HOUSE °F REPRESENTATIVES |

RECEIVED |
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES © es
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES | pare: 95, JUL 2018

Quezon City aes ;

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS BY

First Regular Session acre

BILLS AND INDEX SERVICE

House Bill No. 1121

Tntroduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
HON. GARY C. ALEJANO

Explanatory Note

Right to information fosters transparency and accountability which are essential values for a
democracy to flourish, Ready access to public documents allows for the citizens to exercise their
sovereignty over the government that they elected. Moreover, right to information encourages
citizens’ participation.

The 1987 Constitution, in the following provisions, affirms the importance of right to
information

Article II, Section 24, “The State recognizes the vital role of communication and information in
nation-building,”

Article II, Section 28, “Subject to reasonable conditions prescribed by law, the State adopts and
implements a policy of full public disclosure of all its transactions involving public interest.”

Article Ill, Section 7, “The right of the people to information on matters of public concern shall
be recognized. Access to official records, and to documents and papers pertaining to official acts,
transactions or decisions, as well as to government research data used as basis for policy
development, shall be afforded the citizen subject to such limitations as may be provided by

law.

This measure intends to reassert the abovementioned constitutional imperatives by establishing
guidelines and procedures for operationalization. Absence of an operational framework would
render the rights and obligations under the Constitution meaningless, allowing the government to
work in secret and away from public scrutiny, Therefore, this measure seeks to establish a
system of accessing government information which would encourage an informed, vigorous and
enlightened public opinion on various state affairs.

In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought

“

GARY C. ALEJANO


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REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

9
House Bill No, 1121

Introduced by MAGDALO Party-List Representative
HON. GARY C. ALEJANO

AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE RIGHT OF CITIZENS TO INFORMATION
HELD BY THE GOVERNMENT

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "People's
Freedom of Information Act,"

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes the right of the people to

information on matters of public concern, and adopts and implements a policy of full
public disclosure of all its transactions involving public interest, subject to the
procedures and limitations provided by this Act. This right is indispensable to the
exercise of the right of the people and their organizations to effective and reasonable

participation at all levels of social, political and economic decision-making

Sec. 3 Coverage.- This Act shall cover all government agencies, to refer to
the executive, legislative, and judicial branches as well as the constitutional bodies of
the Republic of the Philippines, including the national government and all its
agencies, departments, bureaus offices and _instrumentalities, constitutional
commissions and constitutionally mandated bodies, local governments and all their
agencies, regulatory agencies, chartered institutions, government-owned or -
controlled corporations, including wholly-owned or controlled subsidiaries,
government financial institutions, state universities and colleges, the Armed forces of
the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, all offices in the Congress of the
Philippines including the offices of Senators and Representatives, the Supreme Court

and all lower courts established by law.

Sec.4. Definition of Terms. As used in this Act:


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(a) Dataset refers to an organized collection of data in a variety of forms,

including tabular, geospatial, or image data files

(b) Information refers to data that have been processed into a record,

document, paper, report, letter, contract, minutes and transcripts of official meetings,
maps, books, photographs, data, research, materials, in whatever form, or films, audio
and video recordings, magnetic or other tapes, electronic data, in whatever format,
which are made, received or kept in or urde" the control and custody of any

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government agency pursuant to law, executive order rules and regulations,
or in connection with the performance or transaction of official business by any

government agency.

(c) Machine-readable refers to formats that allow data to be extracted and

processed by computer programs,

(d) Official record refers to information produced or received by a public
officer or employee, or by a government agency in an official capacity or pursuant to

a public function or duty. This shall not refer to the stage or status of the information,

(c) Open format refers to one that is platform independent, machine readable,
and made available to the public without restrictions that would impede the re-use of

that information.

(f) Public record refers to information required by law, executive orders, rules,
or regulations to be entered, kept, and made publicly available by a government

agency,

Sec. SAccess to Information, Every person who is a Filipino citizen has a
right to and shall; on request, be given access to any record under the control of a
government agency. Government agencies and public officials shall have the duty to
disclose and make available for scrutiny, copying, and reproduction in the manner
provided by this Act, all information pertaining to official acts, transactions, or
decisions as well as government research data used as a basis for policy development,
subject to the exceptions enumerated under Section 7 of this Act, regardless of their
physical form or format in which they are contained and by whom they were made.

Nothing herein contained shall allow private acts, transactions or records of

public officials and private individuals to be the subject of mandatory disclosure


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under this Act: Provided, however, That Income tax returns, and statement of assets,
liabilities and networth (SALN) of public officials shall be released subject to existing
Saws, rules and regulations; Provided, further, That the limitations and prohibitions
to make available to the public the SALN shall not apply when, upon order of the
Sandiganbayan, it has been established that there is probable cause related to t h

commission of an offense.

See. 6. Presumption ~ There shall be a legal presumption in favor of acces
to information, The request for information may be denied only if it clearly falls
under the exceptions provided under this Act. Accordingly, government agencies
shaft have the burden of proving that the Information requested Is exempted from

disclosure.
See. 7. Exceptions. - Access to .information shall be granted unless,

(a) The Information is specifically authorized to be kept secret under
guidelines established by an executive order, and property classified pursuant thereto:
Provided, That) The information directly relates to national security or defense and
its revelation may cause grave damage to the national security or internet and external
defense of the State; or 2) The information requested pertains to the foreign affairs of
the Republic of the Philippines, when its revelation shall unduly weaken the
negotiating position of the government in an ongoing bilateral or multilateral
negotiation or seriously jeopardize the diplomatic relations of the Philippines with
one or more States: Provided further, That the executive order shall specify the
reasonable period after which the information shaft be automatically declassified or
be subject to mandatory declassification review, and that any reasonable doubt as to

classification and declassification shall be settled in favor of the right to information,

(b) the information consists of records of minutes and advice given and
opinions expressed during decision-making or policy formulation, invoked by the

scutive's

Chief Executive to be privileged by reason of the impairment of the Chief Es
deliberative process that would result from the disclosure thereof, Once policy has
been formulated and decisions made, minutes and research data may be made

available for disclosure unless they were made in executive session;

(©) the information requested pertains to internal and/or external defense, law

enforcement, and border control, when the disclosure thereof would:


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(i) Unduly compromise or interfere with any legitimate military or law
enforcement operation: or

(ii) Unduly compromise or interfere with the prevention, detection or
suppression of criminal activity, the effective implementation of immigration
controls and border security; or

(iii) Deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication; or
(iv) Lead to government, or foreign agency or authority or any private
institution which furnished information on a confidential basis, and, in the
case of a record or information compiled by a law enforcement authority, in
the course of an investigation or by an agency conducting a lawful national
security intelligence investigation, information furnished by a confidential
source; or

(v) Disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or
prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations
or prosecutions if such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk
circumvention of the law; or

(vi) Endanger the life or physical safety of any individual,

(d) the information requested consists of drafts of the following: orders,

resolutions, decisions, memoranda or audit reports by any executive, administrative,

regulatory, constitutional, judicial or quasi-judicial body in the exercise of their

adjudicatory and/or audit function;

¢) the information requested is obtained by any committee of either house of
Congress in executive session;

f) the information requested pertains to personal information of a natural
person, whether from the public or foe private sector, and its disclosure would
constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. This may include signatures,
addresses, telephone numbers, identification numbers, names of family members,
race or ethnicity, religion, health, education, sexual orientation, and similar
information, unless such information is specifically required by law to be entered into
an official record and made available to the public, or the person has consented in
writing to the disclosure of the Information, to the extent required to prevent an
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, an agency may redact such information

‘ification for the deletion

from a record made available to the public, However, the ju:
shall be explained fully in writing, and the extent of such deletion shall he indicated

‘on the portion of the record which is made available or published,


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(g) the information requested pertains to trade secrets and commercial or
financial information or intellectual property obtained from a natural or juridical
person other than requesting party whenever the revelation thereof would seriously
prejudice the interests of such natural or juridical person in trade, industrial, financial

or commercial competition;

h) the information is classified as privileged communications in legal
proceedings by law or by the Rules of Court, unless the person entitled to the

privilege has waived it,

(i) the information requested is exempted by law or the Constitution, in

addition to those provided in this section;

(j) when prematurely disclose, the information, would, in the case of a
government agency that regulates or deals with the commodities markets, currencies,

interest rates, securities, or financial institutions, likely lead to fraud, manipulation, or

other unlawful acts or schemes involving currencies, interest rates, securities, or, in
the case of other government agencies, likely frustrate the effective implementation of
1 proposed official action: Provided, That the information shall be accessible once the

anticipated danger has ceased

(k) The information has already been made accessible as provided for in
Section 12

For paragraphs (c) to (k) of this section, the determination whether any of
these grounds shall apply shall be the responsibility of the head of office of the
government agency in custody or control of the information, or any responsible

central or field officer/s duly designated by him

Sec. 8& Qualifications to the Exception.-

1. The exceptions in the preceding section shall be strictly construed;

2. The exceptions cannot be invoked to cover-up a crime, wrongdoing, graft,
or corruption;

3. Whenever the information covered by an exception may be reasonably
severed from a record, the record shall be released with the exempt information
redacted, or the information not covered by the exception shall otherwise be
communicated to the requesting party;

4. The President, the Supreme Court, the Senate, the House of

Representatives, and the Constitutional Commissions may waive an exception with


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respect to information in the custody of offices under their respective supervision or
control, when they deem that there is an overriding public interest and disclosure; and
5, The exceptions do not constitute authority to withhold information from

Congress, nor authority for the executive branch of a local government unit to

withhold information from the legislative body of such local government unit.

Sec.9. Mandatory Disclosure of Information. - (a) in fulfillment of Article

XI, Section 17 of the Constitution and subject to Section 5 and Section 7 (f) of
this Act. The websites of their respective offices shaft provide to the public, the
Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net worth (SALN) on an annual basis of the
following national officials:

(1) the President;

(2) the Vice- President;

(3) the Members of the Cabinet

(4) the Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives;

(5) the Justices of the Supreme Court;
sions and other

(6) the Commissioners of the Constitutional Commi:
constitutional offices; and
7) the officers of the Armed Forces with the rank of general or the

equivalent flag rank

(b) All agencies of all branches of government shall publish in their websites
and update on a monthly basis, a register containing the following information

(1) Freedom of Information Manual in full;

(2) Rules of Procedur

forms may be obtained, and instructions as to the scope and contents of all papers,

, descriptions of forms available or the places at which

reports, or examinations.
(3) Substantive rules of general applicability adopted as authorized by law,
and statements o; general policy or interpretations of general applicability formulated

and adopted by the agency, including subsequent amendments;

(4) Public Interest documents or records, including:
(i) Annual Budget of Government Agencies
(iii) Itemized Monthly Collections and Disbursement
(iii) Summary of Income and Expenditures
(iv) Component of the internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) Utilization
(v) Annual Procurement Plan and Procurement List

(vi) Items for Bidding


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(vii) Bid Results on Civil Works, and Goods and Services

(viii) Abstract of Bids, as Calculated

(ix) Procurement contracts entered into by a government agency

(x) Construction or concession agreements or contracts entered into by
a government agency with any domestic or foreign person or entity;
(xi) Private sector participation agreements or contracts in
infrastructure and development projects under Republic Act No 6957,
otherwise Known as the Philippine BOT Law, as amended by
Republic Act No, 7718;

(xii) Public funding extended to any private entity;

(xiii) Bilateral or multilateral agreements and treaties in trade,
economic partnership, investments, cooperation and similar binding

commitments;

(xiv) List of persons or entities who were granted licenses, permits or
agreements for the extraction and/or utilization of natural resources
given by any government agency;

(xv) Statement of Assets and liabilities of public officers of the
government agency; and

(xvi) Guarantees given by any government agency to government-
owned or -controlled corporations and to private corporations, persons

or entities.

The register shall contain a brief description of the transaction involved,
including the nature and object of the transaction, the parties and amounts involved,
the key steps undertaken towards its conclusion, 2nd the relevant dates; Provided,
‘That contracts and agreements involving an amount an of at least Fifty Million Pesos
(P50, 000,000.00) shall be published in full in the website of the concerned
government agency or the Official Gazette Online, subject to the succeeding section
‘A covered record shall be published in the website not later than thirty (30) working
days trom its perfection or issuance.

(c) All government agencies shall, over time, endeavor to build their capacity
and practice to publish in full ail other contracts, agreements, or treaties covered
under this Section, specially those that are of the highest public interest by reason of
the amounts involved and the impact of the Transaction to the public, AH government
agencies must ensure that they have a compliant website within two (2) years from

the effectivity of this Act.


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(d) Should an agency lack the capacity to comply with the website publication
requirement of this Section, the agency shall initiate a capacity-building program,
coordinate with another appropriate agency, or use an alternative mechanism, to

ilitate substantive compliance not later than three (3) years from the effectivity of

this Act,

Sec.10. Promotion of Openness in Government. - (a) Duty to Publish
Information - In conjunction with Republic Act 9485, or the Anti-Red Tape Act of
2007, government agencies shall regularly publish, print and disseminate at no cost to
the public, in an accessible form, and through their website, timely, true, accurate and
updated key information, including,

(1) a description of its mandate, structure, powers, fiunctions, duties and

decision making processes;

(2) a description of the frontline services it delivers and the procedure and

Iength of time by which they may be availed of,

(3 the names of its key officials, their powers, functions and responsibilities,

and their profiles and curriculum vitae:

(4) Work programs, development plans, investment plans, project,

performance targets and accomplishments, and budgets, revenue allotments

and expenditures;

(5) Important rules and regulations, orders or decisions: Provided, That they

be published within fifteen (15) calendar days from promulgation;

(6) Datasets generated in the implementation of agency mandates, programs,

activities, and projects such as statistics, figures, and geospatial data;

(7) Current and important database and statistics that it generates

(8) Bidding processes and requirements, and

(9) Mechanisms or procedures by which the public may participate in or

otherwise influence the formulation of policy or the exercise of its powers

(b) Accessibility of Language and Form - Ever/ government agency shall
endeavor to translate key information into major Filipino languages and present them

in popular form and means.

See. 11. Capacity-Building, Promotion of Best Practices, and Continuous
Updating of Appropriate Use of information Technology, - All government agencies
shall establish, operate, and maintain a website with features that are compliant with

all the provisions of this Act, within two (2) years from the effectivity of this Act


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ion of adequate training for

Every government agency shall ensure the provi
its officials and employees to improve awareness of the people's right to information
on matters of public concern and the provisions of this Act. Similarly, all government
agencies shall endeavor to study and adopt best practices in relation to information
disclosure, records maintenance, and archiving,

‘The National Computer Center shall monitor all government agency websites

and provide appropriate support for their development and ensure full compliance

with the requirements of this Act.

See. 12, Exemption from Compliance. - The government agency shall be
excused from complying with a subsequent identical or substantially similar request
from the same requesting party where it has previously complied with a request for
information unless a reasonable interval has lapsed between compliance with the
previous request and the making of the current request: Provided, That the

government agency, In denying the request complies with Section 20 of this Act.

Sec. 13. Additional Protection of Privacy. - While providing for access to
information in public records, this Act also affords full protection of the right to
privacy of individuals, as follows

(a) a government agency must ensure that personal information in its custody

or under its control is disclosed only as permitted under this Act

(b) a government agency must protect personal information in its custody or

under its control by making reasonable security arrangements against such

risks as unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure, or disposal;

(c) an employee, officer or director of a government agency who has access,

whether authorized or unauthorized, to personal information in the custody of

the agency, must not disclose that information except as authorized under this

Act

Sec.14, Administrative Liability. - It shall be tantamount to gross neglect of

duty and shall as a ground for administrative and disciplinary sanction against any

public official or employee who willfully and knowingly commits the following sets
(a) refuusal to promptly forward the request under Section 18 of this Act to the
public officer within the same office or agency responsible for officially
acting on the request when such is the direct cause of the failure to disclose
the information within the periods required by this Act;

(b) Failure to act on the request within the periods required by this Act;


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(©)

manifestly devoid of factual or legal basis;

im an exception under Section 7 of this Act when the claim is

(@) Refusal to comply with the decision of immediate supervisor, the
Ombudsman, or of any court ordering the release of information;

(e) Approval of policies, rules and regulations manifestly contrary to the
provisions of this Act, and which policies, rules and regulations are the direct

cause of the denial of a request for information.

Sec, 15, Criminal Liability. - (a) The following ads shall be subject to the
penalty of imprisonment of not less than one (1) month but not more than six (6)
months, with the accessory penalty of dismissal from service;
(i) Falsely denying or concealing the existence of information
mandated for disclosure under this Act; and
(2) Destroying, or causing to be destroyed, information and/or
documents being requested under this Act, for the purpose of

frustrating the requesting party's access thereto

(b) Any private individual who knowingly induces or causes the commission
of the foregoing acts shall be liable as principal by inducement in the prosecution of
public officials or employees under this section

(c) The acts under paragraph (a) of this Section, if proven in an administrative
proceeding shall be subject to the penalty of dismissal, even if no criminal

prosecution, is instituted against the-person found liable

See 16. Denial in Good Faith Not a Ground for Liability, - A denial in good
faith of a request for access to information made pursuant to the provisions of this Act

shall not constitute grounds for administrative or criminal liability,

Sec. 17 Freedom of Information {FO Manual, -(a) For the effective
implementation of this Act, all government agencies shall prepare a Freedom of
Information (FOL) Manual, setting forth the following

(1) the location and contact information of the head, regional, provincial and

ficld offices of the agency, and other established places where the public can

obtain information or submit requests,

(2) the types of information it generates, produces, holds and/or publishes;

(3) a description of its record-keeping system:

(4) the person or office responsible for receiving requests for information;

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(5) the procedure for the filing of requests personally, by mail, or through the
identified electronic means;

(6) the standard form for the submission of request and for the proper
acknowledgement of the request;

(7) the process for the disposition of the request, including the routing of the
request to the person or office with the duty to act on the request and the
decision-making process for the grant or denial of the request;

(8) the procedure for the administrative appeal of any denial for access to
information,

(9) the schedule of service or processing fees pertinent to a request for
information;

(10) the process and procedure for the mandatory disclosure of information
under Section 9 of this Act: Provided, That, should the agency lack the
capacity to comply with Section 9 of this Act, a brief description of its plan to
facilitate compliance within three (3) years from the approval of this Act; and
(11) such other information, taking into considerations the unique
characteristics of the agency, that will help facilitate the effective

implementation of this Act.

(b) The FOT Manual shall also he posted in the agency website and a hard
copy shall be available at the agency reception areas for use by the public;

(c) In no case shall the absence of the aforementioned FOI Manual be a reason

for the denial of any request for information made in accordance with this Act.

(d) The heads of each of the departments and agencies may designate liaison
units or committees which shall coordinate with the other units of the agency in
implementing this Act. The composition, functions, and duties of these liaison units
‘or committees shall be included in the FOL Manual.

Sec. 18, Procedure of Access. - (a) Any person who wishes to obtain
information shall submit, free of charge, a request to the government agency
concerned personally, by mail, or through electronic means. A person who is unable,
because of illiteracy or disability, to make a written request for information may make
an oral request instead. The public officer who receives the oral request shall reduce it
to writing, indicating therein one's name and position within the government agency,
and give a copy thereof to the person who made the request. This request shall state
the name and preferred contact information of the requesting party, and reasonably

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describe the information required, the reason for the request of the information and
the preferred means by which the government agency shall communicate such
information to the requesting party: Provided. That the stated reason shall not be used
as a ground to deny the request or to refuse the acceptance of the request, unless the
request is contrary to law. If the request is submitted personally, the requesting party
shall show a current Identification document issued by any government agency, or
government or private employer or school, or a community tax certificate, if the
request is submitted by mail or through electronic means, the requesting party may
submit a photo static or electronics y scanned copy of the identification, or other

convenient means as determined by the agency.

b) The public official receiving the request shall provide reasonable
assistance, free of charge, to enable ah requesting parties and particularly those with
special needs, to comply with the requirements under this Section,

(c) The request shell be duly received by the concerned government agency,
which shall forthwith indicate the date and time of receipt and the name, rank, title
and position of the receiving public officer or employee who shall likewise affix
one’s signature thereon, and shall furnish the requesting party a copy thereof, In case
the request is submitted by electronic means, the government agency shall provide for
an equivalent means by which the requirement of this paragraph shall be met, Each
government agency shall establish a system by which the status of all requests for
information received by it may be verified at anytime,

(a) The request may indicate the requesting party’s preferred mode and means
of receiving the information requested, provided that the mode and means are
reasonable, taking into consideration equipment normally available to the concerned
government agency.

(©) A government agency may communicate the information requested in a
form other than the preferred means whenever such preferred means would
unreasonably interfere with the effective operation of the agency, or if the agency has
no capability in communicating the information in the preferred format, or 'When the
preferred format may be detrimental to the preservation of the record

f) The government agency shall comply with the request as soon as
practicable and, in any case, within fifteen (15) working days from the receipt
thereof. The period may be extended whenever the information requested requires a
search of the government agency's field or satellite offices, examination of

voluminous records, the occurrence of fortuitous events or other analogous cases

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(g) The government agency shall, in writing or through electronic means,
notify the person making the request a-' the extension, setting forth the reasons for
such extension and the date when the information shall be made available, which in

no case shall result in an extension of m ore than twenty (20) working days.

(h) Once a decision is made to grant the request, the person making the

request shall be notified of such and shall pay the required access and processing fees

(i) IF the information is not held by the government agency from which the
request was made, it shall notify the requesting party that it does not hold the
information and indicate which agency holds the record, if known. Whenever
practicable, the agency receiving the request may also cause the transfer of the
request to the appropriate agency that holds the information; Provided, That the
period to comply with the request under this Section shall begin to run only upon the

receipt or the agency to which the request is transferred

Sec.19, Access and Processing Fees. - Government agencies may charge a
reasonable fee to reimburse the actual cost of reproduction, copying or transcription,
and the satisfied that the requester is an indigent or that the cost of reproduction is

negligible, or that itis pursuant to a program for proactive disclosure.

See. 20, Notice of Denial - If the government agency decides to deny the
request, in whole or in part, it shall as soon as practicable, and in any case within

fifteen (15) working days from the receipt of the request, notify the person making

the request of such denial in writing or through electronic means, The notice shall
indicate the name, rank, title or position of the person making the denial, dearly set
forth the ground or grounds for denial and the circumstances or which the denial is
based, and indicate available rights of reconsideration or appeal. Failure to notify the
person making the request of the denial, or of the extension, shall be deemed a denial

of the request for access to information

Sec. 21, Remedies in Cases of Denial. - (a) In all government agencies other

than the judicial branch —
(1) A denial of a request for access to information may be appealed to
the Head of Agency, following the procedure required under Section 17. (a) (8) of
this Act: Provided, That the appeal must be filed within fifteen (15) calendar flays

from the receipt of notice of denial and must he decided within fifteen (15) calendar

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days from filing. Failure to resolve the appeal within the aforementioned period shall
constitute a denial of the appeal,

(2) A person denied access to Information may file a verified complaint with
the Office of the Ombudsman, praying that the government agency concerned be
directed to immediately afford access to me information being requested. The Office
of the Ombudsman shall promulgate its special rules of procedure for the immediate
disposition of complaints filed pursuant to this Section Unless restrained or enjoined,
the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman shall be immediately executory, without
prejudice to review in accordance with the Rules of Court.

(3) A party whose request for information has been denied, whether or not
such decision has been appealed to the head of an agency, may file a verified petition
for mandamus in the proper court, alleging the facts with, certainty and praying that
judgment be rendered, ordering the respondent immediately or at some other time to
be specified by the court, to disclose the information and to pay the damages
sustained by the requesting party by reason of the denial. The procedure for such
petition shall be summary in nature

In resolving a complaint or petition brought under paragraphs (2) and (3)
hereof, the Ombudsman or the court is empowered to receive the information subject
of a claim of exception under Section 7 herein, and to examine them in camera to
determine the sufficiency of the factual and legal basis of such claim, when the
sufficiency cannot be reasonably determined through evidence and circumstances
apart from the information

(b) In the Judicial Branch - The Judiciary shall be governed by remedies as
promulgated by the Supreme Court

The remedies under this section shall be sought or granted without prejudice

to any other administrative, civil or criminal action covering the same act,

‘The remedies available under this Act shall be exempt from the rules on non-
exhaustion of administrative remedies and the application of the provisions of
Republic Act No. 9285, otherwise known as the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act
of 2004.

In case the requesting party has limited or no financial capacity, the Public
Attorney's Office is mandated to provide legal assistance to the requesting party in
availing of the remedies provide under this Act.

Sec. 22. Keeping of Records- (a) Government agencies shall create and

maintain in appropriate formats, accurate and reasonably complete documentation or

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records of their organization, policies, transactions, decisions, resolutions,
enactments, actions, procedures operations activities, communications and documents

received or filed with them and the data generated or collected, These shall include

working files such as drafts or notes whenever these have been circulated within the
agency for official purpose such as for discussion, comment or approval or when
these contain unique information that can substantially contribute to a proper
understanding of the agency organization, policies, transactions, decisions,

resolutions, enactments, actions, procedures, operations, and activities,

(b) Government agencies, in coordination with the National Archives of the
Philippines, shall identify specific and classes of official records in their custody or
control that have continuing historical, administrative, informational, legal,
evidentiary, or research value, for preservation by such agencies or their legitimate
successors, or for proper documentation if and when the records are transferred to the

National Archives of the Philippines.

¢) In addition to the specific and classes of official records identified for
preservation under letter (b) of this section, the following shall not be destroyed

(J) records pertaining to bans obtained or guaranteed by the government;

(2) records of government contracts involving amounts Fifty Million Pesos

(Php 50,000.00) or more, or related to infrastructure, public and private

partnerships, utilities, or other important projects;

(3) the original Declarations under oath of the assets, liabilities and net worth

of public officers and employees submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman,

as required by law, and

(4) records Of official investigations pertaining to allegations of graft and

corruption of public officers

(4) Government agencies shall prepare, according to the standards set in and
within the period mandated by Republic Act No, 9470 or the National Archives of the
Philippines Act of 2007, a records management program that includes the following,

(1) a records maintenance system for the creation, selection, classification,

indexing and fling of official records that facilitate the easy identification,

retrieval and communication of information to the public;

2) a records maintenance, archival and disposition schedule providing a listing

of records under current use for retention by the agency, for transfer to the

National Archives, or for destruction: Provided. That destruction of the

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official records may be implemented only upon approval of the National
Archives of the Philippines: and
(3) identification of the specific roles and responsibilities of agency personnel

in the implementation of such system and schedule.

©) In addition to its function as repository of all rules and regulations issued by
agencies as provided under Book VII, Chapter II of the Administrative Code of 1987,
the University of the Philippines Law Center shall, in coordination with the Office of
the President which has exclusive editorial and printing jurisdiction over the Official
Gazette, and with other relevant agencies, maintain a database, and publish in the
Official Gazette or in digital or online form, the following

1) all laws of the Philippines and their amendments, from period of Philippine

Commission to the present;

(2) all presidential issuances from November 15, 1935 to the present,

including but not limited, to executive orders, presidential proclamations,

administrative orders memorandum circulars, general orders, and other similar

issuances,

(3) a database of all appointments and designations made by the President of

the Philippines; and

(4) opinions rendered by the Secretary of Justice,

Sec 23. Publication in the Official Gazette, - For purposes of mandatory
disclosure as provided in Section 9 of this Act, the publication in the Official Gazette
website shall be considered official publication provided there shall be a timestamp in
the said document.

For purposes of compliance with Article 2 of the Civil Code of the
Philippines, publication of the following in the online version of the Official Gazette,
with the corresponding timestamps on the document, shall be considered as official
publication;

(a) Ali important legislative acts and resolutions of a public nature of

Congress of the Philippines;

(b) All executive and administrative orders and proclamations of general

application;

(c) Decisions or abstracts of decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of

Appeals or other courts of similar rank, as may be deemed by said courts of

sufficient importance to be so published;

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(d) Such documents or classes of documents as the President shall determine

from time to time to have general application or which he may authorize to be

published

However, other documents or classes of documents as may be required to be
published by law, such as petitions and/or legal notices in connection with land titles,
naturalization or special proceedings shall continue to be published in the print
version of the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation for

purposes of compliance with the publication requirement.

See, 24, Act Not a Bar to Claim of Right to Information Under the
Constitution - No provision of this Act shall be interpreted as a bar to any claim of
denial of the right to information under Article 111, Section 7 of the 1987

Constitution.

Sec, 25. Publication of Government Data in the Open Data Philippines

Website. - For purposes of enhancing the public's access to government information

and abiding by the Philippines’ international commitments to transparency and
government openness, all government agencies shall publish in the Open Data
Philippines website, datasets generated in the implementation of agency mandates,
programs, activities, and projects, These datasets shall be updated, whenever

permissible, at least once in every quarter of every year,

The Open Data website shall be maintained and administered by an Open
Data Task Force under the Office of the President, or any such similar body
designated by the President for this purpose

For the purpose of making government data more accessible to the public, all
datasets published on the Open Data Philippines website and on LGU websites as
mandated in Section 9 of this Act shall be, whenever practicable, of a machine-

readable and open format

Sec, 26. Tracking Requests for Information. - Websites of government
agencies shall contain a matrix of request made, their status the decision- regarding
the request. The matrix shall also contain Jinks to uploaded information fro in
approved requests. In such cases where requests are denied, the matrix shall contain

the reasons for denial and the status of the appeal if such is done,

Sec. 27. Release to One, Release to All. - For purposes of streamlining

requests for information once an information has been made available to an individual

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through a request for information, the said dataset shall also be published in an
appropriate website such as, but not limited in, the Open Data Philippines website
Official Gazette website, Departmental website, or Local Government website thus
allowing the public access to all information that has been requested.

Sec 28. Integration of Freedom of Information (FOI) and Good Governance
In Elementary and Secondary Curriculum. - To ensure well-informed generations
of citizens, the right to information, the principles of accountability and transparency,
democracy and leadership and good governance shall be integrated in such subjects as
Heyograpiya, Kasaysayan at Sibika (HEKASI) and Araling Paniipunan in the
elementary level and in such- subjects as Social Studies and Makabayan or its
equivalent subjects in Commission end other relevant offices, shall prepare the
necessary modules and teaching programs consistent with the objectives of this Act.

See 29, Annual Reports on Actions Taken on Requests for Access to
Information. ~ All government agencies shall prepare, for each fiscal year, a report
on the number of requests for information they: received, processed, granted and
denied; of appeals made from denials of such requests’, and of pending Court actions
they are a party to as result of such requests. These reports may he integrated in the
‘main annual reports of government agencies and may he posted and published in their

respective websites,

See. 30. Appropriations. - The amount necessary to carry out the provisions
of this Act shall be charged against these authorized in the current and subsequent
General Appropriations Acts.

Sec. 31. Separability Clause - if any provision of this Act is declared
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provisions net affected thereby shall

remain in full force and effect.

Sec 32. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and
regulations, issuances or any part thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act,
including Sections 18 on Operation and Effect of Laws, 24 and 25 on the Contents,
Editing and Publications of the Official Gazette. Book I, of Executive Order No, 292
or the Administrative Code of 197 in relation to Article 2 on Effect and
Application of Laws of Republic Act No 386 or the Civil Code, Memorandum
Circular No. 78 dated 14 August 1964 (Promulgating Rules Governing Security of
Classified Matter in Government Offices), as amended, and Section 3, Rule TV of the

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Rules implementing Republic Act No. 6713 (Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards
for Public Officials and Employees), are deemed repealed: Provided, That
Memorandum Circular No. 78 shall be deemed repealed after one (1) year from the

effectivity of this Act or upon issuance of the Executive Order in Section 7(a).

Sec 33. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its

publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation

Approved,

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