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REPUBLIC ACT NO. 4487

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 4487 - AN ACT CREATING THE CITY OF SAN CARLOS IN PANGASINAN

SECTION 1. Title. — This Act shall be known as the Charter of the City of San Carlos in Pangasinan.

ARTICLE I
General Provisions

SECTION 2.    Territory of the city. — The City of San Carlos in Pangasinan which is hereby created shall comprise the present territorial jurisdiction of the Municipality of San Carlos in the Province of Pangasinan.

SECTION 3.    Corporate character of the city. — The city shall constitute a political body corporate and as such is endowed with the attribute of perpetual succession and possessed of the powers which pertain to a municipal corporation, to be exercised in conformity with the provisions of this Charter.

SECTION 4.    Seal and general powers of the city. — The city shall have a common seal which shall be used in all documents of official character, and may alter the same at pleasure. It may take, purchase, receive, hold, lease, convey, and dispose of real and personal property for public use, contract and be contracted with, sue and be sued, prosecute and defend to final judgment and execution actions where its interests are involved and exercise all the powers hereinafter conferred.

SECTION 5.    The city not liable for damages. — The city shall not be held liable for damages or injuries to persons or property arising from the failure of the City Council, the Mayor or any other city officers or employees, to enforce the provisions of this Charter, or any other law or ordinances, or from the negligence of said City Council, Mayor or other city officers or employees while enforcing or attempting to enforce the provisions thereof: provided, that nothing herein contained shall prevent any aggrieved party from filing a personal action in the proper court against any official or employee of the city government for any act or omission in the performance of his duties.

SECTION 6.    Jurisdiction of the city. — The jurisdiction of the city for police purposes shall be co-extensive with its territorial jurisdiction; and for the purpose of protecting and insuring the purity of the water supply of the city, such police jurisdiction shall also extend over all territory within the drainage area of such water supply, or within one hundred meters of any reservoir, conduit, canal, aqueduct or pumping stations used in connection with the city water service. The city court shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the municipal court of the respective municipalities, to try crimes and misdemeanors committed within said drainage area or within said spaces of one hundred meters. The court first taking jurisdiction of such an offense shall thereafter retain exclusive jurisdiction thereof. The police force of the several municipalities concerned shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the police force of the city for the maintenance of good order and the enforcement of ordinances throughout said zone, area and space, but any license that may be issued within said zone, area or space shall be granted by the proper authorities of the municipality concerned, and the fees arising therefrom shall accrue to the treasury of the said municipality concerned and not that of the city.

ARTICLE II
The Mayor and Vice-Mayor

SECTION 7.    The Mayor — His election, qualification and compensation. — The Mayor shall be the chief executive of the city. He shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the city during every general election for provincial, city and municipal officials in accordance with the provisions of the Revised Election Code. No person shall be eligible for the position of Mayor unless at the time of election he is at least twenty-five years of age, a resident of the city for at least five years prior to his election, and a qualified voter therein.

The Mayor shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. He shall be provided, in addition to his salary, a commutable allowance of one thousand pesos per annum.

SECTION 8.    The Vice-Mayor. — There shall be elected a Vice-Mayor who shall be the presiding officer of the City Council. The Vice-Mayor shall be elected in the same manner as the Mayor and shall, at the time of his election, possess the same qualifications as the Mayor. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended.

The Vice-Mayor shall perform the duties and exercise the powers of the Mayor in the event of the latter's sickness, absence or other temporary incapacity to discharge the powers and duties of his office. In the event of a permanent vacancy in the office of the Mayor, the Vice-Mayor shall become Mayor for the rest of the unexpired term. If the Vice-Mayor is temporarily incapacitated for the performance of his official duties, or is serving as acting Mayor, the member of the City Council who received the highest number of votes in the last election shall serve as acting Vice-Mayor and if the Vice-Mayor is, for any reason, temporarily incapacitated for the performance of the duties of the Mayor, or if the office of the Vice-Mayor is vacant, the member of the Council who received the highest number of votes in the last election shall serve as acting Mayor and while so serving shall not perform any duty as a member of the Council which shall elect from among themselves the presiding officer. Whenever the Vice-Mayor performs the duties and exercises the powers of the Mayor, he automatically ceases to be the presiding officer of the City Council. Where a member of the City Council exercises the functions of the Vice-Mayor, said member ceases to take part in the deliberations of the Council except to preside. For acting as Mayor or as Vice-Mayor, the Vice-Mayor or member of the Council, respectively, shall receive a total compensation equivalent to the salary of the Mayor or Vice-Mayor, as the case may be, during the period of such service. Any provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, the Vice-Mayor shall appoint all officers and employees of the City Council with the consent of the majority of all the members of the Council. The Vice-Mayor shall have no right to vote except in case of a tie.

SECTION 9.    General powers and duties of the Mayor. — The Mayor shall have immediate control over the executive and administrative functions of the different departments of the city, subject to the provision of the President of the Philippines. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    To comply with and enforce and give the necessary orders for the faithful enforcement and execution of the provisions of this Charter and other laws and ordinances in effect within the jurisdiction of the city;

(b)    To safeguard all the lands, buildings, records, moneys, credits, and other properties and rights of the city, and subject to the provisions of this Charter, have control over all its property;

(c)    To see that all taxes and other revenues of the city are collected, and applied in accordance with appropriations to the payment of the city expenses;

(d)    To cause to be instituted judicial proceedings to recover property and funds of the city, and otherwise to protect the interest of the city;

(e)    To see that the executive officers and employees of the city properly discharge their respective duties. The Mayor, may, in the interest of the service, transfer officers and employees not appointed by the President of the Philippines from one section, division, or service within the same department without changing the compensation they received;

(f)    To examine and inspect the books, records, and papers of all officers, agents, and employees of the city over whom he has executive supervision and control whenever occasion arises;

(g)    To give information and recommend such measures to the Council as he shall deem advantageous to the city;

(h)    To attend, if he wishes to do so, either in person or by a duly authorized representative, the sessions of the Council and participate in its discussions, but not to vote;

(i)    To represent the city in all its business matters, and to assign all warrants drawn on the city treasury and sign all bonds, contracts, and obligations of the city made in accordance with laws and ordinances;

(j)    To submit to the City Council at least two months before the beginning of the ensuing fiscal year a budget of receipts and expenditures of the city;

(k)    To receive, hear, and decide as he may deem proper the petitions, complaints, and claims of the residents concerning all classes of city matters of an administrative and executive character;

(l)    To grant or refuse city licenses or permit of all classes and to revoke the same for violations of the conditions upon which they were granted, or if acts prohibited by law or city ordinance are being committed under the protection of such licenses or in the premises in which the business for which the same has been granted is carried on, or for any other good reason of general interest;

(m)    To exempt, with the concurrence of the superintendent of city schools, deserving poor pupils from the payment of school fees or of any part thereof;

(n)    To take such emergency measures as may be necessary to avoid fires and floods and to mitigate the effect of storms and other public calamities;

(o)    The provisions of any existing law to the contrary notwithstanding, to conduct administrative investigations of members of the city police department: provided, that the power to conduct investigation granted herein may be delegated to any ranking officials of the city, or to a special committee or board, the members of which shall be designated by the Mayor;

(p)    To exercise the power of veto, put any vetoed ordinance or resolution may be repassed by the affirmative vote of six members of the City Council;

(q)    Subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Law, to appoint all officers and employees of the city except those whose appointments are vested in the President of the Philippines, or otherwise provided by law; and he may suspend or removed any such officer or employee thus appointed by him in accordance with law. As herein conferred, the Mayor shall have the power to appoint employees whose duties are strictly confidential in nature, the same to hold office at his pleasure;

(r)    To request, if public interest and safety so require, the assistance of the Philippine Constabulary and other police agencies in maintaining peace and order in the city, and only in such cases of specific request made can the Philippine Constabulary or other police agencies intervene in the preservation of peace and order; and

(s)    To perform such other duties and exercise such other executive powers as may be prescribed by law or ordinance.

SECTION 10.    Secretary of the Mayor. — The Mayor shall appoint one secretary who shall hold office at the pleasure of the Mayor and who shall receive a compensation in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended.

The secretary shall have the rank of a department head and shall have charge and custody of all records and documents of the city and of any office or department thereof for which provisions is not otherwise made; shall keep the corporate seal and affix the same with his signature to all ordinances and resolutions signed by the Mayor and to all other official documents and papers of the government of the city as may be required by law or ordinance; shall attest all executive orders, proclamations, ordinances, and resolutions signed by the Mayor; shall, upon request, furnish certified copies of all the city records and documents in his charge which are not of a confidential nature and charge twenty centavos for each one hundred words including the certificate, the fees to be paid directly to the city treasurer. He shall also perform such duties as are required by heads of departments of the city government by Section eighteen hereof, and such other duties as the Mayor may require of him. The position of the secretary shall be regarded as within the unclassified civil service but may be filled if so filled, the appointee shall be entitled to all the benefits and privileges of classified employees, except that he holds office only during the term of the appointing Mayor and until a successor in the office of the secretary is appointed and qualified, unless sooner separated.

ARTICLE III
The City Council

SECTION 11.    Constitution and organization of the City Council; compensation of members thereof . — The City Council shall be the legislative body of the city and shall be composed of the Vice-Mayor who shall be its presiding officer, and eight councilors who shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the city during every election for provincial, city and municipal officials in conformity with the provisions of the Revised Election Code and shall hold office for four years. In case of sickness, absence, suspension or other temporary disability of any member of the Council, or if necessary to maintain a quorum, the President of the Philippines may appoint a temporary substitute, belonging to the same political party as the temporarily incapacitated member, in the case of the elected councilors, who shall possess all rights and perform all the duties of a member of the Council until the return to duty of the regular incumbent.

If any member of the City Council should be a candidate for office in any election, he shall be disqualified to act with the Council in the discharge of the duties conferred upon it relative to election matters, and in such case the other members of the Council shall discharge said duties without his assistance, or they may choose a disinterested elector of the city to act with the Council on such matters in his stead.

The members of the City Council shall each receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended: provided, that they may engage in the practice of their profession.

SECTION 12.    Qualifications, election, suspension and removal of members. — The members of the City Council shall, at the time of their election, be qualified electors of the city, residents thereof for at least two years immediately prior to their election and not less than twenty-three years of age. Such members may be suspended or removed from office under the same circumstances, in the same manner, and with the same effect, as elective provincial officers, and the provisions of law governing the suspension or removal of elective provincial officers are hereby made applicable in the suspension or removal of said members.

Elections for the elective members of the Council shall be held on the date of the regular election for provincial and municipal offices, and elected members shall assume office on the first day of January next following their election, upon qualifying, and shall hold office for four years and until their successors shall have been duly elected and qualified. The eight candidates receiving the greatest number of votes shall be declared elected.

SECTION 13.    Secretary of the Council — His appointment, salary and duties. — The City Council shall have a secretary who shall be elected by it after every election, to serve during the term of office of the members thereof. A vacancy in the office of the secretary shall be filled temporarily for the unexpired term in like manner. The secretary of the Council shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended.

The secretary shall be in charge of the records of the City Council. He shall keep a full record of the proceedings of the Council, and file all documents relating thereto; shall record, in a book kept for that purpose, all ordinances, and all resolutions and motions directing the payment of money or creating liability, enacted or adopted by the Council, with the dates or passage of the same, and of the publication of ordinances; shall keep a seal, circular in form, with the inscription "City Council-City of San Carlos (Pangasinan)" and affix the same, with his signature, to all ordinances and other official acts of the Council, and shall present the same for signature to the presiding officer of the Council; shall, upon request furnish copies of all records of public character in his charge under the seal of his office and shall charge twenty centavos for each one hundred words including the certificate, the fees to be paid directly to the city treasurer; and shall keep his office and all records therein which are not of a confidential character open to public inspection during usual business hours.

SECTION 14.    Method of transacting business by the Council — Veto — Authentication and publication of ordinances. — The Council shall hold two ordinary sessions, for the transaction of business during each week on days which it shall fix by resolution, and such extraordinary sessions, as may be called by the Mayor, or upon request of four members of the Council. It shall sit with open doors, unless otherwise ordered by the affirmative vote of a majority of all the members. It shall keep a record of all its proceedings and determine its rules of procedure not herein set forth. A majority of all the members of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day and may compel the immediate attendance of any member who is absent without good cause by issuing to the police of the city an order for his arrest and production at the session under such penalties as shall have been previously prescribed by ordinance. The affirmative vote of a majority of all members shall be necessary for the passage of any ordinance, or of any resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability, but any other measure shall prevail upon the majority vote of the members present at any session duly called and held. The ayes and nays shall be taken and recorded upon the passage of all ordinances, upon all resolutions and motions directing the payment of money or creating liability, and at the request of any member, upon any other resolution or motion. Each approved ordinance, resolution or motion shall be sealed with the seal of the City Council, signed by the presiding officer and the secretary of the Council and recorded in a book kept for the purpose, and shall, on the day following its passage, be posted by the secretary at the main entrance of the city hall, and in at least two other public places, and shall take effect and be in force on and after the tenth day following its passage unless otherwise stated in said ordinance, resolution or motion, or vetoed by the Mayor as hereinafter provided. A vetoed ordinance, if repassed, shall take effect ten days after the veto is overridden by the required votes unless otherwise stated in the ordinance, resolution or motion or again disapproval by the Mayor within said time.

Each ordinance enacted by the Council, and each resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability shall be forwarded to the Mayor for his approval within ten days from the date of enactment by the Council. If within said period the Council fails to transmit the said ordinance, resolution or motion, the same shall be deemed as not enacted. Within ten days after the receipt of the ordinance, resolution or motion, the Mayor shall return it with his approval or veto. If he does not return it within that time, it shall be deemed to be approved. If he returns it with his veto, his reasons, therefor in writing shall accompany it. It may then again be enacted by a two-thirds vote of all the members of the Council, and again forwarded to the Mayor for his approval, and if within ten days after its receipts he does not again return it with his veto, it shall be deemed to be approved. If within said time he again returns it with his veto, it shall be forwarded forthwith to the President of the Philippines for his approval or disapproval, which shall be final.

The Mayor shall have the power to veto any particular item or items of an appropriation ordinance or of an ordinance, resolution or motion directing the payment of money or creating liability, but the veto shall not effect the item or items to which he does not object. The item or items objected to shall not take effect except in the manner heretofore provided in this section as to ordinances, resolutions or motions returned to the Council with his veto; but should an item or items in an appropriation ordinance be disapproved by the Mayor, the corresponding item or items in the appropriation ordinance of the previous year shall be deemed re-enacted unless otherwise expressly directly in the veto.

SECTION 15.    General powers and duties of the Council. — Except as otherwise provided by law, and subject to the conditions and limitations thereof, the City Council shall have the following legislative powers:

(a)    To provide for the levy and collection of taxes for general and special purposes in accordance with law including specifically the power to levy real property tax not to exceed one and one-half per centum ad valorem: provided, that the maximum rate of one and one-half per centum shall not be imposed during the first ten years from the effectivity of this Act: provided, further, that in the case of machinery, which term shall embrace machines, mechanical contrivances, instruments, appliances, and apparatus attached to the real estate used for industrial, agricultural or manufacturing purposes, the tax should not also exceed one and one-half per centum ad valorem;

(b)    To make all appropriations for the expenses of the government of the city;

(c)    To fix the number and salaries of officials and employees of the city not otherwise provided for in this Act: provided, that the rate thereof shall not exceed the maximum salary provided by existing salary laws and orders issued by the President;

(d)    To authorize the free distribution of medicine to the employees and laborers of the city whose salary or wages does not exceed one hundred and twenty pesos per month or four pesos per day, and of evaporated or fresh native milk to indigent mothers residing in the city and of bread and light meals to indigent children ten years or less of age residing in the city, the distribution to be made under the direct supervision of the Mayor;

(e)    To fix the schedule of fees and charges for services rendered by the city or any of its departments, branches or officials;

(f)    To provide for the erection and maintenance or the rental in case of need, of the necessary buildings for the use of the city;

(g)    To provide for the establishment and maintenance of public schools, and, except as otherwise provided by law, to fix, with the approval of the Director of Public Schools, reasonable matriculation and/or tuition fees for intermediate and secondary institutions therein and to acquire sites for schools houses for primary and intermediate classes through purchases or conditional or absolute donations; to establish and maintain or aid in the establishment and maintenance of vocational schools and institutions of higher learning conducted by the National Government or any of its subdivisions or agencies; and, with the approval of the Director of Public Schools, to fix reasonable tuition fees for instruction in the vocational schools and in the institutions of higher learning supported by the city;

(h)    To provide for and maintain an efficient police force for the maintenance of law and order in the city, and make all necessary police ordinances, with a view to the confinement and reformation of vagrants, disorderly persons, mendicants, prostitutes, and persons convicted of violating any of the ordinances of the city;

(i)    To maintain the city court established by law which shall have jurisdiction of all criminal cases under the ordinances of the city, and such further jurisdiction as may be herein or hereafter conferred;

(j)    To provide for and maintain a city fire department and to establish and maintain engine houses, fire engines, hose trucks, hooks and ladders, and other equipment for the prevention and extinguishment of fires, and to regulate the management and use of the same;

(k)    To establish fire zones, determine the kinds of buildings or structures that may be erected within their limits, which shall not exceed in height the limitations set by the Civil Aeronautics Administration; regulate the manner of constructing and repairing the same, and fix the fees for permits for the construction, repair or demolition of buildings and other structures;

(l)    To regulate the use of lights in stables, shops, and other buildings and places and to regulate or restrict the issuance of permits for the building of bonfires and rockets and the use of firecrackers, fireworks, torpedoes, candles skyrockets, and other pyrotechnic displays, and to fix the fees for such permits;

(m)    To tax, regulate and fix the amount of the license fees for the following: hawkers, peddlers, hucksters, not including hucksters or peddlers who sell only native vegetables, fruit, or foods, personally carried by the hucksters or peddlers; barbers, collecting agencies, manicurists, hair dressers, tattooers, jugglers, acrobats, wrestlers, boxers, pelotaris and jockeys; shooting, galleries, slot machines, except jackpot or one-armed bandit machines, merry-go-rounds and other similar riding devices, and the keeping, preparation, and sale of meat, poultry, fish, game, butter, cheese, lard, vegetable, bread, and other provisions;

(n)    To tax, fix the license fee and regulate the business of hotels, motels, restaurants, refreshment places, cafes, lodging houses, boarding houses, brewers, distillers, rectifiers, laundries, dyeing and cleaning establishments, beauty parlors, physical or beauty culture and fashion schools, clubs, livery, garages, public warehouses, pawnshops, theaters, cinematographs and the letting or subletting of lands and buildings, whether used for commercial, industrial or residential purposes; and further to fix the location of, and to tax, fix the license fee on, and regulate the business of, livery stables, boarding stables, embalmers, public billiard tables, public pool tables, bowling alleys, dance halls, public dancing halls, cabarets, night clubs, circuses and other similar parades, public vehicles, public ferries, race tracks, horse races, dog races, cockpits, dealers in second-hand materials or merchandise, junk dealers, theatrical performances, boxing contests, public exhibitions, blacksmith shops, foundries, steam boilers, lumber yards, shipyards, the storage and sale of gunpowder, tar, pitch, resin coal, oil, gasoline, benzine, turpentine, hemp, cotton, nitroglycerin, petroleum or any of the products thereof and of all other highly combustible or explosive materials, and other establishments likely to endanger the public safety or give rise to conflagration or explosions, and, subject to the provisions of rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health in accordance with law, tanneries, renderies, tallow chandleries, bone factories, and soap factories;

(o)    To tax, regulate the fix the license fees on printers or bookbinders or both, tailor shops, milliners, manufacturers of jewelry, embroideries sail, or awnings or both, rope, papers, leather goods including shoes, slippers, sandals, harnesses, and valises or bags, sporting goods, rubber goods, plastics and celluloid products, hardware including glassware and tinware ceramics, and cement products, cooking utensils and electrical goods and construction materials, chemical products including drugs; perfumes, toilet articles, paints, dyes and inks, textiles, shell lamps or lamp shades or both, statuettes or tombstones or both, sacks, furniture of all kinds, including rattan goods, wire, brass beds or both, clothing, hats eye-glasses or optical goods or both, fertilizers, and buttons.

Manufacturers above-mentioned shall not be subject to the payment of any city tax or license fees as retail dealers of their own products;

(p)    To tax and fix the license fee on dealers in general merchandise, including importers and indentors, except those dealers who may be expressly subject to the payment of some other city tax under the provisions of this section;

Dealers in general merchandise shall be classified as (a) wholesale dealers and (b) retail dealers. For purposes of the tax on retail dealers, general merchandise shall be classified into four main classes, namely; (1) luxury articles, (2) semi-luxury articles, (3) essential commodities and (4) miscellaneous articles. A separate license shall be prescribed for each class but where commodities of different classes are sold in the same establishment, it shall not be compulsory for the owner to secure more than one license if he pays the higher on highest rate of tax prescribed by ordinances. Wholesale dealers shall pay the license tax as such, as may be provided by ordinance.

For purposes of this section, the term "general merchandise" shall include poultry and livestock, agricultural products, fish and other allied products;

(q)    To tax, fix the license fee on and regulate the sale, trading in or disposal of intoxicating liquors, whether imported or locally manufactured, alcoholic, or malt beverages, wines, and mixed or fermented liquors, including tuba, basi, and tapuy offered for retail sale;

(r)    To impose a tax on all products or commodities manufactured or produced in the city and removed therefrom;

(s)    To impose a sales tax of not exceeding one per centum of the gross value in money of all articles sold, bartered, exchanged or transferred within the city;

(t)    To regulate the methods of using steam engines and boilers, and all other motive powers other than marine steam engines, or those belonging to the Government of the Philippines; to provide for the inspection thereof, and fix a reasonable fee for such inspection and to regulate and fix the fees for the licenses of the engineers engaged in operating the same;

(u)    To provide for the prohibition and suppression of riots, affrays, disturbances, and disorderly assemblies, houses of ill-fame and other disorderly houses; gaming houses; gambling and all fraudulent devices for the purpose of obtaining money or property; prostitution, vagrancy, intoxication, fighting, quarrelling, and all disorderly conduct; and printing, circulating, exhibition, possession or sale of obscene pictures, books, or publications and for the maintenance and preservation of peace and good morals;

(v)    To prohibit, or regulate and fix the license fees for the keeping of dogs, and to authorize their impounding and destruction when running at large contrary to ordinances, and to tax and regulate the keeping or training of fighting cocks;

(w)    To establish and maintain city pounds; to regulate restrain, and prohibit the running at large of domestic animals, and provide for distraining, impounding, and sale of the same for the penalty incurred, and the cost of the proceedings; and to impose penalties upon the owners of said animals for the violation of any ordinance in relation thereto;

(x)    To prohibit and provide for the punishment of cruelty to animals;

(y)    To require property owners by ordinance to construct or repair, at their expense, sidewalks, along the street or streets adjacent to their lots in accordance with the specifications of the city engineer as to qualify, width and grade, and subject to his supervision and approval, providing that, in case of failure or inability of the property owners to comply with the requirement within a specified period of time after demand, the city engineer shall cause the work to be done and the cost thereof collected as a special assessment from such owners, who may choose to pay the same in full, or in ten equal yearly installments which shall be due and payable to the City of San Carlos in Pangasinan, in the same manner as the annual tax levied on real estate, and shall be subject to the same penalties for delinquency, and enforceable by the same remedies, as such annual tax; and all said sums and amounts shall, from the day in which they are assessed, constitute liens on the property against which the same were assessed and shall be the procedure over any and all other liens which may exist upon such property excepting only such as may have been attached as a result of the non-payment of said annual tax;

(z)    To regulate the inspection, weighing, and measuring of brick, lumber, hollow blocks, adobe stones, tiles, coal and other articles or merchandise;

(aa)    Subject to the provisions of existing law, to provide for the laying out, construction and improvement, and to regulate the use of streets, avenues, alleys, sidewalks, wharves, parks, cemeteries, and other public places; to provide for lighting, cleaning, and sprinkling of streets and public places; to regulate, fix license fees and prohibit the use of the same for processions, signs, signposts, awnings, awning posts, and the carrying or displaying of banners, placards, advertisements, or hand bills, or the flying of signs, flags, or banners whether, across, over or from buildings along the same; to prohibit the placing, throwing, depositing, or leaving of obstacles of any kind, garbage, refuse, or other offensive matter or matters liable to cause damage in the street and other public places and to provide for the collection and disposition thereof; to provide for the inspection of, fix the license fees for and regulate the openings in the same for the laying of gas, water, sewers, and other pipes, the building and repair of tunnels, sewers, and drain and all structures in and under the same and the erecting of poles and the stringing of wires therein; to provide for and regulate crosswalks, curbs, and gutters therein; to name streets without names and provide for and regulate the numbering of houses and lots fronting thereon or in the interior of the blocks; to regulate traffic and sales upon the streets and other public places; to provide for the abatement of nuisances in the same and punish the authors or owners thereof; to provide for the construction and maintenance, and regulate the use, of bridges, viaducts, and culverts; to prohibit and regulate ball playing, kite flying, hoop rolling, and other amusements which may annoy persons using the streets and public places, or frighten horses or other animals; to prohibit and regulate the operation of human power driven vehicles, and locomotives within the limits of the city; to regulate the lights used on all such vehicles and locomotives; to regulate the locating, constructing, and laying of tracks for horse, electric, and other forms of rail vehicles in streets and other public places of the city authorized by law; to provide for any change of the location, grade and crossing of railroads, and compel any such railroad to raise or lower its tracks to conform to such provisions or changes; and to require railroad companies to fence their property, or any part thereof, to provide suitable protection against injury to persons or property, and to construct and repair ditches, drains, sewers, and culverts along and under their tracks, so that the natural drainage of the streets and adjacent property shall not be obstructed;

(bb)    To provide for the construction and maintenance of, and regulate the navigation on canals and watercourses within the city and provide for the cleaning and purification of the same; and to provide for or regulate the drainage and filling of private premises when necessary in the enforcement of sanitary rules and regulations issued in accordance with law;

(cc)    Any provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, to provide for the maintenance of waterworks for the purpose of supplying water to the inhabitants of the city, and for the purification of the source of water supply and the places through which the same passes, and to regulate the consumption and use of water; to fix, subject to the provisions of the Public Service Law, and provide for the collection of rents therefor and to regulate the construction, repair and use of hydrants, pumps, cisterns and reservoirs;

(dd)    To provide for the establishment and maintenance and regulate the use of public drains, sewers, latrines, and cesspools;

(ee)    Subject to the rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health in accordance with law, to provide for the establishment and maintenance and to fix the fees for the use of, and regulate public stables, laundries, and baths, and public markets, and to prohibit or permit by license granted upon such terms as shall be fixed by the Council, the establishment or operation within the city limits of public markets by any person, entity, association, or corporation other than the city;

(ff)    To establish or authorize the establishment of slaughterhouses, to provide for their veterinary or sanitary inspection, to regulate the use of the same, and to charge reasonable slaughter fees. No fees shall be charged for veterinary or sanitary inspection of meat from large cattle or other domestic animals slaughtered outside the city, when such inspection was had at the place where the animals were slaughtered;

(gg)    To regulate, inspect and provide measures preventing any discrimination or the exclusion of any race or races in or from any institution, establishment, or service open to the public within the city limits, or in the sale and supply of gas or electricity, or in the telephone service; to fix and regulate charges therefor where the same have not been fixed by national law; to regulate and provide for the condemnation, substitution or removal of the same when defective or dangerous;

(hh)    To declare, prevent, and provide for the abatement of nuisances; to regulate the ringing of bells and the making of loud or unusual noises; to provide that owners, agents or tenants of buildings or premises keep and maintain the same in sanitary condition, and that, in case of failure to do so within sixty days from the date a written notice is served, the city health officer shall cause the same to be kept in a sanitary condition, and the cost thereof to be assessed against the owner to the extent of not to exceed sixty per centum of the assessed value which cost shall constitute a lien against the property; and to regulate and/or prohibit, or fix the license fees for the use of property on or near public ways, grounds, or places, or elsewhere within the city, for display by electric signs or the erection or maintenance of billboards or structures of whatever materials erected, maintained, or used for the display of posters, signs or other pictorial or reading matter, except signs displayed at the place or places where the profession or business advertised thereby is in whole or in part conducted;

(ii)    To provide for the enforcement of the rules and regulations issued by the Department of Health, and by ordinance to prescribe penalties for violation of such rules and regulations;

(jj)    For the purpose of protecting and insuring the purity of the water supply of the city, to extend its ordinances over all territory within the drainage area of such water supply, and within one hundred meters of any reservoir, conduit, canal, aqueduct, or pumping station used in connection with the city water service;

(kk)    To regulate any other business or occupation being conducted within the city not specifically mentioned in the preceding paragraphs, and to impose a license fee upon all persons engaged in the same or who enjoy privileges in the city;

(ll)    To fix and regulate the size, speed, and operation of motor and other vehicles within the city; to regulate the lights used on such vehicles, to establish bus stops and terminals; and prohibit and regulate the entrance of provincial public utility vehicles into the city, except those passing through the city;

(mm)    To fix the date of the holding of fiesta in the city not oftener than once a year and to alter, not oftener than one in three years, the date fixed for the celebration thereof;

(nn)    To fix local holidays; and

(oo)    To enact all ordinances it may deem necessary and proper for the sanitation and safety, the furtherance of the prosperity, and the promotion of the morality, peace, and good order, comfort, convenience, and general welfare of the city and its inhabitants and such others as may be necessary to carry into effect and discharge the powers and duties conferred by this Charter; and to fix penalties for the violation of ordinances, which shall not exceed a two hundred-peso fine or six months imprisonment, or both such fine and imprisonment for a single offense.

The Council, by ordinance, may likewise divide the city into district for administrative and other purposes, including the description of property.

SECTION 16.    Restrictive provisions. — No commercial sign, signboard, or billboard shall be erected or displayed on public lands, premises, or buildings. If after due investigation, and having given the owners an opportunity to be heard, the Mayor shall decide that any sign, signboard, or billboard displayed or exposed to public view is offensive to the sight or is otherwise a nuisance, he may order the removal of such sign, signboard, or billboard, and if same is not removed within ten days after he has issued such order, he may himself cause its removal, and the sign, signboard or billboard shall thereupon be forfeited to the city and the expenses incident to its removal shall become a lawful charge against any person or property liable for the creation or display thereof.

ARTICLE IV
Departments and Offices

SECTION 17.    City departments. — There shall be the following city departments over which the Mayor shall have direct control and supervision, any existing law to the contrary notwithstanding:

1.    Department of Finance

2.    Department of Engineering and Public Works

3.    Law Department

4.    Department of Health

5.    Police Department

6.    Fire Department

7.    Department of Assessment.

The City Council may from time to time make such readjustment of the duties of the several departments as the public interest may demand, and, with the approval of the President of the Philippines, may consolidate any department, division or office.

SECTION 18.    Powers and duties of heads of departments. — Each head of department of the city government shall be in control of such department and shall possess such powers and obligations as may be prescribed herein or by ordinance. He shall certify to the correctness of all payrolls and vouchers of his department covering the payment of money before payment, except as herein otherwise expressly provided. At least four months before the beginning of each fiscal year, he shall prepare and present to the Mayor an estimate of the appropriation necessary for the operation of his department during the ensuing fiscal year, and shall submit therewith such information for purposes of comparison as the Mayor may desire. He shall submit to the Mayor as often as required reports covering the operation of his department.

In case of the absence or sickness or inability to act or for any other reason, of the head of the city departments, the officer next in charge of that department shall act in his place with authority to sign all necessary papers, vouchers, requisitions and other similar documents.

SECTION 19.    Appointment and removal of officials and employees. — The President of the Philippines shall appoint, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, the city judge and auxiliary city judge, the city treasurer, the city engineer, the city fiscal and his assistants, the city health officer, the chief of police, the chief of the fire department, the city assessor, the city architect, the city superintendent of schools, the register of deeds, and other heads and their assistants of such city departments as may be created. They shall be removed or suspended only for cause as provided by law.

All other officers and employees of the city whose appointments are not otherwise provided for by law or this Charter shall be appointed by the Mayor in accordance with the Civil Service Law and they shall be suspended or removed in accordance with the said law.

SECTION 20.    Officers not to engage in certain transactions. — It shall be unlawful for any officer, directly or indirectly, individually or as a member of a firm, to engage in any business transaction with the city, or with any of its authorized officials, boards, agents, or attorneys, whereby money is to be paid, directly or indirectly, out of the resources of the city to such person or firm; or to purchase any real estate or other property belonging to the city, or which shall be sold for taxes or assessments, or by virtue of legal process at the suit of the city; or to be surety for any person having a contract or doing business with the city for the performance of which security may be required; or to be surety on the official bond of any officer of the city and shall not be financially interested in any transaction or contract in which the National Government or any subdivision or instrumentality thereof is an interested party; provided, however, that the prohibition herein contained shall not apply to any city officer from acquiring such residential lot or lots of the public domain in the city to which he may be entitled under existing laws, rules and regulations.

ARTICLE V
Department of Finance

SECTION 21.    The city treasurer — His powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a city treasurer, who shall have charge of the department of finance and shall act as chief fiscal officer and financial adviser of the city and custodian of its funds. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    He shall collect all taxes due the city, all licenses authorized by law or ordinance, all rents due for lands, markets and other property owned by the city, all further charges of whatever nature fixed by law or ordinance, and shall receive and issue receipts for all costs, fees, fines and forfeitures imposed by the city court.

(b)    He shall collect all miscellaneous charges made by the department of engineering and public works and by other departments of the city government, and all charges made by the city engineer for inspections, permits, licenses, and the installations, maintenance and services rendered in the operation of the private privy system.

(c)    Unless otherwise specifically provided by law or resolution, he shall perform in and for the city the duties imposed by law or resolution upon provincial treasurers generally, as well as the other duties imposed upon him by law.

(d)    He shall purchase and issue all supplies, equipment or other property required by the city, through the purchasing agent, or otherwise, as may be authorized, subject to the general provisions of law relating thereto.

(e)    He shall be accountable for all funds and property of the city and shall render such accounts in connection therewith as may be prescribed by the Auditor General.

(f)    He shall disburse the funds of the city in accordance with duly authorized appropriations, upon properly executed vouchers bearing the approval of the chief of the department concerned, and on or before the twentieth day of each month he shall furnish the Mayor and the City Council for their administrative information a statement of the appropriation, expenditures and balances of all funds and accounts as of the last day of the month preceding.

ARTICLE VI
Department of Engineering and Public Works

SECTION 22.    The city engineer — His powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a city engineer who shall be in charge of the department of engineering and public works. The city engineer shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    He shall have charge of all the surveying and engineering work of the city and shall perform such service in connection with public improvements, or any work entered upon or proposed by the city, or any department thereof, as may require the skill and experience of a civil engineer.

(b)    He shall ascertain, record, and establish monuments of the city survey and from thence extend the survey of the city, and locate, establish, and survey all city property and also private property, abutting on the same, whenever directed by the Mayor.

(c)    He shall prepare and submit plans, maps, specifications and estimates for buildings, streets, bridges, docks, and other public works, and supervise the construction and repaid of the same.

(d)    He shall make such tests and inspection of engineering materials used in construction and repaid as may be necessary to protect the city from the use of materials of a poor or dangerous quality.

(e)    He shall have the care of all public buildings, including markets and slaughterhouses and all buildings rented for city purposes, and of any system now or hereafter established by the city for lighting the streets, public places, and public buildings.

(f)    He shall have the care of all public streets, parks, and bridges, and shall maintain, clean, sprinkle, and regulate the use of the same for all purposes as provided for by ordinance; shall collect and dispose of all garbage, refuse, the contents of closets, vaults, and cesspools, and all other offensive and dangerous substances within the city and in the event the disposal and collection of such garbage, refuse and other offensive substances has been awarded to a private contractor, the disposal and collection thereof shall be under the supervision of any city officer whom the City Council may designate.

(g)    He shall have the care and custody of all public docks, wharves, levees, and landing places owned by the city.

(h)    He shall prevent the encroachment of private buildings and fences on the streets and public places of the city.

(i)    He shall have general supervision and inspection of all private docks, wharves, levees, and landing places, and other property bordering on the river, esteros and waterways of the city, and shall issue permits, with the approval of the City Mayor, for the construction, repair and removal of the same, and enforce all ordinances relating to the same.

(j)    He shall have the care and custody of the public system of waterworks and sewers, and all sources of water supply, and shall control, maintain, and regulate the use of the same, in accordance with the ordinance relating thereto; shall inspect and regulate the use of all private systems for supplying water to the city and its inhabitants, and all private sewers and their connections with the public sewer system.

(k)    He shall supervise the laying of mains and connections for the purpose of supplying gas to the inhabitants of the city.

(l)    He shall inspect and report upon the conditions of public property and public works whenever required by the Mayor.

(m)    He shall supervise and regulate the location and use of engines, boilers, forges, and other manufacturing and heating appliances in accordance with law and charge fees at rates to be fixed by the Council for the sanitation and transportation services and supplies furnished by his department.

(n)    He shall inspect and supervise the construction, repair, removal, and safety of private buildings, and regulate and enforce the numbering of houses in accordance with the ordinances of the city.

(o)    With the previous approval of the Mayor in each case, he shall order the removal of buildings and structures erected in violation of the ordinances; shall order the removal of the materials employed in the construction or repair of any buildings or structure made in violation of said ordinances; and shall cause buildings and structures dangerous to the public to be made secure or torn down.

( p)    He shall file and preserve all maps, plans, notes, surveys, and other papers and documents pertaining to his office.

SECTION 23.    Execution of authorized public works and improvements. — The city is hereby authorized to undertake and carry out any public works projects or improvements, financed by the city or any other fund borrowed from or advanced by private parties under the supervision of the city engineer, without the intervention of the Department of Public Works and Communications. The approval of the plans and specifications thereof by the City Mayor and the city engineer and/or architect with the favorable recommendation of the City Council, shall constitute sufficient warrant for the undertaking and execution of said projects or improvements. The city may, however, consult if it so desires, the Department of the Public Works and Communications in connection with the preparation of the plans and specifications for the city public works projects either by administration or by contracts under the usual bidding procedure of the Government.

ARTICLE VII
Law Department

SECTION 24.    The city fiscal — His powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a city fiscal, who shall be the chief legal adviser of the city. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended, which shall be payable by the National Government and shall be included in the annual appropriation of the Department of Justice. There shall be one assistant city fiscal who shall be known as the first assistant city fiscal with compensation as provided for in Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. There shall also be four assistant city fiscals, who shall be known as the second, third, fourth, and fifth assistant city fiscals, respectively, and with compensation in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended, and payable from the city funds. The city fiscal shall, subject to the general supervision of the Secretary of Justice, have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    He shall personally or through any assistant represent the city in all civil cases wherein the city, or any officer thereof, in his official capacity, is a party; and shall prosecute and defend all civil actions related to or connected with any city officer or interest.

(b)    He shall, when directed by the Mayor, institute and prosecute in the city's interest a suit on any bond, lease, or other contract and upon any breach or violation thereof.

(c)    He shall, when requested, attend meetings of the Council, draw ordinances, contracts, bonds, leases and other instruments involving any interest of the city, and inspect and pass upon any such instrument already drawn.

(d)    He shall give his opinion in writing, when requested by the Mayor or the Council or any of the heads of the city departments, upon any question relating to the city or the rights or duties of any city officer thereof.

(e)    He shall, whenever it is brought to his knowledge that any city officer or employee is guilty of neglect or misconduct in office, or that any person, firm, or corporation holding or exercising any franchise or public privilege from the city, has failed to comply with any condition, or to pay any consideration mentioned in the grant of such franchise or privilege, investigate or cause to be investigated the same and report to the Mayor.

(f)    He shall investigate all charges of crimes, misdemeanors, and violations of laws and city ordinances and prepare the necessary information or make the necessary complaints against the persons accused. He may conduct such investigation by taking oral evidence of reputed witnesses and for this purpose may, by subpoena or subpoenas duces tecum, summon witnesses to appear and testify under oath before him, or produce documents and other evidence before him, and the attendance of, or the production of documents and other evidence by an absent or recalcitrant witness may be enforced by application for warrant of arrest to the city court or the Court of First Instance.

(g)    He shall have charge of the prosecution of all crimes, misdemeanors and violations of laws and city ordinances triable in the Court of First Instance of Pangasinan and the city court, and shall discharge all the duties in respect to criminal prosecution enjoined by law upon provincial fiscals.

(h)    He shall cause to be investigated the causes of sudden deaths which have not been satisfactorily explained and when there is suspicion that the cause arose from unlawful acts or omissions of other persons or from foul play. For that purpose he may cause autopsies to be made in case it is deemed necessary and shall be entitled, to demand and receive for the purpose of such investigations or autopsies the aid of the city health officer.

(i)    He shall at all times render such professional services as the Mayor or City Council may require, and shall have such powers and perform such duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance.

(j)    He shall be the ex-officio city register of deeds until said position is created by law or ordinance.

ARTICLE VIII
Department of Health

SECTION 25.    The city health officer — His powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a city health officer who shall have charge of the health department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. The city health officer shall have the following general power and duties:

(a)    He shall have general supervision over the health and sanitary conditions of the city.

(b)    He shall execute and enforce all laws, ordinances and regulations relating to the public health.

(c)    He shall recommend to the City Council the passage of such ordinances as he may deem necessary for the preservation of the public health.

(d)    He shall cause to be prosecuted all violations of sanitary laws, ordinances, or regulations.

(e)    He shall make sanitary inspections and may be aided therein by such members of the police force of the city or the national police as shall be designated as sanitary police by the chief of police or proper national police officer and such sanitary inspectors as may be authorized by law.

(f)    He shall keep a civil register for the city and shall record therein all births, marriages, and deaths with their respective dates.

(g)    He shall have the supervision over the puericulture centers and social services of the city.

(h)    He shall perform such other duties, not repugnant to law or ordinance, with reference to the health and sanitation of the city as the Director of Health Service shall direct.

ARTICLE IX
Police Department

SECTION 26.    The chief of police — His powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a chief of police who shall have charge of the police department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    He may issue supplementary regulations not incompatible with law or general regulations promulgated by the proper department head of the National Government, in accordance with law, for the government of the city police and detective force.

(b)    He shall quell riots, disorders, disturbances of the peace, and shall arrest and prosecute through the city fiscal violators of any law or ordinance; shall be charged with the protection of the rights of persons and property wherever found within the jurisdiction of the city, and shall arrest when necessary to prevent the escape of the offender, violators of any law or ordinance, and all who obstruct or interfere with him in the discharge of his duty; shall have charge of the city prison; and shall be responsible for the safekeeping of all prisoners until they shall be released from custody in accordance with law, or delivered to the warden of the proper prison or penitentiary.

(c)    He may take good and sufficient bail for the appearance before the judge of the city court of any person arrested for violation of any city ordinance: provided, however, that he shall not exercise this power in cases of violation of any penal law, except when the city fiscal shall so recommend and fix the bail to be required of the person arrested.

(d)    He shall have authority, within the police limits of the city, to serve and execute criminal processes of any court.

(e)    He shall be the deputy sheriff of the city, and as such, he shall, personally or by representative, attend the sessions of the city court, and shall execute promptly and faithfully, all writs and processes of said court.

(f)    He shall exercise supervision over the police training school established in accordance with rules and regulations of the police department.

(g)    He shall have control and supervision of all private security agencies and security guards who shall be duly licensed by the Mayor: provided, that upon approval of this Act, all existing private security agencies and security guards shall continue to operate as such upon registration with the office of the chief of police. He shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance.

SECTION 27.    Peace officers — Their powers and duties. — The Mayor, the chief of police, and all officers and members of the city police and detective force shall be peace officers. Such peace officers are authorized to serve and execute all processes of the city court and criminal processes of all other courts to whomsoever directed, within the jurisdictional limits of the city or within the police limits as defined in this Charter, within the same territory; to pursue and arrest, without warrant, any person found in suspicious places or under suspicious circumstances reasonably tending to show that such person has committed, or is about to commit, any crime, or breach of the peace, to arrest or cause to be arrested, without warrant, any offender when the offense is committed in the presence of a peace officer or within his view, and in such pursuit or arrest, to enter any building, ship, boat, or vessel or take into custody any person therein suspected of being concerned in such crime or breach of peace, and any property suspected of having been stolen, and to exercise such other powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance. They shall detain an arrested person only in accordance with the provisions of existing laws relative to such detention until he can be brought before the proper magistrate. Whenever the Mayor shall deem it necessary to avert danger or to protect life and property, in case of riot, disturbance, or public calamity, he shall have power to swear in special police, in such numbers as the occasion demands. Such special police shall have the same powers while on duty as members of the regular force.

ARTICLE X
Fire Department

SECTION 28.    The chief of fire department — his powers, duties and compensation. — There shall be a chief of a fire department who shall have charge of said department. He shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions or Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended. The chief of police shall act as ex-officio chief of the fire department, until the City Council, by ordinance, provides otherwise at which time the chief of the fire department shall be appointed as heretofore provided. He shall have the following general powers and duties:

(a)    He may issue supplementary regulations not incompatible with law or general regulations issued by the proper department head of the National Government in accordance with law, for the governance of the fire force.

(b)    He shall have charge of the fire-engine houses, fire engines, hose, trucks, hooks and ladders, trucks and all other fire apparatus.

(c)    He shall have full police powers in the vicinity of fires.

(d)    He shall have authority to remove or demolish any building or other property whenever it shall become necessary to prevent the spreading of fire or to protect adjacent property.

(e)    He shall investigate and report to the Mayor upon the origin and cause of all fires occurring within the city.

(f)    He shall inspect all buildings erected or under construction or repair within the city and determine whether they provide sufficient protection against fire and comply with the ordinances relating thereto.

(g)    He shall have charge of the city fire alarm service.

(h)    He shall supervise and regulate the stringing, grounding, and installation of wires for all electrical connections, with a view to avoiding conflagrations, interference with public traffic or safety, or the necessary operation of the fire department.

(i)    He shall supervise the manufacture, storage, and use of petroleum, gas, acetylene, gunpowder, and other highly combustible matters and explosives.

(j)    He shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or ordinance.

ARTICLE XI
Department of Assessments

SECTION 29.    The city assessor — His powers and duties. — There shall be a city assessor who shall have charge of the department of assessment and who shall receive a salary in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act Numbered Eight hundred forty, as amended.

The city treasurer shall act as city assessors ex-officio until the City Council by ordinance, provides otherwise, at which time the city assessor shall be appointed as heretofore provided. He shall have the following powers and duties:

(a)    The city assessor or is duly authorized deputies shall assess all lands, buildings, and other real properties subject to taxation within the jurisdiction of the city, and for this purpose he and his authorized deputies are empowered to administer oaths authorized to be administered in connection with the valuation of real estate in the city and the names of the owners thereof, with a brief description of the property opposite each name and the cash value of the property; in making this list, the city assessor shall take into consideration any sworn statement made by the owners of the property, but shall not be prevented thereby from considering any other evidence on the subject and exercising his own judgment in respect thereto. For the purpose of completing this list, he and his representatives may enter the real estate for the purpose of examining and measuring it, and may summon witnesses, administer oaths to the owners and subject them to examination concerning the amount of real estate, its ownership and cash value, and

(b)    He may, if necessary, examine the records of the register of deeds of the Province of Pangasinan showing the ownership of real estate in the city.

SECTION 30.    Real estate exempt from taxation. — The following shall be exempt from taxation:

(a)    Lands or buildings owned by the Republic of the Philippines, the Province of Pangasinan or City of San Carlos in Pangasinan, and burying grounds, churches, and their adjacent personages and convents, and lands or buildings used exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purposes and not for profit; but such exemption shall not extend to lands or buildings held for investment, though income therefrom be devoted to religious, charitable, scientific, or educational purposes; and

(b)    Lands or buildings which are the only real property of the owners, and the value of which does not exceed five hundred pesos.

SECTION 31.    Declaration to be made by persons acquiring or improving real estate. — It shall be the duty of each person who at any time, acquires real estate in the city, and of each person at any time, acquires real estate in the city, and of each person who constructs or adds to any improvements on real estate owned by him in the city, to prepare and present to the city assessor within a period of sixty days next following such acquisition, construction or addition, a sworn declaration setting forth the value of the real estate acquired or the improvement constructed or addition made by him and a description of such property sufficient to enable the city assessor to readily identify the same. Any person having acquired real estate who fails to make and present the declaration herein required within the said period of sixty days shall be deemed to have waived his right to notice of the assessment of such property, and the assessment of the same in the name of its former owner shall, in all such cases, be valid and binding on all persons interested, and for all purposes, as through the same had been assessed in the name of its present owner.

SECTION 32.    Action when owner makes no returns or is unknown, or ownership is in dispute or in doubt, or when land and improvements are separately owned. — If the owner of any parcel of real estate fails to make a return thereof, or if the city assessor is unable to discover the owner of any real estate, he shall nevertheless list the same for taxation, and charge the tax against the true owner, if known, and if unknown then as against an unknown owner. In case of doubt or dispute as to ownership of real estate, the taxes shall be levied against the possessor or possessors thereof. When it shall appear that there are separate owners of the land and the improvements thereon, a separate assessment of the property of each shall be made.

SECTION 33.    Action in case estate has escaped taxation. — If it shall come to the knowledge of the city assessor that any taxable real estate in the city has escape listing, it shall be his duty to list and assess the same at the time and in the manner provided in the next succeeding section and to charge against the owner thereof the taxes due for the current year, and the tax thus assessed shall be legal and collective by all the remedies herein provided, and if the failure of the city assessor to assess such taxes at the time when they should have been assessed was due to any fault or negligence on the part of the owner of such property, the penalties shall be added to such back taxes as though they had been assessed at the time when they should have been assessed.

SECTION 34.    When assessment may be increased or reduced. — The city assessor shall, during the first fifteen days of January of each year, add to his list of taxable real estate in the city the value of the improvement placed upon such property during the preceding year, and any property which is taxable and which has therefore escaped taxation. He may during the same period revise and correct the assessed value of any or all parcels of real estate in the city which are not assessed at their true money value by reducing or increasing the existing assessment, as the case may be: provided, however, that no increase in the assessment of a particular real estate shall be made oftener than once every five years.

SECTION 35.    Publication of complete list and proceedings thereon. — The city assessor shall, after the list shall have been completed, inform the public by notice published for seven days in a newspaper of general circulation in the city, if any, and by notice posted for seven days at the main entrance of the city hall, that the list is on file in his office and may be examined by any person interested therein, and that upon the date fixed in the notice, which shall not be later than the tenth of February, the city assessor will be in his office for the purpose of hearing complaints as to the accuracy of the listing of the property and the assessed value thereof. He shall further notify in writing each person of the amount of whose tax will be changed by such proposed revision, by delivering or mailing at least thirty days in advance of the date fixed in the notice such notification to such person or his authorized agent at the last known address of such owner or agent in the Philippines.

It shall be his duty carefully to preserve and record in his office copies of said notice. On the day fixed in the notice, and for five days thereafter he shall be present in his office to hear all complaints filed within the period by persons against whom taxes have been assessed as owners or real estate, and he shall make his decision forthwith and enter the same in a well-bound book, to be kept by him for that purpose, and if he shall determine that injustice had been done or errors have been committed, he is authorized to amend the list in accordance with his findings.

SECTION 36.    City assessor to authenticate list of real estate assessed. — The city assessor shall authenticate each list of real estate valued and assessed by him as soon as the same is completed, by signing the following certificate at the foot thereof:

"I hereby certify that the foregoing list contains a true statement of the piece or pieces of taxable real estate belonging to each person named in the list, and its true cash value, and that no real estate taxable by law in the City of San Carlos in Pangasinan has been omitted from the list according to the best of my knowledge and belief.

_____________________________
(Signature)
City Assessor"

SECTION 37.    Time and manner of appealing to Board of Tax Appeals. — In case any owner of real estate or his authorized aggrieved by any decision of the city assessor under the preceding sections of this Article, such owner or agent or tenant or lessee may, within thirty days after the entry of such decision, appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals. The appeal shall be perfected by filing a written notice of the same with the city assessor, and it shall be the duty of that officer forthwith to transmit the appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals with all the written evidence in his possession relating to such assessment and valuation.

SECTION 38.    Constitution and compensation of Board of Tax Appeals. — There shall be a Board of Tax Appeal which shall be composed of five members to be appointed by the President of the Philippines with the consent of the Commission on Appointments. Three members of the Board shall be selected from among government officials in the city other than those in charge of assessment and they shall serve without additional compensation. The two other members shall be selected from among property owners in the city and they shall each receive a compensation of twenty pesos for each day of session actually attended. The chairman of the Board shall be designated in the appointment and shall have the power to designate any city official or employee to serve as the secretary of the Board without additional compensation.

The members of the Board of Tax Appeals shall hold office for a term of two years unless sooner removed by the President of the Philippines.

SECTION 39.    Oath to be taken by members of the Board of Tax Appeals. — Before organizing as such the members of the Board of Ta