Republic of the Philippines T4 JUL 2014
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Can Py
Quezon City
Metro Manila

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

House Bill No, 4738

Introduced by 1BAP Party List Representative Silvestre H. Bello Ill

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Given the very formidable and sensitive legal duties of the Office of the
Solicitor General (OSG), there is a need to amend R.A. No. 9417, strengthen the
OSG as an institution and provide its lawyers and employees benefits and privileges
already being enjoyed by their counterparts in other government offices. This is to
ensure that it will be able to perform its mandate of upholding State interest and
faithfully carry out its role as the Tribune of the People.

The Solicitor General is the Government official authorized to appear before
the courts and defend the Goverment, its departments, agencies and
instrumentalities, Congress included. The crucial role played by the Solicitor General
dictates that the qualifications for appointment, rank, category, prerogatives, salaries,
allowances, emoluments, benefits and privileges of the Solicitor General be
upgraded to that of an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. While this move
does not change the Solicitor General's present salary grade of 31, it will serve to
enhance the prestige and honor carried by the said position

And while R.A. No. 9417 already provides that Senior State Solicitors and
State Solicitors of the OSG shall have the same rank, salaries, and privileges as that
of trial court judges, many benefits provided for by R.A. No. 9946, otherwise known
as an Act Granting Additional Retirement, Survivorship, and other Benefits to
Members of the Judiciary, like retirement under R.A. No. 910, are reserved for
members of the judiciary only. Ironically, the counterparts of Senior OSG lawyers in
the National Prosecution Service (NPS) and Public Attorney's Office (PAO) already
enjoy many other benefits, which senior OSG lawyers are deprived of. There is a
need, therefore, to equalize the benefits and privileges received by these
government lawyers by similarly affording them the same prerogatives, salaries,
allowances, benefits and privileges given to their counterparts in the Judiciary, NPS
and the PAO. Being the most heavily case laden lawyers of the government, OSG
lawyers carry many responsibilities and face hazards to health and limb. The brutal
and cold-blooded assassination of model public servant Assistant Solicitor General
Nestor J. Ballacillo, a Civil Service Dangal ng Bayan Awardee, and of his son
Benedict is clear proof of this.


The amendments on survivorship, authority to borrow and increase of the
OSG's share in monetary awards or assets given by courts to client departments and
assets awarded to the Government in forfeiture proceedings to 20% serve to further
strengthen the OSG by increasing its source of income for the payment of the
mandated benefits and expansion under R.A. No. 9417.

The passage of this bill into law is thus earnestly requested.



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City
Metro Manila

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 4738

Introduced by 1BAP Party List Representative Silvestre H. Bello II

AN ACT
TO FURTHER STRENGTHEN THE OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR GENERAL,
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9417 AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

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

SECTION 4, Section 3 of Republic Act No. 9417 is hereby amended to read
as follows:

“SEC. 3. Standards. - The Solicitor General shall have
cabinet rank and the same qualifications for appointment, rank,
CATEGORY, _ prerogatives, salaries, allowances, _ [benefits]
EMOLUMENTS, [and] privileges, RETIREMENT AND ALL OTHER
BENEFITS of [a Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeals] AN
ASSOCIATE JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT; an Assistant
Solicitor General, those of an Associate Justice of the Court of
Appeals.

The qualifications for appointment, rank, CATEGORY,
prerogatives, salaries, ALLOWANCES, EMOLUMENTS privileges,
RETIREMENT AND ALL OTHER BENEFITS of Solicitors shall be
the same as judges, specified as follows:

Senior State Solicitor - Regional Trial Court Judge
State Solicitor Il - Metropolitan Trial Court Judge


x ‘State Solicitor | - Municipal Trial Court in Cities Judge

2

3 The Solicitor General shall determine the qualifications,
4 prerogatives and responsibilities of the Associate Solicitors.”

5

6

7 SEC. 2. Section 5 of Republic Act No. 9417 is hereby amended to read as follows:
8

9 “SEC. 5. Benefits and Privileges. - Subject to the availability
10 of funds, the Office of the Solicitor General may provide its
uw employees with the following:

2

13 (1) Health care service through a health maintenance organization
14 (HMO), Expenses for the mandatory annual executive check-up of
15 the Solicitor General, the Assistant Solicitors General, and the
16 Service Heads, shall be for the account of the office;

v7

18 (2) All employees shall be covered by accident insurance policies
19 procured by the office at its own expense during travels while in the
20 performance of their official duties and functions;
21
2 (3) Without prejudice to efficiency in the service, scholarship to
23 deserving employees on official time and at the expense of the Office
24 of the Solicitor General to enhance their academic growth and
25 upgrade their knowledge and skills. Scholars under this provision
26 shall be selected on the basis of MERIT AND competitive
27 examination;

28
29 (4) A provident fund which shall consist of contributions made both
30 by the Office of the Solicitor General and by its lawyers and
31 employees to a common fund for the payment of benefits to such
32 lawyers or employees or their heirs; and

33

34 (5) OTHER PERQUISITES AND BENEFITS AS MAY BE
35 DETERMINED BY THE SOLICITOR GENERAL IN THE
36 EXIGENCIES OF THE SERVICE.”

37

38

39 SEC. 3. Section 10 of Republic Act No. 9417 is hereby deleted and replaced by a

40 new Section 10 to read as follows:

42 “SEC. 10. Grant of Special Allowances. — The Solicitor
43 General, Assistant Solicitor General, Senior State Solicitor, State
44 Solicitors | ad Associate Solicitors | to Ill shall be granted special

45 allowances in amounts to be determined by the Secretary of the


Department of Budget and Management and the Solicitor General.
The grant of special allowances shall be implemented uniformly in
such sums and amounts and up to the extent only that can be
supported by the funding source specified in Section 11 hereof:
Provided, That the said special allowance shall not exceed One
hundred percent (100%) fo the basic salary of solicitors as provided
in Republic Act No. 6758, otherwise known as the Salary
Standardization Law.

SEC 10-A SURVIVORSHIP BENEFITS. - UPON DEATH OF
EITHER A SOLICITOR GENERAL, ASSISTANT SOLICITOR
GENERAL, SENIOR STATE SOLICITOR OR STATE
SOLICITOR OF THE OSG, WHETHER SAID OSG OFFICIAL
HAD ALREADY RETIRED OR WAS STILL IN ACTIVE
SERVICE AT THE TIME OF DEATH, HIS/HER SURVIVING
LEGITIMATE SPOUSE AND DEPENDENT CHILDREN SHALL
BE ENTITLED TO RECEIVE ON A MONTHLY BASIS ALL THE
RETIREMENT BENEFITS THAT THE DECEASED WAS
RECEIVING OR ENTITLED TO RECEIVE AT THE TIME OF
DEATH UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF THE APPLICABLE
RETIREMENT LAWS THEN IN FORCE. A 'DEPENDENT'
MEANS A LEGITIMATE, ILLEGITIMATE OR LEGALLY
ADOPTED CHILD WHO IS CHIEFLY DEPENDENT UPON
THE ABOVE-ENUMERATED DECEASED OSG OFFICIALS,
PROVIDED, THAT SUCH DEPENDENT IS NOT MORE THAN
TWENTY-ONE (21) YEARS OF AGE, UNMARRIED AND NOT
GAINFULLY EMPLOYED OR SUCH DEPENDENT,
REGARDLESS OF AGE, IS INCAPABLE OF SELF-SUPPORT
BECAUSE OF MENTAL OR PHYSICAL DEFECT. THE
SURVIVING LEGITIMATE SPOUSE SHALL CONTINUE TO.
RECEIVE SUCH RETIREMENT BENEFITS DURING HIS/HER
LIFETIME OR UNTIL HE/SHE REMARRIES, REGARDLESS
OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS HE/SHE MAY BE RECEIVING
ON HIS/HER OWN BY VIRTUE OF PAST PUBLIC OR
PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYMENT. THESE BENEFITS
SHALL BE GRANTED TO ALL AFOREMENTIONED
OFFICIALS OF THE OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR GENERAL
WHO RETIRED, OR TO THE DEPENDENTS OF THOSE
WHO DIED, AS THE CASE MAYBE, PRIOR TO THE
EFFECTIVITY OF THIS ACT.

FUNDS FOR THE INITIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF
THIS SECTION SHALL BE TAKEN OUT OF THE CURRENT


SEC. 4. Section 11 of Republic Act No. 9417 is hereby amended to read as

follows:

SEC. 5. Retroactivity. - The retirement benefits provided for under Section 10 of
this Act shall have retroactive effect as of the date of effectivity of Republic Act No.

9417.

APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE RETIREMENT OF THE
OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE OFFICE OF THE
SOLICITOR GENERAL AND/OR SAVINGS OF SAID
OFFICE. THEREAFTER, SUCH SUMS AS MAY BE
NECESSARY FOR THE CONTINUED IMPLEMENTATION
OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE INCLUDED IN THE ANNUAL
GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT.

“SEC. 11. Funding. — The funds required for the
implementation of this Act, including those for health care services,
insurance premiums, professional, educational, registration fees,
contracted transportation benefits, the other benefits above, shall
be taken from:

() [Five percent (5%)] TWENTY PERCENT (20%) of
monetary awards OR ASSETS given by the Court to
client departments, agencies and instrumentalities of
the Government, including those under court-
approved compromise agreements AND TWENTY
PERCENT (20%) OF ASSETS AWARDED TO THE
GOVERNMENT IN FORFEITURE PROCEEDINGS;

(ii) fifty percent (60%) of fees collected by the Special
Committee on Naturalization; and

(ii) all other income, fees and revenues earned and
collected by the Office of the Solicitor General

For this purpose, the Office of the Solicitor General is
hereby authorized to charge deputation, certification and
other similar fees in the cases that it handles.

The amounts collected pursuant to this section shall
constitute a trust fund in the name of the Office of the
Solicitor General to be managed and used by the Solicitor
General to carry out the provisions of this Act.


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SEC. 6. Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act is declared
unconstitutional or invalid, other parts or provisions hereof not affected shall continue in
full force and effect.

SEG.7. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its
publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general
circulation.

Approved,