REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Quezon City

“ce ly
2 OT GUL

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS |)
First Regular Session \ :

A
House Bill No. 24

Introduced by MAGDALO Party List RepresentativesFranciscoAshley L. Acedillo
and Gary C. Alejano

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The need for sound expenditure management in the bureaucracy has become more
important through the years as government resources have become limited and the needs
of society have become almost inexhaustible.

The present set-up of the government made it a significant contributor to the tremendous
waste of resources in the Philippine economy. By focusing the government's limited
resources on the provision of basic services, the government would effectively reduce
poverty and possibly bring about the economic resurgence of the Philippine economy.
However, massive trimming down of the bureaucracy is needed to do away with the
unnecessary and redundant appendages of the government.

This bill seeks to create the Government Reorganization Commission to undertake
studies and propose measures to abolish, merge, integrate, transfer, regroup, or
restructure departments, bureaus, offices, government-owned and controlled corporations
and other agencies of the Executive Branch in order to eliminate overlapping and/or
fragmentation functions of programs and activities.

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

iCISCO ASHLEY L. ACEDILLO ;ARY C. ALEJANO.


REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

f 4
House Bill No. 24

Introduced by MAGDALO Party List Representatives Francisco Ashley L. Acedillo
and Gary C. Alejano

AN ACT
REORGANIZING THE GOVERNMENT BUREAUCRACY, CREATING A
GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION COMMISSION, DEFINING ITS
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

Congress assembled.

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Government
Reorganization Act of 2013.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is declared the policy of the State to maintain
an efficient, effective, professionalized, and properly compensated bureaucracy with
scope and focus of functions, programs and activities that support national development
goals and efforts and whose size and organizational structure promote economy,

productivity, innovation, responsiveness and service to the general public.

SEC. 3. Creation of the Government Reorganization Commission. - Pursuant to
the preceding section, a Government Reorganization Commission, hereinafter referred to
as the Commission, is hereby created with the following as members thereof:

1. Chairman of Senate Committee on Civil Service and Government

Reorganization, who will be its chairman;

2. Chairman of House Committee on Government Reorganization, who will be a

co-vice chairman;

3. Chairman of the House Committee on Civil Service, who will be a co-vice

chairman;


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4. Three (3) majority members of the Senate Committee on Civil Service and
Government Reorganization;

5. One (1) minority member of the Senate Committee on Civil Service and
Government Reorganization;

6. One (I) majority member of House Committee on Government Reorganization;

7. One (1) majority member of House Committee on Civil Service;

8. One (1) minority member of the House Committee on Civil Service and/or
Government Reorganization;

9. Chairman and the two (2) members of the Civil Service Commission;

10. Representative from the private sector to be appointed by the President; and

11. Representative from a recognized government employees organization to be

nominated by members of such organization.

SEC. 4. Mandate, - The Commission shall pursue a survey of the government

bureaucracy and draft a plan of reorganization of all entities and offices of the Executive
branch of government. These shall include all departments and their respective attached
agencies, bureaus, offices, commissions, boards, councils, authorities, including
government-owned and controlled corporations, state universities and colleges, and all

other instrumentalities of the Executive branch.

SEC. 5. Powers and Functions. - Pursuant to Section 2 of this Act, and in order

to ensure the successful implementation of the reorganization of the Executive branch,

the Commission is hereby authorized to:

1. formulate and administer the necessary guidelines, rules, and procedures to
implement and ensure adherence to this Act;

2. draft a plan to abolish, merge, integrate, transfer, and regroup, or restructure
departments, bureaus, offices, government-owned and controlled corporations,

and other agencies of the Executive branch only for the purpose of eliminating

overlapping and fragmented functions, programs and activities; effects the
distribution and transfer to appropriations, assets, liabilities, equipment,
records, other properties, transactions, positions, and personnel, all the time
giving due regard to pertinent laws and rules and regulations, and the right to
security of tenure of civil service officers and employees;

3. adopt a human resource development strategy, and a government staffing and

remuneration policy to include a rewards and incentives scheme that will


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establish equity, promote morale, _ productivity, _innovativeness,

professionalism, and creativity, and attract and retain the best and the brightest

within the civil service; and

4, adopt and enforce the necessary guidelines, rules and regulations, and processes

to fully implement the reorganization herein, provided.

SEC. 6. Principles and Parameters. - The reorganization of the Executive branch

herein authorized shall be carried out according to the following principles and

guidelines:

1.) Government’s role and the determination of the scope, level, and prioritization

of its activities shall be in accordance with its Constitutional mandate,

political and socioeconomic objectives, and available resources, to be guided

by the following policies:

a.) Government shall prioritize the strengthening its fundamental

functions, among which are:

i)

vi.)

vii.)

effective macro-economic management, including the
formulation and implementation of socioeconomic, fiscal,
and monetary policies;

the maintenance of peace and order, and national political
security;

the conservation of natural resources and ensuring their
productive utilization and development for the national
welfare;

the maintenance of an effective and reliable system of
administering justice, lawmaking, and law enforcement;
providing quality basic and secondary education, especially
to the poor and disadvantaged population;

providing adequate and appropriate infrastructure;

promoting economic and political diplomacy to achieve
sound and mutually productive economic and political

relations with other nations and international communities;

viii. the promotion of total human development; and

ix.)

disaster mitigation and the effective management of state

emergencies and calamities.


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b.) Government's role shall ¢ to steer and mobilize the instruments that
contribute to achieving sectoral objectives. To this end, Government
shall focus its sectoral functions on:

i) _ policy setting, monitoring, and assessment;

ii.) promotion and advocacy;

iii.) providing information and linkages or access to markets;

iv.) providing assistance and incentives;

v.) enforcement of the appropriate rules and regulations; and,

vi.) providing safety nets for adversely affected sectors of the
population.

©.) To the extent possible, government shall limit direct provision and
production of public goods and encourage more private sector
participation.

2.) The National Government shall assist, supervise, and monitor local
government units to complement the greater autonomy granted to them. The
declination of responsibilities between the National Government and local
government units in the provisions and production of public goods shall be
clearly defined and agreed upon.

3.) The National Government shall adopt a structural framework that will define
the vertical as well as horizontal compartmentalization of the Executive
Branch, including the basic structural and functional configuration of
departments and agencies. It shall likewise adopt a typology of government
offices which shall serve to determine the proper organizational
configurations and groupings of these offices.

4.) The Executive Branch shall streamline its systems and procedures to facilitate
and improve the relevance and quality of front-line services, and improve
policy formulation, planning and performance, and evaluation and assessment.
These systems and procedures shall be designed within the context of
decentralizing the decision-making authority within the Executive Branch and

its departments, agencies, bureaus, offices and other instrumentalities.

SEC. 7. Submission of Report to the President and Congress. ~ The

Commission shall submit the report of its study and reorganization plan, to the President.

If the President finds the report or plan satisfactory, the same shall be submitted to both


Houses of Congress. The organizational plan shall be effective upon the approval of

Congress through a concurrent resolution.

Sec. 8. Re-Tooling, Re-Training, and Re-Development Program. — The
Government shall adopt and implement a re-tooling, re-training, and re-deployment
program for personnel who might be displaced as a result of the reorganization of
departments, agencies, bureaus, offices, and other instrumentalities of the Executive
Branch. This program shall include the formulation of technical and objective criteria for
the identification of redundant positions and the consequent incumbents therein, the
establishment and operation of a government manpower pool, and the re-tooling, re-
training, and subsequent re-deployment of personnel to appropriate non-redundant
positions in the newly reorganized agencies.

All personnel whose positions have been declared redundant shall be
consequently be deployed to the government pool, which shall be established according
to the following guidelines:

1.) All redundant personnel shall continue to receive their basic salaries
for one (1) year from the day their operations are officially declared
redundant;

2.) All allowances, financial and non-financial benefits, and other
compensation received by the incumbents prior to their positions being
declared redundant shall be terminated upon such declaration;

3.) If the redundant personnel shall choose to immediately leave the
government service, or before the expiration of the one (1) year period
provided for, he shall be entitled to receive in cash his basic salary for
the remaining period, in addition to any separation pay and other
benefits due pursuant to Section 9 of Republic Act No. 6656;

4.) Redundant personnel who are eligible for retirement under existing
laws shall likewise be entitled to encash the basic salary for the
remaining period, should they choose to retire before the end of the
one (1) year period provided for; and,

5.) Residence in the manpower pool shall not be considered nor credited
as service for purposes of computing retirement and separation
benefits.


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See. 9, The Judiciary and Constitutional Offices. The Judiciary and
Constitutional offices may likewise pursue a survey and reorganization of its ranks in
accordance with the principles, guidelines, standards, and time frame prescribed in this
Act. They may coordinate their respective reorganization efforts with the Executive

branch for better coordination and in the interest of public service.

Sec. 10. Repealing Clause. ~ All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations and
other issuances inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or

amended accordingly.

Sec. 11, Separability Clause. — Should any section or provision of this Act be
declared unconstitutional or invalid, other sections or provisions not so affected shall

continue to be full force and effect.
Sec. 12. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette and in at least two (2) newspapers of general

circulation.

Approved,