GENERAL SANTOS CITY - More than 600 real properties are set for public auction on November 15 to aid the city's tax collection, a local executive said Thursday.

Tess Sevilla, the head of land tax division, said the local government will auction machinery, land, business and residential establishments.

“Originally, there are about 900 delinquent real properties set to be auctioned. However, after the news came out about the auction, some of our taxpayers have settled already,” Sevilla said.

Sevilla said public auctions have helped increase the local government's tax collection.

“Malaking tulong talaga yong aming public auction campaign kaya lumaki yong aming collection. And this year, we will do it twice. We need to collect more taxes so we can fund government programs,” Sevilla said.

In 2016, the land tax division collected P238.6 million, a 17% increase in total collection compared to the P203.8 million target set by the local government's Bureau of Finance.

The city's Special Education Fund (SEF) also comes from the collection of real property tax.

The local government was recently in hot water following reports that more than P100 million of the SEF has not been used.

Mayor Ronnel Rivera said they are constantly coordinating with Department of Education (DepEd)-GenSan so the funds can be used.

“We assure the public that the money is intact, and we are closely talking to DepEd so these funds can be utilized under the new Implementing Rules and Regulations," Rivera said.

Under the new guidelines for the SEF, it can be used for many purposes, including payment for electricity, salary of security guards, and buying educational equipment, among others.