Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

No._ 22414

House

INTRODUCED BY HON. MARCELINO “MARCY” R. TEODORO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The purpose of this bill is to institutionalize the road roll-on/roll-off terminal
system

The reason for this is obvious. Given our archipelagic structure, the only
way we can provide access to and from these fragmented islands for whatever
purposes, proprietary or otherwise, is by setting in place said system.

Indeed, the State has the obligation to integrate the various Islands
through a seamless system of land and sea transport that forms part of the
nation’s road network thereby reducing the cost of inter-island transportation
through the establishment of an efficient and cost-effective Road Roll-on/Roll-off
Terminal System (RRTS).

The development of the RRTS will serve a number of important purposes

@.g. promote tourism; boost regional trade and commerce; facilitate the

effective implementation of the agro-fisheries modernization and food security

programs; and, provide an integrated mechanism to inter-island transportation of
self-powered vehicles.

This bill therefore is a long time coming. Now that we have the resource
capability and technical know how, the bill should be immediately enacted into
law so that we can finally begin ease up commerce and other activities, involving
inter-island transportation.

MARCELINO ‘MARCY” R. TEODORO
Representative, 1° District
City of Marikina


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Quezon City, Metro Manila

FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House BillNo.__ 2241

INTRODUCED BY HON. MARCELINO “MARCY” R. TEODORO

AN ACT
INSTITUTIONALIZING THE ROAD ROLL-ON/ROLL-OFF TERMINAL
SYSTEM, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES,

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. — This Act shall be known as the “Road Roll-
on/Roll-off Terminal Systems Act”.

SECTION 2. Declaring of Policies and Objectives. ~ It is hereby declared
to be the policy of the State to integrate the various Islands through a seamless
system of land and sea transport that forms part of the nation’s road network
thereby reducing the cost of inter-island transportation through the establishment
of an efficient and cost-effective Road Roll-on/Roll-off Terminal System (RRTS).

It is further declared to be the policy of the State to promote private sector
and local government units (LGUs) participation in the establishment of new
policies to develop RRTS and the construction and operation of its facilities.

Corollary to these policies, the development of the RRTS is aimed to promote
tourism; boost regional trade and commerce; facilitate the effective
implementation of the agro-fisheries modernization and food security programs;
and, provide an integrated mechanism to inter-island transportation of self-
powered vehicles.

SECTION 3. Definition of terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following
terms are hereby defined as follows:

a) Roll-on/Roll-off or RORO Operations - shall refer to the method of loading
and discharging of self-powered motor vehicles driven on their own
wheels by their owners of drivers between ship and shore via a ramp, and
where the physical possession and control of the rolling cargo or vehicle is
not transferred to a cargo handler or to the shipping company or its
agents;

b) Self-Powered Vehicles — shall refer to any vehicle provided with its own
motive power;

¢) RORO ships - shall refer to a ship type or design duly approved for RORO
operations;

d) Road-RORO Terminal System (RRTS) - shalll refer to the network of roads
and RORO terminals all over the country, regardless of the distance
covered and linked by RORO ships;

) RORO Ship Terminals — shall refer to ship terminals, which cater basically
to RORO ships servicing passenger buses and private vehicles;


f) Lane Meter (L.M.) —shall refer to a unit by means of which the deck/s on a
RORO ship are measured where one (1) meter of deck with a width of 2.5
to 3.0 meters shall constitute one lane meter;

g) Road network — consist of the national and local roads linking RORO
terminals.

SECTION 4. Integration of the RRTs with the Road Network. - To the
extent permitted by law, the RRTS shall link to the nation’s road system and shall
not be burdened by transport procedures and costs, unless otherwise provided
by law.

For purposes of this Act, the following RORO terminals are hereby designed
as part of the RRTS:

a) Western Nautical Highway:
Dipolog — Dumaguete City
Bacolod ~ Ilo-ilo City
Caticlan, Aklan — Roxas, Or. Mindoro
Calapan — Batangas City

b) Central Nautical Highway:
Claveria, Masbate — Pantao, Albay
Aroroy, Masbate — Boca Engano, Burias Island, Masbate
San Remegio, Cebu City — Placer, Masbate
Dumaguete — Samboan
Toledo — San Carlos
Tubigon, Bohol ~ Cebu City
Mambajao, Camiguin — Jagna, Bohol
Guinsiliban, Camiguin — Balingoan, Misamis Oriental

c) Eastern Nautical Highway:
Surigao City — Liloan, Southern Leyte
Naval, Biliran — Cataingan, Masbate

4) And such other RORO terminals as determined by the DOTC, the private
sector and/or the Local Government Units (LGUs) under this Act, Provided
further, that the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) shall designate as
part of RRTS all RORO shipping routes established under this section.

SECTION 5. Lead Agency for the implementation of the RRTS. - The
Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is tasked to oversee,
coordinate and evaluate the implementation of alll initiatives under this Act. All
departments, bureaus, offices and other government agencies and
instrumentalities, including government-owned and/or controlled corporations
(GOGC) and LGUs shall extend full cooperation, support and assistance to the
DOTC regarding all matters and requests specifically related to and covered this,
Act.

SECTION 6. /ssuance of Authority to Operate. — For the operation of an
RRTS facility, the following shall be required for the issuance of the Authority to
Operate:

a) A Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC) issued by the MARINA shall be
required for the operation or ROR ships in accordance with Republic Act
No.9295; and


b) A clearance to develop, a Permit to Construct and a Certificate of
Registration issued by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) shall be
required in accordance with existing guidelines.

All port authorities, MARINA and LGUs, as applicable, shall issue the
permits/authority to operate necessary for the construction and operation of
RRTS facilities within thirty (30) days from date of application.

SECTION 7. RRTS Requirements. — In the establishment of RRTS facilities,
the proponents shall comply with the requirements provided for under existing
rules and regulations and implemented by concemed agencies set forth in the
Implementing rules and Regulations (IRR) of this Act: Provided, that all port
authorities, MARINA, and other concerned government agencies shall ensure
that the RRTs shall be covered by reduced and simplified documentary
requirements: Provided however, that no clearance shall be required of motor
vehicles using the RRTS except that the owners or operators of RORO ships
shall comply with the reporting requirements under Section 11 of the Anti-
Carnapping Act of 1972, and other applicable laws.

SECTION 8. a) The RRTS charges may be collected once as a toll or
separately consisting of the following components:

1) A terminal fee levied by the RORO terminal operator on vehicles and
passengers for the use of the terminal: Provided, That the terminal fee
is calculated based on the total weight of vehicle and cargo, and
collected once for every RORO link;

2) A RORO freight levied by the RORO ship operator on self-powered
vehicles based on lane meter;

3) A passenger fare levied by the RORO ship operator on passengers;
and,

4) A berthing fee levied by the RORO terminal operator on the RORO.
ship for mooring or berthing at the RORO terminal.

b) The DOTC shall ensure that all port authorities in the country shall
apply uniform terminal fees.

c) No other fees and charges shall be collected except those provided under
this Act. Fees and charges not otherwise provided herein, but are collected
and levied prior to the approval of this law, shall cease to be imposed
immediately upon the effectivity of this Act: Provided that LGU's shall not
collect any form of fees against passengers in RRTS ports and cargoes
passing through or unloaded in their territories in the guise of tolls, wharfage
or taxes and other charges.

SECTION 9. Applicability of the RRTS Toll. — the RRTS toll shall be
applicable to:

a) All self-powered vehicles loaded and discharged on their on wheels by
their owners or drivers between ship and shore via ramp;

b) All ships to the extent that they are actually engaged in RORO operations;
and

¢) All ports and terminals that cater to RORO operations.

SECTION 10. Private Commercial Terminats. — All port authorities shall
ensure that RORO terminals established and constructed through private
investments shall be operated as private commercial terminals. All port
authorities shall likewise take concrete steps to privatize operation and


management of state-owned RORO terminals within a period of five (5) years to
attract investments in the RRTS: Provided, That private non-commercial ports
shall be allowed to convert in private commercial ports.

SECTION 11. Environment and Business-Related requirements of the
RRTS. — Where all the Legal, technical and environmental requirements have
been complied with, relative to the development, construction and operation of
RRTS facilities, the Department of environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
shall issue Environmental Compliance Certificates within a period of forty —five
(45) days therefrom, and the proper government agency shall enter into
foreshore lease agreements within a period of ninety (90) days therefrom and
whenever necessary, secure from PPA or other regulatory agencies, a permit in
cases where reclamation is involved. Local Government Units shall issue the
necessary permits for the operation of the RRTS facilities within three (3) days
from the date of application thereof.

SECTION 12. Role of LGUs. — The following are the roles of the LGUs in the
RRTS:

a) To establish, operate and manage RRTS terminals using its own
funds, or Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT), or in joint venture with the
private sector or another LGU;

b) To invest in a RORO ship: Provided, That operations thereof shall be
undertaken by a private shipping entity;

c) To formulate policies affecting the operation of RRTS terminals in the
locality, in coordination with the DOTC, and including those provided
under section 8 (b) of this Act;

4) To support the RRTS by providing access roads to and from the
RORO terminal, and maintaining existing local roads and bridges used
by the RRTS; and

e) To ensure the smooth and efficient flow of goods and services within
the RRTs through proper area planning and consistent with the
approved comprehensive land use plan.

SECTION 13. Financing, Shipbuilding and Safety Support for RRTS. —
Government and private financial institutions shall make available financing to
eligible projects and qualified borrowers under the RRTS with reasonable and
simplified requirements, as well as concessionary interest rates. The Department
of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Finance (DOF) are hereby
mandated to likewise negotiate for loan packages/Official Development
Assistance (ODA) to serve as sources of financing for the local construction of
RORO ships to be required in the operationalization of the RRTS.

SECTION 14. Incentive Programs. — The RORO ship and_ terminal
operators shall be entitled to the incentives provided under Executive Order No.
226, otherwise known as the, “Omnibus Investments Code of 1987” as well as
those provided under Republic Act No.9295, otherwise known as the “Domestic
Shipping Development Act of 2004”.

The incentives granted under this Act shall be subject to review and/or
amendment every three (3) years.

SECTION 15. Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on RRTS. —
There is hereby created a Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on RRTS to
monitor and oversee the implementation of this Act. The committee shall be
composed of five (5) Senators and five (5) Representatives to be appointed by
the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives,


respectively. The Oversight Committee shall be co-chaired by a Senator and a
Representative designated by the Senate President and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives, respectively.

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.

SECTION 16. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within thirty (30)
days from the effectivity of this Act, the DOTC shall formulate and promulgate the
rules and regulations to implement effectively the provisions of this Act,

SECTION 17. Separability Clause. — If any provision or section of this Act or
the Application thereof to any person or circumstance is held to be invalid, the
other provisions or sections of this Act, and the application of such provision or
section to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected.

SECTION 18. Repealing Clause. ~ All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules
and regulations or parts thereof as are inconsistent with this Act, are hereby
repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

SECTION 19. Effectivity. ~ This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) national
newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,