Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Philippines

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No.6975

Introduced by HON. NICANOR M. BRIONES
Representative, AGAP Party List

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act was enacted into law in 2016. However,
since its implementation, the prosecution of suspected smugglers is dismal. The
incidence of smuggling in the country remains alarming. The unusual trends in the
volume of importation of agricultural products in the past year, particularly livestock
and poultry, indicate the possibility of rampant misdeclaration and other
irregularities in importation.

The 1987 Constitution mandates the State to promote social justice in all
phases of national development. Moreover, the State shall develop a self-reliant and
independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos and shall protect
Filipino enterprises against unfair foreign competition and trade practices.

The impact of the decades-long problem of smuggling, hoarding, profiteering,
and operation of cartels is already felt at the consumer level with the unwarranted
and unreasonable rising prices of commodities despite the absence of food shortage.
More than that, our farmers are most affected by the stiff competition in the market
with the influx of imported and smuggled goods. During the Senate hearing on the
importation of onions, it was revealed that five onion farmers who have suffered huge
economic losses due to the manipulation, hoarding, and smuggling of onions,
committed suicide. The overimportation and smuggling of onions during harvest
season ultimately led to this tragedy. This would not have occurred if only adequate
support is given to our local agriculture

Hence, it is necessary that we implement stricter measures against
agricultural smuggling. This bill is filed to strengthen the government's anti-
agricultural smuggling measures through an expansion of the prohibited acts in
Republic Act No. 10845, creation of a National Anti-Smuggling Council and Task
Force with the involvement of the private sector, and the extension of period of
detention for arrested suspected smugglers in order to effectively curb smuggling and
fully prosecute those behind this economic sabotage.

It is undeniable that smuggling and the continued hoarding, profiteering, and
operation of cartels kill our agriculture industry. It is high time that we put our local
agriculture into the spotlight and provide them utmost support in order to secure

yeP RE,
Kt SEN

42
/ RECEIVED
2 DATEYAN 3 0 aman


sufficient food supply and an accelerated economic development.

With the foregoing premises considered, I seek your support in the approval
of this bill.

fepresentative
AGAP Partylist


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF A’
Quezon City, Philippines

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bil No.6975

Introduced by HON. NICANOR M. BRIONES
Representative, AGAP Party List

AN ACT
STRENGTHENING ANTI-AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING MEASURES, AMENDING
FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10845, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE
ANTI-AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING ACT OF 2016, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES

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

SECTION 1. Republic Act No. 10845 (RA 10845) is hereby amended to read
as follows:
AN ACT DECLARING LARGE-SCALE AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING,
HOARDING, PROFITEERING, AND CARTEL AS ECONOMIC SABOTAGE,
PRESCRIBING PENALTIES THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

SEC. 2. Section 1 of RA 10845 is hereby amended to read as follows:

See. 1. This Act shall be known as the “Anti-Agricultural [Smuggling]
ECONOMIC SABOTAGE Act of 2016”

SEC. 3. Section 2 of RA 10845 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote
the productivity of the agriculture sector and to protect farmers from
unscrupulous traders and importers, hoarders, profiteers, and cartels, who
by their illegal importation, HOARDING, PROFITEERING, AND
CARTELIZING of agricultural products, especially rice, significantly affect the
production, availability of supply and stability of prices, and the food security
of the State.

THE STATE SHALL LIKEWISE PROMOTE THE AFFORDABILITY OF
FOOD AND OTHER AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES FOR FILIPINO
CONSUMERS BY PREVENTING LARGE-SCALE SMUGGLING, HOARDING,
PROFITEERING, AND CARTELIZING TO MANIPULATE PRICES AND
UNDULY RESTRAIN SUPPLY.


The State shall impose higher sanctions for large-scale smuggling,
HOARDING, PROFITEERING, AND CARTELIZING of agricultural products,
as a self-preservation measure to shield itself from the manipulative scheme
of economic saboteurs, and to protect the livelihood of our farmers and to
ensure their economic well-being and that of the consumers.

TOWARDS THIS END, THE STATE SHALL ESTABLISH AN
INDEPENDENT PUBLIC-PRIVATE ANTI-AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING
COUNCIL MANDATED AND EMPOWERED TO INVESTIGATE AND
PROSECUTE SMUGGLING, HOARDING, PROFITEERING, AND
CARTELIZING TO EFFECTIVELY ELIMINATE THESE FORMS OF ILLEGAL
ACTIVITIES WHICH ARE INIMICAL TO THE WELFARE OF THE FARMERS
AND CONSUMERS, AND TO THE COUNTRY’S FOOD SECURITY.

SEC. 4. A new Section 3A shall be inserted after Section 3 of RA 10845 to read
as follows:

Sec. 3A. Large-scale Agricultural Smuggling, Hoarding,
Profiteering, and Cartel as Economic Sabotage. - Hoarding, profiteering,
or cartel, as defined in Section 5 of Republic Act No. 7581, insofar as
they involve sugar, corn, pork, poultry, garlic, onion, carrots, fish, and
cruciferous vegetables, in its raw state, or which have undergone the
simple processes of preparation or preservation for the market, with a
minimum amount of one million pesos (P 1,000,000.00), or rice, with a
minimum amount of ten million pesos (P 10,000,000.00), as valued by
the Bureau of Customs (BOC) for imports or by the Department of
Agriculture for domestically produced commodities, shall constitute
economic sabotage.

SEC. 5. Section 4 of RA 10845 is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 4. Penalties. —

(a) The penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of twice the fair value of the
smuggled agricultural product OR THE PRODUCT SUBJECT TO
HOARDING, PROFITEERING, OR CARTEL and the aggregate amount of the
taxes, duties and other charges avoided PLUS INTEREST AT THE
PREVAILING LEGAL RATE shall be imposed on any person who commits any
of the acts enumerated under Sections 3 AND 3A of this Act.

(b) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than seventeen (17) years but not
more than twenty (20) years, and a fine of twice the fair value of the smuggled,
HOARDED, PROFITEERED, OR CARTELIZED agricultural product and the
aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall be
imposed on the officers of dummy corporations, nongovernment
organizations, associations, cooperatives, or single proprietorships who
knowingly sell, lend, lease, assign, consent or allow the unauthorized use of
their import permits for purposes of smuggling, HOARDING,
PROFITEERING, OR CARTELIZING.

(c) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than fourteen (14) years but not
more than seventeen (17) years and a fine equal to the fair value of the
smuggled, HOARDED, PROFITEERED, OR CARTELIZED agricultural


product and the aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges
avoided shall be imposed on the following:

(1) The registered owner and its lessee or charterer, in case of lease, of
a chartered boat, motorized commercial vessel of more than three (3)
gross tonnage, who knowingly transports the agricultural product
subject to economic sabotage, regardless of quantity;

(2) The registered owner and its lessee, in case of lease of six (6) or more
wheeler trucks, vans and other means of transportation, who
knowingly transports the agricultural product subject to economic
sabotage, regardless of quantity;

(3) The registered owner and lessee of a warehouse, or any property,
who knowingly stores the smuggled, HOARDED, PROFITEERED, OR
CARTELIZED agricultural product subject to economic sabotage; or

(4) The registered owner, lessee, president or chief executive officer of
the private port, fish port, fish landing sites, resorts, and airports who
knowingly allows the agricultural product to be smuggled into the
country, OR TO BE HOARDED WITHIN THEIR FACILITIES.

(d) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than twelve (12) years but not more
than fourteen (14) years and a fine equal to the fair value of the smuggled
agricultural product subject to economic sabotage and the aggregate amount
of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall be imposed on the
following:

(1) The registered owner and its lessee or charterer, in case of lease.; of
a chartered boat, motorized commercial vessel of three (3) gross
tonnage or less, who knowingly transports the agricultural product
subject to economic sabotage, regardless of quantity; or

(2) The registered owner and its lessee, in case of lease, of less than six
(6) wheeler trucks, vans and other means of transportation, who
knowingly transports the agricultural product subject to economic
sabotage, regardless of quantity.

In all cases, the smuggled agricultural products shall be confiscated AND
DESTROYED WITHIN SEVEN (7) DAYS and the property used in agricultural
smuggling, consistent with SECTIONS 1113 AND 1114 OF THE CUSTOMS
MODERNIZATION AND TARIFF ACT and without prejudice to SECTION
1115 of the same ACT, shall be forfeited in favor of the government.

When the offender is a juridical person, criminal liability shall attach to its
president, chief operating officer or manager who consents to or knowingly
tolerates the commission of the prohibited crime.

Any person, natural or juridical, found guilty under this Act shall also suffer
the penalty of perpetual absolute disqualification to engage in any business
involving importation.


In applying the abovementioned penalties, if the offender is an alien and the
prescribed penalty is not life imprisonment, he/she shall be deported after
serving the sentence without further proceedings for deportation.

If the offender is a government official or employee, the penalty shall be the
maximum as hereinabove prescribed and the offender shall suffer an
additional penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office, to vote and
to participate in any public election.

SEC. 6. Creation of National Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council. -
There is hereby created a National Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council, hereinafter
referred to as the “Council”, which shall be headed by the Office of the President,
principally to combat large-scale agricultural smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and
cartels provided under this law.

SEC. 7. Composition. - The Council shall be composed of the following
member:
a, Presidential Security Group, or whoever may be appointed by the President
b. Representative from the Bureau of Customs
c. Department of Agriculture, Assistant Secretary for DA Inspectorate and
Enforcement
d. Representative from the rice farmers sector - Federation of Free Farmers
e. Representative from the pork producers sector - Pork Producers
Federation of the Philippines
f. Representative from the poultry producers sector - United Broilers Raisers
Association
Representative from the egg producers sector - Egg Council of the
Philippines
Representative from the egg producers sector - Philippine Egg Board
Representative from the corn farmers sector - Philippine Maize Federation
Representative from the vegetable farmers sector - League of Association
of La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Post
k. Representative from the fisherfolk sector
1. Representative from the sugar planters sector - National Federation of
Sugarcane Planters
m. Representative from the tobacco farmers sector
n. Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura
0. Agricultural Sector Alliance of the Philippines

vee a

SEC. 8. Powers and Functions of the Council. - The Council shall have the
following powers and functions:

a. To prepare and implement appropriate and effective measures to prevent and
suppress large-scale agricultural smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and
cartels;

b. To direct and oversee the conduct of anti-agricultural economic sabotage
intelligence operations and the operations of the Task Force, including the
monitoring of situations, circumstances, activities of individuals, groups, and
entities who are involved or who are reasonably believed to be involved in
smuggling and other market abuses of agricultural products provided for in
RA 10845;

c. To establish a mechanism for an interactive and coordinative mode of
operations to ensure operational effectiveness with utmost economy and


efficiency;

d. To recommend the issuance of alert orders, search warrant, warrant of seizure
and detention in appropriate cases;

e. To deputize the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Task Force and other law
enforcement agencies for the investigation, prosecution, search and seizure,
and arrest of suspected smugglers;

f. To cause or direct the immediate investigation and initiate cases before the
prosecutor motu proprio involving smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and
cartels of agricultural products, and monitor the progress of such cases;

g. To grant monetary rewards and incentives to informants who are willing to
give vital and material information for the building up of cases for the arrest
and prosecution of agricultural smuggling suspects; and

h. To perform such functions and carry out such activities as may be directed by
the President.

SEC. 9. Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Task Force. - There shall be an Anti-
Agricultural Smuggling Task Force, hereinafter referred to as the “Task Force”, to be
headed by the Presidential Security Group, with an assistant team leader from the
Armed Forces of the Philippines, and shall be composed of the following:

Philippine National Police;

National Bureau of Investigation;

Armed Forces of the Philippines;

Philippine Coast Guard; and

Representatives of the agricultural sectors who arg members of the Council.

eaoop

SEC. 10. Powers and functions of the Task Force. - The Task Force shall be
under the control and supervision of the Council and shall have the following powers
and functions:

a. To effect searches, seizures, and arrests, and to file administrative and
criminal cases before the prosecutor as may be directed by the Council;

b. To inspect warehouses where seized commodities are stored to ensure that
such commodities are not being ferreted out or removed without proper
documentation; and

c. To secure copies of documents pertaining to the nature and particulars of the
commodity or goods subject of importation, i.e., quantity or volume, technical
or qualitative specifications, port of destination/estimated date of arrival in
the Philippines, cargo manifest, reference values from the Bureau of Customs,
transaction values of importers, among others, from government agencies
concerned, including but not limited to the Bureau of Customs, Department
of Agriculture, and also from non-government sources like pre-shipment
companies at the port of origin, and commercial banks in accordance with
existing laws, rules, and regulations.

SEC. 11. Extension of period of detention without judicial warrant of
arrest, - Any member of the Task Force who, having been duly authorized by the
Council in writing, has taken custody of a person suspected of committing any of the
following acts defined and penalized under Sections 3 and 4 of this Act, and Section
3 of RA 10845, shall, without incurring any criminal liability for delay in the delivery
of detained persons to the proper judicial authorities, deliver said suspected person
to the proper judicial authority within a period of fourteen (14) calendar days counted
from the moment the suspected person has been apprehended or arrested, detained,
and taken into custody by the members of the Task Force and law enforcement


agencies.

Articles, effects, and other properties used in the commission of the crimes
enumerated in this Act shall be immediately seized in accordance with the provisions
of this Act, the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act, Rules on Criminal Procedure,
and existing laws, rules, and regulations.

SEC. 12. Special Team of Prosecutors. - To assist the Council and the Task
Force in the expeditious prosecution of criminal and other cases covered under this
law, a Special Team of Prosecutors from the Department of Justice shall be assigned
to and be under the supervision of the Council. The Team shall have the following
powers and duties:

a. To evaluate evidence gathered by the Council and to determine whether or not
violation of RA 10845, as amended, other related laws and regulations, and/or
pertinent provisions of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, among others,
has been committed;

b. To apply for the issuance of warrant of seizure and detention in appropriate
cases;

c. To initiate and conduct preliminary investigations and timely file and
prosecute the appropriate administrative and criminal charges against the
person, group, or entity responsible for smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and
cartel; and

d. To apply for the issuance of search warrant or warrant of arrest before the
courts in appropriate administrative or criminal cases.

SEC. 13. Funding. - Five percent (5%) of the total tariff collections from livestock,
poultry, and dairy; five percent (5%) of the excess tariff collections from rice; and five
percent (5%) of the total tariffs collected from other agricultural products enumerated
in Section 3 of this Act, shall be set aside to finance the operations of the Council
and the Task Force and the implementation of this Act.

SEC. 14. Reporting Requirements. ~The Council shall submit an annual report
to Congress on the progress and accomplishments made in the implementation of
this Act, including policy recommendations to improve anti-smuggling operations.

SEC. 15. Implementing Rules and Regulations. ~ Within thirty (30) days from
effectivity of this Act, the Council shall, in coordination with other government
agencies concerned, promulgate the rules and regulations to expeditiously
implement the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and
regulations, and other issuances, or parts thereof, contrary to or inconsistent with
this Act are hereby modified, amended or repealed accordingly.

SEC. 17. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act shall be held
unconstitutional or invalid, the remaining provisions which are not affected thereby
shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SEC. 18. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,