SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
SENATE BILL NO. 
) 
) 
) 
1103 
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR JOSEPH VICTOR G. EJERCITO 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Midnight appointment is defined as an appointment to political 
office made during the last hours of the term of office of the person in 
whom the right of making such appointment is vested. The court has 
decided long line of cases involving midnight appointments anchored on 
the prohibition under the 1987 Philippine Constitution, which covers 
only the President or the acting President. Section 15 of Article VII of the 
1987 Philippine Constitution states that two months immediately before 
the next presidential elections and up to the end of his term, a President 
or Acting President shall not make appointments, except temporary 
appointments to executive positions when continued vacancies therein 
will prejudice public service or endanger public safety. 
There is no law that prohibits Local Executives including CITY 
MAYORS, MUNICIPAL MAYORS AND PROVINCIAL GOVERNORS from 
making appointments during the last hours of his term of office and this 
bill seeks to implement the same prohibition. At present, appointments 
in local government units are regulated by Sec. 261 (G) of the Omnibus 
Election Code and Civil Service Commission Regulation No. 010988. 
It is a prohibited act under Sec. 261 (G) of the Omnibus Election 
Code, the appointment of new employees, creation of new position, 
promotion or giving salary increases during the period of forty-five days 
before a regular election and thirty days before a special election by any 
head, official or appointing officer of a government office, agency or 
instrumentality, whether national or local, including government-owned 
or controlled corporations, whether provisional, temporary or casual, or 
creates and fills any new position except upon prior authority of the 
Commission. Appointments made during the prohibited period will not 
\ be invalidated when it is in conformity with CSC Regulation No. 010988 
which outlined the following requirements: All appointments, whether 
original, transfer, reemployment, reappointment, promotion or demotion, 
which are issued AFTER the elections, regardless of their dates of 
affectivity and/or date of receipt by the Commission, shall be 
disapproved unless the following requisites concur relative to their 
issuance: a) The appointment has gone through the regular screening by 
the Personnel Selection Board (PSB) before the prohibited period on the 
issuance of appointments as shown by the PSB report or minutes of its 
meeting; b) That the appointee is qualified; c) There is a need to fill up 
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the vacancy immediately in order not to prejudice public service and/or 
endanger public safety; and d) That the appointment is not one of those 
mass appointments issued after the elections. 
Cases relating to midnight appointments made by local executives 
before and after election are assumed to be initiated for partisan 
purposes in order to obtain favorable results during election. Short from 
referring midnight appointment to vote buying, most re-electionist would 
resort to such strategy in order to be re-elected. In the same vein that 
outgoing local executives should also be prohibited from making any 
appointments pending assumption of office by their successors in order 
to eliminate conflicts between the newly elected and the outgoing local 
officials. 
It is to be emphasized that the discharged of official functions to 
better serve the people is the primordial consideration in filling the 
vacancies of any government instrumentalities/agencies and not the 
personal advantages that the appointing officers may obtain in the 
exercise of its appointive powers. 
In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is earnestly sought. 
\ 
JOSEPH VICTOR G. EJERCITO 


SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
) 
) 
) 
SENATE BILL NO. _1_1_0_3_ 
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR JOSEPH VICTOR G. EJERCITO 
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AN ACT PROHIBITING CITY MAYORS, MUNICIPAL MAYORS AND 
PROVINCIAL GOVERNORS FROM MAKING APPOINTMENTS TWO 
(2) MONTHS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE THE NEXT LOCAL 
ELECTIONS AND PENDING ASSUMPTION TO OFFICE OF THEIR 
SUCCESSORS AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Proscribed Appointments. -
Two (2) months 
immediately before the next local elections and up to the end of their 
terms, city mayors, municipal mayors and provincial governors or those 
in an acting capacity shall not make appointments, either casual, 
contractual, temporary or permanent, except temporary appointments to 
executive positions where continued vacancies therein will prejudice 
public service or endanger safety. 
SECTION 2. Outgoing Local Executives. - Outgoing city mayors, 
municipal 
mayors 
and 
provincial 
governors 
shall 
not 
make 
appointments, either casual, contractual, temporary or permanent, after 
the local elections and pending the assumption to office of their 
respective successors, except temporary appointments to executive 
positions where continued vacancies therein will prejudice public service 
or endanger safety. 
SECTION 
3. 
Automatic 
Expiration. 
All 
temporary 
appointments made pursuant to the two (2) preceding sections shall ipso 
facto expire on July 1 following. the elections, subject to the renewal of 
the appointment upon the discretion of the duly authorized appointing 
authority. 
SECTION 4. Separability Clause. -
If any part, section or 
\ provision of this Act is held invalid or unconstitutional, other provisions 
not affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect. 


SECTION 5. Repealing Clause. - All other law.s, decrees, orders, 
issuances, rules and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the 
provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified 
accordingly. 
SECTION 6. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) 
days after its publication in the Official Gazette. 
Approved,