Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES|
Quezon City

17" CONGRESS
First Regular Session
1 pepigTRaTION UNIT
3486 bee ANIICE

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by REP. EVELINA

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Section 4, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution states that “The Congress shall, as
soon as possible, determine by law, the specific limits of forest lands and national parks
marking clearly their boundaries on the ground. Thereafier, such forest lands and national
parks shall be conserved and may not be increased nor diminished, except by law. The
Congress shall provide, for such period as it may determine, measures to prohibit logging
in endangered forests and watershed areas”.

Based on the 2001-2003 satellite imageries reported out by the National Mapping
and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA), the Philippines has an estimated total
forest cover of 7.168 million hectares or 24.27% of the country’s total land area.

The actual size of the forest lands cannot be accurately measured due to lack of
appropriate demarcations on the ground which later resulted to incorrect land use and
management.

In this light, this bill delineating the specific limits of forest lands is being filed to

and develop the forest resources of the country and to to attain ecological
ve valuable ecosystems, prevent environmental degradation and promote
sustainable development for the present and future generations.

I submit.

EVELINA G.

'SSCUDERO


Republie of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

1" CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3488

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by REP, EVELINA G. ESCUDERO

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR THE DELINEATION OF THE
PUBLIC DOMAIN AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

SPECIFIC FOREST LIMITS OF THE

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

SECTION 1. Short Title, ~ This Act shall be known and cited as the “Final Forest Limits
Act

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. ~ It is the policy of the State to conserve, protect and
develop the forest resources of the country in order to attain ecological balance, preserve valuable
ecosystems, prevent environmental degradation and promote sustainable development for the
present and future generations. To achieve these ends, Section 4 of Article XII of the 1987
Constitution mandates Congress to determine by law the specific limits of forestlands and national
parks marking clearly their boundaries on the ground.

SI

3. Definition of Terms, ~ For purposes of this Act, the following terms shall mean:

(a) Agricultural lands refer to alignable or disposable lands of the public domain
which have been the subject of the land classification system and declared as not needed for
forest purposes;

(b) Delimitation survey refers to the establishment of land classification boundaries,
and the monumenting thereof following ground survey;

(c) Delineation refers to the conduct of site investigation, field reconnaissance and
assessment, and staking of boundaries between forest lands, national parks and agricultural
lands verified in the field in accordance with the criteria set forth under Department of
Environment and Natural Resources Administrative Order No. 2008-24;

(d) Forest refers 10 an ecosystem or an assemblage of cconsystems dominated by
ces and other Woody vegetation: a community of plants and animals interacting with one
another and its physical environment

(e) Forest lands refer to all lands of the public domain already classified as forest
land as per existing land classification maps issued by the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (DENR) including all permanent forest reserves proclaimed as such by


the President or declared by law, and such areas within the unclassified lands of the public
domain that were assessed and delineated by the DENR in accordance with pertinent laws,
rules and regulations;

ion of

(0) Production forest refers to a forest area designated primarily for produ
wood, fiber, bio-energy and/or non-wood forest products;

(g) Protected Area refers to identified portions of land and/or water set aside by
reason of their unique physical and biological significance, managed to enhance biological
diversity and protected against destructive human exploitation.

(h) Protection forest refers to a forest whose value lies in the regulating of stream
flow and the preventing of erosion and avalanches rather than in its timber;

(i) Proteetion forestiands refer to all areas within the forestlands devoted primarily
Jor the protection, conservation of forest resources to ensure environmental. stability,
conservation of biological diversity, improvement of ecosystem functions and services, and
al and economic benefits shall constitiite the protection forestlands. All
mossy and primary/old growth forests and natural beach, key biodiversity areas, areas
regardless of slope and vegetation cover which are highly erodible or too rocky for
establishment of either production forests. developed for the principal objectives of
ablishing vegetative cover to prevent erosion, conserve water and nurture wildlife,
freshwater, swamps. and marshes, all areas along the bank of the rivers and streams, and the
shores of the seas and lakes throughout their entire length and within the zone of three (G)
meters in urban areas, twenty (20) meters in agricultural areas, and forty (40) meters in
forest areas. along their margins which are subject to the easement of public use in the
nterest of recreation, settlements, navigation, floatage. fishing and salvage shall also be
sub-classified as protection forestlands. Cutting and mini
ands: Provided, That th

respected

provision of evologic:

are banned in these protection
provisions of the IPRA Law and NIPAS Act shall be

(j) Tenured migrant refers to forest occupants who have actually and continuously
occupied a portion of the forest and is solely dependent therein for subsistence. A forest
occupant is understood to be “solely dependent for subsistence” when everything
indispensable for survival for the household, including food, clothing, shelter and health,
comes only from the utilization of resources from the forest.

SEC, 4, What Constitutes the Forest Lands, ~ The following shall constitute the forest
lands, to wit:

(a) all lands of the public domain already classified as forest land as per existing
land classification maps issued by the DENE

(b) all permanent forest reserves proclaimed as such by the President or declared by
law; and

(c) such areas within the unclassified lands of the public domain that were assessed
and delineated by the DENR in accordance with pertinent laws, rules and regulations and
which may hereafter be classified as forest land by the DENR.

SEC. 5. Guidelines in Determining the Specific Limits of Forest Lands. ~ The following
guidelines and procedures shall be followed in determining the specific limits of forest lands in the
country:



(a) The previously-established Land Classification (LC) survey lines per province
with their respective technical descriptions (TDs) and maps shall be the basic data and
information that will be used as reference material in undertaking the validation, assessment
and delineation process,

(b) All completed assessment and delineation reports for a given province shall
be endorsed to the National Review and Evaluation Committee as created herein to be
headed by the Seeretary of the DENR for final approval

(©) The same process shall be followed for other provinces with on-going
assessments and delineation activities until such time that all the boundaries of forest lands
of the whole country shall have been delimited: Provided, That all assessments, validations
and delineations shall be completed not later than one (1) year after the passage of this Act.

SEC. 6, Creation of the National Review and Evaluation Committee. ~ In recognition of the
Constitutional mandate as embodied in Section 4, Article XII thereof, and in view of the urgent
need to establish the permanent limits of the forest lands of the country, a National Review and
Evaluation Committee is hereby created to process, evaluate and approve all completed assessment
and delineation reports referred to in the immediately preceding section. The Committee, in its
evaluation and approval of the said reports, shall adhere strictly to existing established laws,
policies, rules, regulations and guidelines pertinent thereto

The Committee shall be composed of the following:

(a) Secretary of the DENR as Chairman:

(b) Secretary of the Socioeconomic Planning and Director-General of the National
Economic and Development Authority as Vice-Chairman;

(c) Secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) as
Member:

(d) Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA) as Member;

(e) Secretary of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) as Member;

(f) Chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council
(HUDCC) as Member; and

(g) Chairman of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) as
Member; and

(h) President of the League of Provinces of the Philippines as Member.

Upon approval of the assessment and delineation reports as herein specified, the Committee
shall submit the same to Congress which shall thereafter form part of its official records. The
assessment and delineation reports as approved by the Committee shall be adopted as constituting
the final boundaries of the forest lands covered by the said report.

SEC, 7. Demarcation and Delimitation of Forest Land Boundary Immediately after the
forest line has been determined following the guidelines prescribed in Section 5 hereof, the DENR
shall delimit and establish the permanent boundary monuments on the ground.

SEC. 8. Permaneney of the Specific Forest Limits. ~+ The permanent forest lands
established pursuant to this Act shall not be diminished nor reduced except by an act of Congress.
The DENR, in coordination with all agencies and branches of government, shall see to it that the
forest cover and vegetation therein shall be protected, preserved and enhanced.

SEC. 9, Sub-classification of the Permanent Forest Lands. ~ ‘The permanent forest
lands shall be further sub-classified as follows: (a) protection forests; and (b) production
forests.


After due consultation with the local government units (LGUs), concerned
communities, and other stakeholders, the DENR shall undertake the sub-classification of the
permanent forest lands.

10. Recognition of the Rights of the Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous
Peoples and Tenured Migrant Communities, ~ In the ground delineation of the permanent forest
limits, the occupation by indigenous cultural communities/indigenous peoples and tenured migrants
shall be recognized and respected consistent with the provisions of Republic Act No, 7160 or the
Local Government Code of 1991, Republic Act No, 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act
(IPRA) of 1997, and Presidential Decree No. 705, as amended, or the Forestry Code of 1975

SEC. 11. Accessibility of Record to the Public, ~ All records and information pertaining to
the specific forest limits delineated pursuant to this Act shall be made available to all local
government units (LGUs), other government agencies, and to the general public.

SEC. 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations, ~ Within three (3) months from the
ctivity of this Act, the Secretary of the DENR shall issue the corresponding Implementing
and Regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

SEC. 13. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting System. ~ To attain the objectives of this
Act, a field monitoring, evaluation, and reporting system shall be adopted by the Secretary of the
DENR to regularly keep track of the state of the country’s forest lands after their delimitation,
Toward this end, at the opening of each session of Congress, the DENR shall submit a report to the
President on the status of the forest lands for transmission to Congress.

SEC. 14. Creation of the Adjudication Board to Resolve Controversies on Land
Classification Confl ~ A Land Classification Conflict Adjudication Board, herein referred to as
the Board, is hereby created to resolve controversies arising from land classification as a result of
the delimitation of forest lands pursuant to this Act. The Board shall be composed of the following:

(a) Secretary of the Department of Justice (DOJ) as Chairman;

(b) Administrator of the Land Registration Authority (LRA) as Member;

(c) Representative from the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) as Member:
(d) Representative from a reputable College of Forestry as Member; and

(c) Representative from the private sector as Member.

SEC. Powers and Functions of the Adjudication Board. The Board shall have the
following powers and functions:
(1) Adjudicate cases on land conflicts and adverse claim before it for resolutio
(2) Summon witnesses, administer oaths, take testimony and require submi
reports:
(3) Compel production of books and documents and answers to interrogatories; and
(4) Issue subpoena duces fecum, writs of possession, writs of execution and other
writs to enforce its orders and decisions.

In any proceeding before the Board, the Rules of Evidence prevailing in courts of law
or equity shall not be controlling and it is the spirit and intention of this Act that shall govern,
The Board shall use every and all reasonable means to ascertain the facts in each case
peedily and objectively and without regard to technicalities of law or procedure, all in the
interest of due process. In any proceeding before the Board, the parties may be represented
by legal counsel. The findings of fact of the Board shall be conclusive and binding on the
parties and its decision or order shall be final and executory.

4


SEC. 16, Appropriations, ~ The Secretary of the DENR shall include in the Department
program the implementation of this Act, the initial funding of which shall be charged against the
current year’s appropriations of the Department and thereafter included in the annual General
Appropriations Act.

Funds for the implementation of the provisions of this Act shall be supplemented also from
any available official development assistance (ODA) and from joint projects between agencies of
the Philippines and an assisting country

Local government units shall also allocate counterpart funds to be taken from their internal
revenue allotment (IRA) and other LGU income for the delineation of the forest limits within their
respective territorial jurisdictions.

mi 17.
same shall not af

eparability Clause. ~ If any portion of this Act is declared unconstitutiona
{the validity and effectivity of the other provisions not affected thereby.

|, the

SEC. 18. Repealing Clause. ~ All laws, decrees, letters of instruction, executive orders,
rules and regulations and other issuances or parts thereof inconsistent with this Act are hereby
repealed or modified accordingly

SEC. 19. Effectivity. ~ This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) da
publication in the Official Gazene or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation in the
Philippines.

Approved,