Councilor Edison Bilog has proposed an ordinance seeking to exempt start-up micro and small cooperatives in Baguio City from paying local business taxes to ease their financial burden and help them achieve stability during their early years of operation.
The proposed measure recognizes cooperatives as vital partners in social and economic progress and seeks to promote their growth by providing temporary tax relief. The exemption will apply exclusively to micro and small cooperatives duly registered with the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) that have been in operation for less than five years from the date of their registration.
According to the ordinance, Micro cooperatives are defined as those with total assets of P3 million and below, while small cooperatives have assets exceeding P3 million but not more than P15 million, as classified by the CDA. Qualified cooperatives must also have their principal office or business operations within Baguio City.
Under the ordinance, all covered cooperatives will be exempted from the payment of local business taxes imposed under the city’s Revenue Code. However, they will still be required to pay other regulatory fees such as garbage, sanitary inspection, and mayor’s permit fees unless a separate ordinance provides otherwise.
To avail of the exemption, eligible cooperatives must submit an application to the City Treasurer’s Office, accompanied by a certified copy of their CDA registration, a certification from the City Cooperative and Development Office (CCDO) confirming their classification and active operation, their latest audited financial statement or equivalent report, and a duly accomplished application form.
The CCDO will be tasked to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the ordinance and submit an annual report to the Baguio City Council. The report will detail the number of cooperatives that benefited, the total amount of taxes exempted, and the overall impact of the measure on local cooperative development.
The proposed ordinance was approved on first reading by the City Council on October 27, 2025 and referred to the Committee on Appropriations and Finance Cluster B for review. **Jordan G. Habbiling
