Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF THE REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE KRISTINE SINGSON MEEHAN 
AN ACT 
GRANTING FULL INSURANCE COVERAGE TO ALL QUALIFIED AGRARIAN 
REFORM BENEFICIARIES OF THE COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM 
PROGRAM, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTION 14 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 
9700, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM 
PROGRAM EXTENSION WITH REFORMS" 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This measure seeks to provide qualified beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform 
Program full crop insurance coverage. 
The Philippines by virtue of its geographic circumstances is highly prone to natural disasters, such 
as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tropical cyclones, and floods, making it the third most disaster-prone 
countries in the world. More than 20 tropical cyclones enter the Philippines each year. Over the past 
decade, these tropical storms have struck more often and more severely, and every year, damage to 
agriculture also worsens. According to the Department of Agriculture, in 2013, typhoon Yolanda alone 
caused damage at an estimated P31 billion. The typhoon Ompong in 2018 caused damage at an estimated 
P14.3 billion, while the 2019 El Niño phenomenon has reached P7.97 billion in agricultural damage, with 
rice and corn as the most affected. In the earlier part of 2022, tropical storm Megi wreaked havoc 
primarily in the province of Leyte, including agricultural damages worth P3.27 billion.  
The Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC) is the implementing agency of the 
government’s agricultural insurance program which provides protection against damage to or loss of non-
crop agricultural assets due to perils insured against. With the sum of insurance benefit paid, the farmers 
are immediately provided with means to recover their losses by replanting their crops as soon as weather 
and soil conditions permit. Ultimately, crop insurance ensures both food security as well as the income 
of our farmers. It gives our farmers, especially the marginal ones, the amount of money which would 
adequately equip and provide a better fighting chance to effectively combat and offset the adverse 
consequences of natural disasters, thereby making their losses more tolerable and manageable.  
Despite the existence of the PCIC, however, only a small number of farmers avail of crop 
insurance. This is because of the premium that they are required to pay. Notably, although half of the 
premium is already subsidized by the government, the other half still remains to be burdensome to a 
regular farmer. 
If only to highlight its importance, this bill was in fact approved on Third Reading by the House 
of Representatives, and transmitted to the Senate, in the 18th Congress. 
In view of the foregoing, the approval of this bill is earnestly requested 
August 18, 2022
4:21 pm
3839


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF THE REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE KRISTINE SINGSON MEEHAN 
AN ACT 
GRANTING FULL INSURANCE COVERAGE TO ALL QUALIFIED AGRARIAN 
REFORM BENEFICIARIES OF THE COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM 
PROGRAM, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTION 14 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 
9700, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM 
PROGRAM EXTENSION WITH REFORMS" 
Be it enacted by the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Section 14 of Republic Act No. 9700, otherwise known as the "Comprehensive 
Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms", is hereby amended to read as follows: 
“Sec. 14. Section 37 of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended, is hereby further 
amended to read as follows: 
“SEC. 37. Support Services for the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries. — The State shall 
adopt the integrated policy of support services delivery to agrarian reform 
beneficiaries. To this end, the DAR, the Department of Finance, and the Bangko 
Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) shall institute reforms to liberalize access to credit by 
agrarian reform beneficiaries.    The PARC shall ensure that support services for 
agrarian reform beneficiaries are provided, such as: 
 "(a) x x x; 
“(e) x x x; [and] 
“(f) xxx[.]; AND 
“(G) FULL INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR COMPENSABLE LOSSES 
TOALL QUALIFIED AGRARIAN REFORM BENEFICIARIES (ARBs) 
AS DEFINED IN SECTION 3(B) OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10000, 
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “AGRI-AGRA REFORM CREDIT ACT 
OF 2009’, WHO ARE ACTUALLY TILLING THE LAND AND HAVE 
MADE INVESTMENTS IN GROWING CROPS OR STOCKS IN 
FISHERIES 
FARMS, 
PRODUCTION 
INPUTS, 
AND 
OTHER 
FARMING 
IMPLEMENTS, 
AND 
OTHER 
NON-CROP 
AGRICULTURAL 
ASSETS 
NECESSARY 
IN 
THE 
ACTUAL 
CULTIVATION, HARVESTING, STORAGE AND HOUSING OF 
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SUCH CROPS, CROP OR STOCK IN FISHERIES FARMS, OR 
LIVESTOCK AS CERTIFIED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRARIAN 
REFORM (DAR). THE DAR SHALL PROVIDE THE PROCEDURES 
FOR SUCH REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATION OF ACTUAL 
BENEFICIARIES AND FARMING INVESTMENTS AND PROJECTS 
UNDERTAKEN BY SUCH BENEFICIARIES.  
      “COMPENSABLE 
LOSSES 
INCLUDE 
THOSE 
RESULTING FROM NATURAL CALAMITIES SUCH AS TYPHOON, 
FLOOD, DROUGHT, EARTHQUAKE, VOLCANIC ERUPTION, 
FROST, AND OTHER DESTRUCTIVE NATURAL PHENOMENA 
SUCH AS HEAT AND HOTWIND; PLANT DISEASES CAUSED BY 
PATHOGENS, 
BACTERIA, 
FUNGI, 
VIRUSES, 
VIRUS-LIKE 
PATHOGENS, AND OTHER SIMILAR FOREIGN BODIES; PEST 
INFESTATIONS CAUSED BY NEMATODES, INSECTS, MITES AND 
SPIDERS, MILLIPEDES AND CENTIPEDES, SYMPHYLANS, SLUGS 
AND SNAILS, SOW BUGS AND PILLBUGS, PARASITIC HIGHER 
PLANTS, AND OTHER PARASITES, AND LOSS OF LIFE AND/OR 
INJURY TO THE QUALIFIED AGRARIAN REFORM BENEFICIARY 
DUE TO ACCIDENT OR ANY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED 
CAUSES. 
 "THE FOLLOWING CROPS AND OTHER FARMING 
AND FISHERY PRODUCE ARE COVERED BY THIS SECTION: 
PALAY, CORN, SUGARCANE, HIGH-VALUE CROPS AS DEFINED 
IN SECTION 4(B) of REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7900, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE 'HIGH-VALUE CROPS DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 
1995’, COCONUT, TOBACCO, CROP OR STOCK IN FISHERIES 
FARMS, AND LIVESTOCK, NON-CROP AGRICULTURAL ASSETS 
USED IN ACTUAL FARMING AND REPORTED TO AND CERTIFIED 
BY THE DAR ARE LIKEWISE COVERABLE BY INSURANCE AS 
MANDATED HEREIN. 
“x x x." 
SEC. 2. List of Qualified Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries and Leaseholders. – The DAR, in 
coordination with the Landbank of the Philippines, shall submit to the Department of Agriculture 
(DA) within thirty (30) days from the effectivity of this Act, the complete list of qualified ARBs 
and leaseholders to be included in the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture 
(RSBSA), their respective locations and size of landholdings. 
SEC. 3. Appropriations. — The Secretary of the Department of Agriculture and the Secretary 
of the Department of Agrarian Reform shall immediately include in their Departments' programs 
the needed operational requirement of this Act, the initial funding of which shall be charged 
against the current appropriations of the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC) for the 
RSBSA. Thereafter, projections of the annual premium requirement shall be submitted by the 
DA-PCIC and the DAR to the President, and shall be included in the annual General 
Appropriations Act: Provided, that due to the insufficiency of the initial fund to cover all 
qualified ARBs and leaseholders, priority for coverage shall be allocated in the following 
manner: fifty percent (50%) to those  newly installed and qualified ARBs with issued certificate 
of land ownership awards (CLOAs) or leasehold instruments, in descending chronological order; 
and the remaining fifty percent (50%) to those earliest installed and qualified ARBs with issued 
emancipation patents (EPs)/CLOAs or leasehold instruments, in ascending chronological order; 


Provided further, that additional qualified ARBs and leaseholders shall be covered yearly based 
on annual projections, and in the same manner as provided, until such time that all qualified 
ARBs and leaseholders are covered under this Act. 
SEC. 4. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within thirty (30) days from the approval of 
this Act, the DAR, in coordination with the DA, PCIC and Department of   Budget and 
Management, shall issue the necessary implementing rules and regulations for the effective 
implementation of this Act. 
SEC. 5. Congressional Oversight Committee. — A Congressional Oversight Committee for the 
Full Insurance Coverage of Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries (COCFICARB) is hereby created to 
monitor the implementation of this Act. It shall be composed of the Chairpersons of the 
Committee on Agrarian Reform of both Houses of Congress, and three (3) Members of the House 
of Representatives, and three (3) Members of the Senate of the Philippines, to be designated 
respectively by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate of 
the Philippines. 
SEC. 6. Repealing Clause. — All laws, acts, decrees, executive orders, issuances, and rules 
and regulations or parts thereof which are contrary to and inconsistent with this Act are hereby 
repealed, amended, or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 7. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the 
Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. 
 Approved,