Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. _______________
Introduced by ANG PROBINSYANO
Party-List Representative Alfred Delos Santos
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Article II, Section 9 of the 1987 Constitution requires the State to “promote
a just and dynamic social order” that is inclusive, “free[ing] the people from
poverty through policies that provide adequate social services, promote full
employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all.” In
connection, under Section 10 of the same Article, the State is mandated to
“promote social justice in all phases of national development.”
To carry out these responsibilities, the government enacted the following
measures, under R.A. No. 11469 (Bayanihan Heal as One Act):1
All lending institutions are required to give a 30-day grace period for
all loans with payment dues that fall within the month-long Luzon
lockdown, according to implementing rules of a new law to address
the COVID-19 pandemic.
It
covers
all
banks,
quasi-banks,
non-stock
savings
and
loan
associations,
credit
card
issuers
and
pawnshops, according to
implementing rules and regulations signed by Finance Secretary
Carlos Dominguez.
Also covered are financial institutions under Bangko Sentral ng
Pilipinas,
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission,
Cooperative
Development
Authority,
Government
Service
Insurance
System,
Social Security System and Pag-IBIG, based on the IRR.
"All covered institutions shall implement a 30-day grace period for all
loans with principal and or interest falling due within the ECQ
(Enhanced Community Quarantine) period without incurring interest
on interest, penalties, fees and other charges," the IRR said.
Covered loans include, but are not limited to salary, personal,
housing, auto loans, as well as credit card payments, the IRR said.
1 “All loans due during lockdown period get 30-day payment extension, gov’t says,” ABS-CBN News,
last updated April 1, 2020, available at
https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/04/01/20/loans-lockdown-30-days-payment-grace-period-coro
navirus-philippines.
September 19, 2022
4:24 pm
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No incurring interest, penalties, fees, and other charges should be
imposed, it said.
The
entire
island
of
Luzon
was
placed
under
the
enhanced
community quarantine to stop the spread of COVID-19, from March
17 to April 12. Loan payment extensions should be "automatically
extended"
if
President
Rodrigo
Duterte
extends the quarantine
period, it said.
Waivers previously executed by borrowers covering the period will be
deemed invalid, it said. However, borrowers who opt to pay their
obligations during the period can do so, it said.
In August 2020, business groups expressed support for the continuation of
similar measures under Bayanihan 2, provided that the moratorium settled upon
would
not
“exacerbate
the
adverse
economic
effects
of
the
pandemic
to…industries’ financial and capital positions, such that [the] industries [would be]
permanently unable to recoup the consequent losses during this period”:2
Business groups lauded the compromise both houses of Congress
reached on the moratorium on debt payments to ease the difficulties
of Filipinos during the COVID-19 quarantine in many parts of the
country.
Francis Lim, president of the influential Management Association of
the Philippines (MAP), said over the weekend that the 60-day freeze
on loan repayments was a good compromise after an earlier version
of the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2) proposed a
freeze on loan payments for as long as one year.
“While the MAP supports the 30-day moratorium under the Senate
version, 60 days will be a good compromise if 30 days is not doable,
provided
that
it
is
a
one-time
and
non-extendable
payment
moratorium,” Lim said.
This bill is proposed to adopt a similar measure for residential utility bills.
This bill provides for: 1) a mandatory moratorium on all residential utility bills for
the first three (3) months of a state of calamity; 2) the moratorium may be extended
after the first three (3) months of the state of calamity, subject to the determination
of the President or the local sanggunian; and 3) installment payment for the
deferred liability, without interest, accruing a month after the cessation of a state of
calamity.
It is for the foregoing premises that the approval of this Bill is earnestly
sought.
ALFRED C. DELOS SANTOS
Representative, Ang Probinsyano Party-List
2 Ben de Vera and Roy Stephen Canivel, “60-day debt moratorium backed,” Inquirer, August 17, 2020,
available at https://business.inquirer.net/305425/60-day-debt-moratorium-backed.


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. _______________
Introduced by ANG PROBINSYANO
Party-List Representative Alfred Delos Santos
AN ACT
INSTITUTIONALIZING AN INSTALLMENT PAYMENT SCHEME ON BASIC
UTILITY BILLS DURING CALAMITIES, 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 “Calamity Payment
Scheme for Utilities Act”
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is hereby declared the policy of the
State to promote the general welfare, public safety, health, and economic security
of the Filipino people in times of calamity, whether natural or man-made.
SECTION 3. Coverage. – The law shall cover all residential electric, water,
communication, and connectivity bills, and shall apply when a state of calamity is
declared.
SECTION 4. Declaration of State of Calamity. –
The declaration by the
President of the Philippines or the local Sanggunian, as the case may be, of a state
of calamity in accordance with Section 16 of Republic Act No. 10121 otherwise
known as “Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010”, and
the lifting thereof shall be the basis for the effectivity of the socio-economic
amelioration measures provided under Sections 5 and 6 of this Act.
SECTION 5. Moratorium on the First Three (3) Months of a State of Calamity. –
There shall be a moratorium on all residential utility bills for three (3) months
following the date of declaration of a state of calamity. Holders of public utility
franchises and all service providers are prohibited from exacting payment or from
disconnecting the service due to non-payment during the entire duration of the
moratorium. Provided, That nothing in this section shall prevent voluntary payment
by customers. Provided further, that the moratorium shall be lifted simultaneously
when the state of calamity is lifted within three (3) months from the date of its
declaration.
SECTION 6. Moratorium After the First Three (3) Months of State of Calamity.
- If the state of calamity persists beyond three (3) months following the date of its
declaration, the President or the local Sanggunian, as the case may be, is hereby
authorized to exercise discretion to determine if a need exists to extend the
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moratorium and impose such other necessary and applicable measures. Provided,
That nothing in this section shall prevent voluntary payment by customers.
SECTION 7. Installment Payment for the Deferred Liability. – Any amount
due and demandable during the moratorium period of three (3) months following
the declaration of a state of calamity under Section 5 of this Act shall be payable in
not less than six (6) equal monthly installments, without interest, which shall
accrue a month after the cessation of a state of calamity.
The President or the local sanggunian, as the case may be, is hereby
authorized to determine the payment schedule for the moratorium period beyond
the first three (3) months provided under Section 6 of this Act. Provided, That each
month of deferred liability shall be payable in not less than two (2) installments.
SECTION 8. Penalty. – Public utility franchise holders and service providers
found in violation of this law shall be punishable with a fine of not less than Five
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00) and not more than One Million Pesos
(P1,000,000.00) per infraction.
SECTION 9. Implementation. – This law shall be implemented by the public
utility regulatory agencies concerned, such as the Metropolitan Waterworks and
Sewage System, Local Water Utilities Administration, National Telecommunications
Commission, Energy Regulatory Commission, and the National Electrification
Administration.
SECTION 10. Separability Clause. – If any provision of this Act shall be
declared unconstitutional or invalid, such declaration shall not invalidate other
parts thereof which shall remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 11. Repealing Clause. – All laws, executive orders, presidential
decrees or issuances, letters of instruction, administrative orders, rules, and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
SECTION 12. Effectivity Clause. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved,