The Province of Benguet has officially achieved first-class province status, as announced in Department Order No. 074, Series of 2024, issued by the Department of Finance (DOF).
This milestone recognizes provinces with an average annual regular income of at least ₱1.5 billion, a threshold that Benguet still met under the leadership of Governor Dr. Melchor Daguines Diclas, with the province recording an annual regular income exceeding P2.04 billion in 2023, more than P2.35 billion in 2022, and over P1.94 billion in 2021.
Benguet had been a second class province.
Governor Diclas reaffirmed his commitment in sustaining the growth of Benguet and ensuring that all iBenguet reap the benefits of the improved fiscal standing of the province under the present administration’s HEALTHIER Benguet agenda.
It can be recalled that Benguet received several recognitions from DOF including ranking 2nd nationwide in the year-on-year growth of locally sourced revenues for fiscal years 2020-2021. In 2022, Benguet was also awarded as the top-performing province in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) for the “Highest Locally Sourced Revenues” category. Additionally, the province earned national recognition for the fiscal year 2019-2020 by placing 7th among the top 10 local government units (LGUs) in terms of year-on-year growth rate.
Last year, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. signed into law Republic Act (RA) No. 11964, known as the “Automatic Income Classification of Local Government Units Act,” institutionalizing the automatic classification of LGUs to enhance local autonomy and development.
