369 Phil. 103
KAPUNAN, J.:
Petitioner mayor's position having been classified as Grade 27 in accordance with R.A. No. 6758, and having been charged with violation of Section 3 (e) of R.A. No. 3019, petitioner is subject to the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan, as defined by Section 4 a. of P.D. No. 1606, as amended by Section 2 of R.A. No. 7975. By virtue of the same Section 4 a., as amended, his co-accused are also subject to the Anti-Graft Court's jurisdiction.We noted that while Section 4 a. of P.D. No. 1606, as amended, did not expressly include the position of Municipal Mayor as among those within the Sandiganbayan's exclusive and original jurisdiction, such position is embraced in the catch-all provision, Section 4 a. (5).
SEC. 9. Salary Grade Assignments for Other Positions. - For positions below the Officials mentioned under Section 8 hereof and their equivalent, whether in the National Government, local government units, government-owned or controlled corporations or financial institutions, the Department of Budget and Management is hereby directed to prepare the Index of Occupational Services to be guided by the Benchmark Position Schedule prescribed hereunder and the following factors: (1) the education and experience required to perform the duties and responsibilities of the position; (2) the nature and complexity of the work to be performed; (3) the kind of supervision received; (4) mental and/or physical strain required in the completion of the work; (5) nature and extent of internal and external relationships; (6) kind of supervision exercised; (7) decision-making responsibility; (8) responsibility for accuracy of records and reports; (9) accountability for funds, properties and equipment; and (10) hardship, hazard and personal risk involved in the job.In accordance with the above Section and that of Section 6[2] of the same law, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) prepared the Index of Occupational Services, Position Titles and Salary Grades where the position of Municipal Mayor was assigned Salary Grade 27.
Benchmark Position Schedule Position Title Salary Grade Laborer I 1 Messenger 2 Clerk I 3 Driver I 3 Stenographer I 4 Mechanic I 4 Carpenter II 5 Electrician II 6 Secretary I 7 Bookkeeper 8 Administrative Assistant 8 Education Research Assistant I 9 Cashier I 10 Nurse I 10 Teacher I 10Agrarian Reform Program Technologist
10 Budget Officer I 11 Chemist I 11 Agriculturist I 11 Social Welfare Officer I 11 Engineer I 12 Veterinarian I 13 Legal Officer I 14 Administrative Officer II 15 Dentist II 16 Postmaster IV 17 Forester III 18 Associate Professor I 19 Rural Health Physician 20
In no case shall the salary of the chairman, president, general manager or administrator, and the board of directors of government-owned or controlled corporations, and financial institutions exceed Salary Grade 30: Provided, That the President may, in truly exceptional cases, approve higher compensation for the aforesaid officials.
The municipal mayor shall receive a minimum monthly compensation corresponding to Salary Grade twenty-seven (27) as prescribed under R.A. No. 6758 and the implementing guidelines issued pursuant thereto. (Underscoring supplied.)The above provision is confirmatory of the Salary Grade assigned by the DBM to Municipal Mayors, and should thus lay the matter of the Sandiganbayan's jurisdiction over petitioner Mayor to rest.
xxx. To many of the problems attendant upon present-day undertakings, the legislature may not have the competence to provide the required direct and efficacious, not to say, specific solutions. These solutions may, however, be expected from its delegates, who are supposed to be experts in the particular fields assigned to them. With this power, administrative bodies may implement the broad policies laid down in a statue by "filing in" the details which the Congress may not have the opportunity or competence to provide.[4]Through delegation, Congress may devote more time to address other pressing matters. Moreover, Congress may be slow to act on matters requiring continuous decision. Thus, Professor Jaffe's observations, quoted by then Chief Justice Enrique M. Fernando in Trade Unions of the Philippines and Allied Services (TUPAS-WFTU) vs. Ople,[5] is even more appropriate today:
xxx. Power should be delegated where there is agreement that a task must be performed and it cannot be effectively performed by the legislature without the assistance of a delegate or without an expenditure of time so great as to lead to the neglect of equally important business. Delegation is most commonly indicated where the relations to be regulated are highly technical or where their regulation requires a course of continuous decision.With the growing complexity of modern life, the multiplication of the subjects of governmental regulation, and the increased difficulty of administering the laws, there is a constantly growing tendency toward the delegation of greater powers by the legislature, and toward the approval of the practice by the courts.[6]
SEC. 2. Statement of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to provide equal pay for substantially equal work and to base differences in pay upon substantive differences in duties and responsibilities, and qualification requirements of the positions. xxx.R.A. No. 6758 fixes a standard and the limits of such standards are sufficiently determinate or determinable. Particularly with regard to the assignment of Salary Grades for positions below those in Section 8, Section 9 provides the standards which should guide the DBM in preparing the Index of Occupational Services. These are (a) the Benchmark Position Schedule prescribed in Section 9 and (b) the ten (10) factors enumerated therein.