League of Cities of thePhilippines vs.

Commission on Elections
G.R. No. 176951, 643 SCRA 150
J. Bersamin

Facts
During the 11th Congress, 33 bills, out 57 bills filed for conversion of 57 municipalities into
component cities, were enacted pursuant to the requirements of Sec. 450 of the Local Government Code,
while the other 24 bills remained as pending bills. The LGC was later on amended by RA 9009, increasing
the income requirement for each municipality from 20 million to 100 million before being converted in to
component cities, in order to restrain according to Sen. Aquilino Pimentel, the mad rush of municipalities
converting into cities. Both the 11th and 12th Congress failed to act on the pending Cityhood bills. The
Congress while in their proposal of the amendment of the LGC intended that those with pending Cityhood
bills during the 11th Congress be not covered by the new and increased income requirement. Both the
letter and intent of the Section 450 of LGC, as amended by RA 9009, were carried until the 13th Congress,
when the Cityhood Laws were enacted, having the exemption clauses, exempting the respondent
municipalities from the coverage of RA 9009. The petitioner assailed the constitutionality of the
sixteen(16) laws, each converting the municipality covered thereby into a component city (Cityhood
Laws). The court has received flak for supposed flip flopping when it first decided to annul the law, then
reconsidered and upheld its validity, and to when it reverted to its original position declaring the laws
involved unconstitutional.

Issue
1. whether the Cityhood Laws violate the “just share” concept in Sec. 6, Art. X of the
Constitution.
2. whether the Cityhood laws violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution

Statutory construction issue

3. whether the pending cityhood bills will be covered by the new higher income requirement

Held

1. No. The internal revenue share of the existing cities which they claim will diminish, will in fact
increase after the implementation of the Cityhood Laws based on the data shown by DBM

2. No. One of the essential requirements that permits a valid classification of the equal
protection clause as ruled by the court is the presence of the substantial distinctions. The
petitioners argued that there are no substantial distinctions between municipalities with
pending cityhood bills in the 11th Congress and those that did not. However the court ruled
that distinctions exist, and lies in the capacity and viability of the respondents to become
component cities and that the existence of substantial distinction is measured by the purpose
of the LGC as provided in its Sec 2 (a)

3. No. Both the letter and intent of Section 450 of the LGC, as amended by RA 9009 were carried
in the 13th Congress when the Cityhood laws were enacted. The enactment of Cityhood laws
is an exercise by Congress of its legislative power. Legislative power is the authority under the
Constitution to make laws, to alter and repeal them. Essentially the RA 9009 is an amendment
of the LGC, and the Cityhood Law is an amendment of the RA 9009, through the exemption
clauses therein, exempting the pending cityhood bills from being covered by the new higher
income requirement.