The BGA Philippines Team led by Managing Director Victor Andres Manhit, wrote an update for clients on the current status of 10 bills identified for fast-track approval in the Philippines. 

Context

  • The Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) Executive Committee convened on February 13 and identified 10 bills for fast-track approval, three of which are new priorities. LEDAC intends to pass these 10 priority bills before the end of the first regular session of the 19th Congress on June 2.

Significance

  • Some of the LEDAC priority bills are steadily gaining traction in both houses of Congress, such as the New Agrarian Emancipation bill, the E-Governance bill and the National Government Rightsizing bill. The proposed Attrition Law pertaining to the assignment and promotion of personnel in the Armed Forces of the Philippines has also progressed significantly.
  • Other priority bills, such as the proposed Public Private Partnership Act, Department of Water, Maharlika Sovereign Fund, Budget Modernization Bill, Passive Income Financial Intermediary Taxation Act and Internet Transactions Act did not enjoy any significant movement in the first quarter of 2023.

Implications

  • The swift passage of these priority bills will accelerate the implementation of the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Administration’s plans and programs, in line with the eight-point socioeconomic agenda and the goals established in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028. These legislative measures will facilitate the government’s objective of maintaining an annual gross domestic product growth rate of 6.5 percent to 8 percent from 2024 to 2028.
  • The Speaker of the House also committed to work overtime on eight additional priorities: (1) Proposed Natural Gas Industry Enabling Law; (2) Department of Water Resources and Creation of Water Regulatory Commission; (3) National Land Use Act; (4) Military and Uniformed Personnel Pension Act; (5) Amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA); (6) Budget Modernization Bill; (7) National Defense Act; and (8) Regional Specialty Hospitals.

We will continue to keep you updated on developments in the Philippines as they occur. If you have any questions or comments, please contact BGA Philippines Managing Director Victor Andres Manhit at vmanhit@bowergroupasia.com.

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Managing Director

Dindo is recognized as one of Manila’s most well-connected and savvy advisors on developments in government and business in the Philippines. Concurrent to his role as managing director for BGA’s operations in the Philippines, he is also the founder and managing director of the Stratbase Group and president of its policy think tank, the Albert del Rosario Institute for Strategic and International Studies. Since 1991, Dindo has served as a member of the faculty and is the former chair of the Political Science Department and a senior fellow of the La Salle Institute of Governance at the De La Salle ... Read More