duties: (a) He shall have general supervision over the health and sanitary conditions of the city. (b) He shall execute and enforce all laws, ordinances and regulations relating to the public health. (c) He shall recommend to the City Council the passage of such ordinances as he may deem necessary for the preservation of the public health. (d) He shall cause to be prosecuted all violations of sanitary laws, ordinances, or regulations. (e) He shall make sanitary inspections and may be aided therein by such members of the police force of the city or the national police or proper national police officer and such sanitary inspectors as may be authorized by law. (f) He shall keep a civil register for the city and shall record therein all births, marriages, and deaths with their respective dates. (g) He shall have the supervision over the puericulture centers and special services of the city. (h) He shall perform such other duties, not repugnant to law or ordinance, with reference to the health and sanitation of the city as the Director of Health Services shall direct. Article IX Police Department Section 26. The chief of police—His powers, duties and compensation.— There shall be a chief of police who shall have charge of the police department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. He shall have the following general powers and duties: (a) He may issue supplementary regulations not incompatible with the law or general regulations promulgated by the proper department head of the National Government, in accordance with law, for the government of the city and detective force. (b) He shall quell riots, disorders, disturbances of the peace and shall arrest and prosecute through the city fiscal violators of any law or ordinance, shall be charged with the protection of the rights of persons and property wherever found within the jurisdiction of the city, and shall arrest when necessary to prevent the escape of the offender, violators of any laws or ordinance, and all who obstruct or interfere with him in the discharge of his duty; shall have charge of the city prison; and shall be responsible for the safekeeping of all prisoners until they shall be released from custody in accordance with law, or delivered to the warden of the proper prison or penitentiary. (c) He may take good and sufficient bail for the appearance before the judge of the city court of any person arrested for violation of any city ordinance: Provided, However, That he shall not exercise this power in cases of violation of any penal law, except when the city fiscal shall so recommend and fix the bail to be required of the person arrested. (d) He shall have authority, within the police limits of the city, to serve and execute criminal processes of any court. (e) He shall be the deputy sheriff of the city; and as such, he shall, personally or by representative, attend the sessions of the city court, and shall execute promptly and faithfully, all writs and processes of said court. (f) He shall exercise supervision over the police training schools established in accordance with rules and regulations of the police department. (g) He shall have control and supervision of all private security agencies and security guards who shall be duly licensed by the Mayor: Provided, That upon approval of this Act, all existing private security agencies and security guards shall continue to operate as such upon registration with the office of the chief of police. He shall have such others powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. Section 27. Peace officers—Their powers and duties.— The Mayor, the chief of police, and all officers and members of the city police and detective force shall be peace officers. Such peace officers are authorized to serve and execute all processes of the city court and criminal processes of all other courts to whomsoever directed, within the jurisdictional limits of the city or within the police limits as defined in this Charter, 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 of 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 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 until he can be brought before the proper magistrate. Whenever the Mayor shall deem it necessary to avert danger or to protect life and property, in case of riot, disturbance, or public calamity, he shall have power to swear in special police, in such numbers as the occasion demands. Such special police shall have the same powers while on duty as members of the regular force. Article X Fire Department Section 28. The chief of fire department—His powers, duties and compensation.— There shall be a chief of a fire department who shall have charge of said department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. The chief of police shall act as ex-officio chief of the fire department, until the City Council, by ordinance, provides otherwise at which time the chief of the fire department shall be appointed as heretofore provided. He shall have the following general powers and duties: (a) He may issue supplementary regulations not incompatible with law or general regulations issued by the proper department head of the National Government in accordance with law, for the governance of the fire force. (b) He shall have charge of the fire-engine houses, fire engines, hose, trucks, hooks and ladders, trucks and all other fire apparatus. (c) He shall have full police powers in the vicinity of fires. (d) He shall have authority to remove or demolish any building or other property whenever it shall become necessary to prevent the spreading of fire or to protect adjacent property. (e) He shall investigate and report to the Mayor upon the origin and cause of fires occurring within the city. (f) He shall inspect all buildings erected or under construction or repair within the city and determine whether they provide sufficient protection against fire and comply with the ordinances relating thereto. (g) He shall have charge of the city fire alarm service. (h) He shall supervise and regulate the stringing, grounding, and installation of wires for all electrical connections, with a view to avoiding conflagrations, interference, with public traffic or safety, or the necessary operation of the fire department. (i) He shall supervise the manufacture, storage, and use of petroleum, gas, acetylene, gunpowder, and other highly combustible matters and explosives. (j) He shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. Article XI Department of Assessment Section 29. The city assessor—His powers and duties.— There shall be a city assessor who shall have charge of the department of assessment. He shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. The city treasurer shall act as city assessor ex-officio until the City Council by ordinance, provides otherwise, at which time the city assessor shall be appointed as heretofore provided. He shall have the following powers and duties: (a) The city assessor or his duly authorized deputies shall assess all lands, buildings, and other real properties subject to taxation within the jurisdiction of the city, and for this purpose he and his authorized deputies are empowered to administer oaths authorized to be administered in connection with the valuation of real estate in the city and the names of owners thereof, with a brief description of the property opposite each name and the cash value of the property; in making this list, the city assessor shall take into consideration any sworn statement made by the owners of the property opposite each name and the cash value of the considering any other evidence on the subject and exercising his own judgment in respect thereto. For the purpose of completing this list, he and his representatives may enter the real estate for the purpose of examining and measuring it, and may summon witnesses, administer oaths to the owners and subject them to examination concerning the amount of real estate, its ownership and cash value; and (b) He may, if necessary, examine the records of the register of deeds of the Province of Camarines Sur showing the ownership of real estate in the city. Section 30. Real estate exempt from taxation.— The following shall be exempt from taxation: (a) Lands or buildings owned by the Republic of the Philippines, the Province of Camarines Sur or City of Iriga, and burying grounds, churches, and their adjacent parsonages and convents, and lands or buildings used exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purposes and not for profit; but such exemption shall not extend to lands or buildings held for investment, though income therefrom be devoted to religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purposes; and (b) Lands or buildings which are the only real property of the owners, and the value of which does not exceed five hundred pesos. Section 31. Declaration to be made by persons acquiring or improving real estate.— 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 the city assessor within a period of sixty days next succeeding 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 to readily identify the same. Any person having acquired real estate who fails to make and present the declaration herein required within the said 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 had been assessed in the name of its present owner. Section 32. Action when owner makes no returns or is unknown, or ownership is in dispute 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 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 of each shall be made. Section 33. Action in case estate has escaped taxation.— 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 assess 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 tax thus assessed shall be legal and collective 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. Section 34. When assessment may be increased or reduced.— 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 heretofore 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: Provided, However, That no increase in the assessment of a particular real estate shall be made oftener than once every five years. Section 35. Publication of complete list and proceedings thereon.— The city assessor shall, when 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 to carefully 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 in justice had been done or errors have been committed, he is authorized to amend the list in accordance with his finding. Section 36. City assessor to authenticate list of real estate assessed.— 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 Iriga in Camarines Sur has been omitted from the list, according to the best of my knowledge and belief. ____________________ (Signature) City Assessor" Section 37. Time and manner of appealing to Board of Tax Appeals.— In case any owner of real estate or his authorized agent, or any tenant of lessee of land or building shall feel aggrieved by any decision of the city assessor under the preceding sections of this Article, such owner or agent or tenant or lessee 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. Section 38. Constitution and compensation of Board of Tax Appeals.— There shall be a 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 twenty 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 Board of Tax Appeals shall hold office for a term of two years sooner removed by the President of the Philippines. Section 39. Oath to be taken by members of the Board of Tax Appeals.— Before organizing as such the members of the Board of Tax Appeals shall take the following oath before any public official authorized to administer oaths: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will hear 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 four words are to be stricken out.) ____________________ (Signature) Member of the Board of Tax Appeals "Subscribed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me this _______ day of ________________________, 19____ ____________________ (Signature and title of officer administering oaths)" Section 40. Procedure before the Board of Tax Appeals and the department head.— The Board of Tax Appeals shall hold such number of sessions as may be authorized by the Secretary of Finance, shall hear all appeals duly transmitted to it, and shall decide the same forthwith. It shall have authority to cause to be amended with 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 city assessor who shall amend the tax list in conformity with said order. It shall also have the power to review and correct, with the approval of the department head first had, any and all erroneous or unjust assessment 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 assessment and revaluation shall be made on due notice to the individual concerned who shall be entitled to be heard by the Board of Tax Appeals before any reassessment or revaluation is made. The decision of the 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. Section 41. Taxes on real estate—Extension and remission of the tax.— A tax, the rate of which shall not exceed one and one-half per centum ad valorem to be determined by the City Council, 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 paid in two installments, to be fixed annually by the City Council simultaneously with the rate per centum ad valorem taxation: Provided, That the time limit for the first and second installments shall be set not later than the thirty-first day of May and the thirtieth day of October of each year, respectively. Any person, who on the last day set for the payment of the real estate 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 prescribed card which will entitle him to pay the tax without penalty on the following day. The words "paid under protest" shall be written upon 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 taxpayers 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 amount 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 the prices of products is registered in any year, or that a similar disaster extends throughout the province, or for good and sufficient reason, the City Council 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 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. Section 42. Seizure of the personal property for delinquency in payment of the tax.— After a property shall have become delinquent in the payment of taxes and said taxes and the corresponding penalties shall remain unpaid ninety days after payment thereof shall have become due, the city treasurer, or 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. Section 43. Personal property exempt from seizure and sale for delinquency.— The following personal property shall be exempt from seizure, sale and execution for delinquency in the payment of the real estate tax: (a) Tools and implements necessarily used by the delinquent in his trade or employment. (b) One horse, cows or carabaos, or other beast of burden, such as the delinquent may select, and necessarily used by him in his ordinary occupation. (c) His necessary clothing and that of his family. (d) Household furniture and utensils necessary for housekeeping and used for that purpose by the delinquent such as he may select of a value not exceeding five hundred pesos. (e) Provisions for individual or family use sufficient for four months. (f) The professional libraries of lawyers, judges, clergymen, dentists, pharmacists, certified public accountants, and other professionals not exceeding one thousand pesos in value. (g) One fishing boat and net, the property of any fisherman, by the lawful use of which he earns a livelihood. (h) Any article or material which forms part of a home or of any improvement or any real estate. Section 44. The owner may redeem personal property before sale.— 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 tax, the penalty, and the cost incurred up to the time of tender. The cost to be charged in making such seizure and sale shall only embrace the actual expenses 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. Section 45. Sale of seized personal property.— Unless redeemed as hereinbefore provided, the property seized through proceedings under Section forty-eight 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 highest bidder. The purchaser at such shall 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 of 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 such property was seized. If no satisfactory bid is offered in the aforementioned districts, another auction shall be had, upon notice published anew. Section 46. Return of official—Disposal of surplus.— The officer directing the sale under the preceding section shall forthwith make return of his proceedings, and notation thereof shall be made by the city treasurer upon 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. Section 47. Vesting title to real estate in city government.— Upon the expiration of one year from the date on which the taxpayer has been 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: 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. Section 48. Redemption of real estate before seizure.— At any time after the expiration of ninety days from the date of the publication of the advertisement provided for in the next succeeding section, the owner or 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. Section 49. Notice of seizure of real estate.— Notice of seizure of the real estate shall be given by posting notices at the main entrance of the city hall, the provincial building and all the municipal buildings in the Province of Camarines Sur in English and in the dialect commonly used in the locality and a copy of said notice shall be sent by registered mail to owner of the property. A copy of said notice shall also be posted on the property subject to seizure. Such notice shall state the name of the delinquent person, the date on which such delinquent commenced, the amount of the taxes and penalties 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. Section 50. Ejectment of occupants of seized property.— 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 refuse 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. Section 51. Redemption of real property before sale.— After the title to the property shall have become vested in the city government in the manner provided for in Sections forty-seven and forty-nine of this Charter, 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 legal 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 taxes and penalties due therein 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 said lease: Provided, That the payment of the price of said property may, at the discretion of the purchaser, be made on 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 any 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 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, 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. Section 52. Notice of sale of real estate at public auction.— At any time after the forfeiture of any real estate shall have become absolute, the city 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 in the payment of taxes thereof, 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 entrance of the city hall and of all the municipal buildings of the province, in either English and in the dialect commonly used in the locality, and by publishing the same once a week during 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 taxes and penalties so due, the time and place of sale, the name of the taxpayer against whom the taxes are levied, and the approximate area, the lot number and the location by district and street number and district or barrio where the real estate to be sold is located. Section 53. Sale of real estate—Conditions.— At any time during the sale or prior thereto, the taxpayer may stay the proceedings by paying the taxes and penalties to the city 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 not exceeding 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 city 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 fifty of this Act. The city treasurer or his deputy shall make a report of the sale to the City Council 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 condition of payment, the amount paid, and the exact amount of taxes and penalties. Section 54. Redemption of real estate after sale.— Within one year from and after the date of 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, costs and interests 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 forthwith refund to the purchaser the entire sum paid by him with the interest at twelve per centum per annum, as provided for herein, and such property shall thereafter be free from the lien of such taxes and penalties. Section 55. Execution of deed of final sale.— In case the delinquent taxpayer shall not redeem the property sold as herein provided within one year from date of the sale, and the purchaser shall then have been 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 the taxes have been assessed as had been sold, free from all liens or encumbrances of any kind whatsoever, and said deed shall succinctly recite all the proceedings upon which 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. Section 56. Taxes and penalties which shall be paid upon redemption or repurchase.— 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 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. Section 57. Taxes—Legal Procedure.— (a) The assessment of a tax shall constitute a lawful indebtedness of the taxpayer to the city which may be enforced by a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction, and this remedy shall be in addition to all remedies provided by law. (b) No court shall entertain any suit assailing the validity of a tax assessed under this Charter until the taxpayer shall have paid, under protest, the taxes assessed against him; nor shall any court declare any tax invalid by reason of irregularities or informalities in the proceedings of the officers charged with the assessment or collection of the taxes or of a failure to perform their duties within the time specified for their performance, unless such irregularities, informalities, or failure shall have impaired the substantial rights of the taxpayer. (c) No court shall entertain any suit assailing the validity of the tax sale and land under this Charter until the taxpayer shall have paid into the court the amount for which the land was sold, together with interest at the rate of twelve per centum per annum upon the sum from the date of sale to the time of instituting the suit. The money so paid into the court shall belong and shall be delivered to the purchaser at the tax sale, if the deed is declared invalid, and shall be returned to the depositor, should he fail in his action. (d) No court shall declare any such sale invalid by reasons of any irregularities or informalities in the proceedings of the officers charged with the duty of making the sale, or by reason of failure by him to perform their duties within the time specified for their performance, unless such irregularities, informalities, or failure shall have impaired the substantial rights of the taxpayer. Article XII Office of the City Architect Section 58. City Architect.— There shall be a city architect who shall receive a compensation in accordance with existing laws. The city engineer shall be ex-officio city architect until the City Council, by ordinance provides otherwise at which time the city architect shall be appointed as herein provided. He shall prepare and undertake the preparation of plans and specifications of all public buildings and all construction which require the services of an architect. He shall also execute and perform such powers and duties as may be assigned to him by the Mayor or prescribed by law or ordinance. Article XIII Tax Allotments and Special Assessments for Public Improvements Section 59. Allotment of Internal Revenue and other taxes.— Of the internal revenue accruing to the National Treasury under Chapter II, Title XII of Commonwealth Act Numbered Four hundred and 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 of Iriga shall receive a share equal to what it would receive if it were a regularly organized province. Section 60. Power to levy special assessments for certain purposes.— The City Council 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, or 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, water courses, esteros, canals, drains, and sewers, including the cost acquiring the necessary land and public improvements thereon, as hereinafter provided. In case of national public works, the City Council as an agency of the National Government shall, when the President of the Philippines so directs it, province for the levying and collection by special assessments 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, paying, 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 therein. Section 61. Property subject to special assessment.— All lands comprised within the district or section benefited, except those owned by the Republic of the Philippines shall be subject to the payment of the special assessment. Section 62. Basis of apportionment.— The amount of the special assessment shall be apportioned and computed according to the assessed valuation 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 thereon. Section 63. Ordinance levying 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; the percentage of the cost to be defrayed by special assessment; the district of section 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 reasonably 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 subject to the payment of all the special assessment need not be established, but different rates for different parts or sections of this city according as paid 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. Section 64. Publication of proposed ordinance levying special assessment.— 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 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 and in 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 City Council 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 copies of said proposed ordinance by ordinary mail or otherwise. Section 65. Protest against special assessment.— Not later than ten days after the last publication of the ordinance and list of landowners, as provided in the preceding section, the landowners affected, if they compose a majority whose holding represent more than one-half of the total assessed value of said lands, may file with the City Council 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. Section 66. Hearing of protest.— The City Council 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 evidence presented by the landowners interested or by their attorneys shall be attached to the proper records. After the hearing, the City Council 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 two 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 hereinabove provided, but if he vetoes it, the procedure in similar cases provided in this Act shall be observed. Section 67. When ordinance is to take effect.— 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. Section 68. Appeals.— Anytime before the ordinance providing for the levying and collection of special assessment becomes effective in accordance with the preceding section, appeals from such special 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 the case of public works undertaken or contemplated to be undertaken by the city. In all cases, the appeals shall be in writing and signed by at least a majority of the owners of the lands situated in the special assessment 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 City Council a written notice of the appeal, and the secretary of said Council shall, within ten days after the receipt of the notice of appeal, forward to the officer who has jurisdiction to decide the appeal, an excerpt from the minutes of the Council relative to the proposed special assessment and all the documents in connection therewith. Section 69. Fixing of amount of special assessment.— 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 written notice thereof by ordinary mail. If upon completion of the public works it should appear that the actual costs 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 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. Section 70. Payment of special assessment.— 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 by the same means as said annual ordinary tax; and all said sums together with any of said penalties shall, from the dates on which they are 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 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. Section 71. Disposition of proceeds.— The proceeds of the special assessment and penalties thereon shall be applied exclusively to the purpose or purposes for which the assessments were levied. It shall be the duty of the city treasurer to turn over to the National Treasury all collections made by him from special assessment levies for national public works. Article XIV City Budget Section 72. Annual budget.— 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 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 estimate of the department heads as required by Section eighteen of this Charter, the Mayor shall formulate and submit to the City Council 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. Section 73. Supplemental budget.— Supplemental budget formulated in the same manner may be adopted when special or unforeseen circumstances make such action necessary. Section 74. Failure to enact an appropriation ordinance.— Whenever the City Council fails to enact an appropriation ordinance for any fiscal year before the end of the previous fiscal year, the several sums appropriated in the last appropriation ordinance for the objects and purposes specified, shall be deemed to be reappointed for the several objects and purposes specified in said last appropriation ordinance, and shall go into effect on the first day of the new fiscal year as the appropriation ordinance for the year, until a new appropriation ordinance is duly enacted. Article XV The City Court Section 75. Regular, auxiliary and acting judges of the city court.— There shall be a city court for which there shall be appointed a city judge and an auxiliary city judge. The city judge shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws, which shall be a payable by the National Government and shall be included in the annual appropriation of the Department of Justice. The City Council may, when circumstances so warrant, and subject to the approval of the Secretary of Justice, appropriate the necessary amount for the establishment of another branch of the city court, the judge and auxiliary city judge thereof to be appointed as herein provided. The auxiliary city judge shall discharge the duties of the city judge in case of absence, incapacity or inability of the latter until he assumes his post, or until a new judge shall have been appointed. During his incumbency, the auxiliary city judge shall enjoy the powers, emoluments and privileges of the city judge who shall not receive any remuneration therefor except the salary to which he is entitled. In case of absence, incapacity or inability of both the city judge and the auxiliary city judge, the Secretary of Justice shall designate the municipal judge of any of the adjoining municipalities to preside over the city court, and he shall hold office temporarily until the regular incumbent or the auxiliary city judge shall have resumed office or until another judge shall have been appointed in accordance with the provisions of this Charter. The municipal judge so designated shall receive his salary as municipal judge plus fifty per cent of the salary of the city judge whose office he has temporarily assumed. Section 76. Clerk and employees of the city court.— There shall be a clerk of the city court who shall be appointed by the city judge in accordance with the Civil Service Law, rules and regulations, and who shall receive a compensation in accordance with existing laws. 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 summary manner the names of the parties and the various proceedings in civil and 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 and shall perform the duties of a notary public ex-officio. The clerk of the city court shall at the same time be the sheriff of the city and shall have the same powers and duties conferred by existing law to provincial sheriffs. The City Council may provide for such number of clerks and other officer personnel who shall be appointed by the City Mayor in the office of the city court as the needs of the service may demand. Section 77. Jurisdiction of city court.— The city court shall have the same jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases and the same incidental powers as are at the present or hereafter conferred upon them by law. It may also conduct preliminary investigations for any offense, without regard to the limits of punishment, and may release, or commit and bind over any person charged with such offense to secure his appearance before the proper court. Section 78. Incidental powers of city court.— The city court shall have the power to administer oaths and to give certificates thereof; to issue summons, writs, warrants, executions, and all other processes necessary to enforce its order and judgments, to compel the attendance of witnesses; to punish contempt of court by fine or imprisonment, or both, within the limitations imposed by law; and require of any person arrested a bond for good behaviour or to keep the peace, or for further appearance of such person before a court of competent jurisdiction. But no such bond shall be accepted unless it be executed by the person in whose behalf it is made with sufficient surety or sureties to be approved by said court. Section 79. Procedure in city court in prosecution for violation of law and ordinances.— 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 ordinances 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 procedures for the judiciary of the Philippines, and such rules shall govern the city court and its officers in all cases insofar as the same may be applicable. Section 80. Costs, fees, fines, and forfeitures in city court.— There shall be taxed against and collected from the defendant, in case of his conviction in the city court, such costs and fees as may be prescribed by law in criminal cases in municipal 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 for 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 city judge shall examine said docket each day, compare the same with the amount receipted for by the city treasurer and satisfy himself that all such costs, fees, fines, and forfeitures have been duly accounted for. Section 81. No person sentenced by the city court to be confined without commitment.— No person shall be confined in prison by sentence of the city 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 in each case of sentence to imprisonment, issued by the clerk under seal of the court. Section 82. Procedure on appeal from city court to Court of First Instance.— An appeal shall lie in the Court of First Instance in all cases appealable thereto as provided for by law. The party desiring to appeal shall, before six o’clock post meridian of the fifteenth day after the rendition and entry of the judgment by the city court, file with the clerk of court a written statement that he appeals to the Court of First Instance. The filing of such statement shall perfect the appeal. The city judge of the court from whose decision appeal is taken shall, within five days after the appeal is filed, transmit to the clerk of the Court of First Instance a certified copy of the record of proceedings and all the original papers and processes on the case. A perfected appeal shall operate to vacate the judgment of the city court and the action, when duly entered in the Court of First Instance, shall stand for trial de novo upon its merits as though the same has never been tried. Pending an appeal, the defendant shall remain in custody unless released in the discretion of the city court or the judge of the Court of First Instance upon sufficient bail in accordance with the procedure in force to await the judgment of the appellate court. Appeals in criminal cases falling under the concurrent jurisdiction of the city court with the Court of First Instance wherein the city courts act with like jurisdiction with the Court of First Instance and the proceedings are recorded shall be direct to the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court, as the case may be, in like manner and under the same procedure provided for by law in appeals from the decisions of the Court of First Instance. Appeals in civil cases shall be governed by the ordinary procedure established by law. Article XVI Bureaus Performing City Duties Section 83. The General Auditing Office—City Auditor.— The city auditor appointed by and under the supervision of 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 and his assistant must have at least majored in accounting and auditing and have had adequate experience in government or private program of internal auditing. They shall receive salaries provided for under existing laws, fifty per centum of which shall be payable from the funds of the city and fifty per centum shall be payable from the funds of the National Government. Section 84. The Bureau of Supply Coordination.— If the City Mayor should so request, 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 its departments and 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. Section 85. The Bureau of Public Schools—Superintendent of City Schools.— The Director of the Bureau 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 divisions. The city superintendent of schools shall receive a salary fixed by law: Provided, That salaries of the city superintendent, supervisors, principals, teachers and other operational expenses of the primary, intermediate, secondary and other public schools in the city, except those established by the city itself, shall be borne by the National Government. The clerical force and assistants and laborers in the office of the city superintendent of schools shall be appointed by the City Mayor in accordance with the Civil Service Law, and their salaries shall be paid by the city as well as the office expenses for supplies and materials incident to the operation of said office. Any provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, the city is hereby constituted as a separate school division. Section 86. The City School Board.— There shall be a city school board of six members, two of whom shall be women, and who shall serve without compensation, shall be elected and removed in the same manner, and shall have the same powers and duties, as local school boards in the municipalities. Section 87. Power of the City Board over the city schools.— The city board shall have the same power in respect to the establishment of schools as are conferred by law on municipal councils. Section 88. Reports to the Mayor concerning schools—Construction and custody of school buildings.— The city superintendent of schools shall make a quarterly report on the conditions of city schools and school buildings of the city to the Mayor, and such recommendation as seem to him wise in respect to the number of teachers, their salaries, new buildings to be erected, and all other matters. The city school board shall make a similar annual report to the City Mayor. Section 89. The City Register of Deeds.— The city shall have a register of deeds who shall take charge of the registration of real properties situated within the city and such related activities connected therewith. In addition, he shall exercise and perform such powers and duties as provided by law or ordinance. He shall receive a salary fixed by law. The Commissioner of Land Transportation Commission shall exercise the same jurisdiction and powers in the city as elsewhere in the Philippines. Section 90. The Land Transportation Registrar.— The city shall have a land transportation registrar who shall take charge of the registration of motor vehicles within the city and such related activities connected therewith. In addition, he shall exercise and perform such powers and duties as provided by law and shall receive a salary in accordance with existing laws. The Commissioner of the Land Transportation Commission shall exercise the same jurisdiction and powers in the city as elsewhere in the Philippines. Article XVII Regulation of Places of Amusements and Sale of Intoxicating Liquors and Powers Over Subdivisions Section 91. Power of City Council over amusement places.— All laws and executive orders existing at the time of the approval of this Act referring to the regulation of night clubs, cabarets, dancing schools, pavilions, cockpits, bars, saloons, bowling alleys, billiard pools and tables, boxing contests and other places of amusements, and regulations for the sale of intoxicating liquors, shall be inoperative within the city and the power to promulgate such regulations shall be vested in the City Council and the Mayor by ordinance. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph, such laws and executive orders existing at the time of the approval of this Act, shall continue in force within the city until the City Council and the Mayor shall by ordinance provide otherwise. Section 92. Power over subdivisions.— The City Council shall have the power by ordinance approved by the Department Head to require that no plat or plan of subdivision of a residential estate within its jurisdiction shall be presented for approval or verification by the Bureau of Lands or the Land Registration Commission until the same shall have been approved by the City Council upon recommendation of the city engineer under such regulations as may be provided by ordinance. Such regulations may provide for the proper arrangement, design and width of streets in relation to other existing or planned streets, for adequate and convenient open spaces for traffic, public services, access of fire-fighting apparatus, recreation, light, and air, and for the avoidance of congestion or population including minimum width and area of lots in the several districts or sections of the city. Such regulations may also include provisions as to the extent to, and methods by which streets and other ways shall be graded, drained, and improved and water and sewer and other public service drains, piping, or other facilities installed. Such regulations shall provide for approval of the plat or plats within sixty days after the submission thereof to the City Council. Article XVIII Final and Transitory Provisions Section 93. Municipal ordinances existing at the time of approval of this Act.— All municipal ordinances of the Municipality of Iriga, Camarines Sur, existing at the time of the approval of this Act shall continue in force within the City of Iriga until the City Council shall be ordinance provide otherwise. Section 94. Tax delinquencies existing before this Act take effect.— All real property tax delinquencies existing in the City of Iriga before this Act takes effect shall so governed by the provisions of law then in force: Provided, That all the penalties due on the delinquent realty taxes for the year or years preceding that in which this Act is approved shall be remitted if such taxes are paid within one year from the approval hereof. Section 95. Ownership of roads, streets, etc.— All existing municipal, provincial and national roads, streets, bridges, docks, piers, wharves, machineries, equipment and other public works improvements in the city shall be owned by the city. Section 96. Change of Government.— The city government provided for in this Charter shall be organized on such a date as may be fixed by the President of the Philippines. The incumbent Mayor, Vice-Mayor, and members of the Municipal Council of the Municipality of Iriga, Camarines Sur, shall continue in office as the Mayor, Vice-Mayor, and members of the City Council of the city, respectively, until the expiration of their present terms of office, and until their respective successors shall have been elected and qualified. The officers and employees of the Municipality of Iriga, Province of Camarines Sur, occupying positions in the classified service shall continue in the service and hold their corresponding offices or positions in the City of Iriga upon the effectivity of this Act unless removed for cause as provided for by law. Section 96-A. Participation of city voters in the election for provincial officials.— The qualified voters of the City of Iriga shall be qualified and be entitled to vote in the election of the provincial officials of the Province of Camarines Sur. Section 97. Relations between the city and national police agencies.— The city police shall exercise exclusive police jurisdiction within the territorial limits of the City of Iriga: Provided, That in the apprehension of smuggling, and such other cases as may from time to time be designated by authority of the President of the Philippines, the Philippine Constabulary, the National Bureau of Investigations and other police agencies shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the city police: And, Provided, further, That when public interest so requires, the City Mayor may request from the Philippine Constabulary, the National Bureau of Investigation and other police agencies, the necessary assistance needed by the city in the enforcement of peace and order, or in case of emergency. Section 98. Dedication of streets, highways and other ways in subdivisions.— If the subdivider offers the dedication of streets, highways and other ways for public use in his subdivision, approval of the final plat by the city and the completion of the constructions of such streets, highways and other ways, as shown in such plat, by the subdivider, shall constitute acceptance of such dedication by the city. Section 99. Representative district.— Unless otherwise provided by law, the City of Iriga shall continue as part of the Second Representative District of Camarines Sur. Section 100. Existence of Barrio Councils.— All existing barrio councils shall continue to exist in accordance with the provisions of the Barrio Charter. Section 101. Separability clause.— If any part or section of this Charter should be declared unconstitutional, such declaration shall not invalidate the other provisions hereof. Section 102. Repealing clause.— All Acts, executive orders, administrative orders and proclamations or parts thereof inconsistent with any of the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. Article XIX Effectivity of this Act Section 103. Effectivity.— This Act shall take effect upon its approval. Approved: June 15, 1968. The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation