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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRES!
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 2009

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Clean water must be made available to every Filipino in the urban, rural areas or
those in far-flung, remote, mountainous, or outlying coastal areas, to insure that the
quality of life is uncompromised. Hygiene and proper sanitation is a natural requirement
to promote the health and physical well-being of every Filipino, Also, the drastic climate
change, the exponential increase in the population and the ever-rising cost of water
supplied by the water utilities impose a great burden among our countrymen especially
the marginalized. Thus, it is the paramount duty of the State to provide a conveniently
available source of clean water for every Filipino. Hence, a program on a national scale
that could provide adequate clean water supply for every barangay in the country should
be the government's primordial concern.

Though R.A. No. 6716, otherwise known as “An Act Providing for the
Construction of Water Wells, Rainwater Collectors, Development of Springs and
Rehabilitation of Existing Water Wells in All Barangays in the Philippines” (hereinafter
referred to as “R.A. No. 6716”) was enacted on March 17, 1989, the same was
ineffectively implemented during the duration of its period of execution, Due to the
expiration of the period of implementation of said law, many barangays throughout the
Philippines is still left without an adequate source of clean water.

This present bill seeks to address this over-riding concern. Since R.A. 6716 was
only implemented for the period covering 1989-1992, Moreover, the development of
springs and construction of rainwater collectors were not actively pursued and fully
implemented during said term. Recently, the Department of Public Works and Highways
reported that they have built rainwater collection systems during the past three (3) years
or 2011-2013, and they yielded only 754 systems. This however, is not enough, to meet
the clean water supply of the Filipinos in every district. Thus, there is a need to re-enact
and extend the period of said law to provide additional sources of clean water to the
Filipinos. To continue and revive this 3-year program to address the water shortage crisis

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that continue to plague our country will help alleviate the plight of our countrymen for
clean water.

Henceforth, the urgency of this bill to be enacted into law is eagerly sought.

LORNA QUINTO VELASCO,


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. __20 03

Tniroduced by Congresswoman Lorna Quinto Velasco

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF WATER WELLS,
RAINWATER COLLECTORS, DEVELOPMENT OF SPRINGS AND
REHABILITATION OF EXISTING WATER WELLS IN ALL BARANGAYS IN
THE PHILIPPINES

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:
SECTION 1. Declaration of Policy. — It is hereby declared to be the national policy to
promote and uplift the quality of every Filipino’s liffe through the provision of adequate

clean water supply made conveniently available to every barangay in the country.

SECTION 2. Water Wells, Rainwater Collectors and Spring Development. — The
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) shall, within thirty (30) days after
the approval of this Act, undertake construction of water wells, rainwater collectors,
development of springs and rehabilitation of existing water wells in all barangays in the
Philippines in such number as may be needed and feasible, taking into consideration the
population, hydrologic conditions, costs of project development and operations, financial
and economic factors and institutional arrangements: provided, however, that the DPWH.
shall deduet not more than five percent (5%) for supervision, engineering, technical and
other overhead expenses or fees: provided, further, that each barangay in the country

shall have at least one additional clean water source.

SECTION 3. Operation and Maintenance. — In order to ensure the proper use of the
water facilities herein provided, a Barangay Waterworks and Sanitation Association,

herein referred to as BWSA, shall be formed and organized for the purpose of


maintaining the water facilities: provided, that pending the organization of the BWSA,

the water facilities shall be operated and maintained by the barangay council.
‘The BWSA shall be composed of the member-consumers who shall administer, operate
and maintain the completed water facility and shall be registered with the corresponding
municipal or city council. The qualifications and compensation of each member-
consumer of a BWSA shall be determined and approved by the Department of Interior
and Local Goverment (hereinafter referred to as “DILG”) through the local government

unit concerned.

‘The minimal charges necessary for the maintenance and normal repairs of each water
facility shall be recommended by the BWSA concerned and approved by the DILG.
Nothing herein shall prevent any resident of the locality from using the water facility

under the same terms and conditions as the member-consumers of the BWSA has.

promulgated. Such terms and conditions determined by the BWSA shall be submitted to

the DILG for approval prior to implementation.

Organizing and training the recipient communities in the operation and maintenance of
said water facilities shall be conducted by the DILG in coordination with the DPWH
prior to the turnover of such facilities to each BWSA subject to the guidelines to be

formulated by the DILG.

SECTION 4.
the approval of this Act and every one hundred eighty (80) days thereafter, submit

Submission of Report. — ‘The DPWH shall, within ninety (90) days after

periodic reports to the respective Committees on Public Works and Highways of both

Houses of the Congress of the Philippines for evaluation and consideration.

SECTION 5. Funding. — The sum needed for the implementation of the construction,
rehabilitation and repair program shall be taken from any available appropriations for the
DPWH in the General Appropriations Act (hereinafter referred to as “GAA”) for 2013:
provided, that funds for this purpose shall also be included in the GAA for 2014 and


2015: provided, further, that the total program shall be completed not later than
December 31, 2016, and: provided, finally, that there shall be equitable and proportionate
appropriations of annual funds for this purpose for all provinces, cities and
municipalities. In addition, a portion of financial grants and concessional loans extended
to the Philippines by foreign governments and multilateral agencies every year, in the
amount to be determined by the President, shall be allocated by the Department of
Budget and Management to augment the appropriations of the DPWH until one hundred
thousand (100,000) water wells, rainwater collectors, and springs are completed as

envisioned in this Act.

SECTION 6. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect upon its publication in at least
two (2) newspapers of general circulation,

Approved,