Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Nineteenth Congress
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 8534

Introduced by Representative JOEY SARTE SALCEDA

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
READINESS OF BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES, AMENDING CERTAIN
SECTIONS OF PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 1091, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS.
THE NATIONAL BUILDING CODE

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The critical role of telecommunications in keeping society together was demonstrated
during the COVID-19 pandemic, when, despite unprecedented lockdowns, the global economy
continued to operate and certain industries flourished.

Such a development would have been unimaginable years ago, and certainly in 1977,
when the National Building Code was enacted. This, along with the proliferation of
condominium complexes, was not anticipated in the law at the time.

Such high concentrations of people within limited spaces can be taxing on
telecommunications services, especially on bandwidth, unless adequate provision is given for
telecommunications facilities. Without specific mandates to ensure digital connectivity in such
complexes, the ability of internet service providers and other telecommunications service
providers to deliver to their clients will be significantly hampered.

The need to address this policy gap is underscored by work-from-home arrangements
which have made our business process outsourcing (BPO) and creatives sectors globally cost-
competitive. If the internet from home is unreliable, we lose this crucial edge which has allowed
our BPO sector to grow faster than expected despite challenging economic conditions.

In Metro Manila alone, there are at least 160,000 condominium units, housing close to
1 million people — mainly working-class families, students, or young professionals in greatest
need of fast and reliable internet.


This proposed measure seeks to amend certain provisions of the National Building
Code to provide for a clear and specific definition and guidelines for property developers to
allocate necessary space in order to deliver basic telecommunication services

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


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Nineteenth Congress
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 8534 _

Introduced by Representative JOEY SARTE SALCEDA

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
READINESS OF BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES, AMENDING CERTAIN
SECTIONS OF PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 1091, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS
THE NATIONAL BUILDING CODE

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Definition and Interpretation of Terms. - As provided for in Republic
Act No. 9292, otherwise known as the Electronics Engineering Law of 2004, the applicable
terms used shall be the same in this Act.

SECTION 2. Section 102, of Presidential Decree 1096 is hereby amended to read as
follows:

“Section 102. Declaration of Policy”

Itis hereby declared to be the policy of the State to safeguard life, health,
property, and public safety & welfare, consistent with the principles of sound
environmental management and control. FURTHER IT IS HEREBY
DECLARED A POLICY OF THE STATE THAT IT RECOGNIZES
THAT COMMUNICATIONS AND DIGITAL CONNECTIVITY ARE
CONSIDERED A BASIC HUMAN RIGHT AND PLAYS A CRITICAL
ROLE IN OUR NATION'S TRANSFORMATION TO A DIGITALLY
ENABLED AND COMPETITIVE COUNTRY IN THE DIGITAL
GLOBAL ECONOMY. To this end, make it the purpose of the Code to
provide for all buildings and structures and property developments, a
framework of minimum standards and requirements to regulate and control their
location, site, design, quality of materials, construction, use, occupancy,
maintenance AND ENSURE CONNECTIVITY PRIOR TO
OCCUPANCY.


SECTION 3. SECTION 104. of Presidential Decree 1096 is hereby amended
to read as follows:

“SECTION 104. General Building Requirements”

1. All buildings or structures as well as accessory facilities thereto shall
conform in all respects to the principles of safe construction and must
be suited to the purpose for which they are designed.

2. Buildings or structures intended to be used for the manufacture and/or
production of any kind of article or product shall observe adequate
environmental safeguards.

3. Buildings or structures and all parts thereof as well as all facilities found
therein shall be maintained in safe, sanitary and good working condition.

4, BUILDINGS OR STRUCTURES AND PROPERTY
DEVELOPMENTS SHALL BE PROVIDED, AS PART OF
MANDATORY BASIC REQUIREMENTS,
TELECOMMUNICATIONS / ICT INFRASTRUCTURE IN
ACCORDANCE TO THE RELEVANT TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS DEFINED BY THE
INDUSTRY AND/OR LATEST PHILIPPINE ELECTRONICS
CODES.

SECTION 4. Section 302, Chapter ITI of Presidential Decree 1096 is hereby amended
to read as follows:

“Section 302. Applications for Permit”

In order to obtain a building permit, the applicant shall file an application
therefor in writing. Xxxxxxxxx

To be submitted with such application are at least five sets of
corresponding plans and specifications prepared, signed and sealed by a duly
licensed Architect or Civil Engineer in case of Architectural and Structural
plans; by a registered Mechanical Engineer in case of mechanical plans; by a
registered Electrical Engineer in case of electrical plans; BY A
REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL ELECTRONICS ENGINEER IN
CASE OF ELECTRONIC, TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT PLANS; by
a licensed Sanitary Engineer or Master Plumber in case of sanitary or plumbing
installation plans except in those cases exempted or not required by the
building official under this Code.”

SECTION 5. Section 303, Chapter III of Presidential Decree of 1096 is hereby
amended to read as follows:

“Section 303. Processing of Building Permits”
The processing of building permits shall be under the overall

administrative control and supervision of the building official and his technical
staff of qualified AND LICENSED PROFESSIONALS.


In processing an application for a building permit, the building official
shall see to it that the applicant satisfies and conforms with approved standards
or requirements on zoning and land use, lines and grades, structural design,
sanitary and sewerage, environmental, health, electrical, ELECTRONICS,
TELECOMMUNICATIONS / ICT and mechanical safety as well as with
other rules and regulations promulgated in accordance with the provisions of
this Code”

SECTION 6. Section 308 , Chapter III of Presidential Decree of 1096 is hereby
amended to read as follows:

“Section 308. Inspection and Supervision of Work”

‘The owner of the Building who is issued or granted a building permit
under the Code shall engage the services of duly licensed architect or civil
engineer to undertake the full time inspection and supervision of the
construction work.

Such architect or civil engineer may or may not be the same architect or
civil engineer who is responsible for the design of the building.

It is understood however that in either case, the designing architect or
civil engineer is not precluded from conducting inspection of the construction
work to check and determine compliance with the plans and specifications of
the building submitted

WITH REGARDS TO THE RELATED ANCILLARIES
REQUIRED BY THE BUILDING INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
PLUMBING, SANITATION, ELECTRICAL UTILITIES AND
ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT FACILITIES,
BUILDING OWNER SHALL ENGAGE THE SERVICES OF DULY
QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS TO UNDERTAKE THE
SUPERVISION AND INSPECTION OF THE WORK AND ENSURE ITS
COMPLIANCE TO THE SUBMITTED AND APPROVED DESIGN
PLANS.

There shall be kept at the jobsite at all times a logbook wherein the actual
progress of construction and implementation OF THE VARIOUS
ANCILLARY REQUIREMENTS SUCH AS PLUMBING,
SANITATION, ELECTRICAL UTILITIES AND ELECTRONICS AND
TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT FACILITIES including tests conducted,
weather conditions and other pertinent data are to be recorded.

Upon completion of the construction and the related ancillaries, the said
licensed architect or civil engineer shall submit the logbook, duly signed and
sealed bY THE LICENSED ARCHITECT OR CIVIL ENGINEER AND
BY ALL THE RELEVANT LICENSED PROFESSIONALS WHO
SUPERVISED AND INSPECTED THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
RELATED ANCILLARIES, to the Building Official. He shall also prepare
and submit a Certificate of Completion of the project stating that the


construction of building AND ITS ANCILLARIES conforms to the provisions
of the Code as well as with the approved plans and specifications.

SECTION 7. Section 309, Chapter III of Presidential Decree 1096 is hereby amended
as follows:

“Section 309. Certificate of Occupancy”

No building or structure shall be used or occupied and no change in the
existing use or occupancy classification of a building or structure or portion
thereof shall be made until the Building Official has issued a Certificate of
Occupancy therefor as provided in this Code.

A certificate of Occupancy shall be issued by the Building Official within
thirty (30) days if after final inspection and submittal of a Certificate of
Completion referred to in the preceding section, it is found that the building or
structure complies with the provisions of this Code.

The Certificate of Occupancy shall be posted or displayed in a
conspicuous place on the premises and shall not be removed except upon order
of the Building Official.

The non-issuance, suspension and revocation of Certificates of
Occupancy and the procedure for appeal therefrom shall be governed in so far as
applicable, by the provisions of Section 306 and 307 of this Code.

THE OWNER/PERMITTEE SHALL SUBMIT TO THE OBO AN
APPLICATION OF CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY TOGETHER
WITH A DULY NOTARIZED CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION
TOGETHER WITH THE CONSTRUCTION LOGBOOK, AS-BUILT
PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS AND THE BUILDING INSPECTION
SHEET ALL SIGNED BY WHOEVER IS THE CONTRACTOR (IF THE
CONSTRUCTION IS UNDERTAKEN BY CONTRACT) AND SIGNED
AND SEALED BY THE OWNER’S DULY LICENSED ARCHITECT OR
CIVIL ENGINEER AND ALL DULY LICENSED PROFESSIONALS
WHO UNDERTOOK THE FULL TIME INSPECTION AND
SUPERVISION OF THE CONSTRUCTION WORKS AND ITS
ANCILLARIES. SAID PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS SHALL
REFLECT FAITHFULLY ALL CHANGES, MODIFICATIONS AND
ALTERATIONS MADE ON THE ORIGINALLY SUBMITTED PLANS
AND SPECIFICATIONS ON FILE WITH THE OBO WHICH ARE THE
BASIS OF THE ISSUANCE OF THE ORIGINAL BUILDING PERMIT.

THE AS-BUILT PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS MAY BE JUST
AN ORDERLY AND COMPREHENSIVE COMPILATION OF ALL THE
DOCUMENTS, WHICH INCLUDE THE ORIGINALLY SUBMITTED
PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS AND ALL AMENDMENTS THERETO
AS ACTUALLY BUILT OR THEY MAY BE AN ENTIRELY NEW SET
OF PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS ACCURATELY DESCRIBING


AND/OR REFLECTING THEREIN THE BUILDING/STRUCTURE AS
ACTUALLY BUILT.

IN LINE WITH THE DECLARATION OF POLICY OF THIS
ACT, NO CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY OR PARTIAL
CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY SHALL BE ISSUED UNTIL ALL
CRITICAL ANCILLARIES SUCH AS PLUMBING, SANITATION,
ELECTRICAL UTILITIES AND ELECTRONICS AND
TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT FACILITIES ARE COMPLETED,
INSPECTED AND VERIFIED BY THE RELEVANT LICENSED
PROFESSIONAL.

SECTION 8. A new Section 710 is hereby inserted in Chapter 7, to read as follows:

Chapter 7 Classification and General Requirement of All Buildings by
Use or Occupancy

SECTION 710. MINIMUM ELECTRONICS AND
TELECOMMUNICATIONS REQUIREMENTS

BUILDINGS PROPOSED FOR CONSTRUCTION SHALL
COMPLY WITH ALL THE REGULATIONS AND SPECIFICATIONS
FOR THE PROVISION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES
WITH THE INTENT THAT PEOPLE MOVING INTO NEW
DEVELOPMENTS SHOULD HAVE READY ACCESS TO MODERN
TELECOMMUNICATIONS, SPECIFICALLY BROADBAND AND
VOICE SERVICES, WHICH ARE OF A HIGH QUALITY.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES SUCH AS_IN-
BUILDING SOLUTIONS AND FIBER OPTIC CABLING FOR HIGH
CAPACITY AND HIGH-SPEED REQUIREMENTS SHALL BE
MANDATORY IN MULTI-DWELLING BUILDINGS, COMMERCIAL
BUILDINGS, GOVERNMENT AND OFFICE BUILDINGS, PUBLIC
AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS, AND GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE
HOSPITALS.

SUCH TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES SHALL BE
PROVIDED FOR BY THE DEVELOPER IN SIMILAR MANNER AS
ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING AND SANITATION ARE PROVIDED.
BUILDING OWNERS/DEVELOPERS WILL NEED TO PRE-INSTALL
THESE FACILITIES DEPENDING ON THE TYPE & SIZE OF THE
BUILDING. SIMILAR TO ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING AND
SANITATION FACILITIES, BUILDING OWNERS/DEVELOPERS
ARE NOT ALLOWED TO IMPOSE ANY COST, EXPENSES,
CHARGES OR RENT FOR THE USE OF THESE FACILITIES NOR TO
IMPOSE ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS THAT RESULT IN ADDED
COST OR EXPENSES (SUCH AS ADDITIONAL INSURANCE
COVERAGE) FOR THE PROVISIONING OF
TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES.


SECTION 9. A new Sections 1303 is hereby inserted in Chapter 13, to read as follows:
“Chapter 13. Electrical, Mechanical and ELECTRONICS REGULATIONS”
SECTION 1303: ELECTRONICS REGULATIONS

ALL ELECTRONICS SYSTEMS, INCLUDING
TELECOMMUNICATIONS/ICT FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT AND
INSTALLATIONS MENTIONED IN THIS CODE SHALL CONFORM
TO THE LATEST CODE OF TECHNICAL STANDARDS AND
PRACTICE, ALSO KNOWN AS THE PHILIPPINE ELECTRONICS
CODE AND OTHER UNIVERSALLY-ACCEPTED ELECTRONICS
STANDARDS AND CODES AS ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF
ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING PURSUANT TO REPUBLIC ACT NO.
9292, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING
CODE OF 2004,

SEC. 10. Implementing Rules and Regulations, — The Secretary of the Department of
Public Works and Highways, in coordination with the National Telecommunications
Commission, shall promulgate and issue such rules and regulations and other issuances within
ninety (90) days from approval of this Act as may be necessary to ensure its effective
implementation.

SEC. 11. Separability Clause. - If any section or provision of this Act is held

unconstitutional or invalid, all other sections or provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

SEC. 12. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules and
regulations or part thereof, contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby
repealed or modified accordingly

SEC. 13. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general publication.

Approved,