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EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS «2 fee S

Second Regular Session

SinpersY
House Bill No. 7880

Introduced by REP. JOEY SARTE SALCEDA

AN ACT
AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT TO EXPEDITE THE PROCESSING
AND ISSUANCE OF NATIONAL AND LOCAL PERMITS, LICENSES
AND CERTIFICATIONS

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Philippines is pursuing a serious bid for investments seeking more promising destinations,
as trade tensions between global economic powers persist, and as enterprises seek markets and
bases with greater economic potentials. In recent years, the country has achieved significant
progress in the area of making doing business easier.

The World Bank's 2020 Doing Business Report demonstrates the country’s significant
improvements in the area. According to the report, the country improved by 29 notches, ranking
95th from 124th last year. The Philippines got an Ease of Doing Business score of 62.8 in the
2020 report, an improvement over its grade in the previous year of 57.68. The report
underscores the country’s improvement in three key areas: starting a business, dealing with
construction permits, and protecting minority investors. Nonetheless, the ranking still leaves
the Philippines in last place among the founding members of Southeast Asian Nations.

As the country pursues aggressive investments in infrastructure, health and human capital
development, and digital transformation, ease of doing business and citizen services must also
be enhanced.

For instance, a review of registration procedures across key economies in ASEAN will reveal
that business registration procedures in the Philippines are among the longest in the region.
Furthermore, Philippine businesses have to interact with at least 10 agencies, as opposed to just
5 or 6 in Indonesia and Vietnam, and just one agency in Singapore.

Looking into the respective Citizen’s Charters of agencies involved in processing business
registration procedures reveals that while it may appear that registration procedures are
straightforward and simplified, the wide array of documentary requirements that the various
registration processes feed each other weaves everything together into a process that can get
Jong and convoluted.


There is also a lack of proper and navigable digitization of registration services, even despite
Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) guidelines to digitize services due to the COVID-19
pandemic. Some agencies only have online appointment platforms which allow clients to set
their appointments with offices in advance and eliminating walk-in processing. In effect, some
processes remain unchanged and still require in-person appearances to complete.

All this reveals that while individual government agencies have been implementing measures
to streamline their own processes, the bulk of the red tape that needs cutting actually lies in the
relationships between agencies. This further highlights the urgent need for the whole-of-
government reengineering guidelines that the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of
the current Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Law calls for.

This bill answers the call of President Duterte to provide the Executive Branch with the power
to expedite the issuance of licenses, permits, and certifications.

Beyond these powers, however, this bill acknowledges that many of the delays in the
processing and issuance of these documents and authorizations are structural. This bill thus
authorizes the President to direct relevant agencies to formulate and pursue recommendations
to address structural and systemic issues that cause unintended red-tape.

‘The bill also grants the President the power to direct the Commissioner of Internal Revenue
and the Commissioner of Customs to expedite taxpayer processes and enhance taxpayer
experience. Enhancing taxpayer experience will encourage taxpayer compliance, which will
boost revenue collection during this time of critical need.

If the powers provided in this bill are used fully, business registration in the country could be
reduced to just one day, with the client facing just one clearing agency. The bill will also
empower the President to eliminate redundant authorizations within the Executive Branch.

In view of the necessity of enacting this measure in the timeliest manner possible, as
emphasized by the President’s certification of the Senate counterpart of this measure as urgent,
the immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

JOEY SARTE SALCEDA


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

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No,__ 7880

Introduced by REP. JOEY SARTE SALCEDA

AN ACT
AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT TO EXPEDITE THE PROCESSING
AND ISSUANCE OF NATIONAL AND LOCAL PERMITS, LICENSES
AND CERTIFICATIONS

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

SECTION 1. Coverage. ~ This Act shall cover all agencies of the Executive branch,
including departments, bureaus, offices, commissions, boards, councils; government
instrumentalities, government owned and controlled corporations.

SEC. 2. Authority of the President to cause the reengineering of government processes.
~ The President is hereby authorized to direct the Civil Service Commission (CSC), the
Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and the National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA) to craft guidelines and general principles of a whole-of-government
reengineering of the processes for the processing of issuance of national and local permits,
licenses, and certifications issued by the Executive Branch and by Local Government Units,
except those which are explicitly required under law.

For highly technical transactions specifically mandated by existing laws, the President
may direct the CSC and DBM to authorize the augmentation of personnel performing tasks
directly related to the processing and issuance of such licenses, permits, and certifications,
whenever the CSC and DBM find the necessity for such augmentation.

SEC. 3. Authority of the President to Suspend the Requirements for National and Local
Permits, Licenses and Certifications, and to Streamline and Expedite the Process for the
Issuance thereof. - Notwithstanding any law, decree, order or ordinance to the contrary, the
President, in times of national emergency shalll have the authority to:

(a) accelerate and streamline regulatory processes and procedures for new and pending
applications for permits, licenses, clearances, certifications, or authorizations, including fixing
or shortening the periods provided for under existing laws, regulations, issuances, and
ordinances;

(b) suspend or waive the requirements in securing such permits, licenses, clearances,
certifications, or authorizations;


(©) use intelligence funds under the Office of the President to augment the personnel
performing tasks directly related to the processing and issuance of such licenses, permits, and
certifications; and

(d) direct any other agency under the Executive branch, including military and
uniformed personnel, to assist any other agency or office in the processing and issuance of
license, permits, and certifications.

SEC. 4. Power to suspend or remove personnel in the Executive Branch. ~ Consistent
with Article VII Sections 17 and 18 of the Constitution, the Revised Administrative Code, other
existing laws, and jurisprudence, the President shall have the authority to suspend or remove,
upon the determination ofa competent body, any government official or employee performing
acts contrary to the preceding section.

SEC. 5. Power to direct the Anti-Red Tape Authority to recommend capacitation. ~The
Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) is hereby given the additional mandate of recommending
structural and personnel augmentation, and or reorganization reforms whenever it is
determined that the cause of delays in the issuance of permits, licenses, and certifications by a
relevant agency is a systemic or structural issue. The Department of Budget and Management
(DBM) is mandated to study and comment on ARTA recommendations pursuant to this
Section, and whenever deemed meritorious and as may be relevant and appropriate, to cause
the inclusion of the relevant recommendations to the immediately succeeding National
Expenditure Plan.

SEC. 6. Study and report to reduce basic business registration process to one day and
with one registration agency. ~The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Department
of Budget and Management (DBM), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the
ARTA, and other relevant agencies, are directed to formulate a joint study and report to
Congress and the President on the elimination of redundant business registration requirements,
with the aim of reducing business registration to just one (1) working day. The ARTA shall be
the coordinator of efforts to complete the joint study and report.

The feasibility of a single business entities registration agency as the receiving office
and clearing house of registration requirements shall also be included in the joint study and
report.

The joint study and report shall be submitted to Congress and the President within
ninety (90) days upon the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 7. Power of the President to repeal or amend rules and regulations which
preclude agency or process digitalization. — Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the
President shall have the power to repeal or amend any rule, regulation, or issuance issued by
any agency or instrumentality under the Executive Branch, which prevents any agency or office
from making their processes compatible with the digital space, or which makes compulsory the
physical appearance of the client to complete the processing and/or issuance of any license,
permit, or certification.

SEC. 8. Power to Direct the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and the Commissioner
of Customs to expedite the processing of tax filings and payment. ~ Notwithstanding any law


to the contrary, the President shall have the power to direct the Commissioner of Internal
Revenue and the Commissioner of Customs to issue such regulations and perform such tasks
as may be necessary to expedite the processing of tax filings and payments, and to enhance
taxpayer experience.

SEC 9. Separability Clause. — If any part or provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the remaining parts or provisions not affected shall remain in full force and
effect.

SEC 10. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees, orders, rules, and regulations
inconsistent with the provisions of this Decree are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC 11. Effectivity.— This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in
the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,