Local Fiscal Administration PDF

LOCAL FISCAL ADMINISTRATION Chapter 1 General Provisions SECTION 304. Scope This Title shall govern the conduct and management of financial affairs, transactions, and operations of provinces, cities, municipalities, and Barangays.  SECTION 305. Fundamental Principles...

LOCAL FISCAL ADMINISTRATION Chapter 1 General Provisions SECTION 304. Scope This Title shall govern the conduct and management of financial affairs, transactions, and operations of provinces, cities, municipalities, and Barangays.  SECTION 305. Fundamental Principles The financial affairs, transactions, and operations of local government units shall be governed by the following fundamental principles: a) No money shall be paid out of the local treasury except in pursuance of an appropriations ordinance or law; (b) Local government funds and monies shall be spent solely for public purposes; (c) Local revenue is generated only from sources expressly authorized by law or ordinance, and collection thereof shall at all times be acknowledged properly;  d) All monies officially received by a local government officer in any capacity or on any occasion shall be accounted for as local funds, unless otherwise provided by law; (e) Trust funds in the local treasury shall not be paid out except in fulfillment of the purpose for which the trust was created or the funds received; (f) Every officer of the local government unit whose duties permit or require the possession or custody of local funds shall be properly bonded, and such officer shall be accountable and responsible for said funds and for the safekeeping thereof in conformity with the provisions of law; (g) Local governments shall formulate sound financial plans, and the local budgets shall be based on functions, activities, and projects, in terms of expected results; (h) Local budget plans and goals shall, as far as practicable, be harmonized with national development plans, goals, and strategies in order to optimize the utilization of resources and to avoid duplication in the use of fiscal and physical resources; (i) Local budgets shall operationalize approved local development plans;  (j) Local government units shall ensure that their respective budgets incorporate the requirements of their component units and provide for equitable allocation of resources among these component units; (k) National planning shall be based on local planning to ensure that the needs and aspirations of the people as articulated by the local government units in their respective local development plans are considered in the formulation of budgets of national line agencies or offices; (l) Fiscal responsibility shall be shared by all those exercising authority over the financial affairs, transactions, and operations of the local government units; and (m) The local government unit shall endeavor to have a balanced budget in each fiscal year of operation.  SECTION 306. Definitions When used in this Title, the term - (a) "Annual Budget" refers to a financial plan embodying the estimates of income and expenditures for one (1) fiscal year; (b) "Appropriation" refers to an authorization made by ordinance, directing the payment of goods and services from local government funds under specified conditions or for specific purposes; (c) "Budget Document" refers to the instrument used by the local chief executive to present a comprehensive financial plan to the Sanggunian concerned; (d) "Capital Outlays" refers to appropriations for the purchase of goods and services, the benefits of which extend beyond the fiscal year and which add to the assets of the local government unit concerned, including investments in public utilities such as public markets and slaughterhouses;  (e) "Continuing Appropriation" refers to an appropriation available to support obligations for a specified purpose or projects, such as those for the construction of physical structures or for the acquisition of real property or equipment, even when these obligations are incurred beyond the budget year; (f) "Current Operating Expenditures" refers to appropriations for the purchase of goods and services for the conduct of normal local government operations within the fiscal year, including goods and services that will be used or consumed during the budget year;  (g) "Expected Results" refers to the services, products, or benefits that will accrue to the public, estimated in terms of performance measures or physical targets; (h) "Fund" refers to a sum of money, or other assets convertible to cash, set aside for the purpose of carrying out specific activities or attaining certain objectives in accordance with special regulations, restrictions, or limitations, and constitutes an independent fiscal and accounting entity;  (i) "Income" refers to all revenues and receipts collected or received forming the gross accretions of funds of the local government unit; (j) "Obligations" refers to an amount committed to be paid by the local government unit for any lawful act made by an accountable officer for and in behalf of the local unit concerned; (k) "Personal Services" refers to appropriations for the payment of salaries, wages and other compensation of permanent, temporary, contractual, and casual employees of the local government unit; (l) "Receipts" refers to income realized from operations and activities of the local government or are received by it in the exercise of its corporate functions, consisting of charges for services rendered, conveniences furnished, or the price of a commodity sold, as well as loans, contributions or aids from other entities, except provisional advances for budgetary purposes; and (m) "Revenue" refers to income derived from the regular system of taxation enforced under authority of law or ordinance, and, as such, accrue more or less regularly every year.