Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No. 8595

Introduced by Representative PABLO JOHN F. GARCIA

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Constitution provides that “The right of the people to information on matters of public
concern shall be recognized. [x x x]"' It likewise states that, “Science and technology are
essential for national development and progress. The State shalll give priority to research and
development, invention, innovation, and their utilization [x x x].’2

In Tafiada v. Tuvera®, the Supreme Court had declared publication of laws as an
indispensable ingredient to due process. Even at that time, the Court had already observed
that the publication in the Official Gazette required under Article 2 of the Civil Code may have
already been overtaken by events, and that the interest of publication would be better served
by newspapers of general circulation, which came out more regularly and to a wider
readership.

Needless to say, technological advances have since overtaken Tafiada. More advanced
platforms of communication and publication have been developed than those contemplated
under the 70-year old Civil Code of the Philippines and which provide the citizenry more access
to and knowledge of enacted laws, rules and regulations, which are essential to due process.

The advent of smartphones and mobile applications, for instance, has certainly changed
the world forever. Statista, a German statistics company, reports that the Philippines had
around 36.35 million smartphone users as of September 2019*—a little more than one
smartphone for every three Filipinos. We Are Social and Hootsuite, social network and media
companies based in London and Vancouver respectively, also report that for 2018, “In the
Philippines, time spent online daily soared [x x x] to 10 hours and 2 minutes this year, the
highest in the world.”® Itis also interesting to note that social media penetration among Filipinos
is at 99% of internet users and thal we also spend the most time on social media at 4 hours
1 Const. art. Il, § 7.

2 Const. art. XIV, § 10.

5 G.R. No. L-63915 (1986).

“ Available at https:/www.statista.com/statistics/748053/worldwide-top-countries-smartphone-users/.
5 Gelo Gonzales, Filipinos spend most time online, on social media worldwide — report (2019), available
at _htips:/www.rappier.com/technology/news/222407-philippines-online-use-20 19-hoolsuile-we-are-
social-report.


and 12 minutes per day.° “Fixed intemet speed grew from 15.19 Mbps [on] average to 19
Mbps.””

The government has likewise been catching up with digitization. The Official Gazette
now has an online portal at https:/www.officialgazette.gov.ph/. And a quick scan with search
engines reveals that even goverment agencies have their own websites and social media
accounts as well.

Our statutes must reflect these existing realities while serving the primordial aim of
informing citizens of the laws which affect them.

The urgent passage of this bill, therefore, is eamestly sought.

Rep. PABMO SOHN F. GARCIA
3rd District, Province of Cebu

Fld.

"Id.


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No.8599

Introduced by Representative PABLO JOHN F. GARCIA

AN ACT
AMENDING ARTICLE 2 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 386, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS
THE CIVIL CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES, TO INCLUDE THE ELECTRONIC
PUBLICATION OF LAWS AS A REQUIREMENT FOR THEIR EFFECTIVITY

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

Section’. Article 2 of Republic Act No. 386, otherwise known as the Civil
Code of the Philippines, is hereby amended to read as follows:

Article 2. UNLESS A DIFFERENT PERIOD IS OTHERWISE PROVIDED,
laws shall take effect after fifteen days following the completion of their
publication in any of the following: (a) the Official Gazette, WHETHER
PRINT OR ELECTRONIC; (b) a newspaper of general circulation in the
Philippines; or (c) THE OFFICIAL ELECTRONIC CHANNELS OF
CONCERNED GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.

FOR PURPOSES OF THIS ARTICLE, THE OFFICIAL ELECTRONIC
CHANNELS OF CONCERNED GOVERNMENT AGENCIES SHALL
MEAN WEBSITES, SOFTWARE APPLICATIONS, SOCIAL MEDIA
ACCOUNTS, AND THE LIKE OF THE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
PRIMARILY TASKED WITH THE EXECUTION OR IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE LAW TO BE PUBLISHED.

Section 2. _ Repealing Clause. - Section 18 of Book | of Executive Order No.
292, s. 1987, otherwise known as the Administrative Code of 1987, as well as all laws,
executive orders, proclamations, rules, regulations and other issuances or parts
thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed,
amended, or modified accordingly.


Section 3. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following
completion of its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,