EREP RESON

hy? E-Filed
RECEIVED

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TIME 4:20pm
Quezon City, Metro Manila
NINETEENTH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

Wo mnpex:

HOUSE BILL NO. 7226

Introduced by Representatives Bryan B. Revilla,
Lani Mercado-Revilla, and Ramon Jolo Revilla Ill

AN ACT
ESTABLISHING A MANDATORY EVACUATION CENTER IN ALL CITIES,
PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

Because of its geographic location in the Pacific, 20 typhoons visit the Philippines each
year and potentially five of these are destructive.’ Moreover, the country is also situated
within the Pacific Ring of Fire, which makes it prone to earthquakes, tsunamis and
volcanic eruptions.? According to the Office of Civil Defense, there are 22 active
volcanoes in the country and faults may be found in several areas of the Philippines.

Their natural location makes Filipino families prone to catastrophes which endanger their
lives and livelihoods. According to the Department of Finance, “the Philippines has a 40
percent chance of experiencing a loss exceeding P989 billion and a 20 percent probability
of experiencing a loss of as much as P1.5 trillion in the next 50 years.” Thus, the
government needs to invest on infostructure the would strengthen the resilience of
Filipinos amidst calamities.

‘Among the important pillars of disaster response is the presence of sturdy and adequate
evacuation centers to shelter people who have been impacted by the typhoons, floods,
volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes, among others. Its sufficiency in number is key to
reducing casualties caused by natural disasters and to the ability of the Filipino families
to bounce back as quickly as possible from these fateful circumstances.

' Asian Disaster Reduction Center, n.d
2 Office of Civil Defense, 2018.
» Philippine Star, 2022

S
[e}
ZX DATE February 20, 2023
* aon: ©
2
Aaa

oy
mi
o
*

hy

By Bei
ry


Thus, this measure seeks to establish at least one evacuation center in all the cities and
municipalities of the Philippines to protect people from the imminent danger caused by
natural calamities.

Le B. REVILLA REP i MERCADO-REVILLA

Representative, AGIMAT Partylist j Representative, 2 District of Cavite

REP. RAMON JOLO REVILLA Ill
Representative, 1* District of Cavite



Republic of the Philippines

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 7226

Introduced by Representatives Bryan B. Revilla,
Lani Mercado-Revilla, and Ramon Jolo Revilla Ill

AN ACT
ESTABLISHING A MANDATORY EVACUATION CENTER IN ALL CITIES,
PROVINCES AND MUNICIPALITIES, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

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

SECTION 1. Declaration of Policy. - It shall be the policy of the State to uphold the
constitutional right of the people for the protection of their life and property and the
promotion of the general welfare. Towards this end, the State, shall establish and
maintain a fully-equipped and fully-operational evacuation center, responsive to
environmental or climatic events, in recognition of the vulnerability of the Philippines
to climate change, the occurrence of severe floods, typhoons, and other natural or
human-induced disasters, illnesses, diseases and other factors that affect the
environment.

SECTION 2. Establishment of Evacuation Centers. - There shall be established an
evacuation center in every city and municipality in the country which shall provide
immediate and temporary accommodation for people who have been evacuated or
displaced from their homes due to emergency events such as typhoons, floods, storm
surges, drought and other severe climate disturbances, as well as fire, and the
outbreak of ilinesses and diseases that present imminent danger to life and property.
Existing structures that would meet the minimum requirements or could be
upgraded to effectively serve as evacuation centers could be designated as such in
compliance with —the_~— local. ~=— government ~—unit_— concerned.

SECTION 3. Requirements. - The following shall be the minimum requirements for
every evacuation center that will be established under this Act:

‘a. Location Designation - Each location for every evacuation center shall
be determined by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), in



close coordination with the LGUs concemed. The location shall be determined based
on the following criteria:

It must be centrally located in the community;

It must be of a safe distance from large trees, structures where hazardous
materials are used and stored, or high-voltage power lines;

It must be near a health facility;

It must be located on geotechnically stable land to avoid risk of landslides or
exposure to potential landslide of adjacent lands;

It must not be located near military base camps, camps of insurgent groups,
power plants, factories, and other areas where the occurrences of human
induced disasters are very high.

Be No

o

. Structural and Building Capacity - The evacuation centers shall be
constructed and designed to withstand super typhoons or wind speeds of at least three
hundred kilometers per hour (300 kph) and seismic activity of at least 8.0 magnitude,
The structure must be calamity-resilient, built with sturdy materials, and in accordance
with the specifications of Republic Act No. 6541, otherwise known as the "National
Building Code of the Philippines" or shall be at par with the standards set by the
international Building Code. The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
shall be in charge of the construction of evacuation centers, including the formulation
of building specifications and shall ensure that the same are based on standards,
issuances, and other guidelines set by the DPWH, and are compliant with the
provisions of the National Building Code. The DPWH shall also ensure that the
construction of such evacuation centers is in accordance with the abovementioned
requirements during its construction phase. The specifications of the evacuation
centers shall be periodically reviewed and, if necessary, revised by the DPWH every
three (3) years. The evacuation center must at least meet the following parameters:

1, The structure must be elevated, in such a manner that is safely above the
reach of a high tide storm surge level of at least ten (10) meters;

2. The structure must be a minimum of one (1) meter above the average flood
level in the area where the same shall be built; and

3. The structure shall not be less than nine (9) meters in height and shall be designed
in accordance with earthquake load standards,

. Amenities and Accessibility. - The evacuation centers shall be well
ventilated and shall have the capacity to accommodate a large number of evacuees.
The evacuation center shall have the following minimum amenities:

1. Sleeping quarters for the evacuees;

2. Separate shower and toilet facilities designated for males and females, with
one (1) facility for every twenty (20) persons;

3. Amenities to enable access thereto by persons with disabilities;

4, Emergency exit doors;

5. Food preparation areas with adequate ventilation;

6. Trash and waste segregation and collection areas;

7. Health care areas which shall include an isolation or quarantine area for
potentially infectious persons;



8. Rainwater harvesting and collection facilities; and
9. Other facilities as may be prescribed by the appropriate authorities.

SECTION 4. Operation and Management. - The LGUs concerned shall be primarily
responsible for the operation, supervision, and management of evacuation centers
established under this Act. They are also hereby authorized to issue rules and
regulations on their proper use and maintenance.

The local sanggunian shall promulgate guidelines and procedures for the use
and operation of the evacuation center under its jurisdiction. The guidelines shall
prescribe rules on the utilization of the evacuation center when it is not used as such.
Provided, That the evacuation center may only be used for such other activities or
purposes that involve the use of collapsible amenities only and those that shall not in
any way compromise the serviceability of the evacuation center or impede the use
thereof when a disaster occurs; Provided further, That the LGU shall impose such
penalties as may be deemed proper on the organizers of authorized activities when the
evacuation center suffers any damage, defacement, or loss during or as a result
of such activities.

The mandatory audit of infrastructures used as evacuation centers shall be
conducted by the City or Municipality at least once every year and immediately after
the occurrence of a hazard or disaster.

SECTION 5. Role of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
Council (NDRRMC). - The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
Council (NDRRMC) shall be the lead implementing agency of this Act. It shall give
utmost priority to those areas of the country that (a) are identified as disaster prone;
(b) are financially incapable to establish their own evacuation centers; and (c) do not
have existing evacuation centers of their own. It shall enter into memoranda of agreement
(MOA) with the concemed LGs for the maintenance, operation, and management of a
permanent evacuation center in their respective areas of jurisdiction. It shall provide
technical assistance and support services to these LGUs in the management of the
facility.

Local chief executives concerned shall evaluate and provide suitable sites for
evacuation centers to determine their geographical stability, and public accessibility in
times of disasters. They shall provide for the maintenance, operation, and
management of facility taking into consideration the goal of life preservation and meeting
the basic subsistence needs of affected population based on acceptable
standards during or immediately after a disaster.

SECTION 6. Coordination Among Agencies. - The NDRRMC shall coordinate with
the DPWH and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) with regard to the
design specifications, cost estimates, and construction details of the evacuation
centers that will be constructed pursuant to this Act.



Concerned government agencies and instrumentalities, when necessary, shall
provide assistance to the NDRRMC to ensure the effective and efficient
implementation of this Act.

SECTION 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within sixty (60) days from
the effectivity of this Act, the NDRRMC shall, in consultation with the DPWH, DOST,
League of Cities of the Philippines, League of Municipalities of the Philippines, and other
concemed government and private agencies, promulgate the necessary rules and
regulations to carry out the provisions of this Act.

SECTION 8. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the initial implementation
to fund the construction and maintenance of multi-purpose gyms to serve as
evacuation centers shall be charged against the budget provided for this purpose
under the DPWH. Thereafter, such amounts necessary for the construction of
multipurpose gyms as evacuation centers shall be included in the annual General
Appropriations Act. The LGU concemed shall provide for the continued maintenance,
operation and management of the facility.

SECTION 9. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part thereof, is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provisions not otherwise affected shall
remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 10. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance,
executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary
to, or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed or amended
accordingly.

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

Approved,