Heust OF REPRESENTATIVES

RECE, ei
Republic of the Philippines IVED
HOUSE OF REPRESENTAT!

Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

RESSTRATION UNIT
BILLS AND -NuX SERVICE

40
House Bil No, 1978

Introduced by Representatives
Estrellita B. Suansing and Horacio P. Suansing, Jr.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to affirm the right of every Filipino to have sufficient food on
their tables. Pursuant thereto, government agencies and corporations directly
responsible for food production should collectively double their efforts to enhance
the country’s capacity in rice production, at the same time being responsive to the
globalization of the agricultural market.

In line with the bill’s objective, the programs and functions of the National
Food Authority (NFA) shall be realigned to make rice accessible to every Filipino at
all times, even in times of emergencies or calamities. Reorienting the NFA to focus on
maintaining buffer stock requirements for the country is one effective way of
addressing the challenge. NFA, as the bill’s envisioned primary agency responsible
for buffer-stock requirements shall review on an annual or regular basis the stock
requirements on the national and local levels. In accord thereto, the NFA shall devise
a system of regularly monitoring these buffer stock levels for anticipatory reasons.

Moreover, the NFA may enter into contracts for the procurement of rice for the
government, provided that the volume of said procurement shall not be more than
the strategic 30-day rice buffer stock requirement for the country.

The strengthening of the rice industry as a whole shall be the focal point as
the regulation of the same should be properly managed and handled by no-nonsense
government agencies, thereby keeping at a minimum unlawful smuggling and
“unaccounted for” rice supply.

Corollary to this, private sector participation shall also be tapped in the
aspects of rice importation, subject to appropriate quotas. Production and post-
harvest facilities may also be entered into by the private sector to bolster the promise
of carrying out the legislative policy of this bill.

Aside from other powers and functions, the NFA would be tasked to
coordinate with the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics in the generation of marketing
information, as well as its dissemination, to apprise the public of prevailing market
situation.


Since some of the regulatory and developmental functions of the NFA would
be transferred to the Department of Agriculture, it is very important to note that the
fixing of prices of rice, corn and other food grains should always be undertaken,
while taking into account the prevailing world market prices and the best interest of
the country’s farmers.

The enactment of this bill would benefit all the rice, corn and other food
grains farmers nationwide.

In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.

sLLITA B. SUANS]
1s District, Nueva Ecija]

HORAC! SUANSING, JR.
2m4 District, Sultan Kudarat

* This bill is a re-file of House Bill No. 2397 filed during the 16% Congress.


eu auaw

10
1
12

13
14

15
16

7
18

19
20
21
2
23

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 1978 _

Introduced by Representatives
Estrellita B. Suansing and Horacio P. Suansing, Jr.

AN ACT
TO STRENGTHEN AND REORIENT THE MANDATE OF THE NATIONAL FOOD
AUTHORITY (NFA) IN ORDER TO ENSURE FOOD SUFFICIENCY, FOR THIS
PURPOSE RATIONALIZING ITS 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 “National Food
Authority Rationalization Act.”

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - Affirming the right of every Filipino
to have access to sufficient food, it is hereby declared the policy of the State to make
all government agencies and corporations directly responsible for food production
oriented toward the attainment of food security and sufficiency, the enhancement of
competitiveness and transparency in the rice economy and to be more responsive to
the increasing globalization of the agricultural market.

SECTION 3. Policy Goals and Objectives. - To carry out the foregoing
policy, the mandate, programs and functions of the National Food Authority (NFA)
shall be reoriented and realigned towards the achievement of the following
objectives:

a. Ensure available adequate and accessible supply of rice and other food
grains during lean periods and in times of calamity and emergency;

b. Promote regulation aimed at enhancing competitiveness, transparency
and responsibility in the food grains marketing industry; and

c. Encourage private sector participation in the importation of rice and in
production and post-harvest facilities.

SECTION 4. Reorientation of the National Food Authority. - The
functions of the NFA shall evolve to focus primarily in maintaining the buffer stock
requirements of the country. All other developmental and regulatory functions of the
NFA shall be transferred to appropriate government agencies or local government
units unless otherwise provided by this Act.


warvauawne

10
1

12
13

14
15

16
7
18
19
20
2

22
23
24
25

26
27

28
29
30

31
32
33

34
35
36

37
38
39
40

SECTION 5. Buffer Stock Management. - The NFA shall be the primary
agency responsible for the management of the buffer stock requirements of the
country. For this purpose, the NFA shall review on an annual basis the buffer stock
requirements of the country at the national and local levels and shall devise a
system of regularly monitoring the buffer stock levels. For the purpose of ensuring
that desirable buffer stock level of the country is met and maintained, the NFA may
enter into contracts for the procurement of rice for the government: Provided, That
the volume of rice procurement shall not be more than the strategic 30-day rice
buffer stock requirement of the country.

SECTION 6. Other Powers and Functions. - The NFA shall exercise the
following responsibilities, powers and functions:

a, To establish rules and regulations governing private sector importation
of rice and collect fees and charges for said importation;

b. To determine and allocate import quotas among private sector entities
and farmer organizations licensed to engage in rice importation;

c. To coordinate with the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics in the
generation of marketing information and establish and maintain
marketing information dissemination systems in order to keep the
public informed on the prevailing market situation of food grains and
their substitutes and/or their by-products/end products in different
parts of the country; and

d. To inspect food grains and their substitutes and/or their by-products,
stored by any person, partnership, corporation, or association, for
purposes of taking inventory kind record of such commodities, and to
enter the premises thereof by use of reasonable means.

SECTION 7. Transfer of Mandate. - The following regulatory and
developmental functions of the NFA are hereinafter transferred to the following:

a. The registration, licensing and supervision of warehouses, whether
bonded or not, and the prescription, imposition and collection of fees
and charges relative thereto to the local government units (LGUs);

b. The stabilization of prices of rice, corn and other food grains at the
farmgate level to the Department of Agriculture, taking into account the
prevailing world market prices and the best interest of the farmers;

c. The stabilization of supply and prices of other food grains and other
basic food items at the consumer level to the National Price
Coordinating Council;

d. The development of more sufficient ways, systems and facilities for
harvesting, threshing, drying, storage, milling, packaging, post-harvest
handling, and transporting of food grains to the Philippine Rice
Research Institute;


eyauauwnn

10
1
12
13

14
15
16

17
18
19
20
a
22

23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30

31
32
33
34
35

36
37
38
39
40

41
42
43

e. The registration, licensing, and supervision of persons, natural or
juridical, who shall engage or are engaged in the business of providing
goods and services in support to the different activities involved in the
processing, transporting, marketing, and trading of food grains and
their substitutes and/or their by-products/end products, as well as
the imposition and collection of fees, charges, and surcharges in
licensing and regulating he operations of such persons to the
Department of Agriculture;

f. The formulation of plans and programs on food grains production,
storage, milling and distribution, as well as the coordination for its
implementation among various agencies of the government and the
private sector to the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Product
Standardization; and

g. The establishment of appropriate post-production technology and
formulation of plans and programs aimed to reduce post-harvest losses
to the Bureau of Post Harvest Research and Extension.

SECTION 8. Role of the Private Sector. - The importation of rice shall
henceforth be open to the participation of and exclusively undertaken by private
sector entities and farmers organizations, subject to appropriate tariffs and quotas;
Provided, That the necessary registration and licensing processes and requirements
of the NFA have been complied with. For this purpose, the policy of open importation
and distribution by all interested private parties shall be fully implemented.

SECTION 9. Transitory Provisions. - Within one (1) year from the
effectivity of this Act, the NFA shall gradually phase out all its rice importation
activities to give way to the entry of the private sector entities, especially farmers
organizations, in rice importation: Provided, That the NFA shall have completely
ceased all its rice importation functions and activities four (4) years from the time of
the enactment of this Act. For this purpose, the NFA shall, within one hundred and
twenty (120) days from the enactment of this Act, establish the necessary rules and
regulations for the importation of rice by the private sector.

To effect a smooth transition, the NFA shall continue to exercise its
developmental and regulatory functions, until the concerned government agencies or
local government units shall have established their plans, programs, and rules and
regulations to implement their mandate identified in Section 6 above, which in no
case shall be longer that one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act.

SECTION 10. Rules and Regulations. - The NFA, in consultation with
relevant government agencies and LGUs, farmers organizations, and other
stakeholders, shall, within one hundred and twenty (120) days from the enactment
of this Act, formulate the necessary rules and regulations to effectively implement
the provisions of this Act.

SECTION 11. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the other provisions not so declared shall remain in full
force and effect.


SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders and rules and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed or amended accordingly.

SECTION 13. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,