FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
Second Regular Session 
1 
SENATE 
, 
Introduced by Senator Antonio “Sonny” F.’Trillanes IV 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The need for sound expenditure management in the bureaucracy has become more 
important through the years as government resources have become limited and the needs 
of society have become almost inexhaustible. 
The present set-up of the government made it a significant contributor to the tremendous 
waste of resources in the Philippine economy. By focusing the government’s limited 
resources on the provision of basic services, the government would effectively reduce 
poverty and possibly bring about the economic resurgence of the Philippine economy. 
However, massive trimming down of the bureaucracy is needed to do away with the 
unnecessary and redundant appendages of the government. 
This bill seeks to create the Government Reorganization Commission to undertake 
studies and propose measures to abolish, merge, integrate, transfer, regroup, or 
restructure departments, bureaus, offices, government-owned and controlled corporations 
and other agencies of the Executive Branch in order to eliminate overlapping and/or 
fragmentation functions of programs and activities. 
In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought. 
A N ~ O ~ I O  
“SONNY” F. TRILLANES IV 
Senator 
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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PEILPPINES 
) 
Second Regular Session 
) 
Introduced by Senator Antonio “Sonny” F. Trillanes IV 
AN ACT 
REORGANIZING THE GOVERNMENT BUREAUCRACY, CREATING A 
GOVERNMENT 
REORGANIZATION 
COMMISSION, 
DEFINING 
ITS 
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled. 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Government 
Reorganization Act of 2008.” 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is declared the policy of the State to maintain 
an efficient, effective, professionalized, and properly compensated bureaucracy with 
scope and focus of functions, programs and activities that support national development 
goals and efforts and whose size and organizational structure promote economy, 
productivity, innovation, responsiveness and service to the general public. 
SEC. 3. Creation of the Government Reorganization Commission. - Pursuant to 
the preceding section, a Government Reorganization Commission, hereinafter referred to 
as the Commission, is hereby created with the following as members thereof: 
1. Chairman of Senate Committee on Civil Service and Government 
Reorganization, who will be its chairman; 
2. Chairman of House Committee on Government Reorganization, who will be a 
co-vice chairman; 
3. Chairman of the House Committee on Civil Service, who will be a co-vice 
chairman; 
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4. Three(3) majority members of the Senate Committee on Civil Service and 
Government Reorganization; 
5. One (1) minority member of the Senate Committee on Civil Service and 
Government Reorganization; 
6. One (I) majority member of House Committee on Government Reorganization; 
7. One (1) majority member of House Committee on Civil Service; 
8. One (1) minority member of the House Committee on Civil Service and/or 
Government Reorganization; 
9. Chairman and the two (2) members of the Civil Service Commission; 
10. Representative from the private sector to be appointed by the President; and 
11, Representative from a recognized government employees organization to be 
nominated by members of such organization. 
SEC. 4. Mandate. - The Commission shall pursue a survey of the government 
bureaucracy and draft a plan of reorganization of all entities and offices of the Executive 
branch of government. These shall include all departments and their respective attached 
agencies, bureaus, offices, commissions, boards, councils, authorities, including 
government-owned and controlled corporations, state universities and colleges, and all 
other instrumentalities of the Executive branch. 
SEC. 5. Powers and Functions. - Pursuant to Section 2 of this Act, and in order 
to ensure the successful implementation of the reorganization of the Executive branch, 
the Commission is hereby authorized to: 
1. formulate and administer the necessary guidelines, rules, and procedures to 
implement and ensure adherence to this Act; 
2. draft a plan to abolish, merge, integrate, transfer, and regroup, or restructure 
departments, bureaus, offices, government-owned and controlled corporations, 
and other agencies of the Executive branch only for the purpose of eliminating 
overlapping and fragmented functions, programs and activities; effects the 
distribution and transfer to appropriations, assets, liabilities, equipment, 
records, other properties, transactions, positions, and personnel, all the time 
giving due regard to pertinent laws and rules and regulations, and the right to 
security of tenure of civil service officers and employees; 
3. adopt a human resource development strategy, and a government staffing and 
remuneration policy to include a rewards and incentives scheme that will 
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establish 
equity, 
promote 
morale, 
productivity, 
innovativeness, 
professionalism, and creativity, and attract and retain the best and the brightest 
within the civil service; and 
4. adopt and enforce the necessary guidelines, rules and regulations, and processes 
to fully implement the reorganization herein, provided. 
SEC. 6. Principles and Parnmeters. - The reorganization of the Executive branch 
herein authorized shall be carried out according to the following principles and 
guidelines: 
1.) Government’s role and the determination of the scope, level, and prioritization 
of its activities shall be in accordance with its Constitutional mandate, 
political and socioeconomic objectives, and available resources, to be guided 
by the following policies: 
a,) Government shall prioritize the strengthening its fundamental 
functions, among which are: 
i,) 
effective macro-economic management, including the 
formulation and implementation of socioeconomic, fiscal, 
and monetary policies; 
ii.) the maintenance of peace and order, and national political 
security; 
iii.) the conservation of natural resources and ensuring their 
productive utilization and development for the national 
welfare; 
iv.) the maintenance of an effective and reliable system of 
administering justice, lawmaking, and law enforcement; 
providing quality basic and secondary education, especially 
to the poor and disadvantaged population; 
vi.) providing adequate and appropriate infrastructure; 
vii.) promoting economic and political diplomacy to achieve 
sound and mutually productive economic and political 
relations with other nations and international communities; 
v.) 
viii.) the promotion of total human development; and 
ix.) disaster mitigation and the effective management of state 
emergencies and calamities. 
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b.) Government’s role shall e to steer and mobilize the instruments that 
contribute to achieving sectoral objectives. To this end, Government 
shall focus its sectoral functions on: 
i.) 
ii.) promotion and advocacy; 
iii.) providing information and linkages or access to markets; 
iv.) providing assistance and incentives; 
v.) 
enforcement of the appropriate rules and regulations; and, 
vi.) providing safety nets for adversely affected sectors of the 
population. 
policy setting, monitoring, and assessment; 
c.) To the extent possible, government shall limit direct provision and 
production of public goods and encourage more private sector 
participation. 
2.) The National Government shall assist, supervise, and monitor local 
government units to complement the greater autonomy granted to them. The 
declination of responsibilities between the National Government and local 
government units in the provisions and production of public goods shall be 
clearly defined and agreed upon. 
3.) The National Government shall adopt a structural framework that will define 
the vertical as well as horizontal compartmentalization of the Executive 
Branch, including the basic structural and functional configuration of 
departments and agencies. It shall likewise adopt a typology of government 
offices which shall serve to determine the proper organizational 
configurations and groupings of these offices. 
4.) The Executive Branch shall streamline its systems and procedures to facilitate 
and improve the relevance and quality of front-line services, and improve 
policy formulation, planning and performance, and evaluation and assessment. 
These systems and procedures shall be designed within the context of 
decentralizing the decision-making authority within the Executive Branch and 
its departments, agencies, bureaus, offices and other instrumentalities. 
SEC. 7. Submission of Report to the President and Congress. - The 
Commission shall submit the report of its study and reorganization plan, to the President. 
If the President finds the report or plan satisfactory, the same shall be submitted to both 
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Houses of Congress. The organizational plan shall be effective upon the approval of 
Congress through a concurrent resolution. 
Sec. 8. Re-Tooling, Re-Tmining, and Re-Development Program - The 
Government shall adopt and implement a re-tooling, re-training, and re-deployment 
program for personnel who might be displaced as a result of the reorganization of 
departments, agencies, bureaus, offices, and other instrumentalities of the Executive 
Branch. This program shall include the formulation of technical and objective criteria for 
the identification of redundant positions and the consequent incumbents therein, the 
establishment and operation of a government manpower pool, and the re-tooling, re- 
training, and subsequent re-deployment of personnel to appropriate non-redundant 
positions in the newly reorganized agencies. 
All personnel whose positions have been declared redundant shall be 
consequently be deployed to the government pool, which shall be established according 
to the following guidelines: 
1.) All redundant personnel shall continue to receive their basic salaries 
for one (1) year from the day their operations are officially declared 
redundant; 
2.) All allowances, financial and non-financial benefits, and other 
compensation received by the incumbents prior to their positions being 
declared redundant shall be terminated upon such declaration; 
3.) If the redundant personnel shall choose to immediately leave the 
government service, or before the expiration of the one (1) year period 
provided for, he shall be entitled to receive in cash his basic salary for 
the remaining period, in addition to any separation pay and other 
benefits due pursuant to Section 9 of Republic Act No. 6656; 
4.) Redundant personnel who are eligible for retirement under existing 
laws shall likewise be entitled to encash the basic salary for the 
remaining period, should they choose to retire before the end of the 
one (1) year period provided for; and, 
5.) Residence in the manpower pool shall not be considered nor credited 
as service for purposes of computing retirement and separation 
benefits. 
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Sec. 9. The Judiciary and Constitutional Offlces. The Judiciary and 
Constitutional offices may likewise pursue a survey and reorganization of its ranks in 
accordance with the principles, guidelines, standards, and time frame prescribed in this 
Act. They may coordinate their respective reorganization efforts with the Executive 
branch for better coordination and in the interest of public service. 
See. 10. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations and 
other issuances inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or 
amended accordingly. 
Sec. 11. Separability Clause. - Should any section or provision of this Act be 
declared unconstitutional or invalid, other sections or provisions not so affected shall 
continue to be full force and effect. 
Sec. 12. Effeivi@ Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in the Oflcial Gazette and in at least two (2) newspapers of general 
circulation. 
Approved, 
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