Republic of the Philippines
House of Representatives
Quezon City
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
House`Bi|TNo.    5043
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Introduced by Representative Albert S. Garcia
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
This  measure  aims  to  strengthen  the  quality  of  local  governance  in  the  country  by
institutionalizing a modified version of the Human  Development Index (HDl) as a performance
measurement tool for Philippine LGUs. An internationally recognized index, the HDl traditionally
gauges  the  level  of development within  an  area  along  3  dimensions:  health,  education,  and
standards of living, Considering local development challenges within the Philippine context, the
dimensions of the HDl under this measure shall also include peace and order. As such, the HDl
that  will  be  institutionalized  under  this  bill  will  be  a  modified  version  of what  is  traditionally
implemented.
LGUs who are able to consistently post increases  in their HDl  will  be  recognized  and
rewarded.  On  the  other  hand,  LGUs  who  consistently  see  decreases  in  their  HDl  will  be
penalized or reprimanded. Through this rewards and recognition system, this measure hopes
that  a  stronger  culture  of  meritocracy  among  local  governments  and  public  officials  will  be
promoted.
Support for this measure, then, is earnestly sought.
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Republic of the Philippines
House of Representatives
Quezon City
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
House BiT| No.   5043
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------,,11,1I1111-----
Introduced by Representative Albert S. Garcia
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1       "An Act Establishing and Institutionalizing a performance Measurement system
2           to promote a culture of Meritocracy Among Local Government units in the
3                                                                               Philippines"
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5       Be it enacted by the senate and House of Representatives of the philippine congress
6      Assembled:
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8      SECTION  1.  Short  Title.  -This  Act  shall  be  known  as  the  "Local  Governance
9      MeritocracyAct".
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11       SEC  2.  Declaration  of  Policy.  -lt  is  hereby  declared  the  policy  of  the  State  to
12       strengthen  local  governance  in  the  country  by  encouraging  local  government  units
13       (LGus) to improve development outcomes within thejrrespective localities. To this end,
14       a  performance  measurement tool  shall  be  institutionalized  to gauge the effectiveness
15       of LGUs  in  achieving  local  development outcomes  in  the  areas  of health,  education,
16       standards  of  living,   and   peace  and  order.     Pursuant  to  this,  the  State  shall  also
17       recognize the good performance of LGUs in achieving the said outcomes.
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19      Through  such  recognition,  the  State  hopes  to  encourage  LGUs  to  be  much  more
20       responsive to the needs of their constituents.
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22       SEC 3. The Human  Development Index. -The Human  Development Index (HDI) is
23       hereby adopted and  instituted  as the  performance measurement tool for LGUs  in the
24       Philippines.  The  HDl  is  a  summary  measure  of  average  achievement  of  LGUs  in
25       dimensions of human development as defined undersection 7 of this Act.
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27      SEC   4.   The   Local   Governance   Meritocracy   Seal.   -   The   Local   Governance
28       Meritocracy  Seal  (LGMS)  is  an  outcome-based  award  and  recognition  program  for
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1       LGUs.  LGUs  shall  be  assessed  using  empirically verifiable  metrics  under the  HDl  as
2       stipulated  underthisAct.
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4      SEC 5. The Local Governance Meritocracy council. -There is hereby established
5       a  Local  Governance  Meritocracy council  (the "Council"),  which  shall  be composed  of
6       thefollowing:
7              a)   Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG);
8               b)   Philippine statistics Authority (PSA);
9               c)   Philippine  National  police (PNP);
10              d)   Department of Health (DOH);
11              e)   Department of Education (DepEd);
12              f)    Commission on population and Development (POPCOM);
13              g)   Philippine statistical  Research and Training  Institute (PSRTI);
14              h)   National  Economic Development Authority (NEDA); and
15              i)    the philippine Institute for Development studies (PIDS)
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17      The secretaryofthe DILG shall actas chairperson of the council, and the PSA National
18       Statistician shall act as co-Chairperson. The appropriate office of the DILG, asthe latter
19       may designate, shall serve as the secretariat of the council.
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21       SEC 6. Powers of the council. -The council shall act as policy-making and advisory
22       body  to  ensure  the  proper  implementation  of this  Act.  It  shall  perform  the  following
23       powersand functions:
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25             a)   Be in charge of data collection and processing standards for this measure. The
26                     Council  shall  determine  the  criteria  for  recognition  of  LGUs  qualified  for  the
27                      LGMS.
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29              a)   Support the LGUs by providing any data they need to regularly update their HDl
30                     dimensions.
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32             b)   Determine,   assess,   promulgate   and   develop   the   dimensions.   criteria   and
33                    indicators  that  serve  as  standards  for  evaluating  the  HDl   of  the  LGus  as
34                    prescribed in section 7: Provided, That the council shall designate each council
35                    member  to  lead  the  development  of  the   HDl   and   indicators  in   its  area  of
36                    jurisdiction  or  expertise  and  recommend  the  approval  of  such  indicators  or
37                     dimensions by the council
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39             c)   Review and/or revise the  indicators consistent with the  long-term  development
40                    plans of the National Government. The development of indicators should reflect
41                    development outcomes that raise the human development index value in terms
42                     of policy,  rules,  regulations and guidelines;
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44             d)   Evaluate the impact of this Act on the performance of the LGUs for purposes of
45                     determining  the  need  for  enhancing  or  continuing  the  LGMS,  rolling  out  the
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LGMS  in  barangays or in other government agencies,  and  recommending  any
amendatory legislation.  For this purpose, the Council shall  institute an effective
feedback mechanism where the concerns  of LGUs and  other stakeholders on
the implementation of the LGMS are appropriately considered;
e)   Create   technical   working   groups  that  shall   be   composed   of  experts  from
government agencies, representatives from the leagues of provinces, cities and
municipalities,   and   other   sectors,   to   assist   the   Council   members   in   the
performance of their respective functions as provided for in paragraph (a) of this
section;
f)    Submit to the  President of the Philippines, the  President of the Senate and the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, on an annual basis, copies of the HDI
indicators  approved  by  the  Council  together  with  the  performance  indicators
developed and recommended by the lead Council member, and the result of the
impact assessment conducted pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section; and
g)   Perform such other functions as are necessary or incidental to properiy carry out
the purposes of this Act.
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21       SEC  7.  Dimensions  of  HDl,  -The  dimensions  of  the  HDl  under  this  act  shall  be
22       understood and interpreted as follows:
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a)   Health -This dimension  measures the overall quality of health within a  locality
through the longevity of life of its constituents.
b)   Education  -  This  dimension  measures  the  access  to  quality  education  of  a
locality's constituents.
c)   Standard  of Living  -  This  dimension  measures  the  overall  level  of  income  of
constituents within a locality.
d)   Peace and  Order -This dimension  measures the prevalence of crime within a
locality.
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36       Each dimension  shall  be  measured  using  a set of indicators. The set of indicators for
37       each   dimension   shall   be   formulated   and   determined   by   the   Council   based   on
38       acceptable  standards  used  nationally  or  internationally  together with  the  data  in  the
39       Philippine Human Development Report (PHDR).  In determining such, the council shall
40       prioritize   indicators   that   may   be   retrieved   from   national   government   and   local
41       government sources without the  need for primary data gathering  methodologies such
42      as statistical surveys, census, and registers.
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44      The set of indicators for each dimension shall be used to compute forthe HDl of each
45        LGU.
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2       The  Council  shall  continuously  explore  alternative  statistical  indicators,  as  may  be
3       necessary and appropriate for purposes offaster data collection and processing. These
4       indicators shall be updated annually to ensure that the data effectively reflects the key
5       dimensions of the HDl as stipulated underthis Act and are more readily accessible for
6       efficient collection and processing of the LGUs and implementing agencies.
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8       SEC  8.  Data  Collection. - LGUs shall  be  designated  as the  primary data  collecting
9       agency within their localities.  For purposes of this Act,  LGUs  shall  include  provinces,
10       cities,  and  municipalities.
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12       For purposes of this Act, LGUs may hire the necessary personnel, such as statisticians
13       and  others,  the  number  and  positions  of which  shall  be  determined  by  the  Council
14       through the lmplementing Rules and Regulations to be issued therefor.
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16      The data necessaryto achieve the purposes of this Actshall be collected from statistical
17      sources of primary or secondary data and may involve the conduct of statistical survey,
18       census, registers or any collection of available and verifiable data that have significantly
19       strong correlation with the indicators for the human development indices.
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21       The LGUs may require the coordination from and services of the Barangays in the data
22      collection process without need of a formal agreement for the purpose.
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24      Consistent with section 7 of this Act, data that may be accessed without the need for
25       primary data gathering methodologies as described above shall be prioritized.
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27      SEC 9. Implementing Agencies for Data collection and  processing. -The DILG
28       and PSA shall be thejoint implementing agencies of this Act. They shall, through their
29       relevantbureaus and offices, and in consultation and coordination with partneragencies
30      or sectors,  be responsible for the assessment and evaluation of each  LGu  relative to
31       its compliancewith the criteria, and recommend tothe council whetheran LGu qualifies
32       to be conferred or awarded the LGMS or warrants disciplinary action.
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34              (a) The  DILG and/or PSA shall call on any other concerned  agencies,  civil  society
35                    organizations (CSOs), or sectors, as it may deem necessary, to assist in carrying
36                     out its responsibilities under this Act,
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38              (b) The PSA will serve as the primary data custodian at the national level.  It will be
39                     in charge of setting up a data repository that will be accessible to the public.
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41               (c) The  DILG,  in  coordination with  PSA,  shall  recognize well-performing  LGUs and
42                    provide financial incentives or enforce appropriate measures as provided in this
43                      Act.
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1              (d) The PSA shall finalize the data collection and data processing standards that will
2                     be followed by the LGUs.
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4              (e) The DILG, in coordination with the PSA, shall be in charge of providing capacity
5                      building  and  training  sessions for LGUs  in  view of fulfilling their responsibilities
6                    under this measure.
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8       SEC 10.  Incentives. -LGUs who are able to achieve consistent increases in  HDl will
9       be   recognized  with  the   LGMS  and  will   be   provided  with   monetary  incentives  as
10       determined by the council, The monetary incentives shall be sourced from the LGMS
11        Incentive Fund as stipulated undersection  13.
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13       LGUs  that  post  increases  in  the  overall  HDl  and  its  dimensions  will  be  recognized
14       according to qualifying percentage increase standards set by the council.
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16       Recognition  of LGUs for the seal will  be  conducted  at least annually.  Quarterly or bi-
17       annual recognitions are also expected to be explored as implementation of the measure
18       becomes much more established.
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20      SEC 11.  Non-performing LGUs -LGUs that experience consistentdecreases in HDl
21       may be given disciplinary action by the DILG if it is determined that the decreases are
22       not due to external shocks such as natural calamities, pandemics, or such unforeseen
23       events  of  a  similar  nature  beyond  the  control  of  the  LGUs.  Qualifying  percentage
24      decrease standards and other criteria shall be set by the council.
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26       The  disciplinary action  shall  be  imposed  on  the  Local  Chief Executive  (LCE) who  led
27      the LGu during the period when the decrease in HDl  orits dimensionswas seen. The
28       specific disciplinary action shall be determined by the DILG on a case-to-case basis.
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30       The identification  of LGUs who will  be subject to disciplinary action will  be done on  an
31        annualbasis.
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SEC  12E  Periodicity of Data Collection. -Regular and synchronized data collection
shall be conducted by LGUs at least annually.  In the conduct of data collection,  LGUs
shall    receive   financial   and   technical   assistance   from   the   appropriate   national
36      governmentagencies as needed.
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To the  extent possible,  however,  LGUs are  expected to  monitor indicators at shorter
intervals as implementation of this Act becomes much more established.
SEC 13. LGMS Incentive Fund. -A fund will be established for the purposes of this
measure under the General Appropriations Act (GAA). The amount of the said fund will
43       bedetermined onanannual basis.
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1       SEC  14.  Management and Administration  of the LGMS  Fund.  -The  LGMS  Fund
2       shall  be  managed  and  administered  by the  DILG with the supervision  of the  Council.
3       Appropriation to replenish the amount paid out from the Fund during the yearand/orto
4       augmentthe Fund shall be proposed byand included in the budgetofthe DILG under
5       the GAA.
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7      SEC 15. Guarantee of Local GovernmentAutonomy. -The autonomy ofLGUs shall
8       be   respected  at  all  times.   Nothing   in  this  Act  shall   be  interpreted  as   limiting  the
9       autonomy of LGUs to establish  policies  and  pursue  programs and  projects designed
10       not  only  to  qualify  for  the  LGMS  award  but  also  to  ensure  the  enjoyment  of  their
11       constituency the rightto life, liberty, property, health, education, balanced and healthful
12       ecology, among others, in the exercise of their power underthe general welfare clause.
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14      SEC 16. LGMS operating Fund. -The activities and operational expenses, otherthan
15       the incentive payouts,  related to the implementation of this Act shall be included in the
16        GAA.
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18       SEC  17.  Data  Privacy. -This  data  collection  system  shall  respect the fundamental
19       human  right  of privacy,  ensure  data  quality,  and  uphold  data  protection  principles  of
20       legitimate purpose, transparency, and proportionality.
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22      SEC  18.  Implementing  Rules and  Regulations. -Within  ninety  (90) days from the
23       effectivity of this Act, the  members of the Council  led  by the  PSA and the  DILG,  shall
24       promulgate the rules and regulations necessary for the effective implementation of this
25       Act.
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27       SEC   19.   Separability   clause.   -   lf   any   provision   or   part   of  this   Act   is   held
28       unconstitutional or invalid, the remaining parts or provisions not affected shall remain in
29       full force and effect.
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31       SEC 20.  Repealing clause. -Any law,  presidential decree,  executive order,  letter of
32       instruction,  administrative order,  rule or regulation  contrary to or inconsistent with the
33       provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly.
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35       SEC 21. Effectivity. -This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in
36      the official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
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