Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 1929 
Introduced by  
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 
AN ACT 
INSTITUTING A NATIONAL LAND USE POLICY, PROVIDING   THE 
IMPLEMENTING MECHANISMS, CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE THE NATIONAL 
LAND USE COMMISSION, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR  
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Philippines constitutional mandates that all public domains, forests, watersheds, 
coastal zones, protected areas, agricultural lands, and other natural resources—are owned by the 
State and must be managed sustainably. Yet, recent events have demonstrated a disturbing pattern 
of abuse and mismanagement across these vital ecosystems.  
In the Sierra Madre Mountain range, notorious for its critical role as a watershed barrier 
protecting Metro Manila, illegal logging, slash-and-burn farming, and residential encroachment 
continue to degrade at least 1,400 hectares annually despite existing protections.1 Similarly, the 
Kaliwa watershed project threatened ancestral lands and endangered species, drawing widespread 
criticism from environmental groups and Indigenous communities alike. 2 Within protected 
landscapes such as the Upper Marikina River Basin and the Masungi Georeserve, developers have 
defied cease-and-desist orders, leading to illegal quarrying, armed intrusions, and even violent 
attacks on park rangers—a stark indicator of governance failures in safeguarding National 
Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) zones.3  
Agricultural lands, especially in regions like Central Luzon and Mindoro, are increasingly 
converted into industrial estates and subdivisions, undermining national food security and 
violating the mandate to reserve prime farmlands for agricultural use. 
1 https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1233008
2 https://thedefiant.net/to-save-the-sierra-madre-the-kaliwa-dam-project-must-be-scrapped 
3 https://www.philstar.com/nation/2025/04/08/2434369/check-illegal-reclamation-denr-asked 
July 15, 2025
4:45 pm


These examples reveal an alarming pattern – the uncoordinated allocation and development 
of public lands have not only degraded ecosystems but eroded public trust and exacerbated 
vulnerabilities to climate change and natural disaster. In response, the proposed National Land Use 
Act seeks to establish an integrated, ridge-to-reef, ecosystem-based planning framework under 
national oversight, with mandatory consultations across regional, provincial, city, and municipal 
governments. The bill aims to harmonize conflicting laws and local plans, protect watersheds, 
forests, coastal areas, agricultural lands, and ancestral domains of Indigenous Peoples, and ensure 
development is environmentally sound, equitable, resilient, and informed by data. 
The passage of this legislation is a vital step toward fulfilling our constitutional 
responsibility to manage land and natural resources sustainably, protect our environment from 
further degradation, and ensure future generations inherit a resilient and just Republic. 
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought. 
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
TWENTIETH Congress 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No. 1929 
Introduced by  
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 
AN ACT 
INSTITUTING A NATIONAL LAND USE POLICY, PROVIDING   THE 
IMPLEMENTING MECHANISMS, CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE THE NATIONAL 
LAND USE COMMISSION, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
CHAPTER I 
INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS 
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “National Land Use Act”. 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Principles and Policies. – All lands of the public domain, 
waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils, all forces of potential energy, fisheries, 
forests or timber, wildlife, flora and fauna,  and other  
natural resources are owned by the State. With the exception of agricultural lands, all other natural 
resources shall not be alienated. 
Pursuant to the constitutional provision or mandate, it is the policy of the State to provide 
for a rational, holistic, and just allocation, utilization, management, and development of the 
country’s land to ensure their optimum use to promote sustainable socioeconomic development 
and ecological protection.  
The State recognizes the need for rational, optimal and sustainable settlements 
development, consistent with the principles of environmental management and equitable access to 
land and security. 


 
 
Toward this end, the State institutionalizes land use and physical planning as mechanisms 
for identifying, determining, and evaluating appropriate land use and allocation patterns that 
promote and ensure: 
 
a) Sustainable management and utilization of natural resources; 
 
b) Maintenance and preservation of environmental integrity and stability specifically the 
perpetual protection of permanent forests and watershed and ecosystem services for 
the attainment of food, water and energy sufficiency; 
 
c) Disaster risk-reduction and climate change resiliency; 
 
d) Protection of prime agricultural lands for food security in basic commodities with 
emphasis on self-sufficiency in rice and corn; 
 
e) Water security through sustainable development and management of water resources 
towards water security; 
 
f) Provision of adequate and efficient settlements, transportation and infrastructure 
development in support of urban, peri-urban, and rural linkages towards regional 
development and inclusive growth; 
 
g) Harmony between the rights and the varied interests of every Filipino within the 
framework of people empowerment, decentralization, social justice, and equity; 
 
h) Respect for and protection of the sustainable traditional resource rights of the 
Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples (ICCs/IPs) to their ancestral 
domains to ensure their economic, social, and cultural well-being as well as 
recognition of the applicability of customary laws and sustainable traditional resource 
use and management, knowledge, and practices in ancestral domains in compliance 
with free and prior informed consent of ICC/IPs; 
 
i) Protection of the rights of basic sectors to equitable access to the country’s land; 
 
j) Protection, preservation, and development of the country’s historical, cultural, 
archaeological, and built heritage resources for the deeper understanding of our history 
and culture as a people; 
 
k) Attainment of energy security and self-sufficiency; 
 
l) A whole-of-society and whole-of-government orientation, through which thrusts and 
strategies espoused by different actors and sectors are heard and brought together to 
achieve complex and interrelated goals, is encouraged and adopted as a basic 
parameter in achieving efficiency in land use and allocation, within the framework of 
ecological development and equity; 
 


 
 
m) Promotion of the integrated approach to land use and urban transport planning to 
effectively manage growth in urban areas and ensure that the capacity of transport 
facilities can accommodate the demand for movement of passengers and goods to, 
from, and within the centers of socioeconomic activities;  
 
n) Vertical and horizontal linkages or spatial strategies and the potential for co-
management and inter-locality cooperation across territorial jurisdictions and 
government levels, highlighting the imperative for a ridge-to-reef and ecosystem-
based approach to land and water resource management and governance; and 
 
o) Data and evidence-informed management and governance of land and water resources, 
in line with the place-based aspirations and shared values of the community. 
 
p) It is also the policy of the State to ensure that local government units (LGUs) share 
with the national government the responsibility of managing and maintaining 
ecological balance within their territorial jurisdiction as stated in the 1987 Constitution 
and Republic Act RA 7160, as amended, also known as the “Local Government Code 
of 1991”. Guided by the principle that the use of land bears a social function and that 
all economic agents contribute to the common good, landowners, land tenure holders, 
in the case of forestlands, be it an individual, communal, corporate or group, is held 
responsible for developing and conserving their lands, thereby making their lands 
productive and supportive of environmental stability. 
 
SECTION 3.  Scope. – This Act applies to all lands and natural resources in the country, 
whether public, private, government-owned or in the possession of any person, whether natural or 
juridical, and serves as guide for the rational, holistic and just allocation, utilization, development 
and management of the land and water resources in the country, including such activities that bear 
impact on those resources. 
 
SECTION 4.  Definition of Terms.  –  As used in this Act: 
 
a) Agricultural land refers to land of public domain which has been classified as such 
and is devoted to agricultural activity as defined under RA 6657, as amended, 
otherwise known as the “Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988,” and not 
further classified for residential, commercial or industrial use and such other uses as 
may be provided by law;  
b) Agricultural land use conversion refers to the act or process of changing the current 
physical use of a piece of agricultural land into some other use not comprising an 
agricultural activity as defined under RA 6657, as approved exclusively by the 
Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in an order of conversion;  
c) Alienable and Disposable (A&D) lands refer to lands of the public domain which have 
been delineated, classified, and certified as open and available for disposition under 
existing laws; 
d) Ancestral domains refer to all areas generally belonging to indigenous cultural 
communities or indigenous peoples as defined in RA 8371, otherwise known as “The 
Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997;” 


 
 
e) Archaeological site refers to any place, whether above or underground, underwater or 
at sea level, containing fossils, artifacts and other cultural, geological, botanical, 
zoological materials which depict and document culturally relevant paleontological, 
prehistoric or historic events; 
f) Basic sector refers to a group of people not referring to any organized groups, such as 
but not limited to women, youth, elderly, differently abled, peasants and fisherfolk; 
g) Coastal area or zone refers to a band of dry land and the adjacent ocean space, water 
and submerged land, in which terrestrial processes and uses directly affect oceanic 
processes and uses and vice versa, the geographic extent of which includes areas within 
a landward limit of one (1) kilometer from the shoreline at high tide to include 
mangrove swamps, brackish water ponds, nipa swamps,  estuarine rivers, sandy 
beaches and other areas within a seaward limit of two hundred (200) meters isobaths 
to include coral reefs, algal flats, seagrass beds, and other soft-bottom areas; 
h) Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) refers to a plan embodying a set of policies 
accompanied by maps and similar illustrations that serves as a policy guide for 
determining the future use of lands and natural resources within the territorial 
jurisdiction of the LGU, including municipal waters with due consideration to the 
biogeographic region within which the locality belongs, representing the community 
desired pattern of population distribution and proposes future allocation of land and 
resources to various activities including the processes and criteria employed in such 
determination of allocation of land and resources for a long-term management of the 
local territory covering a minimum period of twelve (12) years, reviewable not earlier 
than every six (6) years; 
i) Comprehensive land use planning refers to the act of defining the allocation, 
utilization, development and management of all lands and water resources within a 
given territory or jurisdiction according to the inherent characteristic and carrying 
capacities of the land itself and supportive of sustainable economic, demographic, 
socio-cultural and environmental objectives as an aid to decision-making and 
legislation; 
j) Critical habitats refer to areas outside protected areas as defined in RA 7586, 
otherwise known as the “National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 1992”, 
that are known habitats of threatened species and designated as such based on scientific 
data taking into consideration species endemicity or richness, presence of human-made 
pressures or threats to the survival of wildlife living in the area; 
k) Critical watershed refers to a drainage area of a river system supporting existing and 
proposed hydroelectric power, irrigation works or existing water facilities needing 
immediate protection and rehabilitation to minimize erosion and improve water yield;  
l) Cultural heritage refers to the totality of cultural properties, whether natural or human 
made, preserved and developed through time and passed on for posterity;  
m) Cultural property refers to all products of human creativity by which a people and a 
nation reveal their identity, including churches, mosques and other places of religious 
worship, schools and natural history specimens and sites, whether public or privately-
owned, movable or immovable, and tangible or intangible; 
n) Customary laws refer to a body of written or unwritten rules, usages, customs and 
practices traditionally and continually recognized, accepted, and observed by 
respective ICCs/IPs, consistent with RA 8371; 


 
 
o) Development plan refers to the activities and measures that the national government or 
LGUs intend to implement over a specified period of time to achieve the defined set 
of development goals identified in the national or local physical framework plans 
integrating socio-economic, financial, fiscal, legal and legislative institutional and 
sectoral plans of the national government or any of its instrumentalities or a particular 
LGU, consistent with the objectives identified in spatial plans, such as land use plans 
or physical framework plans including an analysis of problems and resources, 
definition of goals and objectives, policy guidelines, programs and projects, and an 
implementation mechanism which defines the roles and contributions expected from 
the government and the private sector; 
p) Ecologically fragile areas refer to areas within critical watersheds, brackish and 
freshwater wetlands, pasture lands, inland rivers and waterways coastal and settlement 
areas, and croplands which require rehabilitation, protection and whose continued 
unsustainable use may result in physical risks and threats to life and property, public 
health and safety as well as adversely affect the productivity of lowland agricultural 
areas and stability of the upland system;  
q) Ecotourism refers to a form of sustainable tourism within a natural or cultural heritage 
area where community participation, protection and management of natural resources, 
culture and indigenous knowledge and practices, environmental education and ethics, 
as well as economic benefits are fostered and pursued for the enrichment of host 
community and satisfaction of visitors; 
r) Energy resources refer to surface or subsurface substances that serve as energy 
resources including traditionally mineral fuel deposits such as coal petroleum, natural 
gas or renewable resources from geothermal, hydro reservoirs or non-conventional 
sources such as ocean waves, solar, wind, biomass, and other similar resources which 
serve the same purpose; 
s) Energy resource lands refer to lands where naturally occurring or indigenous energy 
resources exist in sufficient quantity or quality as to be economically viable for 
exploration, development production, utilization and distribution purposes; 
t) Exhausted mineral resources refer to specific sites where the mineral resources are no 
longer in sufficient quantity or quality to justify additional expenditure for extraction 
or utilization as determined by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau and approved by 
the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR); 
u) Flood plain refers to relatively smooth valley floors adjacent to and formed by rivers 
which overflow its banks at flood stages. The plain usually consist of unconsolidated 
fine sediments such as sand, silt, and clay; 
v) Flood-prone areas refer to low lying areas usually adjacent to large or active water 
bodies and which therefore experience regular or seasonal inundation as a result of 
changes in the mean water level of these bodies or because of land reclamation and 
other artificial interference with the natural processes; 
w) Foreshore land refers to a string of land margining a body of water, the part of a 
seashore between the low-water line usually at the seaward margin of a low tide terrace 
and the upper limit of wave wash at high tide marked by a beach scarp or berm; 
x) Forest refers to an ecosystem or an assemblage of ecosystems dominated by trees and 
other woody vegetation or a community of plants and animals interacting with one 
another and its physical environment;  


 
 
y) Forest lands refer to one of the four classifications of land defined in  the Constitution 
under the public domain determined as suitable for forest purposes and not classified 
as mineral land, national park or agricultural land such as all permanent forest reserves, 
forest reservations, and all the remaining unclassified lands of the public domain; 
z) Geo-hazards refer to a geological process or phenomenon that may cause loss of life, 
injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social 
and economic disruption or environmental damage. This includes internal earth 
processes such as earthquakes and  volcanic activities, and geophysical processes like 
mass movements landslides, surface collapses, debris and mud flow; 
aa) Geo-hazard prone areas refer to areas frequently affected and/or are vulnerable or at 
risk to weather/climatic, hydrologic, geologic and other natural calamities; 
bb) Heritage zone refer to historical, anthropological, archaeological, artistic geographical 
areas and settings that are culturally significant to the country, as declared by the 
National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and/or the National Historical 
Commission of the Philippines (NHCP); 
cc) Illegal conversion refers to an attempt to or an actual change in the use of land from 
agricultural to a residential, commercial, or industrial and other non-agricultural 
activity, without a conversion grant or clearance based on the requirements under 
Section 65 of RA 6657, as amended, and to dispossess a tenant as provided under 
Section 73 (c) of RA 6657, as amended, when established from the following 
instances: 
 
(1)  an agricultural land is developed for use in non-agricultural activities without 
a DAR Conversion Order; 
(2) the agricultural land being converted is irrigated or irrigable; 
(3)  there is land activity such as, but not limited to, earth filling/dumping, earth 
moving/digging, and quarrying, and in each case,  bona fide conduct of 
agricultural activities on a greater portion of the land developed has ceased; 
and 
(4)   Other analogous activities. 
 
dd) Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples (ICCs/IPPs) refer to groups of 
people or homogenous societies identified by self-ascription and ascription by others, 
who have continuously lived as organized community on communally bounded and 
defined territory, and who have, under claims of ownership since time immemorial, 
occupied, possessed, and utilized such territories, sharing common bonds of language, 
customs, traditions, and other distinctive cultural traits, or who have, through 
resistance to political, social, and cultural inroads of colonization, non-indigenous 
religions and cultures, became historically differentiated from the majority of Filipinos 
including peoples who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the 
populations which inhabited the country at the time of conquest or colonization, or at 
the time of inroads of non-indigenous religions and cultures, or the establishment of 
present state boundaries, who retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural, 
and political institutions, but who may have been displaced from their traditional 
domains, or who may have resettled outside their ancestral domains;  


 
 
ee) Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) refer to the present most important sites for biodiversity 
conservation worldwide which are considered places of international importance for 
the conservation of biodiversity through protected areas and other governance 
mechanisms and which are identified nationally using simple standard criteria based 
on their importance in maintaining species populations; 
ff) Land refers to resources, both artificial and natural, found on the surface, below, and 
above the ground, including inland waters and the air therein; 
gg) Land use refers to the manner of allocation, utilization, management and development 
of land; 
hh) Land use classification refers to the act of delineating or allocating lands according to 
protection land use, production land use, settlements development and infrastructure 
development as provided for in this Act; 
ii) Land use planning refers to the rational and judicious approach of allocating available 
land resources to different land-using activities, such as but not limited to agricultural, 
residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, forest land uses, and for different 
functions consistent with the overall development vision/goal of a particular locality; 
jj) Mandatory public hearings or consultations refer to the mechanism of involving the 
concerned stakeholders and communities in land use planning, from the barangay to 
the national level, to ensure the social acceptability of the plans including giving notice 
of hearing or consultation to the concerned stakeholders through publication or posting 
in conspicuous places, conducting a reasonable number of hearings, and soliciting 
positions to arrive at a consensus through public presentations and validation of the 
planning results undertaken before the final adoption of the plans; 
kk) Marine protected area refers to a defined area of the sea established and set aside by 
law, administrative regulation or any other effective means to conserve and protect a 
part of the entire enclosed environment, through the establishment of management 
guidelines; 
ll) Minerals refer to naturally occurring inorganic substance beneath or at the surface of 
the earth, whether or not under water, and includes all metallic minerals, and non-
metallic minerals such as precious stones, industrial rocks, and building stones; 
mm) Mineral lands refer to any area where mineral resources are found, including areas that 
are established as mineral reservations, areas with active mining operations; areas with 
projected mining tenurial rights; and areas declared by court decisions as mineral 
lands; 
nn) Mineral reservations refer to areas established and proclaimed as such by the President 
of the Philippines upon the recommendation of the Director of the Mines and 
Geosciences Bureau through the DENR Secretary including all submerged lands 
within the contiguous zone and exclusive Economic Zone. 
oo) National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) refers to the classification and 
administration of all designated protected areas to maintain essential ecological 
processes and life-support systems, to preserve genetic diversity, to ensure sustainable 
use of resources found therein, and to maintain their natural conditions to the greatest 
extent possible; 
pp) National park refers to forest reservation, essentially of natural wilderness character, 
which has been withdrawn from settlement, occupancy or any form of exploitation, 
except in conformity with the approved management plan and set aside as such 


 
 
exclusively to conserve the area or preserve the scenery, natural and historic objects, 
wild animals and plants therein, and to provide enjoyment of these features in such 
areas including lands and waters of the public domain classified as such in the 
Constitution such as all areas under the NIPAS primarily designated for the 
conservation of native plants and animals and associated habitats and cultural 
diversity; 
qq) Network of Protected Areas for Agriculture and Agro-Industrial Development 
(NPAAAD) refers to agricultural areas identified by the Department of Agriculture 
(DA), through the Bureau of Soils and Water Management in coordination with the 
National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA), in order to ensure 
the efficient utilization of land for agriculture and agro-industrial development and to 
promote sustainable growth, covering all irrigated areas, all irrigable lands already 
covered by irrigation projects, all alluvial plains, lands highly suitable for agriculture, 
whether irrigated or not, agro-industrial croplands or lands planted with industrial 
crops that support the validity of existing agricultural infrastructure and agro-based 
enterprises, highlands or areas located at an elevation of five hundred (500) meters or 
above and have the potential for growing semi-temperate and high value crops, all 
agricultural lands that are ecologically fragile, the conversion of which may result in 
serious environmental degradation, and all mangrove areas and fish sanctuaries; 
rr) Physical framework plans refer to the national, regional or provincial indicative plans 
that outline the over-all and macro-level spatial and physical development objectives, 
priorities, directions and strategies in its respective levels as prepared, reviewed, 
integrated and finalized by the national, regional and provincial land use councils or 
boards respectively based on the CLUPs of the LGUs and the national policy 
guidelines relating to land use, infrastructure development and environmental 
management to prevent or mitigate the adverse effects of inappropriate resource 
utilization on food security, the welfare of the people and their environment; 
ss) Physical Planning is the process of organizing physical activities and land uses, 
including 
settlements, 
environmental 
protection, 
economic 
activities, 
and 
infrastructure to ensure sustainable, orderly, and optimal siting and coordination of 
land uses; 
tt) Prime agricultural lands refer to all contiguous irrigated lands/areas and irrigable 
lands already covered by irrigation projects, including all alluvial plain lands highly 
suitable for agriculture, not irrigated that have been identified to satisfy the need for 
food self-sufficiency and food security and agro-industrial croplands or lands presently 
planted to industrial and high value crops that support the viability of existing 
agricultural infrastructure and agro-based enterprises, highlands or areas located at an 
elevation of five hundred (500) meters or above, highly suitable for growing semi-
temperate and high value crops outside of declared permanent forestlands and 
protections forests, and are not located in ecologically fragile and environmentally 
critical areas; 
uu) Production land use refers to the most efficient, sustainable, and equitable utilization, 
development and management of land for productive purposes which are not classified 
for protection land use;  


 
 
vv) Protected areas refer to portions of land and water set aside by reason of their unique 
physical and biological diversity and protected against human exploitation including 
all natural forests and agricultural lands identified and delineated under this Act; 
ww) Reclassification of agricultural lands refer to the act of specifying how agricultural 
lands are classified or used for non-agricultural uses such as residential, industrial or 
commercial purposes, as embodied in the land use plan subject to the requirements and 
procedure for reclassification undertaken by the LGU in accordance with Section 20 
of RA 7160, as amended; 
xx) Resettlement areas refer to areas identified by the appropriate national agency or by 
the LGU with respect to areas within its jurisdiction which are used for the relocation 
of the underprivileged and homeless, as defined under RA 7279, otherwise known as 
the “Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992;” 
yy) Strategic Agriculture and Fisheries Development Zones (SAFDZ) refers to the areas 
within the NPAAAD identified for production, agro-processing, and marketing 
activities to help develop and modernize, with the support of government, the 
agriculture and fisheries sectors in an environmentally and socio-culturally sound 
manner pursuant to Section 4 of RA 8435 or “Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization 
Act of 1997”; 
zz) Settlements refer to communities or built-up environment areas where people prefer to 
live in; 
aaa) Settlements development refers to any improvement on existing settlements or any 
proposed development of certain areas for settlement purposes involving the spatial 
distribution of population, identification of the roles and functions of key urban 
centers, determination of relationships among settlement areas, and the provision of 
basic services and facilities of identified major settlement areas of growth centers; 
bbb) Shoreline refers to a strip of land covering of at least one (1) kilometer from the point 
where seawater reaches during the highest high tide; 
ccc) State universities and colleges (SUCs) refer to public higher education institutions in 
the Philippines created and established by law which constitutes their charter and 
which have independent and separate governing boards; 
ddd) SUC Land Use Plan refers to a campus master plan mandated under RA 11396, 
otherwise known as the “SUCs Land Use Development and Infrastructure Plan Act” 
that contains the allocation and utilization of the land within a campus’ geographic 
boundary to meet the required academic and non-academic support services and 
facilities as well as the campus development programs and projects and the investment 
needed to implement them;  
eee) Sustainable development refers to the development objective of meeting the needs of 
the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet 
their own needs consistent with the principles of social equity, efficiency and 
environmental integrity; 
fff) Tourism development areas refer to specific sites for tourism development located in 
areas identified as priorities in the national and regional tourism master plans and those 
designated through legislative and executive issuances as tourist spots and tourist 
zones which may be developed into tourism estates or integrated resort, leisure, 
recreation complexes, and other tourism related facilities; 


 
 
ggg) Tourism ecozone refers to tourism development areas, outside of protection lands 
which have been granted special economic zone status through the Philippine Export 
Zone Authority registration and issuance of the required Presidential Proclamation, 
with its metes and bounds, delineated by said proclamation, pursuant to RA 7916, as 
amended, otherwise known as “The Special Economic Zone Act of 1995”; 
 
hhh) Tourism estates refer to large tracts of land with well-defined boundaries in any area, 
excluding those protection lands, identified in the Philippine tourism master plan and 
regional tourism by proclamation of the President of the Philippines or by acts of 
Congress or by local legislation and declared suited for the development of an 
integrated tourism and resort complex with prescribed carrying capacities and limits 
for its facilities and activities; 
iii) Tourist spot refers to a particular area, site or spot, man-made or natural, known for its 
unique tourist or visitor-drawing attributes and activities and which may be classified 
according to its social, cultural, natural, historical, aesthetic, visual, scientific, 
religious, or recreational significance; 
jjj) Tourist zone refers to a geographic area with well-defined boundaries proclaimed as 
such by the President of the Philippines or by acts of Congress where development 
projects for any purpose are initiated and introduced prior to formulation of a tourism 
master development plan which are undertaken in coordination with the Department 
of Tourism (DOT) and the Tourism Infrastructure Enterprise Zone (TIEZA) for the 
enhancement or the conservation of cultural and historical heritage, and for the 
appreciation and enjoyment of the local population and its visitors; 
kkk) Transmission line corridor refers to the land beneath, the air spaces surrounding, and 
the area traversed by electric power transmission lines including its horizontal, vertical, 
and similar clearance requirements;   
lll) Urban areas refer to all cities regardless of their population density and to 
municipalities with a population density of at least five hundred (500) persons per 
square kilometer; 
mmm) Urbanizable areas refer to sites and lands which, considering present characteristics 
and prevailing conditions, display great potential of becoming urban areas within a 
period of five (5) years; 
nnn) Urban forest or green space refers to the establishment or setting up of areas for mini-
forest, eco-parks or small nature parks, in both public and private lands, wetlands, man-
made lagoons and lakes systems, riverbanks and shores, grasslands, roof and rock 
gardens, lining roads and highways with trees, shrubs, or ornamental plants, and 
ground landscaping of schools, hospitals, and other government agencies in order to 
improve the environment in urban areas; 
ooo) Water security refers to the sufficient access throughout the year to the minimum daily 
requirement of clean water to maintain a healthy life; 
ppp) Water use refers to the appropriation of water for domestic, municipal, irrigation, 
power generation, inland fisheries, poultry and livestock, industrial and commercial, 
environmental, and recreational use; 
qqq) Watershed refers to a topographically delineated area of land from which rainwater 
can drain as surface run-off vis-a-vis a specific stream or river system to a common 


 
 
outlet point which may be a dam, irrigation system or urban water supply take off 
point, or where the stream discharges into a river, lake, or the sea; 
rrr) Zoning refers to the regulatory tool for delineating the specific land uses in accordance 
with the approved CLUP within the territorial jurisdiction of a city or municipality and 
specifying the conditions for their regulation, subject to the limitations imposed by law 
and competent authority; and 
sss) Zoning ordinance refers to a local law passed by the Sangguniang Bayan or 
Panlungsod approving the development control or zoning plan in accordance with an 
approved or adopted CLUP of the city or municipality, providing for the regulations 
and other conditions on the land uses, including the limitation on the infrastructure that 
may be placed within the territorial jurisdiction of the city or municipality, 
incorporating the protected areas, protected agricultural lands and ancestral lands as 
provided for in this Act.  
 
CHAPTER II 
PHYSICAL FRAMEWORK AND LAND USE PLAN 
 
SECTION 5. National Physical Framework Plan. – The National Land Use Commission 
(NLUC) created under Section 18 herein shall draft the National Physical Framework Plan 
(NPFP), which shall have a timeframe of thirty (30) years, with regular review and updating every 
ten (10) years. The NPFP, which guides the planning and management of the country's land and 
other physical resources at the national and sub-national levels, shall indicate broad spatial 
directions and policy guidelines on settlements development, production land use, protection land 
use, social services and utilities, transmission line corridor, and transportation and communication.  
 
The Regional Physical Framework Plans (RPFPs), Provincial Physical Framework and 
Development Plans (PPFDPs), and CLUPs shall cover the physical development of their respective 
territories and shall be consistent with the NPFP: Provided, That the integration and harmonization 
of the physical framework plans at all levels shall be iterative to ensure that the concerns of both 
top and bottom levels of government are considered. The physical and land use plans prepared at 
all levels shall have internal consistency specifically on, but not limited to, the development, 
management and conservation of forestlands, watersheds, and all terrestrial, aquatic, and marine 
ecosystems found within a given territory and the linkages of the major land use categories to 
ensure their complementation in the utilization, development, management, protection and 
conservation of all natural   resources. The NLUC shall issue procedural guidelines which shall 
guide the formulation and integration or harmonization of land use plans at all levels: Provided, 
That the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), DENR, Department of Human 
Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), Department of the Interior and Local Government 
(DILG) and other agencies will continue to issue specific guidelines on the planning process and 
content of the plans consistent with the NLUC guidelines and their respective agency mandates.   
 
SECTION 6. Regional Physical Framework Plans. – In consultation with concerned 
sectors, the Regional Land Use Policy Council (RLUPC) shall define the desired spatial 
arrangement of land and   land-use activities in the entire region, based on the consolidated and 
harmonized PPFDPs of provinces and independent cities within the territorial jurisdiction of the 
region. The RPFP, which depicts an end-state scenario toward which efforts and activities are 


 
 
directed, shall consist of spatially-based and area-focused policies, consistent with those in the 
national framework for physical planning, to guide detailed physical, socio-economic, sectoral and 
investment planning. The RPFP shall have a planning period of twelve (12) years to be updated 
every six (6) years or when deemed necessary.  
 
SECTION 7. Provincial Physical Framework and Development Plans. – In consultation 
with concerned sectors, the Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) shall prepare a 
Provincial Physical Framework and Development Plans (PPFDP), which shall define the 
province's development vision, economic and social development policies, environmental and 
ecological protection policies, general land uses, and inter-city/municipal transportation system. 
The PPFDP shall integrate and harmonize the land use plans of component cities and 
municipalities using the ridge-to-reef (R2R) or watershed ecosystem management (WEM) 
approach taking into consideration shared watersheds, ecosystems and natural resources and 
planning concerns, and define the uses of land and other resources within the province consistent 
with the policies in the regional physical framework plan. The programs, projects and activities 
prescribed in the PPFDP shall be integrated into the provincial development investment program. 
The PPDO shall submit the PPFDP to the Provincial Land Use Policy Council (PLUPC), created 
under Section 24 of this Act, for review and endorsement to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, which 
shall adopt the same pursuant to Section 468 (2) (vii) of  RA 7160. The PPFDP shall have a 
planning period of twelve (12) years to be updated every six (6) years or when deemed necessary. 
 
SECTION 8. City/Municipal Land Use Plans. – The City/Municipal Planning and 
Development Office (C/MPDO) shall prepare the comprehensive land use plan (CLUP) to 
determine the specific uses of land and other physical resources therein including areas co-
managed with the national government and, as appropriate, the ancestral domain areas. This shall 
be done in consultation with concerned sectors through mandatory conduct of public hearings and 
with the use of technology-based systems such as, but not limited to, the Community-Based 
Monitoring System (CBMS) required to be established in every city and municipality under RA 
11315 or the “Community-Based Monitoring System Act”. The CLUP shall be consistent with the 
R2R/WEM-based PPFDP and shall define the city or municipal development vision, appropriate 
economic, environmental and social development policies, densities and transportation system 
using the R2R/WEM approach. The CLUP shall have a planning period of twelve (12) years to be 
updated every six (6) years or when deemed necessary.  The C/MPDO shall also use, among others, 
the CBMS in the updating of the CLUPs. 
 
The R2R/WEM-based CLUP will be used as the common reference framework for the 
preparation of all sectoral development plans that will  form part of the Comprehensive Land Use 
and Development Plan which merges the traditionally separate CLUP and comprehensive 
development plan to address the disconnect between spatial development and sectoral programs 
and to ensure the complementation between the medium- and long-term concerns and shall be the 
basis of the formulation of the local development investment program. The CLUP shall be 
translated into a zoning ordinance by the concerned Sanggunian to regulate the uses of land, 
including the limitations on height, density and bulk of buildings and other infrastructure that may 
be placed thereon. 
 


 
 
SECTION 9.  Physical Framework and Land Use Planning Process. – The land use and 
physical planning process shall be formulated following a combined bottom-up and top-down 
approach. The NLUC, in consultation with the concerned sectors through the mandatory conduct 
of public hearings, shall formulate, periodically update and ensure the implementation of the NPFP 
that shall prescribe and influence the country’s land use and physical development. The NPFP 
shall operationalize the policies provided in this Act and  shall be the basis for adopting land use 
and physical planning-related guidelines and standards, including zoning and other land use 
control standards that shall guide the formulation of city/municipal zoning ordinances. The policies 
prescribed in the NPFP shall be integrated into the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan 
and Medium-Term Philippine Investment Program. 
 
In the formulation of the respective National, Regional Provincial or City/Municipal Land 
Use Plans, the respective SUC Land Use Plans approved by the CHED prior to the approval of 
this Act shall be taken into consideration in the approval of the plans. As such, the President of the 
SUCs shall be consulted prior to the approval of the said plans. 
 
SECTION 10.   Land Use Plans for Ancestral Domains.  –   Land use plans for ancestral 
domains shall be formulated by the ICCs/IPs themselves in accordance with their needs and 
traditional resource and management systems with the assistance of the NCIP, the LGUs and civil 
society organizations (CSOs) concerned. Such plans shall be recognized and adopted in the 
City/Municipal, Provincial, Regional and National Physical Framework Plans.  
 
Physical Framework Plans made prior to the delineation of ancestral domains included in 
such plans shall, without prejudice to the rights of the ICCs/IPs concerned, adopt different land 
use categories in accordance with their particular needs and traditional resources and management 
systems. 
 
In cases where there are no ancestral domains sustainable development and protection 
plans (ADSDPPs), the LGUs and ICCs/IPs shall jointly formulate the land use within the ancestral 
domains until such time that the ICCS/IPS shall have formulated their ADSDPPs. 
 
SECTION 11.  Revision of Existing Planning Guidelines. – The existing planning 
guidelines on the NPFP, RPFP and PPFDP shall be reviewed and revised pursuant to Sections 5, 
6, 7, and 9 of this Act.  
 
CHAPTER III 
FRAMEWORK FOR LAND USE PLANNING 
 
SECTION 12. Basic Objective of Land Use or Physical Framework Planning. – The 
primary objective of a physical framework plan is to describe existing land uses and to identify an 
integrated physical framework, including an overall vision, policies on social and economic 
development and environmental protection and supporting transportation and other infrastructure 
facilities, that shall define future development. Its output includes the identification of programs, 
projects and activities needed to achieve the desired development, without compromising 
environmental and ecological stability, and which shall serve as inputs to the investment program. 


 
 
In the case of the CLUP, it is also intended to provide specific development and building guidelines 
and parameters that be implemented through a zoning ordinance. 
 
SECTION  13. Priorities in Land Use Allocation and Planning. – Using the R2R/WEM 
approach in projecting spatial allocation for different land uses, the LGUs shall first exclude areas 
under protection land use in Section 17 (a) hereof, national parks, energy resource lands, and prime 
agricultural lands to ensure ecological integrity, energy supply, and promote food security. Areas 
with prior rights and those with site-specific resources for basic services, such as but not limited 
to, water and indigenous energy resources, shall also be excluded. All land use activities inside the 
excluded areas that are not consistent with the general purposes of the excluded areas shall be 
assessed, regulated, and/or modified to ensure that these activities do not compromise the general 
purposes of the excluded areas. Spatial allocation and planning shall then proceed in accordance 
with Sections 16 and 17 hereof with priorities given to integrated watershed management areas, 
socialized housing sites, fisherfolk settlement in coastal areas, and waste disposal sites. 
 
SECTION 14.  Approach to Land Use and Physical Framework Planning. – The 
R2R/WEM approach shall be used in land use and physical framework planning to promote a 
holistic, integrated, equitable and inclusive development, and a flourishing environment, 
watersheds and ecosystems. It shall include a description of existing land uses and land use trends, 
as well as the physical, demographic, economic, social, political, environmental, and ecological 
conditions that have shaped and are likely to shape future land use and physical developments. It 
shall then derive a land use plan or physical framework by matching, reconciling or integrating the 
demand for land with the supply of land in a holistic manner to optimize socioeconomic 
development and minimize the total impacts of the land use plan on watersheds and ecosystems. 
The resulting land use plan or physical framework shall be the basis for identifying necessary 
policies, programs, projects and activities, and development controls to guide future development. 
The land use plan or physical framework shall be holistic in nature and not emanate from specific 
individual or corporation which, in essence, constitutes as spot zoning. 
 
SECTION 15. Adoption of Multiple Uses of Land Resources. – The primary and 
alternative uses of a specific unit of land resource based on its capability to support certain uses 
sustainably shall be determined and evaluated prior to any decision for the assignment of its use. 
Areas feasible for sustainable land resource use may be considered multiple-use zones wherein 
settlements , tourism, agriculture, forestry, agro-forestry and extraction activities and other 
income-generating or livelihood activities may be allowed by concerned agencies: Provided, That 
multiple uses of land resources shall be excluded in areas identified as protection land use: 
Provided, further, That such land uses shall maximize the socioeconomic benefits without 
compromising the desired levels of ecosystem services within a ridge to reef unit: Provided, 
finally, That such land uses  shall be in accordance with priorities in land use allocation and 
planning and that no reclassification shall be allowed. 
 
SECTION 16. Basic Land Use Planning Considerations. – In determining the various 
land uses, the people and their productive activities and the need for functional open spaces and 
preservation areas as well as the various interrelationships of the physical characteristics of the 
land and other elements therein shall be considered, among others, including the following: 
 


 
 
a) Availability of natural resources including indigenous energy resources for energy 
security and self-sufficiency; 
b) Geology, geomorphology, current and emerging geologic climate-related hazards and 
risks, soil, vegetative cover, demography and slope; 
c) Economic, environmental, cultural, social and related development activities; 
d) Existing government policies on land and natural resources allocation, utilization, 
management and disposition; 
e) Technological changes or advancement; 
f) Existing customary rights for the protection of indigenous peoples and vulnerable 
groups including women, rural and urban poor;  
g) Desired levels of ecosystem services like water quality and quantity, soil stability, 
biodiversity, agricultural and fishery productivity, among others; and  
h) Inventory of prior and existing rights, to harmonize determination of land use. 
 
SECTION 17. Categories of Land Uses for Planning Purposes. – In determining and 
defining the national, regional and provincial framework plans, and CLUPs, land uses shall be 
grouped into four major functional uses as follows: 
 
a) Protection land use which include the use of land primarily for food, water and 
energy security, rehabilitation, conservation, and protection purposes to promote the 
country’s ecological and life-support systems. Planning for protection land use 
intends to achieve food self-sufficiency in rice and corn, water and energy security, 
environmental stability and ecological integrity, ensure a balance between resource 
use and the preservation of some areas with environmental, aesthetic, educational, 
cultural, heritage and historical significance, and protect people and human- made 
structures from the ill-effects of natural hazards. All lands, either public or private, 
under protection land use shall be permanently conserved, preserved, rehabilitated 
and protected from all other land uses, disposition, intrusion, utilization and 
development that is not consistent with its existing uses. Areas under this category 
also include those covered by RA 7586, as amended by RA 11038 or the “Extended 
National Integrated Protected Areas Act of 2018”, and other coastal and marine 
protected areas, those areas outside NIPAS but nonetheless require protection 
because of their outstanding physical and aesthetic features, anthropological 
significance, and biological diversity, and those areas prone to natural hazards, such 
as but not limited to the following: 
 
(1) Natural forests and mossy areas with more than 50% in slope gradient; 
(2) Mangrove and fish sanctuaries, pursuant to RA 8435, and RA 8550, or “The 
Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998”; 
(3) Buffer zones or strips/easements, pursuant to Presidential Decree (PD) 389, 
otherwise known as the “Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines”, as 
amended by PD 705, or the “Revised Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines” 
and PD 1067, or the “Water Code of the Philippines”;  
(4) Salvage zones along foreshore areas, freshwater swamps and marshes, plazas, 
archaeological, and heritage or historic sites, pursuant to Presidential 
Proclamation No. (PP) 2146, series of 1981 entitled “Proclaiming Certain Areas 


 
 
and Types of Projects Environmentally Critical and within the Scope of 
Environmental Impact Statement System Established under Presidential Decree 
No. 1586”; 
(5) Watersheds supporting bulk or domestic water supply; 
(6) Utility easement like power lines of electric power generators, transmission and 
distributors, oil and gas facilities, cell sites, and bulk/domestic water lines; 
(7) Amenity areas or those with high aesthetic values, pursuant to PP 2146; 
(8) Natural and human-made areas/sites of cultural, historical and anthropological 
significance, which are declared as such by internationally recognized 
organizations and concerned national agencies; 
(9) Critical habitats as provided in RA 9147, otherwise known as the “Wildlife 
Resources Conservation and Protection Act”; 
(10) 
Significant caves under RA 9072, otherwise known as the “National Caves 
and Cave Resources Management and Protection Act”; or 
(11) 
Key biodiversity areas under Executive Order No. 578, series of 2006, 
entitled “Establishing the National Policy on Biodiversity, Prescribing its 
Implementation Throughout the Country, Particularly in the Sulu Sulawesi 
Marine Ecosystem and the Verde Island Passage Marine Corridor”. 
 
Existing property and private rights shall be recognized and respected on the condition that 
these rights are harmonized with the intent of the identified protected land use.   
 
b) Production Land Use wherein there is a direct and indirect utilization of land 
resources for crop, fishery, livestock and poultry production, forestry, agroforestry, 
mining, industry, energy development, indigenous energy exploration and 
development, and tourism. Planning for production land determines the most 
efficient, sustainable, and equitable manner of utilizing, developing and managing 
land for productive purposes. Areas included in this category are agricultural lands, 
fishing grounds, coastal and marine zones, production forest, which can be made 
available for timber and agroforestry production, rangelands for grazing, forest lands 
for special uses including for energy and reforestation projects, mineral lands or 
mining areas and reservations, energy resource lands, industrial development areas, 
and tourism development areas where productive activities may be undertaken to 
meet the country's requirements for food security, economic growth and 
development. 
 
c) Settlements development wherein any improvement on existing settlements in urban 
and rural areas or any proposed development of certain areas for settlement purposes 
involves the spatial distribution of population, identification of the roles and 
functions of key urban centers, determination of relationships among settlement 
areas, and the provision of basic services and facilities to such settlement. The 
settlements development plan ensures for the present and future generation the 
following: (1) effective integration of activities within and among settlements, 
allowing efficient movement of people and production of commodities through the 
provision of appropriate land, infrastructure, and facilities; (2) access of the 
population to housing, education, health care, recreation, transportation and 


 
 
communication, sanitation, and basic utilities such as water, power, waste disposal, 
and other services; and (3) security against risks associated with climate change and 
other natural hazards. 
 
d) Infrastructure development includes the availability or supply of basic services and 
fostering of economic and other forms of integration necessary for producing or 
obtaining the material requirements of Filipinos, in an efficient, responsive, safe and 
ecologically friendly built environment. It covers sub-sectors of transportation, 
communications, energy, water resources, and social infrastructure: Provided, That 
the determination of functional uses of lands within ancestral domains shall consider 
traditional resource and management systems that do not endanger the lives of the 
people and property of the local community and neighboring areas or increase the 
vulnerability of the natural environment to the effects of natural and human-induced 
geological processes. 
CHAPTER IV 
IMPLEMENTING STRUCTURE AND MECHANISM 
 
SECTION 18. Creation of the National Land Use Commission. – The National Land Use 
Commission (NLUC) is hereby created as a Commission under the Office of the President. It shall 
exercise the powers and responsibilities of the current National Land Use Committee, which is 
hereby abolished. The NLUC shall be chaired by a Commissioner to be appointed by the President. 
The Commissioner will have the rank of a Cabinet Secretary. The Commissioner shall be a 
qualified professional in any of the fields of land use, physical planning, environmental 
management, engineering, public governance or law. 
 
 The NLUC shall act as the highest policy making body on land use and resolve land use 
policy conflicts between or among agencies, branches, or levels of the government. It shall 
coordinate efforts towards the development of integrated land use plans at the national, regional, 
provincial, and municipal/city levels, and  monitor the implementation of all land use plans 
including relevant policies.  
 
SECTION 19. Composition of the NLUC. – The NLUC will be composed of the 
following: 
         
(a)  Commissioner of NLUC as Chairperson; 
(b)  Secretary of NEDA as Vice-Chairperson; 
As Ex-Officio Members:  
(c)  Secretary of DENR; 
(d)  Secretary of DHSUD; 
(e)  Secretary of DA; 
(f)  Secretary of DAR; 
(g)  Secretary of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH); 
(h)  Secretary of DILG;  
(i) A Representative from the LGUs; 
(j) Chairperson of National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP); and 
(k)  Commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue. 


 
 
 
The Department Secretaries may designate a representative with a rank not lower than 
Assistant Secretary: Provided, That the designated representative shall be on a permanent basis. 
The representative from the LGUs shall come from the Leagues of Provinces, Cities and 
Municipalities. 
 
SECTION 20.  Powers and Functions. – The NLUC shall have the following powers and 
functions: 
a) Advise the President of the Philippines on all matters concerning land use and physical 
planning; 
b) Integrate and harmonize all laws, guidelines and policies relevant to land use and 
physical planning to come up with a rational, cohesive, and comprehensive national 
land use framework;  
c) Formulate policies and endorse land use and physical planning-related policies that 
may be formulated by the RLUPC, created under Section 23 of this Act, and concerned 
agencies as well as promulgate zoning and other land use control standards and 
guidelines which shall guide the formulation of land use plans and zoning ordinances 
by local governments; 
d) Prepare, periodically review and if necessary, update the national framework for 
physical planning to provide the general framework for the spatial development 
directions for the entire country and sub-national levels; 
e) Review and endorse all land use and physical planning related guidelines; 
f) Monitor and coordinate the gathering of data, the conduct of studies pertaining to land 
use planning including studies on the management of identified land uses and such 
other studies not undertaken by other government agencies; 
g) Recommend to the President of the Philippines the adoption, passage, or amendment 
of laws to ensure that sectoral programs, plans, projects, and activities, including local 
government initiatives affecting land use are consistent with national development 
objectives; 
h) Coordinate with and assist other government agencies and LGUs in planning, 
developing, and implementing their land use classification programs, and provide, to 
the extent possible, technical assistance and guidance; 
i) Monitor and coordinate the activities of concerned agencies and entities of the 
government, as well as LGUs, in the enforcement and implementation of land use 
plans, policies and regulations relating to land use and resource management and 
development; 
j) Monitor and coordinate activities in the establishment of a national land resource 
information and management system of concerned agencies that shall integrate and 
process information on land use and allocation generated by the various national 
government agencies; define information requirements at various levels; and 
standardize information inputs and outputs including scales and symbols used in 
territorial and sectoral maps; 
k) Be the repository of all RPFPs, PPFDPs and CLUPs and all data and information 
pertaining to land and land use; 


 
 
l) Call on any department, bureau, office, agency, or instrumentality of the government, 
and or private entities and organization for cooperation, support, and assistance in the 
performance of its functions; 
m) Decide and resolve policy conflicts and territorial jurisdiction on land use between or 
among agencies, branches, or levels of the government and act on unresolved land use 
policy conflicts at the regional level elevated by the RLUPC; 
n) Adopt rules of procedures for the orderly and expeditious conduct of meetings and 
other business of the Council; and 
o) Perform such other acts and functions and exercise such other powers as may be 
necessarily implied, inherent, incident, or related to the foregoing. 
SECTION 21.  National Land Use Office (NLUO). – The National Land Use Office 
(NLUO) is hereby created under the Office of the President, which will  serve as technical 
secretariat to the NLUC.  The NLUO shall be headed by the NLUC Commissioner with two (2) 
Deputy Commissioners with the rank of Undersecretary.  
 
The DHSUD – Environmental, Land Use and Urban Planning and Development Bureau 
(DHSUD-ELUPDB) shall be converted into a line bureau that shall serve as the NLUO. 
Further, the DHSUD-ELUPDB shall have service units for the planning     and policy 
formulation, operations, monitoring and information systems management, technical assistance, 
legal, and special land use concerns. The staffing pattern of the NLUO shall be approved by the 
Department of Budget and Management. 
 
SECTION 22. Regional Land Use Office. – A Regional Land Use Office (RLUO) is 
hereby created in each Region. 
 
CHAPTER V 
REGIONAL AND LOCAL LAND USE POLICY BODIES 
 
SECTION 23. Regional Land Use Policy Council (RLUPC). – At the regional level, the 
RLUPC shall be institutionalized, replicating the NLUC structure and composition with DHSUD 
representative as Chairperson, NEDA representative as Vice-Chairperson and with a duly 
authorized representative from the DENR, DA, DAR, DPWH, DILG, NCCA, and LGU as 
members. The RLUPC shall have the following functions: 
 
a) Formulate and adopt regional policies on land use and physical planning; 
b) Prepare and periodically update an RPFP taking into consideration national polices 
and lower-level plans; 
c) Assist the provinces in preparing and periodically updating its physical framework 
plans to ensure consistency with the regional and national plans and policies and to 
facilitate its integration with the regional plans; 
d) Review, prior to adoption by respective Sanggunians, the PPFDP, and CLUPs of 
highly urbanized and independent component cities, to ensure consistency with the 
RPFP and national policies set forth by the NLUC and compliance with limits 
prescribed under RA 7160, as amended, for  reclassifying agricultural lands; 


 
 
e) Decide and resolve policy conflicts on land use planning, classification, and allocation 
that may arise between or among regional line agencies, provinces and cities or 
municipalities; 
f) Monitor changes in land use and other physical resources in the region; 
g) Evaluate consistency of major programs and projects with the regional physical 
framework plans and their impact on land use and the environment; 
h) Undertake the gathering of regional data for the land resource information and 
management system; and 
i) Perform other related functions as may be directed by the NLUC.  
 
SECTION 24. Provincial Land Use Policy Council. – The Provincial Development 
Council, created under Section 106 of RA 7160, shall act as the PLUPC that will tackle land use 
concerns whenever necessary. A duly authorized representative from the DENR, DHSUD, DAR, 
DA, DILG, and DPWH shall be included in the composition of the PLUPC. In addition to the 
functions enumerated in Section 109 of RA 7160, the PLUPC shall: 
 
a) Advise the Sangguniang Panlalawigan on all matters pertaining to land use and 
physical planning; 
b) Review and endorse to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan for adoption, the provincial 
physical framework plans, prepared and periodically updated by the PPDO and other 
land use and physical planning-related policies; 
c) Decide and resolve policy conflicts on land use planning, classification, and allocation 
that may arise between or among cities or municipalities and any unresolved land use 
conflicts at the city or municipal level. The PLUPC may call upon any local official 
concerned such as provincial planning and development coordinator, provincial 
agriculturist, provincial environment and natural resources officer, provincial 
engineer, provincial assessor, or any official of national agencies and other relevant 
agencies during discussions on land use and physical planning concerns; and 
d) Assist the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in reviewing the CLUPs of component cities or 
municipalities to ensure consistency with the provincial physical framework plans and 
compliance with the limits prescribed under RA 7160, as amended, for reclassifying 
agricultural lands. 
 
SECTION 25. City/Municipal Land Use Policy Council – The City/Municipal 
Development Council (C/MDC), created under Section 106 of RA 7160, shall act as the C/MLUPC 
that will tackle land use concerns whenever necessary. A duly authorized representative from the 
DHSUD, DAR, DA, DENR, DPWH and DILG shall be included in the composition of the 
C/MLUPC. In addition to the functions enumerated in Section 109 of RA 7160, the C/MLUP shall:  
 
a) Advise the Sangguniang Bayan or Sangguniang Panlungsod on all matters pertaining 
to land use and physical planning; 
b) Review and endorse to the Sangguniang Bayan or Sangguniang Panlungsod for 
adoption, the CLUP prepared and periodically updated by the City/Municipal Planning 
and Development Office and other land use and physical planning-related policies;  
c) Decide and resolve policy conflicts on land use planning, classification, and allocation 
that may arise between and among barangays and any unresolved land use conflict at 


 
 
the barangay level regarding the violation of zoning ordinances including opposition 
to applications for locational clearances, permits or certificates; and  
d) Advise the local zoning board of appeals and adjustments on all issues and conflicts 
relating to zoning. 
 
For purposes of this Act, the City/Municipal Planning and Development Coordinator 
(C/MPDC) shall: (a) act on all applications for locational clearances for all projects except those 
of vital and national economic or environmental significance; and (b) monitor on-going/existing 
projects within their respective jurisdictions and issue notices of violation to owners, developers, 
or managers of projects that are violative of zoning ordinances.  
 
The C/MLUPC may call upon any local official concerned such as C/MPDC, 
city/municipal agriculturist, city/municipal environment and natural resources officer, 
city/municipal engineer, city/municipal assessor, or any official of national agencies during 
discussions on land use and physical planning concerns. LGUs without operational C/MPDC as 
mandated by RA 7160, as amended, shall activate their respective councils within six (6) months 
from the effectivity of this Act. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
ADOPTION, APPROVAL AND REVIEW OF LOCAL LAND USE 
AND PHYSICAL FRAMEWORK PLANS 
 
SECTION 26.  Approval and Review of PPFDP and CLUPs. – The PPFDP, CLUPs and 
zoning ordinances (Zos) of the respective LGUs, including provinces, highly urbanized cities and 
independent component cities, shall be submitted by the local land use committees to the local 
development councils for transmission to their respective local Sanggunian for approval.  
 
SECTION 27. Provinces and Independent and Highly Urbanized Cities. – Provinces and 
independent and highly urbanized cities shall have the power and authority to adopt and approve 
their respective CLUPs, zoning ordinances or provincial physical framework plan, as the case may 
be, through their   respective Sanggunian but subject to the review of the RLUPC as provided in 
Section 23 (d). 
 
CHAPTER VII 
MAPPING AND DATA MANAGEMENT FOR LAND USE 
PLANNING 
 
SECTION 28. National Base Mapping Program. – A national mapping program shall be 
implemented, coordinated, and monitored through the creation of an Inter-agency Technical 
Committee (ITC) composed of the NAMRIA, as the lead agency, BSWM, the Forest Management 
Bureau (FMB), the Land Management Bureau (LMB), the Biodiversity Management Bureau 
(BMB), the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and 
Seismology (PHIVOLCS), DAR, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), Department of 
Energy (DOE), NEDA, Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) , University of the Philippines 
Resilience Institute (UPRI), NCIP, and other concerned government agencies/bureaus. The ITC 
shall be constituted, and the mapping program shall be initiated, within thirty (30) days from the 


 
 
effectivity of this Act. The agencies mentioned in this Section shall finish their base mapping 
program within one (1) year upon the effectivity of this Act. 
 
 
For purposes of uniformity and standardization, the LGUs, to be assisted by the appropriate 
agencies of the national government, shall likewise prepare their respective territorial maps using 
scales, symbols, and other indicators to be prescribed in accordance with this Act. The completed 
maps shall be integrated in the NPFP pursuant to Section 5 of this Act. 
 
 
SECTION 29.  National Geospatial Information Program. – Within one (1) year upon 
the effectivity of this Act, the NAMRIA, in coordination with BSWM, FMB, LMB, BMB, MGB, 
PHIVOLCS, DAR, NWRB, NCIP, DOE, NEDA, PSA, UPRI, and other concerned government 
agencies or bureaus shall complete the updating of base maps including national disaster risk maps. 
These base maps and corresponding geospatial data shall be shared and disseminated to all 
agencies and LGUs to serve as reference in plan preparation and other planning activities. 
 
SECTION 30. National Hazard Mapping Program. –  Within thirty (30) days from the 
effectivity of this Act, a nationwide hazard mapping and probabilistic hazard risk assessment 
program shall be initiated jointly through the NLUC by the PHIVOLCS, the Philippine 
Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), NAMRIA, 
MGB, BSWM, DOE, and UPRI, in coordination with the National Disaster Risk Reduction and 
Management Council (NDRRMC), the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management 
Council (RDRRMC), NCIP, NCCA, and other concerned government agencies. The program shall 
include the generation of indicative hazard zoning maps that will outline areas in the Philippines 
which are prone to liquefaction, landslides, severe flooding, lahar, ground rupturing, tsunami, river 
erosion, coastal erosion, sinkhole collapse, earthquake, lava flow, pyroclastic flow, base surge, and 
other natural hazards. 
 
For purposes of uniformity and standardization and in order to develop a safe-built 
environment, the LGUs shall subsequently incorporate and integrate the generated hazard zoning 
maps in their respective CLUPs. Said hazard maps shall serve as guide for all the LGUs in the 
preparation of their own hazards-constrained development plans. The NPFP, pursuant to Section 
5 hereof, shall incorporate these hazard maps. 
All infrastructure activities including real estates and subdivision projects and the 
development of tourist spots requiring an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) shall be 
required to submit an Engineering Geological and Geo-hazard Assessment Report (EGGAR). 
 
SECTION 31.  Basic and Applied Research for Science and Technology Development. 
– Within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act, the Department of Science and Technology 
(DOST), in coordination with concerned agencies, academe, and research organizations, shall 
formulate a research agenda that will support physical framework and land use planning. 
 
SECTION 32.  Scope and Nature of Responsibilities of Other National Government 
Agencies. – All concerned national government agencies shall periodically report to the NLUC on 
the various activities and accomplishments on land use, including their respective sectoral or 
development plans. The NLUC may call upon the agencies for technical and administrative 
support. 


 
 
 
SECTION 33. Monitoring of CLUP Implementation. – The DHSUD shall design and 
install an information system for monitoring the actual use of land resources, the reclassification 
of agricultural lands authorized by cities and municipalities, and the implementation of CLUPs of 
LGUs with a view to ensuring the compliance with national policies, standards and guidelines: 
Provided, That the system shall be developed in coordination with DA, DAR, DILG, DENR, 
DPWH, NEDA, league of provinces, league of cities, league of municipalities, other concerned 
national government agencies, academe, and research organizations. 
 
SECTION 34. Submission of Annual Report on the Implementation of CLUPs. – The 
C/MLUPC shall submit an annual report on the implementation of their land use plans to the 
PLUPC, which shall integrate the same for submission to the RLUPC, which shall in turn integrate 
the provincial reports for submission to the NLUC. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
SPECIAL AREAS OF CONCERN 
 
Article 1  
Forest Lands and Reservation of Watershed 
 
SECTION 35. Reversion of Alienable and Disposable Lands to Forestlands. – Upon the 
recommendation of the Secretary of the DENR, duly reviewed and endorsed by the NLUC, and 
after due consultations with the concerned LGUs and affected parties, Congress may authorize the 
reversion of alienable and disposable lands of the public domain or portion thereof to forestlands, 
unless they are covered by existing titles, or actually occupied openly, continuously, adversely, 
and publicly for a period required by law: Provided, That, when public interest so requires, steps 
shall be taken to expropriate such lands, cancel defective titles, or eject occupants thereof. 
Thereafter, said lands shall be included in the preparation of land use plans within forestlands. 
 
SECTION 36.  Critical Watershed Areas. – The DENR, in coordination with the DA, 
LGUs and other government agencies, including government-owned and controlled corporation, 
and after mandatory public hearings or consultations, shall identify and delineate critical watershed 
areas that need to be protected, rehabilitated, enhanced or withdrawn from uses that contribute to 
their further degradation.  
 
SECTION 37.  Formulation and Implementation of Integrated Watershed Management 
Plans. – A Watershed Management Council (WMC), which is a multi-agency, inter-LGU, and 
multi-sectoral consortium, chaired by the DENR and co-chaired by the duly designated 
representative of the LGUs, shall be created at the provincial level to ensure effective and 
sustainable resource management of a particular watershed and provide the development needs of 
local communities. in cases where a watershed transcends more than one province, a WMC at the 
regional level shall be created. 
 
The WMC shall prepare the Integrated Watershed Management Plans (IWMP) consistent 
with the existing DENR laws, guidelines, and rules and regulations. The said IWMPS shall be 
integrated into the CLUPs of the LGUs. 


 
 
 
The DENR and the concerned LGUs shall jointly implement the Watershed Management 
Plan subject to regular consultations with and involvement of the community and other 
stakeholders.   
 
SECTION 38.  Establishment and Management of National Parks. – All areas 
proclaimed by the President of the Philippines and Congress of the Philippines to be under the 
NIPAS, unless disestablished, including those identified as initial components of the NIPAS as 
KBAs, shall comprise the national parks classification of the public domain.  The DENR and 
concerned LGUs shall ensure that such areas are integrated in the CLUP and physical framework 
plans. The preparation of management plans of protected areas and national parks shall be in 
accordance with the provisions of RA 7586, as amended, and other laws establishing or declaring 
specific areas as protected areas.  
 
Article 2 
 Coastal Zones 
 
SECTION 39. Criteria on the Allocation and Utilization of Lands within the Coastal 
Zones. – The allocation and utilization of lands within the coastal zones shall be guided by the 
following: 
 
a) Areas vegetated with mangrove species shall be preserved for mangrove   protection   
and shall not be converted to other uses; 
b) Areas which meet all accepted criteria on elevation, soil type, soil depth, topography, 
supply for successful fishpond development, and are not identified as mangrove 
protection areas, shall be utilized for aquaculture purposes; 
c) Areas sub-classified as mangrove and still suitable for use as such, or due to 
environmental conditions need to be preserved as mangrove, but is devoid of mangrove 
stands shall not be converted to other uses. The DENR shall ensure that these lands 
shall be reforested within a given period of time; 
d) Areas accessible to the sea and identified for fisherfolk settlement and housing shall 
be allocated to traditional fisherfolk who are inhabitants of the coastal communities 
and members of legitimate fisherfolk organizations and/or holders of stewardship lease 
contracts or titles to ancestral domains or any form of property right arrangements who 
participate in coastal resource management initiatives, subject to the usual census 
procedures of the DHSUD. 
e) Areas which does not fall under (a) to (d) above may be devoted to recreational or 
tourism purposes: Provided, That such undertaking will not result in environmental 
degradation and displacement of small fishers; 
f) Areas which are considered as traditional fishing grounds shall be used primarily for 
such purpose; 
g) Areas which have been allocated for small infrastructure needed by fisherfolk shall be 
allowed; 
h) Areas which form part of foreshore lands as defined in this Act including those which 
are under lease agreements or arrangements shall undergo zoning and evaluation to 
determine their boundaries and actual sizes and corresponding uses: Provided, That 


 
 
vested rights under the lease agreements or arrangements shall be respected. 
Evaluation of the said lands shall also consider the natural, geologic and geomorphic 
conditions of the coast; and 
i) The free and prior informed consent of the concerned ICCs/IPs and the necessary 
certification from the NCIP shall be secured before any allocation and utilization of 
lands within the coastal zones that are found to be within ancestral domains. 
 
SECTION 40.  Coastal Land Zone Sub-classification. – All public lands in the coastal 
zones are sub-classified into any of the following: fishponds, mangroves for protection from tidal 
surge and for preservation of biodiversity, habitats and sanctuaries for endangered wildlife, 
fisherfolk settlement, or recreational or tourism areas. No sub-classification of coastal zones to 
different uses may be done without the following:  
 
a) Conduct of a comprehensive inventory and resource and environmental assessment by 
the DENR with the respective LGUs and accredited non-government organizations 
(NGOs) or peoples organizations (POs) within their territorial jurisdiction. The result 
of the assessment along with a list of all existing applications and expired foreshore 
lease agreements must be posted in three (3) conspicuous places in the affected 
localities; and 
b) Prior consultation with the local Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management 
Councils pursuant to RA 8550 as amended. 
 
SECTION 41. Zoning of Foreshore Areas. – LGUs, in coordination with the DENR, shall 
conduct zoning of their respective foreshore areas to assist government and community fishers 
identify priority areas for conservation and development, and to enable them to set targets for 
mangrove reforestation and rehabilitation. 
 
SECTION 42.  Protection of Waterways, Easements and Flood Plains. – Structures of 
any kind may not be built in waterways and easements. Pursuant to PD 1067, the banks of rivers 
and streams and the shores of the seas and lakes throughout their entire length and within a zone 
of three (3) meters in urban areas, twenty (20) meters in agricultural areas and forty (40) meters in 
forest areas along their margins are subject to easement of public use only in the interest of 
recreation, navigation, floatage, fishing and salvage.  
 
The protection of flood plains shall use the watershed management plan as the reference 
framework in formulating flood mitigation plan. Development within flood plains and other flood-
prone areas must be controlled or, if allowed, must be so sited, constructed and serviced that the 
lives of occupants are not put at risk and that disruptions during floods are minimized. The 
identification and characterization of flood-prone areas and flood plains must be an integral part 
of Watershed Management Plan that shall guide the preparation of CLUPs, local climate change 
action plans local disaster risk reduction and management plans  and other prescribed thematic 
plans. The LGUs shall establish land use regulations to mitigate flood risks through the CLUPs 
and zoning ordinances. 
 
To promote the best interest and coordinated protection of flood plains, the DPWH, in 
coordination with the DOST and DENR shall declare flood control areas as necessary and shall 


 
 
prohibit or control activities that may damage or cause deterioration of lakes and dikes, obstruct 
the flow of water, change the natural flow of rivers, increase flood losses or aggravate flood 
problems, pursuant to PD 1067.  
 


 
 
Article 3 
Settlements Development 
 
SECTION 43.  Municipalities, Cities, and Settlements Development. – The development 
of municipalities, cities and settlements through CLUP and implemented by the zoning ordinances 
of cities and municipalities are guided by the urban zoning standards designed to maximize 
existing urban spaces, taking into account the studies of pertinent government agencies on climate 
change. The new and existing government buildings within the cities and municipalities shall 
comply with the government energy management program and the Inter-Agency Energy 
Efficiency and Conservation Committee resolutions. 
 
SECTION 44. Settlements within Hazard Areas. – Settlements, in particular, housing or 
residential developments, within hazard areas may be allowed: Provided, That mitigating or 
protective measures are adopted to address the potential danger or risk to lives and property within 
such settlements. In coordination with the concerned agencies of the government such as the 
PHIVOLCS, PAGASA, and MGB, the NLUC shall provide assistance to concerned LGUs and 
settlers in instituting safety and corrective measures to address the potential danger or risk. 
Residential zones as designated in the CLUP shall not be considered as outside the hazard areas. 
However, for this purpose, housing projects within such areas with less than or equal to one (1) 
hectare of project area shall be exempt from the ECC as well as the EGGAR and may be 
implemented without the need for any further certificate of exemption from the DENR or any other 
government regulatory agency. 
 
          SECTION 45.  Designation of Waste and Environment Management Site. – Each city or 
municipality shall identify, designate and allocate a suitable area as indicated in the watershed 
management plan within their territorial jurisdiction to serve as sanitary landfill or solid waste 
disposal site as established in its solid waste management plan pursuant to RA 9003 or the 
“Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000” within one (1) year from the effectivity of 
this Act. 
 
SECTION 46. Network of Settlements. – The framework and policies for the development 
of network of settlements shall be provided by the National Physical Framework Plan formulated 
by the NLUC. Individual settlements shall be planned as part of a national network of settlements. 
The network shall be based on existing and potential settlements; production activities, particularly 
those that involve highly competitive industries and services and generate local employment; 
environmental constraints and sustainability considerations.   Individual cities and municipalities 
shall be integrated through transportation and other infrastructure support facilities. 
 
SECTION 47. Criteria for Settlement Sites. – The following shall be the criteria for 
identifying settlement areas:  
 
a) Within A&D lands but not in environmentally-critical, hazard-prone or other 
protection areas as assessed, identified and indicated in the Watershed Management 
Plans;  
b) Along established urban growth directions;  
c) Are already or can be provided with basic services and utilities;  


 
 
d) Ideally within the 0-8% slope range, but with mitigating measures from slope 9-17%;  
e) Reasonably accessible from existing built up areas and other employment centers 
through existing or proposed roads and other transportation facilities; and  
f) Identified ICCs/IPs settlement areas shall be located within ancestral domains. 
 
Hazard-prone areas shall be defined, delineated and mapped by the DENR and other the 
mandated government agencies, together with LGUs during the preparation of management plans 
of the watersheds that are partially or wholly inside the jurisdiction of municipality or city. As 
such, new settlements within high-risk areas shall not be allowed. In cases where there are existing 
settlements within geo-hazard areas or high-risk areas, mitigating or protective measures shall be 
adopted to address the potential danger or risk to lives and property within such settlements.  In 
coordination with the concerned agencies of the government, the NLUC, through the RLUPC and 
PLUPC, shall provide assistance to concerned LGUs and settlers in instituting safety and 
corrective measures to address the potential danger or risk. New developments within geo-hazard 
areas shall be required to submit an ECC and EGGAR consistent with the Revised Procedural 
Manual for DENR Administrative Order (DAO) No. 2003-30 otherwise known as the 
“Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) for the Philippine  Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) System” and DAO No. 2000-28 otherwise known as the “Implementing Guidelines on 
Engineering Geological and Geohazard Assessment as Additional Requirement for ECC 
Applications covering Subdivision, Housing and other Land Development and Infrastructure 
Projects”. 
 
SECTION 48. Sustainable Communities. – Each city or municipality or cluster of cities 
or municipalities, as appropriate, shall seek to follow the basic features of sustainable 
communities, as guided by the National Urban Development and Housing Framework: transit-
oriented, pedestrian-biased, and multiple use, with systems and practices that promote water use 
efficiency, energy efficiency, waste segregation, recycling, and adequate community facilities.  
Cities and municipalities or clusters thereof shall identify, designate and allocate areas within their 
territorial jurisdiction to serve as waste disposal site following the provisions of RA 9003.   
 
For energy efficiency, cities and municipalities or clusters thereof shall utilize energy 
consuming products which comply with the DOE’s efficiency rating and energy labeling system 
pursuant to the provision of RA 11285 or the “Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act”. 
 
SECTION 49. Designation and Zoning of Socialized Housing Zones. – Each city or 
municipality in urban, urbanizable and rural areas shall designate through the CLUP adequate 
lands for housing or residential purposes, including socialized housing and resettlement areas for 
the immediate and future needs of the local population as well as the underprivileged and homeless 
in their territory, pursuant to existing laws and regulations. In order to ensure adequate availability 
of lands for the housing needs of the local population, the CLUP shall be updated, at maximum, 
every twelve (12) years for provinces, cities and municipalities. 
 
The designated sites for socialized housing shall be located in residential zones, and shall 
be zoned as socialized housing zones that are integrated in the city or municipality’s zoning 
ordinance, pursuant to existing laws and regulations. 
 


 
 
Fisherfolk settlements and housing in coastal municipalities shall be zoned near the sea for 
easy access to their livelihood as provided under Section 39 (d) of this Act. 
 
The housing or residential lands designated in the CLUPs and zoning ordinances of cities 
and municipalities shall, on one hand, not be subject to further land reclassification by the LGU or 
land conversion procedure under DAR. On the other hand, agricultural lands as designated in the 
CLUP which are no longer economically feasible for agricultural use may be subject to land 
reclassification or land use conversion to housing or residential purposes and such land use 
conversion, as the case may be, shall be exempt from the coverage of any moratorium on land use 
conversion, provided such conversion shall not conflict with the prescriptions of watershed 
management plans and shall not result in serious environmental and ecological problems. 
 
SECTION 50. Urban Forest or Green Space. – Each city or highly urbanizing 
municipality shall identify, designate, and allocate lands owned by the city or municipality as 
urban forest or green space based on the guidelines and standards to be issued by the DENR and 
approved by the NLUC. 
 
Article 4 
NIPAS Areas 
 
SECTION 51.  Integrated Management Strategy. – For a more effective planning, 
management, and protection of protected areas at the provincial, city or municipal levels, the 
Protected Area Management Plan referred to in RA 7586, as amended, must be incorporated in the 
provincial physical framework plan and CLUPs, if applicable, wherein the protected area zoning 
must be reflected.  
 
Article 5 
Agricultural Lands 
 
SECTION 52. Priority Areas for Agricultural Development. – Priority areas for 
agricultural development shall be those agricultural areas covered under RA 6657 and those 
covered under NPAAAD and SAFDZ, defined in Section 4 of this Act and in RA 8435 or the 
“Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act”. 
 
SECTION 53. Conversion of Agricultural Lands. – Prime agricultural lands and specific 
types of lands to the extent necessary for attaining food self-sufficiency in rice and food security 
in other basic commodities, as determined by the DA, subject to mandatory consultation with the 
LGUs, the private sector, the NGOs, and POs, shall be protected from conversion, which shall 
include but not limited to areas under the NPAAAD and SAFDZ: Provided, That all irrigated and 
irrigable lands, all lands developed or possessing the potential for development of high value crops, 
and all agricultural lands that are ecologically fragile and whose conversion will result in serious 
environmental problems shall be given full protection from conversion, the areas under which are 
subject to review every   six (6) years by the DA, with the mandatory public consultations: 
Provided, further, That consistent with the State policy on giving priority to the completion of the 
comprehensive agrarian reform program, all lands subject to the comprehensive agrarian reform 
program including those lands covered under notice of compulsory acquisition or voluntary offer 


 
 
to sell, production or profit-sharing, or commercial farm deferment shall also be protected from 
conversion pending the distribution and installation of the farmer beneficiaries, but thereafter, 
Section 22 of RA 9700 shall apply: Provided, furthermore, That the conversion of prime 
agricultural lands for use in priority government projects for basic services such as, but not limited 
to, irrigation and power shall be allowed only upon the recommendation of the Secretaries of the 
DA and the DAR: Provided, finally, That the mapping of the NPAAAD under the RA 8435 shall 
be completed within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act. Lands defined under Section 10 
of RA 6657 shall remain exempted and excluded from the coverage of the comprehensive agrarian 
reform program. With due consideration of the above-mentioned conditions that provides for the 
full protection of prime agricultural land, only then, upon approval by the DAR of the application 
for conversion, agricultural lands are deemed converted to non-agricultural uses. 
 
SECTION 54. Sub-classification or Re- classification of Agricultural Lands by LGUs. 
– Sub-classification or re-classification of agricultural lands to other uses under Section 20 of RA 
7160 shall exclude the protected agricultural lands as stated in the preceding section. Moreover, 
such sub-classification or reclassification is not synonymous to conversion. Further, such sub-
classification or re-classification shall not result to land uses that are in conflict with the 
prescriptions of the watershed management plans. The DA and DAR shall provide the LGUs with 
complete list and maps of protected agricultural lands within their territorial jurisdictions. 
 
SECTION 55. Criteria for the Utilization and Allocation of Land for Mining Purposes. 
– Consistent with this Act and the provisions of RA 7942, otherwise known as the “Philippine 
Mining Act of 1995”, and to ensure that the objectives of maintaining ecological balance and 
maximizing economic returns to mining operations are realized, the allocation and utilization of 
lands for mining purposes shall be guided by the following: 
                                                                                                      
a) The principles of sustainable development and responsible mining; 
b) In case of small-scale mining, adequate and acceptable safeguards shall be instituted 
by the holders of mining rights or permits to prevent environmental degradation of the 
mining sites and adjacent areas; 
c) Mineral reservations which have become non-operational as determined by the MGB 
shall be placed under appropriate surface management by the DENR after conducting 
scientific, geological, and environmental studies in accordance with relevant laws   on 
mineral reservation establishment and de-establishment;  
d) Natural forests, proclaimed watershed forest reserves, mangrove forests, and mossy 
forests are closed to mining operations pursuant to RA 7942, and other pertinent laws;  
e) Consistent with RA 7942, areas closed to mining operations like natural forests, 
proclaimed watershed forest reserves, mangrove forests, and mossy forests shall be 
periodically reviewed through mineral exploration to be undertaken by the DENR for 
the purpose of determining whether or not their continued closure is consistent with the 
national interest and with the prescriptions of watershed management plans and, if 
warranted, recommend their reclassification as mineral lands; and  
f) Protection forestlands and agricultural lands shall be exempt from mining activities to 
minimize the effect of natural calamities and to protect food security respectively. The 
small to large scale mining operations shall yield from and recognize the tenurial 
instrument given by the government such as original certificate of title, transfer 


 
 
certificate of title, certificate of ancestral domain title, emancipation patent-certificate 
of land ownership award and other instruments. If these be present, mining activity 
shall be allowed subject to clearances and consent, and: Provided, That mining activity 
shall not conflict with the prescriptions of watershed management plans and shall not 
have serious environmental and ecological problems.  
 
SECTION 56. Reversion of Mineral Lands. – All mineral lands with exhausted mineral 
resources, as determined by the MGB upon the recommendation of the DENR, shall revert to its 
original land classification, that is, as forestland or agricultural land. In the case of forestlands, the 
DENR may classify such areas for other purposes in consultation with concerned LGUs, DOT, 
and other national government agencies, and consistent with the prescriptions of the watershed 
management plans. 
Article 6 
Energy Resources 
 
SECTION 57.  Guidelines for the Utilization and Allocation of Lands for Energy 
Resource Exploration, Development, Production, Utilization, and Distribution Purposes. – To 
ensure that the objectives of maintaining ecological balance and maximizing the power potential 
from indigenous energy resources in the most economical and environmentally-acceptable means 
are realized, the allocation and utilization of lands are be guided by the following, consistent with 
the existing laws, rules and regulations on energy resources:  
 
a) Indigenous energy resource exploration and development for the purpose of creating a 
national energy resource inventory and data base as well as an energy resource block 
map are allowed, subject to the prescriptions of watershed management plans and other 
land management plans; 
b) Indigenous energy resource exploration, development, production, utilization, and 
distribution are subject to the appropriate requirements and processes of the 
Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) system. Each project must secure an ECC prior 
to project implementation to ensure that adequate and appropriate environmental 
management measures and optimum methods for resource access and recovery are 
used; 
c) Protected areas defined in Section 17 of this Act are closed to any kind of energy 
resource development except for installation or erection of power lines therein 
Provided, That vested rights granted through the Special Use Agreements in Protected 
Areas as granted by the DENR are respected; 
d) Energy reservations or portions thereof which have become or have been established 
to be non-economically viable to operate or are no longer used for energy purposes 
must be reclassified to other land uses, subject to existing laws covering energy 
reservations and to prescriptions of watershed management plans; and 
e) Renewable energy is preferred over other energy resource.  
 
SECTION 58.  Reversion of Energy Resource Lands. – All exhausted indigenous energy 
resource lands, as determined by the DOE, which are not covered by proclamations must 
automatically revert to the category of forestlands or agricultural lands, open to disposition, 
whichever is appropriate, unless the DENR classifies such areas for other purposes consistent with 


 
 
the prescriptions of watershed management plans.  Exhausted energy resource lands are specific 
energy resource sites that the energy reserves of the desired type or types are no longer in sufficient 
quantity or quality to justify additional expenditure for its extraction and utilization. 
 
Article 7  
Industrial Development Areas or Sites 
 
SECTION 59.  Criteria for Designating Industrial Development Areas. – The 
identification and establishment of industrial development areas shall conform to the provisions of 
RAs 7916, 6657, 8371, 7279, 8550, and 8435, taking into consideration the following: 
 
a) Identified network of areas for agricultural development and protected agricultural 
areas pursuant to the RA 8435; 
b) National policies on the regional dispersal of industries and agri-based industrial 
development; 
c) Identified growth areas and corridors in the National Development Plan; 
d) NIPAS and non-NIPAS areas such as KBAs and restored areas that require protection; 
e) National and Urban Development and Housing Framework; 
f) Identified socialized housing zones;   
g) National framework for physical planning and other existing national programs and 
policies; and 
h) Prescriptions of watershed management plans. 
 
The designated industrial development areas must be located only in production land uses 
areas and shall form an integral part of the land use plan and zoning ordinance of the city or 
municipality where these areas are located pursuant to RAs 6657, 8371, 7279, 855, 8435, and 
7160, as amended. 
 
Article 8 
Tourism Development Areas 
 
SECTION 60.  Designating Tourism Development Areas. – The identification, selection, 
and development of tourism development areas, and Tourism Enterprise Zones shall be done in 
consultation and coordination with the LGUs, TIEZA, DOT and other national government 
agencies, the private sector and the affected communities subject to the provisions of RA 9593, 
otherwise known as “The Tourism Act of 2009.”  Tourism development areas include those 
covered by legislative and executive issuances such as tourist spots, tourist zones and tourism 
ecozones which can be developed into tourism estates or integrated resort, or integrated resort 
leisure and recreation complexes.  Other tourism-related facilities and those identified in the 
national, regional and area-specific tourism master plans and other sector plans, such as ecotourism 
and agri-tourism sites are also considered as tourism development areas.  The sites designated for 
tourism development must be outside of the areas identified for protection land use.  As much as 
practicable, community-based tourism shall be the principal mode of tourist spot operation. RAs 
6657,  8371,  7279,  8435,  7160, and EO 111, series of 1999, which provided for the national 
ecotourism strategy, shall apply to all tourist zones and tourist development areas.  


 
 
Designated areas for tourism development form part of the CLUPs and zoning ordinances of the 
cities or municipalities where these areas are located. 
 
SECTION 61. Identification and Declaration of Areas for Protection, Conservation and 
Preservation of Cultural Heritage. – Pursuant to RA 10066 or the “National Cultural Heritage 
Act of 2009”, the NHCP or the National Museum, the NCCA, in coordination with NCIP, DHSUD 
and other concerned agencies, local communities, and the private sector, shall identify declared 
areas and structures which shall be protected and preserved as part of the Philippine cultural 
heritage. 
 
The LGUs in coordination with the NHCP, the NCCA and the Cultural Center of the 
Philippines (CCP) shall designate historical zones to protect the historical integrity of said 
geographical areas and cultural space of intangible cultural properties. 
 
Declared and known archaeological sites shall likewise be protected by the NCCA, the 
DHSUD, NCIP, other concerned government agencies, and LGUs against modification, alteration, 
or destruction. 
 
Article 9 
Infrastructure Development 
 
SECTION 62.  Strategic Transport Network. –  The national government, through the 
Department of Transportation, shall establish a strategic and sustainable multimodal transport 
network that provides connectivity within the national network of settlements. Such connectivity 
shall include linkages  among existing and proposed priority urban centers, rural areas, production 
hubs and tourism zones, distribution centers and markets, and key international points of entry.  It 
shall be developed to promote network efficiency and social service delivery, to catalyze areas 
identified critical for economic growth, while minimizing negative impacts to environmentally-
critical and protected areas as identified in the watershed management plans. 
 
The national network of settlements, as defined in the NPFP, shall guide the development 
of a multi-modal transportation network. The network shall be designed and implemented to 
provide seamless connectivity among the various modes of transportation. The RPFPs, PPFDPs 
and city or municipal CLUPs shall focus on the transportation network that corresponds to their 
respective jurisdictions while maintaining consistency with the overall national networks.  
 
SECTION 63.  Allocation and Use of Land for Infrastructure Development. – Land, 
whether public or private, shall be allocated and utilized for priority infrastructure projects that are 
supportive of national or local development objectives.  The NEDA, in consultation with the 
national government agencies, LGUs and the private sector, shall identify and periodically review, 
update or revise the list of priority infrastructure projects under an over-all national strategic 
infrastructure development plan subject to the provisions of this Act, RA 8435 and RA 8371.  The 
national strategic infrastructure development plan must be consistent and integrated in the 
objectives and directions of the NPFP.  
 


 
 
In determining and evaluating the list of priority infrastructure projects, consideration shall 
be given to those that:  
 
a) Respond to immediate and vital requirements of the national and regional economy 
with priority to improving production-market integration, inter-modal transport, 
conveyance and logistics linkages, rural infrastructure and the development of the 
agriculture and fisheries sectors; 
b) Upgrade existing facilities to international public safety standards; 
c) Address the need for sustainable settlement development; and 
d) Mitigate the destructive effects of natural disaster-causing phenomena or serve as 
alternatives to existing infrastructure found in natural hazard-prone areas. 
 
The provision and implementation of infrastructure support must be made compatible with 
existing environmental conditions and the physical, whether natural or human-made, and cultural 
character of the area. Mandatory public consultations pursuant to existing laws and regulations 
must be held prior to the conduct of all infrastructure projects that necessarily involve dislocation 
or displacement of people in the area.  
 
The proponent of the infrastructure project shall follow the rules on just and humane 
eviction or demolition under Section 28 of RA 7279 as a last resort, notwithstanding the provisions 
of RA 8975, prohibiting lower courts from issuing temporary restraining orders, preliminary 
injunctions or preliminary mandatory injunctions. The proponent shall also follow the provisions 
of RA 8371, particularly those pertaining to the rights of IPs or ICCs in case of displacement. The 
national government infrastructure projects shall, after determining that displacement is 
unavoidable, include the budgetary requirements for the adequate relocation of displaced 
communities.  
 
SECTION 64. Infrastructure Projects within Geo-hazard Areas. – Construction of 
priority infrastructure projects within hazard-prone areas are allowed.  However, mitigating or 
preventive measures must be adopted and implemented to address the potential adverse economic, 
socio-cultural and environmental impacts that emanate from these infrastructure projects, subject 
to the findings and recommendations of a feasibility study or environment impact assessment in 
accordance with PD 1586 and RA 4846, otherwise known as the “Cultural Properties 
Preservation and Protection Act.”  
 
Existing projects that were undertaken without the required environmental impact 
assessment and which pose a threat to the environment, or to the integrity of historic, archeological 
or scientifically significant areas, or impinge on critical ecosystems, and other areas identified in 
the watershed management plans may be terminated immediately or gradually phased-out and 
relocated.  If the existing project is to be maintained within their life span, mitigating measures 
must be adopted and implemented. The rules on mandatory public hearings or consultations and 
just and humane eviction or demolition shall also be observed prior to the termination, gradual 
phase-out, or relocation of projects that necessarily involve dislocations or displacement of the 
people in the area.  
 
 


 
 
Article 10 
Agro-Industrial Development 
 
SECTION 65. Land Consolidation for Agro-industrial Development. - The consolidation 
of small-scale agricultural landholdings shall be promoted to take advantage of economies of scale 
in agricultural production, to promote value chain development, and to increase farm incomes and 
improve the quality of life of farmers. A Land Consolidation and Utilization Program under the 
DA shall be established. The program shall implement the following: 
 
a) Consolidation of small contiguous landholdings into bigger agricultural estates for farm 
operations and agro-industries; 
b) Crafting of a comprehensive plan and study of the optimum utilization and long-term 
productivity of bigger landholdings; 
c) Private sector participation in agricultural production and management through adequate 
security, incentives and reasonable return on investments, within limits set by existing 
laws; 
d) Development and adoption of cooperative systems that will increase the participation and 
protection of small farmers; and 
e) Provision of support to consolidated farms in such forms as      farm-to-market roads, 
irrigation, utilities, logistics, processing facilities, upgrading of basic social amenities, 
and marketing assistance to farmers. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
TRAINING, EDUCATION AND VALUES FORMATION 
 
SECTION 66.  Values Formation. – In order to develop a well-informed, responsible and 
committed citizenry, who value the protection, conservation and development of the limited land 
and other physical resources of the country, the CHED, with prior consultation with concerned 
stakeholders, may include a subject or topic on sustainable land use in the general education 
curriculum of higher education institutions. 
 
SECTION 67.  Information or Education Campaign and Capacity Building. – The 
NLUC shall spearhead a nationwide information or education campaign on land use and physical 
planning together with the local and national government agencies.  The DHSUD, in coordination 
with DILG, CHED and other concerned agencies shall formulate and implement a land use 
management capability building program for national and local government officials, community 
leaders, representatives of NGOs, POs, the religious sector and the general public.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
CHAPTER X 
INCENTIVES, SANCTIONS AND PENALTIES 
 
Article 1 
INCENTIVES 
 
SECTION 68. Formulation of a System of Incentives and Awards. – The NLUC shall 
come out with a system of incentives and awards to LGUs that regularly update their CLUPs within 
the prescribed period, as follows: 
 
a) Provinces, highly urbanized cities, and independent component cities once every 
twelve (12) years; and 
b) Component cities and municipalities once every twelve (12) years. 
 
SECTION 69.  Priority in Giving Technical Assistance to LGUs. – In providing technical 
assistance and other forms of support related to land use management and the implementation of 
development plans, the national government agencies shall give priority to cities and 
municipalities with approved CLUPs. The same assistance and support shall also be provided to 
the    fifth (5th) and sixth (6th) class municipalities: Provided, That the lack of technical assistance 
shall not exempt said municipalities from the provisions of Section 70. 
 
Article 2 
SANCTIONS AND PENALTIES 
 
SECTION 70. Failure to Formulate, Enforce, or Implement the CLUPs. – Within three 
(3) years from the effectivity of this Act, all LGUs shall complete the formulation of their CLUPs.   
 
Failure to formulate, enforce or implement the CLUPs shall be subject to the penalties and 
sanctions to be imposed by DHSUD pursuant to RA 11201, otherwise known as the “Department 
of Human Settlement and Development Act” and its Implementing Rules and Regulations. The 
DILG, consistent with due process, shall investigate, review, and impose appropriate action 
regarding local chief executives and other local officials and employees responsible for the 
formulation, enforcement, and/or implementation of the CLUPs in case of any of the following: 
 
a) Failure to implement and enforce the CLUP due to negligence of duty; 
b) Failure to provide appropriate budgetary allocation to effect its implementation; and 
c) Failure to complete the preparation and undergo review and approval process of the 
CLUP despite the availability of funds, resources, and support by the Sanggunian 
concerned. 
 
SECTION 71.  Causing Irrigated Agricultural Lands to be Idle. –  Any person or juridical 
entity who shall cause any irrigated lands whether contiguous or not, within the protected areas for 
agricultural development, to lie idle and unproductive for a period exceeding one (1) year, unless 
due to force majeure, shall be subject to an idle land tax equivalent to five percent (5%) of the 
value of the agricultural land as appearing in its real property tax declaration. In addition, the 
violator shall be required to put back such lands to productive agricultural use. Should the 


 
 
continued agricultural inactivity, unless due to force majeure, exceed period of two (2) years, the 
land shall be subject to escheat proceedings. 
 
SECTION 72. Person Abetting Illegal Conversion. – Any person initiating, causing, 
inducing, or abetting illegal conversion as defined in Section 73(c) of RA 6657, as amended, and 
Section 4(cc) of this Act  shall, upon conviction, be imprisoned from seven (7) to twelve (12) years 
and imposed a fine of not less than One hundred thousand (Pl00,000.00) pesos, or both at the 
discretion of the court: Provided, That if the offender is a public official or employee, whether 
elected or appointed, the penalty shall, in addition thereto, include dismissal through permanent 
separation from the service and forfeiture of all benefits and entitlements accruing to the public 
position and perpetual disqualification to run or apply for any elective or appointive public office: 
Provided, further, That if the offender is a juridical person, the penalty of imprisonment shall be 
imposed on the president, chief executive officer, manager, chairperson and all the members of the 
board, and other responsible officers thereof, and the fine shall be equivalent to the zonal value of 
the land or forty percent (40%) of the shareholders equity, as determined at the time of judgment 
whichever is higher, plus forfeiture of the land in favor of the State for sale though public auction, 
the proceeds of which shall automatically accrue to the Agrarian Reform Fund as provided for in 
Section 79 of this Act.  
 
SECTION 73. Fine for Non-Completion and Non-Commencement of Development of 
Agricultural Lands with Approved Order of Conversion. – A landowner and designated developer 
or duly authorized representative who, without justifiable cause, fails to commence or complete 
the development of agricultural lands with approved order of conversion shall be penalized, jointly 
or severally, with any of the following fines based on the zonal value of the land at the time the 
fine is imposed: 
 
a) On failure to commence within one (1) year from the date of conversion order: 
 
1. Six percent (6%) of the zonal value of the subject land for the first three (3) 
hectares; 
2. Fifteen percent (15%) of the zonal value of the subject land for the next three 
hectares, and 
3. Thirty percent (30%) of the zonal value of the subject land for the remaining area: 
Provided, That the order of conversion shall be deemed revoked automatically 
and the land shall revert to its original agricultural use and covered automatically 
and the land shall revert to its original agricultural use and covered.  
 
b) On failure to complete fifty percent (50%) of the approved conversion plan within a 
specified time frame. Fifty percent (50%) of the zonal value of the subject land and the 
revocation of the conversion plan on the undeveloped portion which shall automatically 
revert to its original use as agricultural land. The same shall be covered under the CARP 
and processed for land distribution as soon as possible. 
 
SECTION 74. Change of Use from the Previously Authorized Conversion Order. – The 
landowner and future landowners of the property approved for conversion shall not change its use 
to another use not authorized under the Conversion Order without prior consent from the DAR.  


 
 
This prohibition extends to changes in housing standards, changes in selling schemes, changes 
from social housing to open market housing or vice-versa, and all other similar changes. Violation 
of which shall be penalized with revocation of Conversion Order and forfeiture of cash bond. 
 
SECTION 75. Payment of Disturbance Compensation. – Following the order of priority 
as enumerated in Section 22 of RA 6657, as amended, qualified beneficiaries such as agricultural 
lessees and share tenants, regular farm workers, seasonal farm workers, other farm workers, actual 
tillers or occupants of public lands, collective, or cooperative of the above-mentioned 
beneficiaries, and others directly working on the land affected by agricultural land use conversion 
shall be entitled to the payment of disturbance compensation equivalent to five (5) times the 
average of the gross harvests on the landholding during the last five (5) preceding calendar years 
or a certain percentage of the converted land, whichever is higher, as determined by the DAR. 
 
SECTION 76.  Authority to Impose Fine. – The DAR shall impose the penalty provided 
for under the preceding section. 
 
SECTION 77. Withdrawal of Local Development Permits or Licenses. – Upon receipt of 
notice from the DAR of illegal conversion, the concerned agencies, city or municipality shall 
withdraw or revoke any development permit or license issued to illegally converted agricultural 
lands.  
 
SECTION 78.  Penalty for Reclassification of Protected Agricultural Lands and 
Exceeding the Limit of Areas Allowed for Reclassification. – Any person initiating, causing, 
inducing or abetting the reclassification to non-agricultural uses of protected agricultural areas as 
defined in this Act shall be punished with imprisonment of twelve (12) years or a fine of not less 
than One hundred thousand Pesos (P100,000.00), or both, at the discretion of the court.  
 
If the offender is a public official or employee, whether elected or appointed, the penalty 
includes dismissal from the service, forfeiture of entitlements accruing to the public position, and 
perpetual disqualification to run or apply for any elective or appointive position.  
 
If the offender is a juridical person, the president, chief executive officer, manager, 
chairperson, members of the board and other officers who directly participated in the violation of 
this Section shall be held liable. 
 
The same penalty is applicable to persons who are responsible for exceeding the limits set 
forth under Section 20 of RA 7160 pertaining to reclassification of lands. 
  
SECTION 79.  Utilization of Fines. – The fines collected under Sections 72, 73 and 78 of 
this Act shall accrue to the Agrarian Reform Fund and shall be used for the purpose for which the 
fund is established. 
 
 
 
 
 


 
 
CHAPTER XI 
TRANSITORY AND FINAL PROVISIONS 
 
SECTION 80. Convening of the NLUC. – Within thirty (30) days from the effectivity of 
this Act, the chairperson shall convene the NLUC. 
 
SECTION 81. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – Within six (6) months from the 
effectivity of this Act, the NLUC shall promulgate the rules and regulations to implement the 
provisions of this Act.  
 
SECTION 82.  Congressional Oversight Committee on the Land Use Act. – There is 
hereby created a joint congressional oversight committee to monitor the implementation of this 
Act. The committee shall be composed of seven (7) senators and seven (7) representatives to be 
appointed by the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively.  
The members from the Senate shall be appointed based on proportional representation of the 
parties or coalitions therein, with at least two (2) senators representing the minority.  Likewise, the 
representatives from the House of Representatives shall be appointed based on proportional 
representation of the parties or coalitions therein with at least two (2) Members representing the 
minority.  
 
The mandate given to the joint congressional oversight committee under this Act shall be 
without prejudice to the performance of the duties and functions by the respective existing 
oversight committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives.  The secretariat of the 
committee shall be drawn from the existing secretariat personnel of the committees comprising the 
oversight. 
 
SECTION 83. Appropriations. – The amount necessary for the initial implementation of 
this Act shall be charged against the current year’s appropriations of the departments and agencies 
concerned.  Thereafter, such amount shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.  
 
SECTION 84.  Review of the Existing Land Use Plans. – Provinces, cities, and 
municipalities with existing land use plans shall review, revise, reconcile, and harmonize their 
respective land use plans in accordance with the guidelines and standards issued by the National 
Land Use Commission (NLUC) within one (1) year from the effectivity of this Act. 
 
All other laws, orders issuance, rules and regulations inconsistent herewith are repealed or 
modified accordingly. 
 
SECTION 85.  Non-impairment Clause. – Nothing in this Act shall be construed as to 
diminish or impair the rights recognized granted, or available to marginalized or the basic sectors 
under existing laws or to diminish or impair vested rights generally, including the rights of 
indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples as provided under RA 8371. 
 
SECTION 86.  Separability Clause. – If any provision of this Act is declared 
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provisions not affected thereby shall remain in 
full force and effect. 


 
 
SECTION 87.  Repealing Clause. – Sections 10 and 11 of RA 8435, Sections 447 (a2vii) 
and 458 (a2viii) of RA 7160, the pertinent provisions of EO 648, series of 1991, EO 72, series of 
1993, EO 770, series of 2008, Letter of Instruction No. 1350, series of 1983, PP 2282, series of 
1983 are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly. 
 
SECTION 88.  Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication 
in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. 
 
Approved,