What is SALN and why are elected officials been challenged to either come up with it, or they themselves offer to file it for transparency purposes?
SALN stands for Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth.
The Official Gazette said the SALN is a document of a “declaration of assets (i.e., land, vehicles, etc) and liabilities (i.e., loans, debts, etc), including business and financial interests, of an official or employee, of his or her spouse, and of his or her unmarried children under 18 years old still living in their parents’ households”.
The filing of the SALN is Constitutional.
Article XI Section 17 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution explicitly states that public officers or employees shall, upon required by law, submit their SALN under oath.
They are usually required to file their SALNs upon assumption of office.
Those required to file it are public officials and employees, whether regular or under temporary status, within 30 days after assumption of office; on or before April 30, of every year thereafter; and within 30 days after separation from the service.
Republic Act 6713, Sec. 8 states:
“All public officials and employees required under this section to file the aforestated documents shall also execute, within thirty (30) days from the date of their assumption of office, the necessary authority in favor of the Ombudsman to obtain from all appropriate government agencies, including the Bureau of Internal Revenue, such documents as may show their assets, liabilities, net worth, and also their business interests and financial connections in previous years, including, if possible, the year when they first assumed any office in the Government.”
“Identification and disclosure of relatives. — It shall of the duty of every public official or employee to identify and disclose, to the best of his knowledge and information, his relatives in the Government in the form, manner and frequency prescribed by the Civil Service Commission.”
RA 6713, Section 8 also outlines the contents of the SALN.
This includesreal property and its improvements, acquisition costs, assessed value and current fair market value;
personal property and acquisition cost; all other assets such as investments, cash on hand or in banks, stocks, bonds, and the like;
liabilities, and; all business interests and financial connections.”
The SALN also includes those properties owned by the filer’s spouse/s and of unmarried children under 18 years of age living in their households.
The filer is also required to identify and disclose relatives.
