FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Firsl Regular Session 
) 
) 
) 
SENATE 
s. 13.'No.l O~3 
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Introduced by Senator FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO 
EXPLAN A TORY NOTE 
In this day of interconnectivity of markets, states, and its interests, there is 
a vital need to have useful information and statistic to be competitive in the 
global market. The Philippines, a developing country in the pool of nations, must 
cope with this need to be at piu with neighboring countries, if not the world. 
Hence there is a need to develop an effective statistical system to provide such 
information to guide the leaders of this country in their decisions on what 
programs to promote and support that would be truly beneficial to our economy 
and the Filipino people. 
This Act which seeks to reorganize the Philippine statistical system 
recognizes that slnlislics is a strategic resource of the Philippines. This will indeed 
be true only if the tasked agency will be able to establish and maintain a 
statistical system that can provide accessible, timely, adequate and reliable, as 
well as consistent statistics relevant to our government's plans and decision-
making. The development of such an accurate and well-respected system will be 
of beneficial use not only to our government but to the private enterprises as 
well, which works hand in hand with the former to lift the economy of the 
Philippines and the plight of the citizens of the Republic. The service of this 
reorganized system must be efficient and must be sustainable in the long run 
hence it must be constantly updated with advanced information technology, 
methods and techniques so as to continually enhance its contribution for the 
advancement of statistics. 
Achieving this goal would enable the government to have well-informed 
decisions for the present and equally important predictions of future of this 
country. Domestically, given timely and true information, if in five years time the 
trend is doubling volume of call centers in the country then we will be able to 
direct our educational system to cater to this need by giving incentives and 
supporting students to enroll in programs leaning towards the call center career 
thus having a qualified and competitive workforce. 
Internationally, a benefit of this effective statistical system is, for instance 
our ambassadors abroad learn that the country they are assigned to will need 
ample supply of engineers in 10 years then our government will be able to assess 
concretely whether our tertiary schools can provide such engineers come said 
future date. If not sufficient, then the government can make such engineering 
courses attractive for these students to take up in order to arrest the said 
deficiency and be able to provide to that specific country, consequently 
alleviating the status of their families and in turn the economy of the Philippines. 


For the private sector, they can use such statistic to get information on 
whether the province they are setting their plant up has the necessary competent 
man power to provide its needs for operation. 
Verily, this Act will promote cooperation between the government and its 
agencies, the private sector and the general public as regards data necessary for 
each sector's development and the Philippine economy. The above scenarios are 
just few of the many benefits of an efficient and effective statistical system which 
the Philippines need to establish and maintain for the benefit of both the 
government and its people. It is high time to reorganize the Philippine Statistical 
System. 
FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO 
2 


FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
" 
103 
S.No. __ 
) 
) 
) 
Hl 
Introduced by Senator FRANCIS G. ESCl)DERO 
AN ACT 
JUl -5 P 1 :Hi 
REORGANIZING THE PHILIPPINE STATISTICAL SYSTEM 
Be it enacted by the Senate lind the I·louse of nepresentatives of the Philippines 
in Congress Ilssembled: 
SECTION 1. Title. This Act shall be known as the "Philippine Statistical 
2 
System !{eorganization Act". 
3 
4 
SEC. 2. 
Declaration of Policies. The State recognizes that statistics is a 
5 
strategic resource of the country and therefore it shall be the policy of the State 
6 
to establish and maintain a statistical system that will: 
7 
a) provide adequate, accessible, consistent, timely, reliable and 
8 
relevant statistics to guide the planning and decision-making processes of the 
9 
government, the private sector and the general public; 
lOb) develop and maintain a well-respected statistical system 
11 
characterized by independence, objectivity and integrity; 
12 
c) promote efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of statistical 
13 
services; and 
14 
d) support decentralization through the establishment of statistical 
15 
infrastructure necessary to service the current and emerging statistical needs. 
16 
Towards these goals, the State shall effect the necessary and 
17 
proper changes in the organizational and functional structures of the Philippine 
18 
Statistical System (PSS). In addition, the State shall develop and strengthen the 
19 
capacity of the country's statistical system through the provision of adequate 
20 
human, technical and financial resources to achieve the objectives set forth 
21 
under this Act. 


2 
SEC 3. 
Objectives. The objectives of this Act are as follows: 
3 
a) To provide direction and promote the orderly development of 
4 
the Philippine Statistical System; 
5 
b) To provide active cooperation between the general public and 
6 
private sectors in the provision of accurate data; 
7 
c) To enhance the capacity of data producers to come up with the 
8 
necessary statistical series for development planning, policy analysis and 
9 
decision making in the government and in the private sectors; 
10 
d) To appreciate the value and importance of statistics by all 
II 
segments of society; 
12 
e) To develop and disseminate statistical concepts, methods, 
13 
techniques and information technology to various users in the government and 
14 
the private sector; and 
15 
f) To continually upgrade the statistics profession to enhance its 
16 
contribution for the advancement of statistics. 
17 
18 
SEC 4. 
Reorgnnizlltion. The Philippine Statistical System, herein 
19 
referred to as the "1'SS," shall be reorganized in accordance with the provisions 
20 
of this Act. The PSS shall consist of statistical organizations at all administrative 
21 
levels. This includes: 
22 
1) government organizations whose main mandates are to plan, 
23 
collect, process, analyze and disseminate statistics; 
24 
2) government agencies principally tasked to develop statistical 
25 
manpower and/ or undertake statistical researches; and 
26 
3) other organizations in government generating, disseminating 
27 
and utilizing statistics as part of their administrative or regulatory functions. 
28 
The PSS shall remain decentralized in its statistical planning and 
29 
analysis reinforced by a centralized capability for primary data collection. 
30 
31 
SEC 5. 
The Philippine Statisticill Commission (PSC). To implement 
32 
the policy enunciated in this Act, there is hereby created a Philippine Statistical 
33 
Commission to be made as an attached agency of the National Economic 
34 
Development Authority (NED A), herein referred to as the "PSC" out of the 
35 
existing programs, assets and resources of the National Statistical Coordination 
2 


Board, the National Statistics Office (NSO), the Statistical I<.esearch and Training 
2 
Center, the field offices of the Bureau of the Agricultural Statistics of the 
3 
Department of Agriculture (DA), and the Bureau of Labor and Employment 
4 
Statistics of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). 
5 
The PSC shall act as the policy-making and coordinating body on 
6 
all statistical matters in the government. The P5C shall have the same status of 
7 
an executive department. It shall be responsible for producing all general-
S 
purpose statistics. It will generate the government's social and economic data, 
9 
including the national accounts. A statistical research and training center, in 
10 
charge with the conduct of pure and applied statistical research and non-degree 
11 
training program for the 1'55, shall be established under the pse. It shall 
12 
maintain a national statistical information center for efficient dissemination of 
13 
statistical outputs. The PSC shall be headed by a Commissioner and three (3) 
14 
deputy commissioners. 
15 
16 
SEC. 6. 
PSC Powers nnd Functions. The PSC shall have the following 
17 
powers and functions: 
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a) serve as the central statistical authority for the Philippine 
19 
government; 
20 
b) collect, compile, analyze, abstract and publish statistical 
21 
information relating to the country's economic, social, demographic and general 
22 
activities and condition of the people; 
23 
c) prepare and conduct periodic censuses on population, housing, 
24 
agriculture, fisheries, business, industry, and on other sectors of the economy; 
25 
d) prepare and conduct statistical surveys, researches and on all 
26 
aspects of socioeconomic life including agriculture, industry, trade, finance, 
27 
prices and marketing information, education, health, culture, social situations 
28 
for the use of the government and the public; 
29 
e) collaborate with departments of government in the collection, 
30 
compilation, maintenance and publication of statistical information, including 
31 
special statistical data derived from the activities of those departments; 
32 
f) promote and develop integrated social and economic statistics 
33 
and to coordinate plans for the integration of those statistics; 
3 


g) prescribe designated statistics which will be the sources of 
2 
official statistics for government policy, planning and decision-making 
3 
processes; 
4 
h) develop and maintain appropriate frameworks for the 
5 
collection, processing, analysis and dissemination of data; 
6 
i) coordinate with government departments on the promotion and 
7 
adoption of statistical standards involving techniques, methodologies, concepts, 
8 
definitions and classifications; and on the avoidance of duplication in the 
9 
collection of the statistical information; 
10 
j) recommend executive and legislative measures to enhance the 
II 
development of the statistical activities and programs of the government; 
12 
k) conduct research in the field of statistics, render expert opinions 
13 
on statistical issues, and perform other related functions; and 
14 
I) prepare, in consultation with the Statistical Advisory Council, a 
15 
Philippine Statistical Development Program for approval of the President of the 
16 
Philippines. 
17 
18 
SEC. 7. 
771e Statistical Advisory Council (SA C). There shall be created 
19 
a Council to be known as the Statistical Advisory Council (SAC) attached to the 
20 
Philippine Statistical Commission. The SAC shall provide high level policy 
21 
direction to the PSc. It shall advise the PSC on matters relating to: 
22 
a) coordination and improvement of the government statistical 
23 
service; and 
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b) formulation of statistical priorities and major programs of work 
25 
within the scope of government statistical service. 
26 
The Statistical Advisory Council shall have equal representation 
27 
from both the public and private sectors. It will be composed of the 
28 
Commissioner of the PSC, an undersecretary from each of the Executive 
29 
Departments, the deputy-governor of the Bangko SentraI ng Pilipinas, the 
30 
provincial governor nominated by the League of Governors and representative 
31 
from the Philippine Statistical Association, the employer's association, trade 
32 
unions, business, universities, research institutions, the media and non-
33 
government organizations. 
4 


The Council, whenever, necessary shall create committees, inter-
2 
agency committees, technical working groups, etc. to deal with technical issues 
3 
and problems on statistical matters and other related areas of concern. 
4 
The members of the Council and the committees it has created 
5 
shall be entitled to allowances and other benefits that the Department of Budget 
6 
and Management may prescribe. 
7 
8 
SEC. 8. 
Relationship with Loml Government Units. The PSC will have 
9 
in each region a provisional office that shall serve as its local arm. All statistical 
10 
policies formulated by the PSC shall also be adopted and implemented by the 
II 
local government units. 
12 
Local Government Units shall provide the PSC with the official 
13 
statistics needed for the compilation of national level statistics required by 
14 
government authorities. The generation of provincial, city, municipal and 
15 
barangay statistics which are by-products of administrative reporting systems 
16 
inherent in administering the devolved basic services, shall be continued by the 
17 
LGUs consistent with the manner, form and frequency being adopted by the 
18 
concerned national line agencies. 
19 
For the 
generation of other statistics 
with sub-national 
20 
disaggregation, the PSC shall designate which of the statistics are to be 
21 
generated by the national agencies or by the local government or jointly by the 
22 
national and local governments. In cases where these will require the conduct of 
23 
surveys and other undertakings for the purpose of producing local level 
24 
statistics, LGUs shall share in the cost of said surveys. 
25 
26 
SEC. 9. 
The Commissioner. The head of the Philippine Statistical 
27 
Commission shall be appointed by the President for a term of seven (7) years 
28 
without reappointment. 
29 
The Commissioner shall also act as the presiding officer of the 
30 
Statistical AdVisory Council and the PSc. He shall perform the following duties: 
31 
a) control and supervise the general administration of the PSG; 
32 
b) review the statistical programs of the departments and agencies 
33 
of the government, and confer with and advise these departments and agencies 
34 
on matters relating to such statistical programs; 
5 


c) submit a report to the President of the Republic of the 
2 
Philippines on the activities of the PSC in the preceding year. Such report shall 
J 
also be submitted separately in the annual report to Congress during the 
4 
presentation of the President's budget; 
5 
d) confer with the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission and 
6 
the Secretary of the Department Budget and Management on the setting up of 
7 
minimum qualification standards, as well as 
the standardization of 
8 
classification, position and functions and salaries of statistical personnel of the 
9 
government. Statistical person~el of equivalent rank and salary shall be given 
10 
uniform titles across departments and agencies of government; 
11 
e) direct and manage the implementation and execution of 
12 
policies, standards, rules and regulations of the PSC; 
13 
f) sign and issue appointments of the PSC personnel below the 
14 
rank of Director; 
15 
g) represent the PSC as signatory to all contracts, researches and 
16 
other awards; 
17 
h) prescribe rules and regulations, instructions, schedule and form 
18 
of business of the PSc, in the collection, compilation, and dissemination of 
19 
statistics and other information and in the taking of any census authorized by 
20 
the Act; and 
21 
i) perform such other functions as may be assigned by the Council 
22 
and! or the President of the Republic of the Philippines. 
23 
24 
SEC. 10. 
Orgrmizational Structure. The PSC shall be composed of 
25 
three (3) cluster staff offices. The first cluster shall have five staff offices that 
26 
shall be headed by a deputy commissioner for planning. These offices are: the 
27 
Statistical Standards, Methods and Planning Office; the National Accounts and 
28 
Indicators Office; the Social Statistics Office; the Industry and Services Office; 
29 
and the Agricultural Statistics Office. The second cluster shall have the Central 
30 
Information Office and the Financial and Management Office to be headed by a 
31 
deputy commissioner for administration. Field services at the local government 
32 
level shall be under a third deputy commissioner. 
JJ 
Each staff office of the PSC shall be headed by a Director IV with 
34 
at least one (1) Assistant Director and may have such divisions as are necessary 
35 
to carry out their respective functions. 
6 


2 
SEC. 11. 
ObligatlOn to Provide Information. The Commissioner shall 
3 
determine whether a statistical inquiry or survey to be conducted is with or 
4 
without an obligation to provide information. If such obligation is stipulated, all 
5 
respondents whether natural or legal persons shall be liable to reply to the 
6 
statistical inquiry or survey. This section applies to all statistical inquiries or 
7 
surveys conducted by other statistical offices in the rss. 
8 
The respondents under this Act are required to give truthful and 
9 
complete answers to statistical inquiries or surveys of the PSC and other 
10 
statistical offices of the PSS. The respondent is considered to have complied 
II 
with the obligation only upon receipt of the duly completed statistical inquiry 
12 
or survey forms. The government shall provide franking privilege, charges, and 
13 
po stings, to the survey offices, unless otherwise provided in any legal provision. 
14 
IS 
SEC. 12. 
Confidentiality. Individual data furnished by a respondent 
16 
to statistical inquiry or survey to the PSC and other statistical results; 
17 
1) Individual data shall not be used as evidence in court or any 
18 
legal judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, whatsoever; 
19 
2) No individual data provided in the statistical inquiry or survey 
20 
form/ questionnaire/ schedule obtained for the purpose of this shall be 
21 
disclosed in whatever manner, by publication or otherwise, that will enable 
22 
such individual data or particular person, business or organization. 
23 
3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to: 
24 
a) individual data of which disclosure through publication 
25 
or whatever manner the respondent has given his/her written consent; 
26 
b) individual data is available to the publiC under any 
27 
statutory or other law; 
28 
c) individual data relating to any institution such as library, 
29 
hospital, mental institution, educational institution, welfare institutions 
30 
correctional institution and other individual patient, inmate or other person 
31 
under the case of any such institution; 
32 
d) information in the form of a list or index of individual 
33 
business firms, establishments or organizations that contains any or all of the 
34 
following information; 
35 
i. the name, address, and telephone numbers; 
7 


ii. the business and products that they are engaged 
2 
in; and 
3 
iii. the specific ranges of number of employees or 
4 
persons constituting its work force or engaged by it. 
5 
6 
SEC. 13. 
Transitonj . Provisions. 
The PSC 
shall carry out the 
7 
reorganization of the Philippine Statistical System in such a manner that 
8 
personnel of the agencies absorbed by the PSC shall continue to perform their 
9 
respective duties and responsibilities in a holdover capacity so as not to unduly 
10 
delay the production of statistics from ongoing censuses, surveys and 
II 
processing of administrative records. 
12 
13 
SEC. 14. 
Fund for Reorganzzation. The amount necessary for the 
14 
effective implementation of the provisions of this Act may be obtained from the 
IS 
savings or unused appropriations of agencies affected. Thereafter, such sums 
16 
needed to carry out the provisions of this Act shall be included in the annual 
17 
General Appropriations Act. 
18 
19 
SEC. IS. 
SepllYrlbility Cilluse. If any part, section or provision of this 
20 
Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, no other parts, sections or provisions 
21 
thereof shall be affected thereby. 
22 
SEC. 16. 
Repealing Clause. Execu tive Order No. 121 and other laws, 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
decrees, ordinances, rules, regulations, other issuances, or parts thereof, which 
are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 17. 
Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect upon its 
28 
approval. 
29 
30 
ApprOl'cd, 
8