The Baguio City Council () is Baguio's Sangguniang Panlungsod or legislative body. The council has 15 members which is composed of 12 councilors, one ex officio member elected from the ranks of barangay (neighborhood) chairmen, one ex officio member elected from the ranks of Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) chairmen and one presiding officer. The Vice-mayor of the city is the presiding officer of the council, who is elected citywide.
The council is responsible for creating laws and ordinances under the city's jurisdiction. The mayor can veto proposed bills, but the council can override it with a two-thirds supermajority.
Powers, duties and functions The Sangguniang Panlungsod, as the legislative body of the city, is mandated by the Local Government Code of 1991 (Republic Act No. 7160) to:
Enact ordinances; Approve resolutions; Appropriate funds for the general welfare of the city and its inhabitants; and Ensure the proper exercise of the corporate powers of the city as provided for under Section 22 of the Local Government Code.
Furthermore, the following duties and functions are relegated to the Sangguniang Panlungsod:
Approve ordinances and pass resolutions necessary for an efficient and effective city government; Generate and maximize the use of resources and revenues for the development plans, program objectives and priorities of the city as provided for under section 18 of the Local Government Code of 1991, with particular attention to agro-industrial development and citywide growth and progress; Enact ordinances granting franchises and authorizing the issuance of permits or licenses, upon such conditions and for such purposes intended to promote the general welfare of the inhabitants of the city but subject to the provisions of Book II of the Local Government Code of 1991; Regulate activities relative to the use of land, buildings, and structures within the city in order to promote the general welfare of its inhabitants; Approve ordinances which shall ensure the efficient and effective delivery of the basic services and facilities as provided for under Section 17 of the Local Government Code; and Exercise such other powers and perform such other duties and functions as may be prescribed by law or ordinance.
Membership The city elects twelve members of the council at-large. In plurality-at-large voting, a voter may vote for up to ten candidates and the candidates with the ten highest numbers of votes are elected. Barangay and SK chairs throughout the city each elect a representative to the council, for a total of 14 councilors. City-council elections are synchronized with other elections in the country, which have been held on the second Monday of May every third year since 1992.
2019 - 2022 membership These are the members after the 2019 local elections, and 2018 barangay and SK elections: Position Name Party Presiding Officer Faustino A. Olowan CityCouncilors Joel A. Alangsab Benny O. Bomogao Betty Lourdes F. Tabanda Elaine D. Sembrano Maria Mylen Victoria G. Yaranon Isabelo B. Cosalan, Jr. Francisco Roberto A. Ortega VI Arthur L. Allad-iw Vladimir D. Cayabas Fred L. Bagbagen Lilia A. Fariñas Philian Louise Weygan-Allan ABC President Michael L. Lawana SK Federation President Levy Lloyd B. Orcales Indigenous Peoples Mandatory RepresentationMaximo Hilario Edwin Bugnay Jr.
IP representation The Baguio City Council has an Indigenous People's Mandatory Representative (IPMR) as a member in compliance with the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997. It was only on February 3, 2023 that the IPMR seat would be filled for the very first time. Maximo Hilario Edwin Bugnay Jr., was elected by the Ibaloy, Kankanaey and Kalanguya clans.
Former councils + 2016-2019 MembershipPosition Name Presiding Officer Edison R. Bilog CityCouncilors Leandro B. Yangot Jr. Edgar M. Avila Joel A. Alangsab Faustino A. Olowan Elmer O. Datuin Maria Mylen Victoria G. Yaranon Elaine D. Sembrano Peter C. Fianza Lilia A. Fariñas Arthur L. Allad-iw Benny O. Bomogao Roberto C. Ortega ABC President Michael L. Lawana SK Federation President
Notable members
Bobby Ortega (Member of the council from 1995–2004 and 2010–2017)
References