This document discusses the growth of cities in the Philippines from 61 in 1977 to 143 in 2012, with almost half of them located in Luzon. The conversion of municipalities to cities is driven by fiscal inequities in the distribution of the internal revenue allotment (IRA) and political incentives. Several reform measures are being proposed in Congress to address these issues. Cities have much bigger revenues than municipalities and can spend more on essential services such as health and education. The document also provides information on the requirements for a municipality or cluster of barangays to be converted into a component city.