PRESIDENT Marcos Jr. yesterday said 14 of the 57 priority measures of his administration have been enacted into law, with at least seven to 23 more bills expected to be passed by June.
The President convened yesterday the fourth Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) meeting in Malacañang which was attended by members of the Senate led by Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, the House of Representatives led by Speaker Martin Romualdez, and the Cabinet led by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, among others.
“We’ve enacted 14 of 57 priority bills and are re-prioritizing measures to boost livelihood, protect the environment, and strengthen security. With seven more bills slated for passage in June, we’re advancing towards a stronger Bagong Pilipinas,” Marcos said in a post in his official Facebook account.
He did not identify the seven bills.
Zubiri, in an interview by the Radio Television after the meeting and in a statement issued yesterday afternoon, said he made a commitment to the President that the Senate will pass all the priority measures being pushed by the administration by June this year.
“Either pirma na lang ng Pangulo or nasa bicameral committee meetings na lang, which is going to be a law very, very soon (They’re either waiting for the President’s signature or are in the bicameral conference meeting level, which is going to be law very, very soon),” Zubiri said.
He said he committed to pass the 23 measures “hopefully by June before the Senate break or sine dine break.”
Congress will go on summer break from March 23 to April 28. They will resume sessions on April 29 until May 24, and will be on sine die adjournment from May 25 to July 21.
“So, that’s our commitment to the House of Representatives together with the President, But we’re on track to pass all of these by June,” Zubiri said.
Romualdez said the House of Representatives approved all the 19 priority measures identified by the President and the LEDAC three months ahead of the target approval, which is June.
“Mr. President, we have done our homework and all the 19 measures re-prioritized for target by June 2024 have been approved on the third and final reading by the House of Representatives,” the Speaker said in his report to the full LEDAC meeting in Malacañang. Romualdez said the House’s quick approval of the administration’s priority bills shows that it is a “proactive chamber that caters and listens to the needs of the people, passing needed legislation attuned to the Philippine Development Plan and the 8-point Socio-Economic Agenda under the Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF) of His Excellency PBBM (President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.).”
He noted that as early as September 27, 2023, the House was able to approve all 20 of the LEDAC priority bills targeted for passage in December 2023 or three months ahead of schedule, too.
Among the 15 priority measures for passage by June include the Amendments to the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act/Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, Self-Reliant Defense Posture Act, Philippine Maritime Zones Act, Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act, Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS), and the Negros Island Region Act.
Also on the list are the Anti-Financial Accounts Scamming Act, Value Added Tax on Digital Services, Amendments to the Government Procurement Reform Act, Blue Economy Act, Waste-to-Energy Bill, Mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) and National Service Training Program (NSTP), Unified System of Separation, Retirement, and Pension of Military and Uniformed Personnel; E-Government Act/E-Governance Act, and Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program Act.
Other bills committed to be passed by June include the Open Access in Digital Transmission Act, Enterprise-based Education Programme (Apprenticeship Act), CREATE More, An Act Creating the Department of Water Management and Amendments to the Universal Health Care Act, among others.
On the other hand, already signed into law were the SIM Card Registration Act, Postponement of the Barangay and SK elections, Strengthening Professionalism in the AFP, New Agrarian Emancipation Act, Maharlika Investment Fund, Trabaho Para sa Bayan Act, Public-Private Partnership Code of the Philippines, Regional Specialty Centers, Automatic Income Classification of LGUs, Internet Transactions Act, Ease of Paying Taxes Act, Tatak Pinoy (Proudly Filipino) Act, Philippine Salt Industry Development Act and the New Philippine Passport Act. — With Raymond Africa and Wendell Vigilia
