By MELODY M. AGUIBA
[ Manila Bulletin Online ] November 24, 2008
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is pushing for the passage of the free patent amendment (FPA) and three other bills to be able to implement the land titling reform.
The three other bills that should be passed in support of the land titling reform are the Land Administration Reform Act (LARA), Valuation Reform Act (VRA), and the Real Estate Services Act (RESA).
DENR is targeting to issue a total of 264,000 land titles by the end of its Land Administration and Management Program 2 (LAMP 2).
However, if the FPA (Public Lands Act amendment involving alienable and disposable land granted by the government) is not passed within the year, this target may be cut by half.
The RESA is on third reading in Congress and on first reading in the Senate while the VRA has been approved jointly by the Senate Committees on Ways and Means. The FPA is for floor deliberation schedule by the Senate Committee Report and House Committee report and the LARA has gone through a committee hearing in the Senate.
The land titling program financed by the Australian Agency for International Development and the World Bank aims to increase land tenure security and improve land administration services in the country.
This is in the belief that given people,s rightful ownership of land, capital formation can be built to spur entrepreneurial activity.
The Land Administration and Management Program (LAMP) also aims to establish a fair and uniform property valuation.
The LAMP 2 has so far completed a socio-economic baseline study in Leyte and awarded five small grants and five grants to local government units. It has established provincial project implementing offices which will speed up land titling in provinces. One stop shop offices were also put up in Leyte and Bohol.
For proper property valuation and taxation, it has completed a real property tax compliance study and a tax perception study; a study on transitional arrangement for implementation of revised schedule of market values; a Revised Assessors¢ Manual issued by the Department of Finance; and a simulation study in Naga City and Iloilo City to test the application of market-based valuation.
