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{{Short description|Subnational government divisions in the Philippines}}{{update|date=December 2020}}{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2020}}{{Use Philippine English|date=January 2023}}{{Politics of the Philippines}}In the Philippines, local government is divided into three levels: provinces and independent cities, component cities and municipalities, and barangays, all of which are collectively known as local government units (LGUs). In some areas, above provinces and independent chartered cities are autonomous regions, such as the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Some towns and cities remit their revenue to national government and is returned through the national government through a process called internal revenue allotment. Below barangays in some cities and municipalities are sitios and puroks. All of these, with the exception of sitios and puroks, elect their own executives and legislatures. Sitios and puroks are often but not necessarily led by an elected barangay councilor.Provinces and independent cities are organized into national government regions but those are administrative regions and not separately governed areas with their own elected governments.According to the Constitution of the Philippines, the local governments "shall enjoy local autonomy", and in which the Philippine president exercises "general supervision". Congress enacted the Local Government Code of the Philippines in 1991 to "provide for a more responsive and accountable local government structure instituted through a system of decentralization with effective mechanisms of recall, initiative, and referendum, allocate among the different local government units their powers, responsibilities, and resources, and provide for the qualifications, election, appointment and removal, term, salaries, powers and functions and duties of local officials, and all other matters relating to the organization and operation of local units."PH ACT,weblink Local Government Code of 1991, RA, 7160, Official Gazette (Philippines), The Official Gazette, 1991-10-10, Congress of the Philippines, 2023-12-18, WEB

Levels of local government

{{Philippine LGU hierarchy}}

Autonomous regions

Autonomous regions have more powers than other local governments. The constitution limits the creation of autonomous regions to Muslim Mindanao and the Cordilleras but only one autonomous region exists: the Bangsamoro, which replaced the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). In 1989, a plebiscite established the ARMM. In 2001, a plebiscite in the ARMM confirmed the previous composition of the autonomous region and added Basilan (except for the city of Isabela) and Marawi in Lanao del Sur. Isabela City remains a part of the province of Basilan despite rejecting inclusion in the ARMM. In 2019, another plebiscite confirmed the replacement of the ARMM with the Bangsamoro, and added Cotabato City and 63 barangays in Cotabato.A Cordillera Autonomous Region has never been formed because two plebiscites, in 1990 and 1998, both resulted in just one province supporting autonomy; this led the Supreme Court ruling that autonomous regions should not be composed of just one province.Each autonomous region has a unique form of government. The ARMM had a regional governor and a regional legislative assembly, mimicking the presidential system of the national government. The Bangsamoro will have a chief minister responsible to parliament, with parliament appointing a wa'lī, or a ceremonial governor, in a parliamentary system.

Provinces

Outside the lone autonomous region, the provinces are the highest-level local government. The provinces are organized into component cities and municipalities. A province is governed by the governor and a legislature known as the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

Cities and municipalities

Cities|municipalities of the Philippines}}Municipal government in the Philippines is divided into three – independent cities, component cities, and municipalities (sometimes referred to as towns). Several cities across the country are "independent cities" which means that they are not governed by a province, even though like Iloilo City the provincial capitol might be in the city. Independent city residents do not vote for nor hold provincial offices. Far more cities are component cities and are a part of a province. Municipalities are always a part of a province except for Pateros which was separated from Rizal to form Metro Manila.Cities and municipalities are governed by mayors and legislatures, which are called the Sangguniang Panlungsod in cities and the Sangguniang Bayan in municipalities.

Barangays

Every city and municipality in the Philippines is divided into barangays, the smallest of the local government units. Barangays can be further divided into sitios and puroks but those divisions do not have leaders elected in formal elections supervised by the national government.A barangay's executive is the Punong Barangay or barangay captain and its legislature is the Sangguniang Barangay, composed of barangay captain, the Barangay Kagawads (barangay councilors) and the SK chairman. The SK Chairman is the head of Sangguniang Kabataan which is composed of 1 SK Chairperson and 7 SK Kagawads that also leads the assembly for youth, the (:Category:Katipunan ng Kabataan|Katipunan ng Kabataan) or KK.

Offices

Local governments have two branches: executive and legislative. All courts in the Philippines are under the Supreme Court of the Philippines and therefore there are no local-government controlled judicial branches. Nor do local governments have any prosecutors or public defenders, as those are under the jurisdiction of the national government.The executive branch is composed of the Wali as the head of region and Chief Minister as the head of government for the Bangsamoro, governor for the provinces, mayor for the cities and municipalities, and the barangay captain for the barangays.Local Government Code of the Philippines, Book III {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141031103531weblink |date=October 31, 2014 }}, Department of the Interior and Local Government official website.

Legislatures

The legislatures review the ordinances and resolutions enacted by the legislatures below. Aside from regular and ex-officio members, the legislatures above the barangay level also have three sectoral representatives, one each from women, agricultural or industrial workers, and other sectors.{|class=wikitable!Level of government !! Legislature !! Composition !! Head

	Bangsamoro Parliament>Parliament	total of 80 members: 40 seats in a party-list system of allocation 32 seats, 1 elected from each district 8 reserved seats: 2 from non-Moro indigenous peoples 2 from settler communities 1 for women 1 for youth 1 for traditional leaders 1 for the Ulama| Speaker

	Sangguniang Panlalawigan{{efn>Provinces that comprise a single congressional district are divided into two SP districts. For provinces comprising multiple Legislative districts of the Philippines	, boundaries of SP and congressional districts are coterminous, with the exception of the following: • Cities of the Philippines#Independent cities>Independent cities which are not allowed by law to participate in electing provincial officials are excluded from SP districts. • The cities of Biñan and San Jose del Monte, despite forming their separate congressional districts, remain part of the Laguna Provincial Board#1st District	of Laguna (province)>Laguna and the Bulacan Provincial Board#4th District	of Bulacan.}} >| varies, as of 2019:WEB, Commission on Elections (Philippines), August 18, 2015, COMELEC Resolution No. 9982,weblink May 23, 2017, Cavite: 16 SP members, 2 elected from each district Cebu: 14 SP members, 2 elected from each district Batangas, Isabela,{{efn|Santiago City is excluded from the 4th SP district of Isabela.}} Negros Occidental and Pangasinan:{{efn|Dagupan is excluded from the 4th SP district of Pangasinan.}} 12 SP members, 2 elected from each district All other provinces of the first and second income classes:{{efn|Independent cities excluded from provincial elections: • Naga from Camarines Sur—3rd• Tacloban from Leyte—1st• Ormoc from Leyte—4th• Cotabato City from Maguindanao—1st• Puerto Princesa from Palawan—3rd• Angeles City from Pampanga—1st• General Santos from South Cotabato—1st.}} 10 SP members, with seat distribution among districts varying.{{efn|name=distribution|The manner of seat distribution varies, per Republic Act No. 7166:PH ACT,weblink RA, 7166, An Act Providing for Synchronized National and Local Elections and for Electoral Reforms, Authorizing Appropriations Therefor, and for Other Purposes, Congress of the Philippines, November 26, 1991, May 23, 2017, Official Gazette (Philippines), The Official Gazette, • For provinces comprising multiple congressional districts and need no boundary adjustments due to independent cities being excluded: each district receives the same number of members first, then any remainder will get assigned to the districts with higher population counts.• For provinces comprising multiple congressional districts but have district boundary adjustments: seats are distributed according to the population size of each SP district after factoring out the independent cities.• For provinces comprising a single congressional district: seats are usually distributed equally between the two SP districts drawn by COMELEC, although proportional allocation exists in cases where geography and circumstance have resulted in grossly uneven SP district population distributions (e.g. Benguet's and Sarangani's SP districts).}} Provinces of the third and fourth income classes:{{efn|Butuan is excluded from the 1st SP district of Agusan del Norte.}} 8 SP members, with seat distribution among districts varying.{{efn|name=distribution}} Provinces of the fifth and sixth income classes: 6 SP members, 3 per district President of the provincial chapter of the Liga ng mga Barangay President of the provincial chapter of the League of Councilors President of the provincial federation of the Sangguniang Kabataan Sectoral representatives| Provincial Vice Governor

	Sangguniang Panlungsod{{efn>The number of city council members and districts varies per city, as determined by different statutes. For cities comprising multiple congressional districts, boundaries of city council districts are coterminous with Legislative districts of the Philippines	, with the exception of the Legislative district of Taguig-Pateros which encompasses the 2nd SP district of Taguig and the 1st and 2nd SB districts of Pateros. By law, some cities that are not divided into multiple congressional districts are specifically divided into two (Bacoor, Calbayog, Las Piñas, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Pasay, Pasig, San Juan, Metro Manila>San Juan, San Jose del Monte, Valenzuela, Metro Manila	) or three (Samal, Davao del Norte>Samal, Sorsogon City) city council districts.}}	varies, as of 2019: Manila and Quezon City: 36 councilors, 6 elected from each district Davao City: 24 councilors, 8 elected from each district Antipolo, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu City, Makati, Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Taguig, Zamboanga City: 16 councilors, 8 elected from each district Bacoor, Calbayog, San Jose del Monte, and all other cities in Metro Manila: 12 councilors, 6 elected from each district Samal, Sorsogon City: 12 councilors, 4 elected from each district Bacolod, Baguio, Batangas City, Biñan, Calamba, Dasmariñas, General Santos, Iligan, Iloilo City, Imus, Lapu-Lapu, Lipa, San Fernando (La Union), Tuguegarao: 12 councilors, elected at-large All other cities: 10 councilors, elected at-large President of the city chapter of the Liga ng mga Barangay President of the city federation of the Sangguniang Kabataan Sectoral representatives| City Vice Mayor

	Sangguniang Bayan >| varies, as of 2016: Pateros: 12 councilors, 6 elected from each district All other municipalities: 8 councilors, elected at-large President of the municipal chapter of the Liga ng mga Barangay President of the municipal federation of the Sangguniang Kabataan Sectoral representatives| Municipal Vice Mayor

Barangay	Sangguniang Barangay	7 members elected at-large Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson| Barangay Captain/Barangay Chairman

|Sangguniang Kabataan|

• 7 members elected at-large| Sangguniang Kabataan Chairperson

{{notelist|30em}}

Elected officials

All elected officials have 3-year terms, save for the wa'lī which is six years, and can only serve a maximum of three consecutive terms before being ineligible for reelection.Local Government Code, Book I {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508193627weblink |date=May 8, 2008 }}, Department of the Interior and Local Government official website.{|class=wikitable!LGU !!Official !! Minimum age (18 is the voting ageNEWS, Terra, Quismundo, Election law must prevail over culture, says Abalos, Philippine Daily Inquirer, May 29, 2007, March 27, 2009,weblink )

Autonomous region|Wa'lī (Regional Chief Executive)		NUMBER=11054	PUBLISHER=OFFICIAL GAZETTE (PHILIPPINES)	>DATE=2018-07-27, 2023-12-18, (Same as the President and Vice President of the Philippines)

| 25 years old on election day

| Same as chief minister

Provinces	| 23 years old on election day

| Same as governor

| Same as governor

Highly urbanized cities	| Same as governor

| Same as governor

| Same as governor

Independent component and component cities	| 21 years old on election day

| Same as independent component and component city mayor

| Same as independent component and component city mayor

Municipalities	| Same as independent component and component city mayor

| Same as independent component and component city mayor

| Same as independent component and component city mayor

Barangay	| 18 years old on election day

| Same as Punong Barangay

| 18 to 24 years old on election day

| Same as Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson*

• a Sangguniang Kabataan official who has surpassed 21 years of age while in office is allowed to serve for the rest of the term.

Offices that are common to municipalities, cities and provinces

There are 44 offices in a government, whether it is municipal, city or provincial. There are some mandatory and optional offices to the government.{| class="wikitable"! Office !! Head !!width=10%|Municipality !!width=10%|City !!width=10%|Province

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Optional}}

			| {{Optional}}

			| {{Optional}}

			| {{Optional}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Optional}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{No}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

			| {{Yes}}

Source: Local Government Code of 1991WEB,weblink Local Government Code of 1991 (Book III: Local Government Units), November 6, 2010, Chan Robles Virtual Law Library,

Responsibilities

Among the social services and facilities that local government should provide, as stipulated in Section 17 of the Local Government Code, are the following:

• facilities and research services for agriculture and fishery activities, which include seedling nurseries, demonstration farms, and irrigation systems;
• health services, which include access to primary health care, maternal and child care, and medicines, medical supplies and equipment;
• social welfare services, which include programs and projects for women, children, elderly, and persons with disabilities, as well as vagrants, beggars, street children, juvenile delinquents, and victims of drug abuse;
• information services, which include job placement information systems and a public library;
• a solid waste disposal system or environmental management system;
• municipal/city/provincial buildings, cultural centers, public parks, playgrounds, and sports facilities and equipment;
• infrastructure facilities such as roads, bridges, school buildings, health clinics, fish ports, water supply systems, seawalls, dikes, drainage and sewerage, and traffic signals and road signs;
• state/local colleges and universities;
• public markets, slaughterhouses, and other local enterprises;
• public cemeteries, memorial parks/gardens, and columbariums;
• tourism facilities and other tourist attractions; and
• sites for police and fire stations and substations and municipal jail.
• water districts

Creation and modification

As a matter of principle, higher legislative entities have the power to create, divide, merge, abolish, or substantially alter boundaries of any lower-level local government through a law or ordinance, all subject to approval by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite to be conducted by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) in the local government unit or units directly affected. The Local Government Code has also set requisites for creating local government units. A summary can be found in the table below:{| class="wikitable"! Local government! Area! Population! Income! Legislative bodies that can create, merge, abolish or substantially alter the boundaries of the LGU| Province

2000	sqmi	name=require|Either area or population; meeting only one of these requirements is sufficient}}	name=require}}	Philippine peso>₱20 million for the last two consecutive years based on 1991 constant prices| Congress{{efn|name=ARMM|The Bangsamoro Parliament's predecessor, the ARMM Regional Legislative Assembly, was conferred by Congress (through Article VI, Section 19 of Republic Act No. 9054)PH ACT,weblink An Act to Strengthen and Expand the Organic Act for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Amending for the Purpose Republic Act No. 6734, Entitled "An Act Providing for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao," As Amended, RA, 9054, Official Gazette (Philippines), The Official Gazette, 2001-03-31, 2023-12-18, the power to create or modify lower-level LGUs under its jurisdiction, including provinces and cities. However, the Supreme Court's decision on the unconstitutionality of the now-defunct province of Shariff KabunsuanCreation of the province of Shariff Kabunsuan voided {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090401052915weblink |date=April 1, 2009 }} has effectively confined the regional assembly's powers to creating or modifying only municipalities and barangays.}}

| City

100	sqmi	name=require}}	name=require}}	Philippine peso>₱100 million for the last two consecutive years based on 2000 constant pricesHTTP://WWW.CHANROBLES.COM/REPUBLICACTNO9009.HTML>CHAMBER=RA	TITLE=AN ACT AMENDING SEC. 450 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7160, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE OF 1991, BY INCREASING THE AVERAGE ANNUAL INCOME REQUIREMENT FOR A MUNICIPALITY OR CLUSTER OF BARANGAYS TO BE CONVERTED INTO A COMPONENT CITY	PUBLISHER=CHANROBLES LAW LIBRARY, 2023-12-18, | Congress{{efn|name=ARMM}} Bangsamoro Parliament

| Municipality

50	sqmi|sp=us}}| 25,000	Philippine peso>₱2.5 million for the last two consecutive years based on 1991 constant prices| Congress Bangsamoro Parliament

| Barangay| None

In Metro Manila and highly urbanized cities.}}2,000{{efn|Rest of the country.}}| None| Congress Bangsamoro Parliament Sangguniang Panlalawigan, with recommendation from the concerned Sangguniang Bayan(s) required Sangguniang Panlungsod

See also

• List of primary local government units of the Philippines

Notes

{{notelist}}

References

{{Reflist}}

Further reading

• BOOK, Tigno, Jorge V., Yasutami Shimomura, The Role of Governance in Asia, 2003, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 9789812301970, 253–315,weblink Economic Viability and Local Governance: The Political Economy of Decentralization in the Philippines,

{{Asia topic|Local government in}}{{Philippines topics}}{{Authority control}}