RECEIVED

z FE gare, JUL 2 9 2019
Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
- Quezon City, Metro Manila 7

Eighteenth Congress
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. _ 2518

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e
Introduced by Honorable Jericho Jonas B. Nograles

EXPLANATORY NOTE

AN ACT RIGHTSIZING THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT TO
IMPROVE PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY

This bill proposes to implement a rightsizing program in the
National Government for the purpose of enhancing the government's
institutional capacity to improve public service delivery.

As contained in E.O. 366, otherwise known as “The
RATIONALIZATION PROGRAM”. This bill seeks to improve the
quality and efficiency of government service delivery by minimizing
duplication and improving performance through the rationalization of
service delivery and support systems and organization structure and
staffing.

This will further ensure the long term sustainability of our
government service through resource mobilization and cost effective

public expenditure management.

In view thereof, the immediate approval of this bill is highly
recommended.

JERICHD JONAS B. RALES



weUIA NAY N =

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Eighteenth Congress
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. __2518

Introduced by Honorable Jericho Jonas B. Nograles

AN ACT
RIGHTSIZING THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT TO IMPROVE
PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY

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
“Rightsizing the National Government Act of 2019.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of
the State to promote and maintain effectiveness, efficiency and economy
in the government, and enhance institutional capacity to improve public
service delivery, and to ensure the attainment of the country’s societal
and economic development goals and objectives. Consistent with this, the
government shall focus its functions and resources on the essential role,
scope, and level of governance, and minimize, if not eliminate,
redundancies, overlaps and duplications in its operations and simplify its

systems and processes.


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SEC. 3. Coverage. - This Act shall cover all national government
agencies, including departments, bureaus, offices, commissions, boards,
councils, and all other entities attached to or under their administrative
supervision.

The Legislature, the Judiciary, Constitutional Offices, State
Universities and Colleges, and Local Government Units (LGUs) may,
within their respective authorized appropriations, likewise rightsize their
respective offices, consistent with the principles and guidelines contained
in this Act.

The Governance Commission for Government-Owned or -
Controlled Corporations shall continue to exercise its authority under
Republic Act (RA) No. 10149 to reorganize, merge, streamline, abolish
or privatize any government-owned or -controlled corporation (GOCC),
in consultation with the department or agency to which the GOCC is
attached.

SEC. 4. Principles and Guidelines. - The National Government
shall implement the rightsizing program in accordance with the following
principles and guidelines:

a) The role of government and the scope, level, and
prioritization of government activities shall be determined in accordance
with the constitutional mandate, political and socio-economic objectives

of the government, and available resources;


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b) The delineation of responsibilities between the National
Government and the LGUs in the provision, production, and delivery of
goods and services shall be clearly defined;

c) | Government operations shall be simplified so that the
departments or agencies can focus on the performance of their core
functions and implementation of programs and projects that will lead to
the attainment of the desired sectoral and national goals and outcomes;

d) | Government systems and processes shall be simplified to
facilitate the delivery and upgrade the quality of frontline services, as
well as to improve policy formulation, planning and performance
evaluation;

e) Government rules shall be rationalized to reduce the
regulatory burden on citizens, businesses and other stakeholders; and

f) The organizational structure of agencies shall be rightsized
and the appropriate staffing mix shall be determined based on the skills
and competencies required to effectively and efficiently carry out the
agency mandate and functions.

SEC. 5. Authority of the President of the Philippines to Rightsize
the Operations of the National Government. - Pursuant to the policies,
principles and guidelines stipulated in this Act, the President is hereby
granted the following authority in the rightsizing of the operations of the

different departments or agencies of the National Government:

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a)  Toundertake the following organizational actions in order to
eliminate functions, programs and projects which are already redundant,
no longer necessary, or those duplicating or overlapping between and
among the units within the department or with other departments or
agencies of the National Government:

1) Abolish, deactivate, group, integrate, merge, consolidate or
split national government agencies, including departments, bureaus,
offices, commissions, boards, councils, and all other entities attached to
or under their administrative supervision;

2) — Create, establish or regularize offices; and

3) Transfer offices, functions, programs and projects, and their
corresponding appropriations, equipment, properties, records, personnel,
and transactions, from one department or agency to another.

b) To formulate and provide safety nets, including their
implementation strategies, for employees of departments or agencies who
may be affected by the government's rightsizing efforts.

SEC. 6. Creation of a Committee on Rightsizing the National
Government. - A Committee on Rightsizing the National Government is
hereby created to oversee the implementation of the rightsizing program
of the National Government’s hereafter referred to as Committee, in
accordance with the provisions of this Act.

The Committee shall be composed of the following:


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a) Executive Secretary as Chairman;

b) Secretary of Budget and Management as Co-Chairman;

c) Director-General of the National Economic and
Development Authority;

d) Chairperson of the Civil Service Commission (CSC); and

e) Head of the Presidential Management Staff, as members.

The Committee shall be organized within fifteen (15) days from
the effectivity of this Act.

The Committee shall also organize a Technical Working Group
composed of experts on government operations, organizational
development, and human resource management to assist in the
performance of its functions.

In the spirit of transparency and participatory governance, the
Committee shall consult the departments or agencies concerned and
accredited public sector unions relative to the implementation of the
rightsizing program.

SEC. 7. Powers and Functions of the Committee. - The
Committee shall have the following powers and functions:

a) Develop the policies, framework, strategies and mechanisms
to be adopted in the implementation of the National Government’s
rightsizing program;

b) Conduct studies on the functions, programs, projects,


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operations, structure and manpower complement of the different
departments or agencies;

c) Develop and prepare the rightsized organizational structure
of departments or agencies and the corresponding executive issuances for
approval by the President;

d) — Monitor the implementation by the different departments or
agencies of their respective approved rightsizing plans, and report to the
President any issue that must be addressed;

e) Commission the conduct of an independent impact
assessment on the National Government's rightsizing program after its
completion, to determine the effects of, and gains from, the
implementation of the program, mitigate any adverse effects, and address
areas which still require improvements; and

f) Formulate the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of
this Act.

In the spirit of transparency and participatory governance, the
Committee shall consult the departments or agencies and accredited
public sector unions relative to the implementation of the National
Government's rightsizing program.

SEC. 8. Submission of the Rightsized Organizational Structure
and Proposed Executive Issuances to the President. - The Committee

shall submit to the President the rightsized organizational structure of


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departments or agencies and the corresponding executive issuances
within one (1) year from the effectivity of the IRR of this Act.

SEC. 9. Submission of the Detailed Organizational Structure and
Staffing to the DBM. — Department secretaries and agency heads shall
prepare and submit to the DBM the detailed organizational structure and
staffing of their respective departments or agencies within ninety (90)
days after the approval of the proposed executive issuances by the
President.

SEC. 10. Retirement Benefits and Separation Incentives for
Personnel Who May be Affected by the Rightsizing Program. - The
affected personnel, whether hired on a permanent, temporary, casual or
contractual basis and with appointments attested by the CSC, shall be
entitled to retirement benefits and separation incentives.

A. The affected personnel shall be given the option to avail

themselves of any of the following retirement benefits under

existing laws, if qualified:
1) _ Retirement gratuity provided under RA No. 1616 (An

Act Further Amending Section Twelve of Commonwealth Act

Numbered One Hundred Eighty-Six, as Amended, By Prescribing

Two Other Modes of Retirement and for Other Purposes), as

amended; or


2) Retirement benefit under RA No. 660 (An Act to
Amend Commonwealth Act Numbered One Hundred and Eighty-
Six Entitled “An Act to Create and Establish a Government Service
Insurance System, to Provide for its Administration, and to
Appropriate the Necessary Funds Therefor,” and to Provide
Retirement Insurance and for Other Purposes); or

3) Retirement, separation or unemployment benefit
provided under RA No. 8291 (An Act Amending Presidential
Decree No. 1146, as Amended, Expanding and Increasing the
Coverage and Benefits of the Government Service Insurance
System, Instituting Reforms Therein and for Other Purposes).

The retirement gratuity benefit of affected personnel who are
qualified and have opted to avail themselves of RA No. 1616 shall
be paid by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). The
GSIS shall no longer pay the refund of retirement premiums (both
personnel and government shares) of the affected personnel who
will opt to avail of RA No. 1616 benefits.

B. __ In addition to said retirement benefits, the affected personnel
who would opt to retire or be separated shall be entitled to the

following applicable separation incentives:


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1) % of the actual monthly basic salary for every year
of government service, for those who have rendered less than 11
years of service;

2) % of the actual monthly basic salary for every year
of government service, computed starting from the I* year, for
those who have rendered 11 to less than 21 years of service;

3) the actual monthly basic salary for every year of
government service, computed starting from the 1“ year, for those
who have rendered 21 to less than 31 years of service; and

4) 1% of the actual monthly basic salary for every
year of government service, computed starting from the 1“ year, for
those who have rendered 31 years of service and above.

The actual monthly basic salary shall refer to the salary of the
affected personnel within the authorized period of implementation
of the Program in their respective departments/agencies.

A minimum of five (5) years of government service is required in
order for an affected personnel to be entitled to avail of the
Program's separation incentives under Section B of this Act:
Provided, That for the purpose of computing the total amount of
separation incentives that an affected personnel would receive, only
his/her government service up to age 59 and a fraction thereof

would be counted. Government service starting at the age 60 would


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no longer be subject to the separation incentives provided herein,

without affecting the original incentive factor determined as

applicable based on the actual years of service of the affected
personnel.

Provided, further, That for the purpose of complying with the

required number of years of service under RA No. 8291, the

portability scheme under RA No. 7699 (An Act Instituting Limited

Portability Scheme in the Social Security Insurance Systems by

Totalizing the Workers’ Creditable Services or Contributions in

Each of the Systems) may be applied, subject to existing policies

and guidelines.

The affected personnel, if with permanent appointment attested by
the CSC, who will not opt to retire from the service shall be placed in a
manpower pool to be organized and administered by the CSC. The CSC
shall retool the subject affected personnel and deploy them to agencies
which require their qualifications, skills and competencies.

The number of personnel who will avail of the separation
incentives under Section B of this Act shall in no case exceed the number
of positions declared for abolition.

The specific guidelines to carry out the provisions of this Section

shall be prescribed in the IRR of this Act.


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SEC. 11. Other Benefits of Retired/Separated Personnel. - The
affected personnel who retires or is separated shall, in addition to the
applicable benefits above, be entitled to the following:

a) Refund of Pag-IBIG Contributions - all affected personnel
who are members of the Pag-IBIG shall be entitled to the refund of their
contributions (both the personal and government shares), pursuant to
existing rules and regulations of the Home Development Mutual Fund;
and

b) | Commutation of Unused Vacation and Sick Leave Credits -
all affected personnel shall be entitled to the commutation of unused
vacation and sick leave credits in accordance with existing rules and
regulations.

SEC. 12. Period of Availability of the Retirement Benefits and
Separation Incentives. - The retirement benefits and separation
incentives provided in this Act shall be available within sixty (60) days
upon approval by the DBM of the detailed rightsized organizational
structure and staffing of departments or agencies.

SEC. 13. Prohibition on Rehiring of Personnel who has Retired
or is Separated from the Service. - Affected personnel who has retired or
is separated from the service as a result of the implementation of the
Rightsizing Program shall not be appointed nor hired as casuals or

contractual in any agency of the National Government, including in

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GOCCs, for a period of five (5) years, except as teaching staff in a state
university or college.

The provision of consultancy services by government personnel
who has retired or is separated as a result of the Rightsizing Program
shall be governed by Section 7 of RA No. 6713 (Code of Conduct and
Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees).

SEC. 14. Report to Congress. - The President shall submit a report
to Congress on the results of the rightsizing program after the completion
of its implementation.

SEC. 15. Funding Requirements. - The amount necessary for the
initial implementation of this Act shall be sourced against any applicable
appropriation items under the current General Appropriations Act.
Subsequent amount needed to continue the implementation of the
National Government's Rightsizing Program in the National Government
shall be included in the succeeding appropriations.

SEC. 16. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Committee
shall formulate the necessary IRR within thirty (30) days from the
organization of the Committee. Such rules and regulations shall take
effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in a newspaper of general

circulation.


SEC. 17. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is
declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions not otherwise
affected shall remain in full force and effect.

SEC. 18. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders,
rules and regulations, and other issuances or parts thereof which are
inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified
accordingly.

SEC. 19. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect take effect fifteen
(15) days after its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general
circulation.

Approved,