533 Phil. 409
CARPIO MORALES, J.:
WHEREFORE, the petition is hereby GRANTED. The assailed portion of the provisions of Section 3 of Quezon City Ordinance No. 357 is hereby declared invalid.Treating the motion for clarification as a motion for reconsideration, this Court required respondents to comment thereon.
Petitioner's claim for refund, however, must be lodged with the Local Board of Assessment Appeals, if it is not barred by the statute of limitations. (Underscoring supplied)
Please be informed that the subject new assessment was made by the Office of the City Assessor in faithful compliance with the provision of 3rd [s]entence of Section 3, Ordinance No. SP-357, S-95. The duty of the City Assessor is to apply the said statutory provision and not interpret the same. Under the settled jurisprudence in our jurisdiction, the City Assessor, being in the Executive Department, is duty bound to implement the said provision. The same is presumed valid and legal unless declared otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction.[10] (Underscoring supplied)In its Decision subject of the present motion, this Court ruled that the assailed proviso is null and void ab initio for being ultra vires and for contravening the provisions of the Local Government Code and its Implementing Rules and Regulations and Local Assessment Regulations No. 1-92 and, as such, it acquired no legal effect and conferred no rights from its inception.[11]
SEC. 253. Repayment of Excessive Collections. - When an assessment of basic real property tax, or any other tax levied under this Title, is found to be illegal or erroneous and the tax is accordingly reduced or adjusted, the taxpayer may file a written claim for refund or credit for taxes and interests with the provincial or city treasurer within two (2) years from the date the taxpayer is entitled to such reduction or adjustment.WHEREFORE, in light of the foregoing discussion, the second paragraph of the earlier quoted dispositive portion of the Decision of this Court dated October 11, 2005 is amended to read:
The provincial or city treasurer shall decide the claim for tax refund or credit within sixty (60) days from receipt thereof. In case the claim for tax refund or credit is denied, the taxpayer may avail of the remedies provided in Chapter 3, Title Two, Book II of this Code.
Petitioner's claim for refund may be pursued in accordance with Section 253 of the Local Government Code within Two (2) Years from the finality of this Decision.SO ORDERED.
Payment Under Protest. - (a) No protest shall be entertained unless the taxpayer first pays the tax. There shall be annotated on the tax receipts the words "paid under protest". The protest in writing must be filed within thirty (30) days from payment of the tax to the provincial, city treasurer or municipal treasurer, in the case of a municipality within Metropolitan Manila Area, who shall decide the protest within sixty (60) days from receipt.[6]
(b) The tax or a portion thereof paid under protest, shall be held in trust by the treasurer concerned.
(c) In the event that the protest is finally decided in favor of the taxpayer, the amount or portion of the tax protested shall be refunded to the protestant, or applied as tax credit against his existing or future tax liability.
(d) In the event that the protest is denied or upon the lapse of the sixty day period prescribed in subparagraph (a), the taxpayer may avail of the remedies as provided for in Chapter 3, Title II, Book II of this Code.
SECTION 226. Local Board of Assessment Appeals. - Any owner or person having legal interest in the property who is not satisfied with the action of the provincial, city or municipal assessor in the assessment of his property may, within sixty (60) days from the date of receipt of the written notice of assessment, appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals of the provincial or city by filing a petition under oath in the form prescribed for the purpose, together with copies of the tax declarations and such affidavits or documents submitted in support of the appeal.[7]
SECTION 229. Action by the Local Board of Assessment Appeals. - (a) The Board shall decide the appeal within one hundred twenty (120) days from the date of receipt of such appeal. The Board, after hearing, shall render its decision based on substantial evidence or such relevant evidence on record as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support the conclusion.[8]
(b) In the exercise of its appellate jurisdiction, the Board shall have the power to summon witnesses, administer oaths, conduct ocular inspection, take depositions, and issue subpoena and subpoena duces tecum. The proceedings of the Board shall be conducted solely for the purpose of ascertaining the facts without necessarily adhering to technical rules applicable in judicial proceedings.
(c) The secretary of the Board shall furnish the owner of the property or the person having legal interest therein and the provincial or city assessor with a copy of the decision of the Board. In case the provincial or city assessor concurs in the revision or the assessment, it shall be his duty to notify the owner of the property or the person having legal interest therein of such fact using the form prescribed for the purpose. The owner of the property or the person having legal interest therein or the assessor who is not satisfied with the decision of the Board, may, within thirty (30) days after receipt of the decision of said Board, appeal to the Central Board of Assessment Appeals, as herein provided. The decision of the Central Board shall be final and executory.
SECTION 230. Central Board of Assessment Appeals. - The Central Board of Assessment Appeals shall be composed of a chairman, and two (2) members to be appointed by the President, who shall serve for a term of seven (7) years, without reappointment. Of those first appointed, the chairman shall hold office for seven (7) years, one member for five (5) years, and the other member for three (3) years. Appointment to any vacancy shall be only for the unexpired portion of the term of the predecessor. In no case shall any member be appointed or designated in a temporary or acting capacity. The chairman and the members of the Board shall be Filipino citizens, at least forty (40) years old at the time of their appointment, and members of the Bar or Certified Public Accountants for at least ten (10) years immediately preceding their appointment. The chairman of the Board of Assessment Appeals shall have the salary grade equivalent to the rank of Director III under the Salary Standardization Law exclusive of allowances and other emoluments. The members of the Board shall have the salary grade equivalent to the rank of Director II under the Salary Standardization Law exclusive of allowances and other emoluments. The Board shall have appellate jurisdiction over all assessment cases decided by the Local Board of Assessment Appeals.[9]
SECTION 231. Effect of Appeal on the Payment of Real Property Tax. - Appeal on assessments of real property made under the provisions of this Code shall, in no case, suspend the collection of the corresponding realty taxes on the property involved as assessed by the provincial or city assessor, without prejudice to subsequent adjustment depending upon the final outcome of the appeal.[10] Rollo, p. 92.