Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH (18) CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 4593

Introduced by Hon. ARGEL JOSEPH T. CABATBAT

AN ACT
CREATING THE PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURAL GROWTH AND STIMULI
ACCELERATION (PAGASA) ACT DEFINING ITS MANDATES, POWERS AND
FUNCTIONS, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Our Farmers and agricultural workers have long been suffering from a systemic
lack of government support and source of funding to enable them to carry on their
agricultural work.

MAGSASAKA Party-list believes that national food security and self-sufficiency is
an integral and indispensable part in nation-building, especially in an agricultural
country like the Philippines. Laws enacted by Congress must reflect this basic principle
and gear its efforts and funds towards reviving our agricultural sector. Infrastructure
and development must also be harmonized with the main goal of food security and
self-sufficiency. That is why the issues of mass housing, salaries and wages, especially
for the poor agricultural workers, must be tackled by the government, especially
Congress.

It is our stand that the government must step in to break the chain of cyclical
oppression and exploitation by introducing financial stimulus to the agricultural sector.
To spearhead this important shift in national government policy, MAGSASAKA
Partylist proposes to introduce this law to enable the country to reach the goal of food
security and self-sufficiency.
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In a report of the Philippine Statistics Authority, 25% of the total number of
employed Filipinos belong to the Agricultural Sector. This industry contributed
seven precinct (7%) or 447.2 billion to our country’s GDP in the first quarter of
2018. (NSCB, 1st Quarter, 2018).

However, as rice prices, especially in Luzon continues to deciine due to the death
pains brought by the implementation of Rice Tarrification Law and despite being
part of the most significant sectors in the Philippines, many farmers and fisherfolk
remain to be one of the poorest groups in the country. Hence, it is critical to
recognize their plight and consequently address it as it is alarming and ironic to
see that the major producers of food in the country are faced with pressing issues
such as shortage in food and basic commodities.

‘Thus, it is vital for the Philippine economy to provide relief to the country's pillar
of food production and economic advancement. Apart from social relief and
services there Is also a need to advance the knowledge and facilities of
Agriculture of our poor farmers and fishers.

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

*H T. CABATBAT

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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH (18) CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 4593

Introduced by Hon. ARGEL JOSEPH T. CABATBAT

AN ACT
CREATING PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURAL GROWTH AND STIMULI
ACCELERATION (PAGASA) ACT, DEFINING ITS MANDATES, POWERS AND
FUNCTIONS, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

(CHAPTER I
TITLE AND DECLARATION OF POLICY

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Philippine
Agricultural Growth and Stimuli Acceleration or PAGASA Act”.

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SEC 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State recognizes that our country is
primarily an agricultural country despite the plan to make it an industrialized
economy.

To this end, the State recognizes its role in building and prioritizing the agricultural
sector and promoting it as a viable and sustainable means of vocation for its
citizenry.

The state shall promote a just and dynamic social order uplifting its citizens
and marginalized sectors from poverty through policies that provide adequate social
services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living and an improved
quality of life for all.

The State shall also recognize the right of farmers, farmworkers and
landowners. Farmers and workers in the agricultural sector's main problem is access
to funds, farm machinery, fertilizers and seedlings. As a result, they resort to
acquiring loans which are disadvantageous to them and are trapped in a cyclical
oppression and exploitation by loan sharks and agricultural monopoly-cartels.

The State shall likewise provide incentives to landowners to invest the
proceeds of the agrarian reform program to promote rapid industrialization and
employment creation in agriculture.

The State further recognizes its obligation to provide protection and support
through various assistance and other services; thus, the State hereby declares it a
Policy to:

(2) _ Give due recognition to the contribution of the farmers and fisherfolks

to the Philippines economy;

(b) Affirm that they are entitled to the needed assistance and social

benefits to alleviate their immediate needs.

(©) _ Improve the lives and status of our local farmers.

The State shall encourage non-governmental, community-based, or sectoral
organizations that promote the welfare of the nation. Towards this end, the State
shall establish programs that invest and harness our country’s human capital and
improvement of delivery of basic services to the poor, particularly education, health
and nutrition, which is an intervention anticipated to break the intergenerational

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cycle of poverty. It may be through investment in human capital and improved
delivery of basic services to the poor, particularly education, health, nutrition and
early childhood care and development.

CHAPTER II
DEFINITION OF TERMS

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. —For the purpose of this Act, the following shall be
understood as follows:

a) PAGASA — Philippine Agricultural Growth and Stimuli Acceleration Act.

b) Unconditional Cash Grant - refers to the amount being received by the qualified
household-beneficiaries who are in dire need for financial assistance;

c) Poor farmers and fisherfolks — refers to farmers and fisherfolks whose income
falls below the poverty threshold as defined by the National Economic and

Development Authority (NEDA) and cannot afford in a sustained manner to
provide their minimum basic needs of food, health, education, housing and
other essential amenities of life;

4) Collective farms ~ refers to aggregate of lands by agrarian reform beneficiaries
and/or government lands and/or government sequestered lands for the purpose
of agriculture, fishing and livestock raising which are controlled and managed by
the government;

e) Farmers - refers to a natural person whose primary livelihood is cultivation of
land or the production of agricultural crops, either by himself, or primarily with
the assistance of his immediate farm household, whether the land is owned by
him, or by another person under a leasehold or share tenancy agreement or
arrangement with the owner thereof.

f) Farmworkers - is a natural person who renders service for value as an employee
or laborer in an agricultural enterprise or farm regardless of whether his/her
‘compensation is paid on a daily, weekly, monthly or "pakyaw’” basis. The term
includes an individual whose work has ceased as a consequence of, or in
connection with, a pending agrarian dispute and who has not obtained a
substantially equivalent and regular farm employment.

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g) Fisherfolk - refers to a natural person whose primary livelihood is fishing.

h) Fish workers - is a natural person who renders service for value as an employee
or laborer in a fishing enterprise or fish farms regardless of whether his/her
compensation is paid on a daily, weekly, monthly or "pakyaw” basis.

i) Grantee refers to the most qualified household-beneficiary authorized to receive
the conditional cash transfer.

CHAPTER III
(CASH ASSISTANCE and BENEFICIARIES

SEC. 4. Eligible Beneficiaries — Farmers, fisherfolks, homeless families, indigenous
peoples, those in the informal settler sector and those in geographically isolated and
disadvantaged area including those in areas without electricity shall be automatically
included in the standardized targeting system to be conducted by the designated
congress.

All farmworkers, fish workers, agricultural workers and other qualified beneficiaries
will be given a just and uniform rate across the country, to be determined by
PAGASA Inc.

SEC. 5. Unconditional Cash Transfer - Subject to the qualifications, poor farmers
and fisherfolks shall receive a conditional cash transfer equivalent to 1,200 pesos per
month to alleviate their immediate needs.

This allocation per year from the National Budget and receipt of sovereign and
foreign grants shall be distributed as a form of government grants to qualified
farmer-beneficiaries and organizations duly accredited by the Department of
Agrarian Reform;

The maximum grant shall be decided by the PAGASA Management.

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Sec. 6. Qualifications. - The main beneficiaries will be the farmers, fisherfolk, farm
and fisher workers. Other criteria for eligibility should be regulated by the Local
Government Units (LGU) in consultation with the Department of Agriculture (DA),
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and recognized
organization of the sector.

Priority will be given to people's organizations, associations and/or agricultural
cooperatives to encourage collective ownership of agricultural lands and industries.

Sec. 7. Mentoring and Training Program. - A mentoring, training and evaluation
program shall be established by the DA in partnership with the DSWD and the LGU
to provide appropriate knowledge transfer in relation to farming and fishing and
other appropriate capacity development interventions.

Sec. 8. Three (3)- Year Maximum Limit. — Each qualified farmer or fisherfolk shall
receive the unconditional cash grant for a maximum period of three (3) years.

Sec. 9. Loan Assistance. — & farmer or fisherfolk who successfully completed the
government mentoring, training and evaluation programs under Section 7 of this Act
may be given loan assistance as part of their capital in their farming and fishing
livelihood by the appropriate government agency that will implement relevant
programs.

Sec. 10. Congressional Oversight Committee - Upon the effectivity of this Act, a
congressional oversight committee, hereafter to be referred to as the Committee, is
hereby constituted. The Committee shall be composed of fourteen (8) members with
the chairpersons of the Committee on Agriculture and Food of the House of
Representatives, and the Committee on Social Justice, Welfare and Rural
Development of the Senate and six (3) additional members from each House, to be
designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Senate
President, respectively. This Committee is principally tasked to set the overall
framework to monitor and ensure the proper implementation of this Act. It shall

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likewise determine inherent weaknesses in the law and recommend necessary
remedial legislation or executive measures

CHAPTER IV
PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURAL GROWTH AND Support Access, Inc. (PAGASA INC.)

SEC. 11. Philippine Agricultural Growth and Support Access, Inc. - There is hereby
created a government owned and controlled corporation to be known as Philippine
Agricultural Growth and Support Access, Inc. herein after referred to as PAGASA
Inc., which shall operate as an independent entity within the Department. PAGASA
Inc. shall be run as the State corporation tasked to venture into agri-business
enterprises by bridging people, communities and organizations along the
value/supply chains, employing farmworkers, fish workers and agricultural workers
all over the country.

The PAGASA Inc. shall exclusively manage, implement and control collective
farming and fishing communities as mandated by this Act and shall formulate other
agri-business ventures as the need and capacity may arise.

SEC. 13. PAGASA Inc., Management and Procedures - An active and vigilant support
system of professionals, scientists and business managers to ensure that the
beneficiaries of PAGASA shall properly manage the agricultural industries that they
applied for a grant.

The management shall mandatorily conduct a periodic assessment annually to the
its beneficiaries and evaluate the effectiveness of the cash assistance to their status,
harvests, trading and other related implementation.

SEC 14. PAGASA Inc., as Authorized Government Depository — it shall be the
accredited and authorized GOCC to distribute and manage the funds for the
beneficiary. It may also be delegated to the LGU, through a formal agreement and
including the schedule to followed in the distribution and verification of beneficiaries
or grantees.

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CHAPTER V
TRANSITORY PROVISIONS

SEC. 15. Transition Period. - All transfer of functions, assets, funds, personnel,
equipment, properties, and transactions in the affected national government
agencies, and the formulation and implementation of the internal organic structures,
staffing patterns, operating systems, and revised budgets of the Department, shall
be completed within six (6) months from the effectivity of this Act, during which
existing personnel shall continue to assume their posts in holdover capacities until
new appointments are issued.

SEC. 16. Implementing Authority. - The Secretary is hereby authorized to
undertake the implementation of the provisions of this Act and implement the
necessary organizational changes within the specified six (6)-month transition
period.

‘SEC. 17. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within six (6) months from the
effectivity of this Act, the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, coordination
with appropriate government departments and agencies, with the participation of
the local government units shall promulgate the necessary rules and regulations to
carry out the provisions of this Act.
CHAPTER VI
FUNDING

SEC. 18. Funding. - The amount necessary for the initial implementation of the
provisions of this Act shall be charged against the current year’s appropriations of
the DA and DAR. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the continued
implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations
‘Act, including the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) from the Rice
Tariffication Law.

CHAPTER VII
FINAL PROVISIONS

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SEC. 23. Mandatory Review on the Implementation of this Act. - The
Department shall conduct a review on the implementation of this Act and shall
submit to Congress a report on its findings at the end of the second year from the
date of the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 24. Separability Clause. - If, for any reason or reasons, any portion or
provision of this Act shall be held unconstitutional or invalid, the remaining
provisions not affected thereby shalll continue to be in full force and effect.

SEC. 25. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive orders, proclamations, rules,
regulations and other issuances or parts thereof which are inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

SEC. 26. Aifectivity. - 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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