Charter converting Catbalogan as component city

Corporate personality and general powers

The City is a political body corporate with perpetual succession and powers of a municipal corporation exercised under the Charter and other laws. (Section 3)
The City may sue and be sued, use a corporate seal, and may acquire and convey real or personal property. (Section 3)
The City may enter into contracts and exercise other corporate powers subject to the Charter and other laws. (Section 3)
The City may levy taxes and may close and open roads, streets, alleys, parks or squares subject to the Constitution and existing laws. (Section 4)
The City may expropriate or condemn private property for public use, contract, and prosecute/defend suits where it is a party. (Section 4)
The City’s general welfare functions include exercising powers expressly granted, necessarily implied, and necessary/incidental for efficient governance and promotion of general welfare. (Section 5)

General welfare and liability for damages

Within its territorial jurisdiction, the City must ensure and support cultural preservation and enrichment, health and safety, a balanced ecology, and support for self-reliant scientific and technological capabilities. (Section 5)
The City must promote improved public morals, economic prosperity and social justice, full employment, peace and order, and comfort and convenience of inhabitants. (Section 5)
The City is liable for injuries or damages to persons or property arising from the act or omission of its officers or employees while performing official functions, unless otherwise provided by bylaw. (Section 6)

Police jurisdiction and court coverage

The City’s police jurisdiction for police purposes is coextensive with its territorial jurisdiction. (Section 7)
For water protection purposes, police jurisdiction extends over territory within the drainage area of the City water supply or within one hundred meters (100 m.) of any reservoir, conduit, canal, aqueduct or pumping station used in connection with the City water service. (Section 7)
Regional trial courts and City courts have concurrent jurisdiction with regional trial courts and metropolitan trial courts or city/municipal courts of adjoining municipalities/cities to try crimes and misdemeanors committed within the drainage area or within 100 m. spaces. (Section 7)
The court first taking cognizance has jurisdiction to the exclusion of others. (Section 7)
Police forces of several municipalities and cities have concurrent jurisdiction with the City police forces for maintaining good order and enforcing ordinances within the drainage zone/area/spaces. (Section 7)
Any license issued within the zone/area/spaces is granted by the proper authorities of the City or adjoining municipality concerned, and related fees accrue to the treasury of that City/municipality, not to the City under this Charter. (Section 7)

City officials and appointment structure

The City has: a city mayor, city vice mayor, sangguniang panlungsod members, secretary to the sangguniang panlungsod, city treasurer and assistant, city assessor and assistant, city accountant, city engineer, city health officer, city civil registrar, city social welfare and development officer, city budget officer, city planning and development officer, city administrator, city legal officer, city veterinarian, city general services officer, city agriculturist, city cooperatives officer, city building officer, city environment and natural resources officer, city architect, and city information officer. (Section 8)
The city mayor may appoint a city population officer and a city tourism officer. (Section 8)
The City shall establish a city fire station headed by a city fire marshal, a city jail headed by a city jail warden, a city schools division headed by a superintendent, and a city prosecution service headed by a city prosecutor. (Section 8)
The sangguniang panlungsod may maintain offices not mentioned, create necessary offices, or consolidate office functions for efficiency and economy. (Section 8)
Appointive city officials are appointed by the city mayor with the concurrence of the majority of all sangguniang panlungsod members, subject to the civil service law. (Section 8)
The sangguniang panlungsod must act on the appointment within fifteen (15) days; otherwise, the appointment is deemed confirmed. (Section 8)

City mayor: election, term, duties

The city mayor is the chief executive of the City and is elected at large by qualified voters of the City. (Section 9)
Eligibility for city mayor requires being at least twenty-one (21) years of age, a City resident for at least one year prior to election, and a qualified voter. (Section 9)
The city mayor serves a term of three years, unless removed earlier. (Section 9)
The city mayor receives a minimum monthly compensation corresponding to Salary Grade Thirty (30) under Republic Act No. 6758 and its implementing guidelines, plus other compensation/emoluments/allowances determined by law. (Section 9)
The city mayor sets guidelines of city policies, is responsible to the sangguniang panlungsod for the program of government, and directs formulation of the city development plan with assistance of the city development council; implementation follows approval by the sangguniang panlungsod. (Section 9)
The city mayor presents the annual program of government and proposes policies/projects for sangguniang panlungsod consideration, initiates and proposes legislative measures, and provides information/data needed or requested. (Section 9)
The city mayor appoints officials and employees whose salaries and wages are wholly or mainly paid out of city funds, and whose appointments are not otherwise provided in the Local Government Code of 1991, and appoints those he is authorized by law to appoint. (Section 9)
The city mayor represents the City in business transactions and signs, on its behalf, bonds, contracts, obligations, and other documents upon authority of the sangguniang panlungsod or pursuant to law/ordinance. (Section 9)
The city mayor carries out emergency measures after man-made and natural disasters or calamities. (Section 9)
The city mayor determines the time, manner and place of payments of salaries/wages, subject to law/ordinance. (Section 9)
The city mayor allocates and assigns office space to officials and employees entitled by law or ordinance. (Section 9)
The city mayor ensures executive officials and employees discharge duties, causes administrative/judicial proceedings against any official or employee for offenses committed in performance of duties, and examines books/records of all offices/officers/employees (with confidentiality limits). (Section 9)
The city mayor furnishes copies of executive orders to the provincial governor within seventy-two (72) hours after issuance. (Section 9)
The city mayor visits component barangays at least once every six months. (Section 9)
The city mayor acts on leave applications and commutation of leave credits in accordance with law; authorizes official trips outside the City for a period not exceeding thirty (30) days. (Section 9)
The city mayor may authorize payments for medical care, transportation, subsistence, and hospital/medical fees of officials/employees injured in performance of official duties, subject to availability of funds. (Section 9)
The city mayor solemnizes marriages, conducts an annual palarong panlungsod featuring traditional sports in coordination with DepEd, the Philippine Sports Commission, and other related agencies. (Section 9)
The city mayor submits an annual report and supplemental reports to the provincial governor on management, administration, development, and political/social/economic condition of the City, particularly during disasters/calamities affecting the general welfare. (Section 9)

City vice mayor and succession roles

The city vice mayor is elected in the same manner as the city mayor and must have the same qualifications at election time. (Section 10)
The city vice mayor serves a three-year term unless sooner removed and receives minimum monthly compensation corresponding to Salary Grade Twenty-eight (28) under Republic Act No. 6758. (Section 10)
The city vice mayor presides over the sangguniang panlungsod and signs warrants drawn on the city treasury for expenditures appropriated for the sangguniang panlungsod operations. (Section 10)
The city vice mayor appoints officials and employees (including the secretary to the sangguniang panlungsod) subject to civil service law rules, except those whose appointment is specifically provided in the Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 10)
If there is a permanent vacancy in the office of the city mayor, the city vice mayor assumes the office for the unexpired term as provided in Section 44 of the Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 10)
In cases of temporary vacancy, the city vice mayor exercises the powers and performs duties/functions of the city mayor. (Section 10)

Legislative body powers and sanctions limits

The sangguniang panlungsod is the legislative body of the City and consists of the city vice mayor as presiding officer, ten (10) regular sanggunian members, presidents of liga ng mga barangay and panlungsod na pederasyon ng mga sangguniang kabataan, sectoral representatives, and other members allowed by law; they hold office for three years unless sooner removed. (Section 11)
The Charter provides three (3) sectoral representatives: one from women; one from agricultural or industrial workers; and one from other sectors including urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, or disabled persons. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod determines sectoral representatives within ninety (90) days prior to local elections. (Section 11)
Regular members, sectoral representatives, and other members have the same qualifications as the city mayor/vice mayor; elective candidates must be at least eighteen (18) years of age on election day. (Section 11)
Minimum monthly compensation for sangguniang panlungsod members corresponds to Salary Grade Twenty-five (25) under Republic Act No. 6758. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod approves ordinances and passes resolutions; it reviews barangay ordinances and punong barangay executive orders for consistency within prescribed powers. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod maintains peace and order by enacting measures to prevent and suppress lawlessness, disorder, riot, violence, rebellion or sedition and imposes penalties for violation of city ordinances. (Section 11)
For city ordinance violations, the sangguniang panlungsod may approve ordinances imposing a fine not exceeding PHP 5,000.00 or an imprisonment term not exceeding one year, or both, at the discretion of the court. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod enacts ordinances on disasters/calamities, habitual drunkenness, vagrancy, mendicancy, prostitution, houses of ill-repute, gambling and prohibited games of chance, fraudulent devices, drug addiction/drug dens/drug pushing, juvenile delinquency, and obscene/pornographic materials/publications and similar inimical activities. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod protects the environment by setting aside a reasonable amount from development funds to maintain/enhance the City’s ecological balance and may impose penalties for specified harmful acts; fines are used exclusively for advancement of ecological protection. (Section 11)

Detailed legislative functions: land, utilities, health, and order

The sangguniang panlungsod determines powers and duties of officials and employees subject to the Local Government Code of 1991 and other laws. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod consistent with Salary Standardization Law determines positions and the salaries/wages/allowances and other emoluments/benefits of officials/employees paid wholly or mainly from city funds and provides for expenditures for conduct of city programs/projects/services/activities. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod authorizes payment of compensation or honorarium to a qualified person filling a temporary vacancy or in a concurrent capacity at the rate authorized by law. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod establishes mechanisms and funds to ensure safety and protection of City properties and public documents/records such as property inventory, land ownership records, birth/marriage/death records, assessments, taxation records, accounts, business permits, and other public interest records. (Section 11)
When finances allow, the sangguniang panlungsod provides additional allowances/benefits to judges, prosecutors, public elementary/high school teachers, and other national officials stationed in the City. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod provides legal assistance to barangay officials in judicial proceedings or defense actions arising from official duties, and provides group insurance or additional insurance for all barangay officials including members of barangay tanod brigades and other service units with public or private insurance companies. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod approves annual and supplemental budgets and appropriates funds for city programs/projects/services/activities and other lawful purposes. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may, with the majority vote of all members, enact ordinances levying taxes/fees/charges (with general and specific purposes) prescribing rates and granting tax exemptions/incentives/reliefs subject to Book II of the Local Government Code of 1991 and applicable laws. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may, with the majority vote of all members, authorize the city mayor to negotiate and contract loans and other indebtedness subject to Book II; published loan terms are required in a newspaper of general circulation in the City before approval, and approved contracts must be furnished to city residents requesting copies upon payment of reasonable fees. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may, with the majority vote of all members, enact ordinances authorizing floating bonds or other instruments of indebtedness for development projects, with publication in a newspaper of general circulation; approved bond contracts must be furnished upon request with reasonable fees. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod appropriates for construction/maintenance/rental of buildings for City use and may, with majority vote, authorize the city mayor to lease proprietary City buildings to private parties subject to existing laws/rules/regulations. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may prescribe limits and restraints on use of property within City jurisdiction; adopts a comprehensive land-use plan coordinated with the provincial comprehensive land-use plan; reclassifies lands subject to the Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod enacts integrated zoning ordinances in consonance with the approved comprehensive land-use plan, establishes fire limits/zones in populous centers, and regulates construction/repair/modification within fire limits/zones in accordance with the Fire Code. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod processes and approves subdivision plans for residential/commercial/industrial and other development purposes subject to national law, and collects processing fees/charges accruing entirely to the City; where national approval is required, approval must not be withheld for more than thirty (30) days from receipt of the application and failure to act within the period is deemed approval. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may grant the exclusive privilege of constructing fish corrals/fish pens or taking/catching bangus fry, prawn fry or kawag-kawag, or fry of any species of fish within City waters subject to Book II of the Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may grant tax exemptions/incentives/reliefs to entities engaged in community growth-inducing industries with concurrence of at least two-thirds (2/3) vote of all members, subject to the Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may grant loans or provide grants to other local government units or to national/provincial/city charitable, benevolent, or educational institutions operated and maintained within the City. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates building numbering, inspection/weighing/measuring of articles of commerce, and enacts ordinances granting franchises and issuing permits/licenses to promote general welfare subject to Local Government Code of 1991. (Section 11)

Public services and regulatory ordinances

The sangguniang panlungsod fixes and imposes reasonable fees/charges for all services rendered by the City to private persons/entities. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates or fixes license fees for any business or professional practice in the City, and conditions under which licenses may be revoked; it may also enact ordinances levying taxes thereon. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod sets conditions for operation of city-owned public utilities and may prescribe conditions for leasing to private persons/entities, preferably cooperatives. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates display and sets license fees for signs, signboards, or billboards where the advertised business/profession is conducted. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may authorize and license cockpits and regulate cockfightings and the commercial breeding of gamecocks. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates the operation of tricycles subject to Department of Transportation and Communications guidelines and grants franchises for tricycle operation within the City. (Section 11)
With approval by a majority vote, the sangguniang panlungsod grants franchises, including for ferries, wharves, markets, slaughterhouses, and other activities allowed by existing laws; cooperatives receive preference. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod may declare, prevent, or abate nuisances. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod, with concurrence of a majority of members constituting a quorum, may deny entry of legalized gambling by ordinance into any part of the City or regulate its location. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod requires buildings/premises and lands in the City to be kept in sanitary condition, imposes penalties for violations, or authorizes work at the expense of the owner/administrator/tenant and requires filling land/premises to a grade necessary for sanitation if owners fail to comply. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates disposal of clinical and other wastes from hospitals, clinics, and similar establishments. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates operations of cafes, restaurants, beerhouses, hotels, motels, inns, pension houses, lodging houses, tourist guides, and transports. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates retail sale/giving away/dispensing of intoxicating malt, vino, mixed or fermented liquors. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates steam boilers/heating devices inspection and storage of inflammable/highly combustible materials within the City. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates entertainment/amusement facilities and may require suspension/suppression or prohibit certain forms to protect social and moral welfare of the community. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod provides for impounding stray animals, regulates keeping animals at home or as part of a business, regulates slaughter/sale/disposition, and adopts measures to prevent and penalize cruelty to animals subject to existing laws. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates establishment/operation/maintenance of funeral parlors and burial/cremation of the dead subject to existing laws. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod ensures delivery of basic services and facilities by authorizing communal forests and watersheds, tree parks, greenbelts, mangroves, and similar forest development projects. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod establishes markets/slaughterhouses/animal corrals by the City government and regulates construction/operation of private markets/talipapas or similar structures. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod authorizes the City government to establish/maintain/operate ferries and wharves and other structures to accelerate marine/seashore/offshore productivity. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates preparation and sale of fish, meat, poultry, vegetables, fruits, fresh dairy products, and other foodstuffs for public consumption. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates use of streets/public places, approves construction/improvement/repair/maintenance, establishes/regulates bus and vehicle stops and terminals, regulates privately-owned public vehicles, garages and conveyances for hire, designates stands, regulates signs/awnings on streets, and provides lighting/cleaning/sprinkling. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates traffic on all streets and bridges, prohibits encroachments/obstacles, and authorizes removal of encroachments/illegal constructions when necessary for public welfare. (Section 11)
Subject to existing laws, the sangguniang panlungsod establishes and maintains an efficient waterworks system to supply water and purify sources, regulates hydrants/pumps/cisterns/reservoirs, protects purity and quantity of water supply, extends ordinances to territory within the drainage area and within one hundred meters (100 m.), and regulates water consumption/use/wastage and charges. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates drilling/excavation for water/gas/sewer/pipes, public drains/sewers/cesspools/tunnels, poles and crosswalks/curbs/gutters, public safety against open canals/manholes/live wires/hazards, and private water closets/privies/similar structures. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod regulates placement/stringing/attaching/installing/repair/construction of gas mains and electric telegraph/telephone wires, conduits, meters and other apparatus, and provides for correction/condemnation/removal when dangerous/defective/hazardous. (Section 11)
Subject to availability of funds and existing laws, it establishes or maintains city college/vocational/technical schools and may fix and collect reasonable tuition fees and other charges subject to existing laws on tuition fees with approval by DepEd/CHED/Technical Education and Skills Development Authority as case may be. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod ensures physical maintenance of educational institutions under its operational control and provision of books and capital equipment. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod establishes a scholarship fund for poor but deserving students in its schools or students residing in the City. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod adopts measures and quarantine regulations to prevent introduction/spread of diseases. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod provides for solid waste and garbage collection and prohibits littering and placing/throwing garbage/refuse/filth/wastes; it provides incentive schemes for industries engaged in recycling waste/garbage. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod provides for care of disabled persons, paupers, aged, sick, persons of unsound mind, abandoned minors, juvenile delinquents, drug dependents, abused children, and other needy/disadvantaged persons, particularly children and youth below eighteen (18) years of age, through centers/facilities subject to availability of funds. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod establishes and provides for maintenance/improvement of jails and detention centers, institutes a sound jail management program including continuing education/training for jail personnel, and provides separate detention centers for women and minors. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod establishes a city council for culture and the arts and a city council for the elderly, and may appropriate funds and provide incentives for supporting programs/projects for the elderly, subject to availability of funds. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod undertakes a social housing fund for housing the poor by allocating a reasonable amount annually for acquisition of land and its development. (Section 11)
The sangguniang panlungsod performs other duties/functions and exercises other powers under the Local Government Code of 1991 and other relevant laws or by ordinance. (Section 11)

Internal procedure, disclosures, sessions, and voting

The sangguniang panlungsod adopts or updates rules of procedure on the first regular session after the election of its members and within ninety (90) days thereafter. (Section 12)
The rules of procedure must provide for organization, election of officers, creation and election of standing committee chairs/members (including appropriations, women and family, human rights, youth and sports development, environmental protection, and cooperatives), and define committee general jurisdiction. (Section 12)
The rules of procedure must provide for the order/calendar of business, legislative process, parliamentary procedures, and discipline for disorderly behavior and absences without justifiable cause for four consecutive sessions. (Section 12)
Discipline for disorderly behavior/absences may include censure/reprimand/exclusion, suspension for not more than sixty (60) days, or expulsion, with suspension/expulsion requiring concurrence of at least two-thirds (2/3) of sanggunian members. (Section 12)
A member convicted by final judgment to imprisonment of at least one year for any crime involving moral turpitude is automatically expelled. (Section 12)
Upon assumption to office, each sangguniang panlungsod member must make a full disclosure of business and financial interests and any professional relationship or affinity/consanguinity within the fourth civil degree with persons/firms/entities affected by ordinances/resolutions pending before the sanggunian. (Section 13)
Disclosure must be written, submitted to the secretary of the sangguniang panlungsod or the secretary of the committee of which