Bureau of Local Government Finance Opinion

July 17, 2000 BUREAU OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT FINANCE OPINION Ms. Elizabeth L. Dooma Christian Academy of Pandi Bunsuran II, Pandi, Bulacan Madam : This refers to your undated letter relative to the payment of Mayor's Permit fee of Christian Academy of Pandi (CAP). Representations are made that CAP is non-stock and non-profit and operated as a Missionary School to reach lost souls for the Lord, white working for academic excellence of the students; that the school is primarily supported by Korean brethren from Korea and some Christian believers in the Philippines; and that the tuition fees and other school fees charged are not enough to pay for the salaries of teachers and staff as the same are the lowest tuition fees in the area. On September 13, 1999, CAP sent a letter to the Municipal Mayor of Pandi requesting exemption. However, said request was not granted. It appears however, that under its Article of Incorporation, CAP is only a non-stock corporation. In this connection the provisions of Article 238 (c) of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), implementing Section 193 at the Local Government Code of 1991 (LGC), quoted hereunder shall not apply: "Art. 283. Withdrawal of Tax Exemption Privileges or Incentives. Unless otherwise provided for in this Rule, beginning January 1, 1992, all local tax exemption privileges or incentives granted to and presently enjoyed by any person, whether natural or juridical, including government-owned or controlled corporations, are considered withdrawn, except the following: aCHcIE "(a) . . . "(c) Non-stock and non-profit hospitals and educational institutions; "xxx xxx xxx." Under the law of statutory construction, if the conjunction "and" is used the various members of a sentence are to be taken jointly. And is conjunction connecting words or phrase expressing the idea that the latter is to be added to or taken along with he first. It expresses a general relation or connection, a participation or accompaniment in sequence, having no inherent meaning standing alone but deriving force from what comes before and after. In view of the foregoing, CAP should be both a non-stock and non-profit corporation to enjoy local tax exemption privileges. In other words, CAP should be the two without the exception of either. Accordingly, CAP shall be liable to pay the local taxes, fees and charges imposed under a duly-enacted tax ordinance of the municipality of Pandi. Very truly yours, (SGD.) ANGELINA M. MAGSINO Deputy Executive Director Officer-in-Charge <http://www.blgf.gov.ph/downloads/opinion/localtax/2000/a2000-0511.pdf> last visited on October 2, 2013.