THE Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a measure which gives lifetime validity to marriage, birth, and death certificates.
All the 21 senators physically and virtually present voted in favor of the passage of Senate Bill No. 2459, or the Permanent Validity of the Certificates of Live Birth, Death, and Marriage Act sponsored by Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr., chairman of the Committee on Civil Service, Government Reorganization and Professional Regulation.
These certificates are issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority, formerly the National Statistics Office, and the local governments’ Civil Registry Office and the Philippine Foreign Service Post.
Revilla said the measure will save people from unnecessary expenditure when the certificates are required in job applications, school enrolments, and when reporting the death of a person to government or private institutions, among others.
“Mr. President, with this piece of legislation, we have clearly and categorically provided the permanent validity of the civil registry documents regardless of the date of issuance. As such, they will be recognized and accepted in all government or private transactions.
Through this, our people do not have to unnecessarily spend time and money in securing new copies of their documents,” Revilla said in his manifestation.
He noted that while the PSA already publicly declared that the birth certificates it issues have no expiration, several government agencies and private organizations still require these documents using the latest security paper which costs the applicant P155 for an authenticated copy and P365 when delivered at their personal address.
“There are instances that applicants are required to submit birth certificates issued within the past six months. For them to get these documents, Filipinos need to spend time and money. This is especially unfair to those who are first-time jobseekers,” Revilla added.
Under the measure, all government offices, private companies, schools and non-government entities will be banned from requiring newly issued birth, death or marriage certificates from those transacting business with them.
“The certificates of live birth, death, and marriage issued, signed, certified or authenticated by the PSA and its predecessor, the NSO, and the local civil registries shall have permanent validity regardless of the date of issuance and shall be recognized and accepted in all government or private transactions or services requiring submission thereof, as proof of identity and legal status of a person,” a provision of the bill stated.
Once enacted into law, a punishment of one to six months imprisonment or a fine of not less than P5,000 but not more than P10,000, or both at the discretion of the court, shall be meted to any person who will be found guilty of violating this law.
“If the violation is committed by a public official or employee, an accessory penalty of temporary disqualification to hold public office shall likewise be imposed,” the bill stated.
The measure also states that the only time a person will need a new civil registry certificate is if the document’s security features are no longer readable thus degrading its authenticity.
Listed as co-authors of the bill are Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto and Senators Francis Pangilinan, Win Gatchalian, Joel Villanueva, Juan Edgardo Angara, Grace Poe, Cynthia Villar and Nancy Binay.
The Senate also passed on third and final reading Senate Bill No. 2423 or the Private Security Services Act, which replaces the 52-year-old RA 5487 or the Private Security Agency law.
The measure aims to strengthen the regulation of private security services industry making it responsive to the complexity and growth of the industry and the demands of global-certifying bodies.
Also, senators passed on third and final reading Senate Bill No. 2399 which calls for the establishment and implementation of the “Parent Effectiveness Services Program” which seeks to strengthen parental involvement in child development and learning by expanding their skills on parenting.
This would cover fathers and mothers as parent substitutes.
