Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTAT!
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

19366

House Bill No.

Introduced by Representatives
Estrellita B. Suansing and Horacio P. Suansing, Jr.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Plastic bags have been around for half a century, and no doubt one of the
most useful inventions of our time. This time, however, the disadvantageous use of

plastic bags has outweighed their benefits

Every year, four to five trillion plastic bags are used worldwide, with billions
of bags ending up as litter. 430,000 gallons of cil are needed to produce 100 million

non-biodegradable plastic ba

gs. These bags take hundreds to thousands of years to

disintegrate.

It is a known fact thet plastic bags contaminate soil and waterways. These
are harmful to humans and animals alike, especially when accidentally ingested.
Plastic marine debris has been documented to harm at least 267 species and is
especially lethal to sea turtles.

Plastic bags and plastic bag composition account for 51.4% of flotsam! in
Manila Bay in 2006. In a follow-up survey in 2010, this figure increased to
75.55%. In Laguna de Bay, a 2011 discard survey showed that plastic bags
compose 23% of the flotsam. Plastic bags are the top marine debris collected in the

Philippines, amounting to 679,957 pounds.*

Moreover, plastic bags contribute, sometimes even magnify, the damage

caused by natural calamities that visit the country. One of the major causes of the

+ Flotsam (noun): floating debris. Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Klar, M. et al. Report: Everything you (don’t) want to know about plastics. Annex 2: The Philippine plastic
waste problem: Environmental, social, and economic dimensions. 2014. Eco Waste Coalition.
www.naturskyddsforeningen.se

3 The Marine Debris Index. 2009. Ocean Concervancy.
http://act.oceanconservancy.org/pdf/2009_Marine_Debris_Index.pdf



massive flooding that is experienced by our country during the rainy season is the

huge amount of garbage that block water drainage.4

This bill aims to regulate the use of plastic bags by providing retail stores
that provide plastic bags to consumers to implement a plastic bag collection and
recycling program. A plastic carry-out bag collection bin shall be placed in each
store and shall be visible, easily accessible to the consumer, and clearly marked
that the collection bin is available for the purpose of collecting and recycling plastic
carry-out bags. These plastic bags shall then be collected, transported, and
recycled.

To show compliance, the store shall maintain records describing the
collection, transport, and recycling of plastic carry-out bags collected for a
minimum of three (3) years and shall make the records available to the DENR or
LGU concerned.

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

a \
aed B. SUANS! HORACIO P,AUANSING, JR.
1* District, Nueva Ecija 2nd District, Nueva Ecija

“klar, M. et al. Report: Everything you (don’t) want to know about plastics. Annex 2: The Philippine plastic
waste problem: Environmental, social, and economic dimensions. 2014, Eco Waste Coalition.
www.naturskyddsforeningen.se


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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

1966

House Bill No.

~~ Introduced by Representatives
Estrellita B. Suansing and Horacio P. Suansing, Jr.

AN ACT
REQUIRING RETAIL STORES THAT PROVIDE PLASTIC BAGS TO CONSUMERS
TO IMPLEMENT A PLASTIC BAG COLLECTION AND RECYCLING PROGRAM

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Plastic Bag
Recycling Act of 2014.”

SECTION 2. Deciaration of Policies. - The State shall protect and advance
the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the

rhythm and harmony of nature.

The State shall promote and protect the global environment to attain
sustainable development while recognizing the primary responsibility of Iccal

government units to deal with environmental problems.

The State recognizes that the responsibility of cleaning the habitat and

environment is primarily area-based.

Finally, the State recognizes that a clean and healthy environment is for the

good of all and should, therefore, be the concern of all.
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act, the term:

A) “Consumer” means any person who makes a purchase at retail for any
purpose other than resale;

B) “Manufacturer” means the producer of a plastic carry-out bag sold to a store;


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D)

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H)

“Operator” means a person in control of, or having daily responsibility for,
the daily operation of a store, which may include, but is not limited to, the
owner of the store;

“Plastic carry-out bag” means any plastic, latex, or polypropylene carry-out
bag provided by a store to a consumer at the point of sale;

“Providing plastic bags to consume!

means the act of a retail store of giving
to a consumer a plastic bag to store or transport goods purchased at retail;
“Purchase at retail” means the acquisition of the ownership to or title to
tangible personal property through a sale at retail;
“Reusable bag” means either of the following:
a) A bag made of cloth or other machine washable fabric that has
handles, or
b) A durable plastic bag with handles that is specifically designed and
manufactured for reuse.
“Store” means a retail establishment that has gross sales of over One
Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP 100,000.00) each month that provides

plastic carry-out bags to its consumers as a result of the sale of a product.

SECTION 4, In-Store Recycling Program. -

A)

B)

C)

Within sixty (60) clays within the effectivity of this Act, the operator of a store
that provides plastic carry-out bags to consumers as part of a purchase at
retail shall establish an in-store recycling program pursuant to this Act that
provides an opportunity for consumers of the store to return to the store the
plastic carry-out bags

A retail establishment that does not meet the definition of a store in this Act
and that provides plastic carry-out bags to consumers at the point of sale
may also adopt an. in-store recycling program as specified in this Act.

An in-store recycling program provided by the operator of a store shall
include all of the following:

a. A plastic carry-out bag provided by the store shall have printed or
displayed cn the bag, in a manner visible to a consumer, the words
“PLEASE RETURN TO A PARTICIPATING STORE FOR RECYCLING.”

b. A plastic cerry-out bag collection bin shall be placed in each store and
shall be visible, easily accessible to the consumer, and clearly marked
that the ccilection bin is available for the purpose of collecting and
recycling plastic carry-out bags.


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c. All plastic carry-out bags collected by the store shall be collected,
transported, and recycled.

d. The store shall maintain records describing the collection, transport,
and recycling of plastic carry-out bags collected for a minimum of
three (3) years and shall make the records available to the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources or to the local
government unit concerned, upon request, to demonstrate compliaace
with this Act.

. The operator of the store shall make reusable bags available to
consumers within the store, which may be purchased and used in
lieu of using a plastic carry-out bag or paper bag. This subsection is
not applicable to a retail establishment specified pursuant to Section
4).

SECTION 5. Penalties. -

A) A civil liability in the amount of One Hundred Thousand Pesos
(Php100,000.00) for the first violation of this Act, Two Hundred Thousand
Pesos (Php200,000.00) for the second violation, and Three Hundred
Thousand Pesos (Php300,000.00) for the third and subsequent violations
shall be imposed upon stores violating this Act.

B) Any civil penalties

collected pursuant to paragraph (A) of this Section shall
be paid to the local government of the local government unit where the store
is located. The penalties collected pursuant to this Section shall go to an
Environmental Protection Fund to be used by the local government to

enforce this Act.

SECTION 6. Appropriations. - The national government shall appropriate such

amounts as may be necessary to carry out the provisions and objectives of this Act.

SECTION 7. Separability Clause. ~ {f any provision, or part thereof, is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law of the provision not otherwise
affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 8. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance,
executive order, letter of instruction, acministrative order, rule or regulation
contrary to, or inconsistent with, the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed,

modified, or amended accordingly.


SECTION 9. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days

after its publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,