SEVENTKKNTI i CONGRESS OE THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
)
First Regular Session 
)
SliNAl’E
SENATE BILL NO. 1 3 8 4
oi tii, i  : urlarj»
All 5 9
Introclucecl by wS1<:NA'1’OR LKIIA M. DI-: LIMA
AN ACl
ENSURING ACCOUNTAmUTY IN INTELLIGENCE ACITVI ITLS j'VND 
THE USE. OI IN ri'LLlGENCE AND CONI lUEN UAL I UNUS GICVNTED 
TO ALL GOVERNMENT AGI:NCII:S, ESTABLISHING FOR THE PURPOSE 
A JOINT CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COATMTITLE TO
s t r i:n g t h e n  i i i i: o v i:r s ig h t  p o w e r s  o f c o n g r i:ss t o  m o n it o r  
in t i*:l l ig e n c f: a c it v i it i:s o f a ll a g i:n c h :s o f t ih : p h il ip p in i: 
g o v i-:r n m i*:n t AND 'io  o v e r s ih -: h o w  in 'h :llig f:n c e a n d
CONFIDENTIAL FUNDS ARi: ILXPI'NDED, AND FOR OIIII-R PURPOSES
E.xplanatory Note
The Constitution declares tliat the State shall adopt and implement a policy of 
full public disclosure ol all its transactions invoh ing public interest1 2 3 and that public 
ofrieers and employees must at all times be accountable to the people.- All branches 
ol government must be able to account lor their actions and for their use of public 
funds, which shall be spent solely for public purposes. ! None should be spared from 
the scrutiny of the public and the mechanism of checks and balances of our 
governmental system.
However, because of its nature, intelligence activities must be kept 
confidential for valid national securit}’ concerns. Throughout the years, this secrecy 
that surrounds the disbursement and utilization of intelligence and confidential 
funds has been used not only to protect intelligence activities, but also to hide abuses 
in the utilization of these funds. A balance must be struck between the need to 
maintain conhdentiality and, at the same time, uphold accountability. Furthermore, 
there is a need to ensure that intelligence agencies are protecting, rather than 
undermining, civil liberties and that the\' are properly used to prepare for the threats 
to national security, rather than for partisan activities of any government official.
1 A r tic le  II, s e c tio n  2 8 , 1 9 8 7  C o n s titu tio n .
2 A r tic le  X I, s e c tio n  1, 1 9 8 7  C o n s titu tio n .
3 S e c tio n  4  (2 ), P r e s id e n tia l D e c re e  N o . 1 4 4 5 .


Under the 2017 General Appropriations Act, billions of pesos were 
appropriated to various agenei(‘s for intelligence and confidential activities. The 
Office of the I’resident, for example, was given a 2.5 billion peso blank check for its 
intelligence and confidential actix ities in the conduct of its so-called “War on Drugs.” 
Because of the nece.ssan secrecy in the use of such funds, these amounts appear as 
lump sums in the annual General Appropriations Act and are not subject to the 
stringent regular auditing requirements of the Commission on Audit.
In 2015, the Commission on Audit, the Department of Budget and 
Management, the Department of Interior and Local Government, the Governance 
Commission for Goxernment Owned and Controlled Corporations, and the 
Department of National Defense issued .Joint Circular No. 2015-01, which provides 
for the guidelines on the entitlement to, release, use, reporting and audit of 
Confidential Funds (CF) and Intelligence Funds (IF). However, with the change of 
administration, the implementation of this .Joint Circular has yet to be seen.
Thus, for the purpose of upholding accountability in the conduct of 
intelligence actixities xvhile, at the same time, maintaining the necessarv- 
confidentialit)', this bill calls for the creation of a .Joint Congressional Intelligence 
Committee (.JCIC) tasked to monitor and ox'ersee intelligence activities, xvhich 
include the administration, financial management and expenditures of the 
intelligence agencies.
In addition, the bill compels all entities of the Philippine goxernment that 
conduct intelligence actixities and receive intelligence funds to keep the .JCIC fully 
informed of all intelligence activities, including any significant anticipated 
intelligence activity and any significant intelligence failure, as .soon as po.ssible.
Furthermore, the bill reciuires that entities of the Philippine gox ernment first 
obtain a signed letter Irom the President, or from the respectixe head of the 
constitutional body in cases inx’olx ing entities enjoying fiscal autonomy, specifically 
authorizing the propo.sed intelligence activity before any amount is disbursed and 
expended for the proj)osed intelligence activity. The President or the respectixe head 
ot the constitutional bodx shall ensure that the .JCIC rei'eixcs a copy of this 
authorization li'tter within .sexenty-txvo (72) hours.
This bill xxas initially filed by Senator MAR Roxas during the Fourteenth 
Congress.
In view of the foregoing, early approval of this measure is requested.
L I II A M . DIU.miA


SEVEN'I'EENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
)
First Regular Session 
)
SENATE BILL NO.
tfTid 
,^onn}r
oi 1.(1
'17 
MAR 13 
AH 5 9
S E N A  IK 
RECtIVtD bV:
1384
- f
Introduced by SI*:NArOR EIHLA M. DK LIMA
AN A cr
ILNSURING ACCOUNI AlilLl IT IN INTELLIGENCE ACITVIITES AND 
THE USE Ol IN I'ELLIGENCE AND CONI IDENUAL FUNDS GICVNTED 
TO ALL GOVERNMENT AGI:NC1ES, EST.VBLISIIING FOR THE PURPOSE 
A JOINT CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMMI ITEE TO 
STRI'NGTHI'N THi: OVERSIGHT POWERS OF CONGRF.SS TO MONITOR 
INTI JJ.IGENCE ACTTVITII'S OF ALL AGENCIF.S OF THE PHILIPPINi:
g o v e r n m i:n t a n d  t o  o v e r s e e  h o w  in t e l l ig i:n c e a n d
CONFIDENTIAL FUNDS ARE F.XPI^NDED, AND FOR O'rill^R PURPOSES
Re it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Rhilippines 
in Congress assembled:
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Section i. Short Title. This Act shall be known as the “Intelligence Oversight Act of
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2017”.
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Sec. 2. Definition of Terms.
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(a) “Intelligence acti\ ities” pertain to activities related to the process of
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gathering, evaluation, correlation and interpretation of security
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information, as performed by intelligence agencies of the Philippine
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government.
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(b) “Intelligence agencies” include the Office of the National Security
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Adv’iser (“NSA”), the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency
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(“NICA”), the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the


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Philippines (“ISAFP”), the Intelligence Group of the Philippine 
National Police (“PNP-IG”), the National Bureau of Investigation 
(“NBI”), the Office of the President (“OP”), and all departments, 
agencies, and other entities of the Philippine government, which receive 
intelligence and confidential funds from the General Appropriations 
Act.
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Sec. 3. Joint Congressional Intelligence Committee. -  A Joint Congressional
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Intelligence Committee (“JCIC”) is hereby established, which shall, subject to the
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Constitution, perform the oversight functions set out in this Act in relation to the
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intelligence activities, which include the administration, financial management, and
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expenditures of the intelligence agencies. The JCIC shall be composed of five (5)
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members each from the Senate and House of Representatives, which shall meet
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quarterlj’, or as often as necessaiy, to oversee the intelligence acti\ities of the
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Philippine government. The .ICIC shall be jointly chaired by the Chairperson of the
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Senate Committee on National Defense and Security and the House Committee on
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National Deten.se and Security. The other four (4) members of the Senate delegation
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are the Chairpersons of the Committee on Peace, Unification, and Reconciliation, the
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Committee on .lustice and Human Rights, the Committee on Public Order and Illegal
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Drugs, and the Committee on Finance. The other four (4) members of the House
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Delegation are the Chairpersons of the Committee on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity,
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the Committee on Human Rights, the Committee on Public Order and Safety, and the
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Committee on Appropriations. The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House
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of Representatives, and the minority leaders of both Houses shall .serve as ex-officio
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members of the JCIC.
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Sec. 4 . General Provisions on Congressional Intelligence Oversight.
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(a) The President shall ensure that the .ICIC are kept fully informed of the 
intelligence activities of the Philippines, including any significant 
anticipated intelligence activity, as soon as possible. Pro\ ided, ho\ve\ er, 
that this shall not be construed as requiring the approval of the .JCIC as 
a condition precedent to the initiation of any significant anticipated 
intelligence activity.
(b) The President shall ensure that any illegal intelligence activity is 
reported promptly to the JCIC, as well as any corrective action that has 
been taken or is planned to be taken in connection with such illegal 
activity.
(c) If the President determines that it is essential to limit access to 
information regarding any intelligence activity to meet extraordinaiy 
circumstances affecting vital interests of the Philippines, the 
information may be reported to the chairpersons of the JCIC, the 
President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives 
and the minority leaders of both Houses, and such other member or 
members of the Congress as may be included by the President. When 
access to intormation is limited as such, a statement of the reasons for 
limiting such access shall also be provided in writing to the JCIC.
(d) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authority to withhold 
information from the JCIC on the grounds that providing the 
information would constitute the unauthorized disclosure of classified 
information or information relating to intelligence sources and 
methods.


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Sec. 5. Protecting the ConJidentkilitij of Intelligence Activities and other Classified 
Information. -  The JCIC shall establish procedures, subject to the approval of the 
Senate and the I louse of Representatives, to -
(a) protect from unauthorized disclosure all classified information, and all 
information relating to intelligence sources and methods, that is 
furnished to the JCIC under this Act; and
(b) penalize members that violate the confidentiality of the JCIC’s 
proceedings.
Only upon the appro\ al of these procedures, by both the Senate and the House of 
Representatives through a joint resolution, can the JCIC perform its oversight 
functions.
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Sec. 6. Reporting oj Intelligence Activities. -  To the extent consistent with due regard 
for the protection from unauthorized disclosure of classified information relating to 
sensitive intelligence sources and methods or other exceptionally sensitive matters, 
the National Security Adviser, the Director of the National Intelligence Coordinating 
Agency, and the heads of all departments, agencies, and other entities of the Philippine 
government who receive intelligence and confidential funds from the annual Ceneral 
Appropriations Act shall -
(a) keep the JCIC fully informed of all intelligence activities. Including any 
significant anticipated intelligence activity and any significant 
intelligence failure, as soon as possible; and
(b) furnish the JCIC any information or material concerning intelligence 
actix'ities, which is requested by the JCIC in order to cariy' out its 
authorized responsibilities.


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Sec. 7. Fimling oftheJCIC. -  In accordance with the procedures adopted by the JCIC,
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the Chairperson of both Houses shall promptly call to the attention of the Senate or
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the House of Representatives, or to any appropriate committee or committees of each
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chamber, any matter relating to intelligence activities requiring the attention of such
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chamber or such committee or committees.
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Sec. 8 . Funding of Intelligence Activities. -
(a) Appropriated intelligence and confidential funds available to any 
agency of the Philippine government may be obligated or expended for 
intelligence or intelligence-related activities only if those funds were 
specifically authorized by the Congress for use for such activities as 
stated in the annual General Appropriations Act.
(b) No funds appropriated for, or otherwise available to, any department, 
agency, or entity of the Philippine Government may be expended, or 
may be directed to be expended, for any intelligence activity, unless and 
until a signed authorization letter from the President is obtained. For 
constitutional bodies which enjo)' fiscal autonomy, the authorization 
letter must be signed by their respective head. The President, or the 
respective head of the constitutional body, shall ensure that the .ICIC 
receives a copy of this authorization letter within seventy-two (72) 
hours.
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Sec. 9 . Annual Report on Intelligence Activities. -  Not later than Januaiy 31 of each 
year, the President shall submit to the JCIC a report on the requirements of the 
Philippines for intelligence for the calendar year in w hich the report is submitted, and 
the actmties of the intelligence agencies during the preceding calendar year. The 
purpose of the report is to facilitate an a.ssessment of the activities of the intelligence


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agencies during the preceding calendar year and to assist in the development of a 
mission and a budget for the intelligence agencies for the calendar year in which the 
report is submitted. The report shall specify matters in sufficient detail to assist 
Congress in making decisions with respect to the allocation of resources for the 
matters specified. The report shall also include a financial statement covering all the 
funds expended by any department, agency, or entity of the Philippine Government 
for intelligence or intelligence-related activities, as w'ell as a detailed account of the 
use of these funds. The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include 
a classified annex.
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Sec. lo. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared invalid or
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unconstitutional, the provisions not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force
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and effect.
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Sec. 11. Repealing Clause. - All law's, executive orders, presidential decrees, 
presidential proclamations, letters of instruction, rules and regulations or parts 
thereof inconsistent w ith the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified 
accordingly.
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Sec. 11*. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its
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publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) new'spaper of general circulation in the
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Philippines.
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Approved,