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Tax Mapping Operations: Understanding the Processes Involved
1Jude Anthony N. Estiva and 2Ma. Aileen Leah G. Guzman JNEstiva@neda.gov.ph, alguzman@admu.edu.ph
Introduction Taxation has been an important source of government spending all throughout the world. In the Philippines, real property taxes are recognized as the most important locally generated revenue source (DOF, 1975) and contributes to not less than 35% of locally generated income. Tax Mapping Operations Tax mapping operations aims (1) to establish a complete inventory of all real property; (2) provide a permanent link between real property and office record; (3) identify the ownership of every piece of real property; and (4) account for the sum total of all land areas of provinces or cities (DOF, 1975; DOF, 1978). Part of the tax mapping operation is the production of tax maps. Tax maps (refer to Fig. 1) are graphic representations of a portion of the earth’s surface drawn to scale on standard size drawing material, having property lines and jurisdictional boundaries delineated showing all parcels of real property and identifying each separate real property ownership by a unique number (DOF, 1978). Tax maps are constructed from base maps, here in the country, cadastral maps are normally used for this. It is also essential that each parcel in the tax map be identified by a property index number (PIN) reflecting the city, district, barangay and section of its location. In a tax mapping operation, parcel data needed for assessment and collection is also gathered. This includes the name and address of the owner/s and other property characteristics.
Figure 1 Example of a Tax Map (Cebu City, Philippines) Examples of Tax Mapping Operations Tax mapping operation is an expensive process that requires manpower, equipment and actual field surveys. In Cebu City, the automation of tax mapping operations begun in 1993 and was implemented by GIS Center in coordination with the City Assessor’s Office. The first task involved was the production of digital maps, digitized from paper tax section maps. Unfortunately, the paper maps used do not have any coordinates and were drawn in different scales. The resulting section maps were not georeferenced as well. These problems posted a greater problem when the separate digital section maps were fitted together to form the baranggay. The tax section maps overlapped with each other, some areas were not contiguous and gaps were observed. The second task involved in the tax mapping operation for Cebu City was the checking for tax declaration data and discrepancy. In Cebu City, it was seen that there were some parcels that do not have tax declarations and some tax declarations that did not correspond to any land parcel while others had duplicate tax declarations. The most important task involved in tax mapping is the updating of attributes. Every transaction that involves real property must be noted and incorporated in the tax maps. Changes in tax maps only occur during the development of a subdivision or during the consolidation of properties and in sudden inflation and deflation of land values. Aside from the tasks mentioned earlier, another vitally important process in tax mapping is the verification of the locations and actual uses declared for each land. This guarantees the accuracy and reliability of the tax operation (refer to Figure 2, for a sample of tax maps of Cebu City). Figure 2 A Sample Tax Map For Cebu City Conclusions An investment in a tax mapping operation will not necessarily lead to an increase in revenues (Bahl & Linn, 1992). According to Dillinger (1988) municipalities that conducted tax-mapping operations have shown that their revenues remained stagnant because problems associated with collection administration and enforcement were not addressed. One must remember that collection inefficiency especially in the Philippines is characterized by interwoven institutional factors. GIS merely provides a tool for efficient tax collection through expedited billing and collection processes as well as a check on delinquent tax payers. The enforcement of necessary measures in order to collect taxes through administrative or judicial processes still remains in the hands of the local government. Bahl and Schroeder (1983) asserted that the legal and institutional mechanisms for the enforcement of real property taxation are adequate however, this is seldom used. In Cebu City, the local government reported a 65-75% increase in its revenues upon the installation of its GIS. This however, does not necessarily follow that the installation of the information system is a panacea to the collection problem in the country. It should be well noted the city is engaging in an all out campaign against delinquent taxpayers. In fact the city requires a tax declaration before obtaining services from utility companies like water and electricity (Insights from MICS). Recommendations For municipalities and cities, which can not afford expensive tax mapping operations but still wish to automate their tax operations, it is suggested that the use of tax maps be defined at the level of its accuracy. For instance, a tax map that will be used for stripping (zoning and valuation) requires higher accuracy than maps that will be used for parcel identification only. As a matter of fact, tax maps that will be used for parcel identification can make do with parcel sketches (refer figure 3). A map with a higher precision will require additional costs that may not necessarily yield additional benefits in the end. Figure 3 Example of a Stripping Map (Cebu City) Tax maps can be neither accurate in terms of scale nor complete in the sense of including the entire boundaries of each parcel as long as it demarcates the point at which each parcel’s boundary intersect the street and all parcel front on a public street. Tax maps that will be used for the measurement of parcel size and valuation requires a high level of accuracy. An advantage of this is seen in its potential use for stripping land values. However, it should be noted that this type of application requires considerable cost and must be balanced vis-à-vis its benefits. It should also be remembered that the use of GIS for stripping is in line with the methods of valuation used in a particular municipality. Aside from the costs involved in a tax mapping operation, municipalities and cities may also face problems with data accuracy. This includes problems in positional accuracy (maps that are not georeferenced), non-contiguous sections, undefined roads, unfit sections and difference in TD and polygon area. This problems mentioned should be addressed specially if the tax maps will be used for stripping. Changes in land area may also trigger complains or even suits from taxpayers. A margin of error must be established in order to reconcile these differences. Tax mapping operations also provide opportunities to account for total land area of the municipality or province. It provides a way for the discovery and listing of unaccounted land parcels. Roads can likewise be defined as either as parcels in digital tax maps or as separate coverage, which will be helpful in accounting for the total land area. If roads are digitized as a separate coverage and represented as lines, the total area of which can be secured separately. This can then be added to the total parcel area to determine the total land area. Including roads to a tax map can also be useful specially in determining the locations of land parcels. References:
Acknowledgements: Cebu City, Assessor’s Office; Mr. Ceasar Concon and Mr. Jun Alicante, District In Charge (DIC) 6; Management Information and Computer System (MICS); and GIS Center |
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