NINETEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
SENATE 
S.B. No. 2127
of I lie #-s fptarp
23 HAY-4 PI *11
RECEiVcDBV.
Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA
AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE ANTI-AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING 
POLICIES IN THE COUNTRY, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Farmers and fisherfolk have consistently registered the highest poverty 
incidence among the country’s basic sectors. According to the Philippine Statistics 
Authority (PSA), the poverty incidence among farmers and fisherfolk reached 30% and 
30.6%, respectively, in 2021.1 This has been the case for decades now even with the 
various policies and programs in place to secure the livelihood of the sectors that feed 
the nation.
In 2016, Republic Act No. 10845 or the “Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016” 
was enacted to promote the productivity of the agriculture sector and to protect farmers 
from unscrupulous traders and importers whose illegal importation of agricultural 
products significantly affect production, availability of food supply, stability of prices, 
and the country’s food security. The law intended to go after and impose higher 
sanctions for large-scale smuggling of agricultural products to thwart economic 
saboteurs and protect the livelihood and economic wellbeing of farmers.
However, more than six years since the passage of the law, agricultural 
smuggling has remained rampant, with no individual or group prosecuted even with 
several reports of seizure of smuggled products. Between 2019 and 2022 alone, the 
Department of Agriculture (DA) estimates that P667.5 million worth of agri-fishery 
products were smuggled, while the BOC conducted 542 seizure cases involving PI .99 
billion worth of agricultural products.2
1 PSA. Fisherfolks and Farmers Remain to Have the Highest Poverty Incidences Among the Basic Sectors in 2021. 24 March 
2023. Available at https://psa.qov.ph/povertv-press-releases/nid/176572. Accessed on 11 April 2023.
2 
SEARCA. Farmers say agricultural smugglers go unpunished. 21 November 2022. Available at 
https://v\/v\/\A/.searca.orq/press/farmers-sav-aqricultural-smuqqlers-qo-unpunished. Accessed on 11 April 2023.


The entry of cheap, smuggled agricultural products results in the drastic drop in 
orders for local produce causing our farmers further distress and losses. In 2022, the 
League of Associations at the La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Areas said that farmers 
were losing an average of P2.5 million per day as a result of rampant vegetable 
smuggling.3 Moreover, unscrupulous traders hold on to their stocks and only release 
imported vegetables to the market whenever local vegetable prices increase.4
Thus, this bill aims to strengthen the anti-agricultural smuggling policies in the 
country and expand its coverage to include hoarding, profiteering, and cartel of 
agricultural products as economic sabotage. The bill also mandates the creation of an 
Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council to ensure the effective implementation of the law. 
Ultimately, the measure aims to protect the agriculture sector, our local farmers, and 
the public from the manipulative schemes of economic saboteurs that jeopardize the 
production and supply of agricultural products, stability of prices, and the country’s 
food security.
For the foregoing reasons, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
JOEL/ylLLANUEVi
CNN Philippines. Benguet farmers forced to give away carrots due to smuggling. 28 March 2022. Available at 
https://www.cnnphilippines.eom/news/2022/3/28/Benquet-farmers-carrots.html. Accessed on 12 April 2023.
Inquirer.net. ‘Untouchables’ behind vegetable smuggling - senators. 29 March 2022. Available at 
https://newsinfo.inauirer.net/1574835/senators-untouchables-behind-veqqie-smuqqlinq. Accessed on 12 April 2023.


NINETEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
SENATE
S.B. No. 2127
Jennie
of tii*? ■ etcirw
23 may “4 PI :11
RECEIVED BV:
Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA
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AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE ANTI-AGRICULTURAL SMUGGLING 
POLICIES IN THE COUNTRY, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR 
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Expanded Anti- 
Agricultural Smuggling Act of 202 3’.’
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote the 
productivity of the agriculture sector and to protect farmers from unscrupulous traders 
and importers, who by their illegal importation of agricultural and fishery products, 
significantly affect the production, availability of supply, and stability of prices, and the 
food security of the State.
It is also the policy of the State to ensure reasonable and affordable prices of 
basic and prime commodities for consumers by preventing large-scale abuse of 
market power, hoarding, profiteering, cartel, and other practices that manipulate prices 
and unduly restrain supply.
The State shall impose higher sanctions for large-scale smuggling of agricultural 
and fishery products and other market abuses, as a self-preservation measure to 
shield itself from the manipulative scheme of economic saboteurs, and to protect the 
livelihood of our farmers and to ensure their economic well-being.
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the following terms are 
hereby defined as follows:


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(a) 
Agricultural and Fishery Products-shall refer to plants, plant products, and other 
related materials capable of harboring plant pests; rice and other grains; 
biological control agents; live animals; small animals liable to become pest 
animals; animal feeds and feed ingredients; animal products and by-products; 
meat and meat products; other animal products, such as embryos and semen; 
unpasteurized milk; live/fresh/chilled frozen fish, fishery and aquatic products; 
sugar and molasses; agricultural chemicals and other biological control agents, 
such as but not limited to, disinfectants, pesticides and fertilizers;
(b) 
Agricultural Smuggling - shall refer to the smuggling of agricultural and fishery 
product as defined under this Act, committed through any of the following acts:
i. 
Outright Smuggling - shall refer to the act of importing goods into the country 
without complete customs-prescribed importation documents, or without 
being cleared by customs or other regulatory government agencies, for the 
purpose of evading payment of prescribed taxes, duties and other charges;
ii. 
Technical Smuggling - shall refer to the act of importing goods into the 
country by means of fraudulent, falsified, or erroneous declaration of the 
goods to its nature, kind, quality, quantity, or weight, for the purpose of 
reducing or avoiding payment of prescribed taxes, duties and other charges;
iii. 
Diversion - shall refer to the scheme of unscrupulous importers/traders in 
which they misdeclare their imports, supposedly for industrial use 
(authorized only for canning, processing, and institutional buyers), then later 
divert them for retail sale in wet markets or through online shopping 
platforms;
(c) 
Broker - shall refer to any person, natural or juridical, whose services consist of 
any of the following, such as consultation, preparation of customs requisite 
document for imports, declaration of customs duties and taxes, preparation, 
signing, filing, lodging and processing of import entries, representing importers 
before any government agency and private entities, and rendering of other 
services in matters relating to customs and tariff laws, its procedures and 
practices;
(d) 
Carteling - shall refer to any agreement between two (2) or more persons to 
control the production, processing, storage, supply, distribution, marketing, sale, 
or disposition of agricultural and fishery products to obtain monopoly, lessen 
competition, and artificially and unreasonably increase or manipulate price;
(e) 
Central Authority - bureau or agency, mandated by law to ensure and supervise 
the implementation of this Act;
(f) 
Condemnation - shall refer to the declaration, after due examination and 
judgment of the products according to the approved protocols by a competent 
authority, as being non-compliant to the SPS Measures, including being unsafe 
or unsuitable for human consumption, and requiring appropriate disposal thereof;
(g) 
Economic Sabotage - shall refer to any act or activity which undermines, 
weakens or renders into disrepute the economic system or viability of the country 
or tends to bring about such effects and shall include, inter alia, price


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manipulation to the prejudice of the public, especially in the sale of basic 
necessities and prime commodities:
(h) 
Fair Market Value - shall refer to the suggested retail prices of agricultural and 
fishery products at the time of the commission of the crime, issued by the 
Department of Agriculture (DA) pursuant to the Implementing Rules and 
Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act No. 7581, otherwise known as the Price Act 
of 1992;
(i) 
Food Safety Regulatory Agency - shall refer to the agencies under the DA with 
food safety regulatory functions defined in Section 16 of the IRR of Republic Act 
No. 10611, otherwise known as the Food Safety Act of 2013;
(I) Hoarding - shall refer to the purchasing of large quantities of agricultural and 
fishery products by individual/s or organization/s and holding back of these 
stocks, creating unnatural shortages and/or in anticipation of and to benefit from, 
future price increases, monopolization of supply, or cornering the market, to the 
detriment of consumers, and the general public, which creates inflation and 
economic instability:
(k) 
Importation - shall refer to the act of bringing in goods from a foreign territory 
into the Philippine territory, whether for consumption, warehousing, or admission 
as defined in the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA):
(l) 
Import Permit - shall refer to a written certificate issued by the concerned 
authority stating the volume of the consignment. This includes the minimum 
access volume (MAV) import certificate. Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) 
Import Clearance, Clearance for the Release of Imported Sugar, or any other 
equivalent document issued for the importation of agricultural and fishery 
products:
(m) Market Abuse - shall refer to the circumstances where an agri-fishery investor 
or agribusiness player in the agricultural and fishery products market have been 
unreasonably disadvantaged, directly or indirectly by others who have used 
information which is not publicly available (inside dealing), caused price 
distortion, disseminated false or misleading information, or diverted imported 
agricultural and fishery products from its intended use or purpose:
(n) 
Postharvest Stages - shall refer to the minimal transformation of plant and animal 
foods after primary production such as removal of field heat for fruits, slaughter 
of animals, sorting, grading, and cutting of fresh plant and animal foods, icing 
and freezing, and the milling and storage of grain:
(o) 
Primary Production - shall refer to the production, rearing or growing of primary 
products including harvesting, milking, and farmed animal production up to 
slaughter, and the rearing and growing of fish and other seafood in aquaculture 
ponds. It also includes fishing, and the hunting and catching of wild products:
(p) 
Profiteering - shall refer to any act of making an unreasonable or excessive 
profits by taking advantage of a shortage or high demand of agricultural and


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fishery products, selling at a price that is significantly higher than the cost of 
production, with the aim of making a large profit and at the price grossly in excess 
of its true worth. It also includes price fixing where groups or organizations agree 
to a given price to maintain their hold on the market that people have no choice 
but to buy it at that price;
(q) 
Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures - shall refer to any legislation, 
regulation, requirement, or procedure applied for the purpose of (a) protecting 
animal or plant life or health within the territory of the Philippines from risks arising 
from the entry, establishment or spread of pests, diseases, disease-carrying 
organisms or disease-causing organisms; (b) protecting human or animal life or 
health from risks arising from additives, contaminants, toxins or disease-causing 
organisms in imported agricultural products; (c) protecting human life or health 
from risks arising from diseases carried by animals and plants, or products 
thereof, or from the entry, establishment or spread of pests; or (d) preventing or 
limiting other damage within the territory of the Philippines from the entry, 
establishment or spread of pests;
(r) 
Simple Processes of Agricultural and Fishery Products - shall refer to the simple 
processes of preparation or preservation of agricultural and fishery products for 
the market, such as freezing, drying, salting, broiling, roasting, smoking, or 
stripping. Polished and/or husked rice, corn grits, raw cane sugar and molasses, 
ordinary salt, and copra shall be considered in their original state;
(s) 
Smuggling - shall refer to the fraudulent act of importing any goods into the 
Philippines, or the act of assisting in receiving, concealing, buying, selling, 
disposing, or transporting such goods, with or without full knowledge that the 
same has been fraudulently imported, or any act which constitutes the offense of 
economic sabotage, and other market abuses as defined under this Act; and
(t) 
SPS Import Clearance - shall refer to the document issued prior to importation 
by the concerned bureau or agency to ensure that the products being imported 
meet standards to protect human, animal, or plant life or health, ensuring that the 
agricultural and fishery products are safe for consumers and to prevent the 
spread of pests or diseases among animals or plants. Such document also 
prescribes the conditions to be complied with by the importer for the maintenance 
of quality and suitability of the product for the intended purpose.
CHAPTER II 
PUNISHABLE ACTS
SEC. 4. Agricultural Smuggling and Other Market Abuses. - The following
acts shall constitute the offense of agricultural smuggling and other market abuses
punishable under this Act:
(a) Large-Scale Agricultural Smuggling as Economic Sabotage. - The crime of 
large-scale agricultural smuggling as economic sabotage, involving rice, sugar, 
corn, beef, pork, poultry, garlic, onion, carrots, fish, and cruciferous vegetables, 
in its raw state, or which have undergone the simple processes of preparation or 
preservation for the market, with a minimum amount of One Million Pesos


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III.
iv.
V.
VI.
VII.
(PI ,000,00000 ), as valued by the DA or Bureau of Customs (BOC), is committed 
through any of the following acts:
i. 
Importing or bringing into the Philippines without the required import permit 
from the regulatory agencies;
ii. 
Using import permits of persons, natural or juridical, other than those 
specifically named in the permit;
Using fake, fictitious or fraudulent import permits or shipping documents; 
Selling, lending, leasing, assigning, consenting or allowing the use of import 
permits of corporations, non-government organizations, associations, 
cooperatives, or single proprietorships by other persons;
Misclassification, undervaluation or misdeclaration upon the filing of import 
entry and revenue declaration with the BOC in order to evade the payment 
of rightful taxes and duties due to the government;
Organizing or using dummy corporations, non-government organizations, 
associations, cooperatives, or single proprietorships for the purpose of 
acquiring import permits;
Transporting or storing the agricultural and fishery product subject to 
economic sabotage regardless of quantity; or 
viii. Acting as broker of the violating importer.
(b) Hoarding, Profiteering, and Cartel as Economic Sabotage. - The following acts
shall also constitute an offense:
i. 
Hoarding - purchasing of large quantities of the agricultural and fishery 
products mentioned above by individual/s or organization/s and holding back 
of these stocks, creating unnatural shortages and/or in anticipation of and to 
benefit from future price increases, monopolization of supply, or cornering 
the market, to the detriment of consumers, and the general public, which 
creates inflation and economic instability. There shall be prime facie 
evidence of hoarding when a person has stocks of agricultural and fishery 
products fifty percent (50%) higher than his usual inventory and 
unreasonably limits, refuses or fails to sell the same to the general public at 
the time of discovery of the excess. The determination of a person's usual 
inventory shall be reckoned from the third month immediately preceding 
before the discovery of the stocks in case the person has been engaged in 
the business for at least three (3) months; othen/vise, it shall be reckoned 
from the time he started his business;
ii. 
Profiteering - any act of making an unreasonable or excessive profits by 
taking advantage of a shortage or high demand of agricultural and fishery 
products mentioned above, selling at a price that is significantly higher than 
the cost of production, with the aim of making a large profit and at the price 
grossly in excess of its true worth. It also includes price fixing where groups 
or organizations agree to a given price to maintain their hold on the market 
that people have no choice but to buy it at that price;
iii. 
Cartel - any agreement between two (2) or more persons to control the 
production, processing, storage, supply, distribution, marketing, sale, or 
disposition of agricultural and fishery products mentioned above to obtain 
monopoly, lessen competition and to artificially and unreasonably increase 
or manipulate price. There shall be prima facie evidence of engaging in a 
cartel whenever two (2) or more persons or business enterprises competing 
for the same market and dealing in the same agricultural and fishery products


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perform uniform or complementary acts among themselves which tend to 
bring about artificial and unreasonable increase in the price of any 
agricultural or fishery product or when they simultaneously and unreasonably 
increase prices on their competing products thereby lessening competition 
among themselves.
iv. Other Forms of Market Abuse - this shall consist of insider dealing, unlawful 
disclosure/improper use of inside information, and market manipulation 
which could arise from distributing false information, distorting prices, among 
others.
Provided, That relevant provisions of Republic Act No. 10667, othenyvise known 
as the “Philippine Competition Act” shall apply suppletorily in the implementation and 
in achieving the objectives of this Act.
CHAPTER III 
PENALTIES
SEC. 5. Penalties. - (a) The penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of twice the 
fair value of the smuggled agricultural and fishery product or the product subject of 
hoarding, profiteering, or cartel and the aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and 
other charges avoided shall be imposed on any person who commits any of the acts 
enumerated under Section 4 of this Act.
(b) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than seventeen (17) years but not more 
than twenty (20) years, and a fine of twice the fair value of the smuggled, hoarded, 
profiteered, or cartelled agricultural and fishery products, or those subjected to market 
abuse and the aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall 
be imposed on the officers of dummy corporations, non-government organizations, 
associations, cooperatives, or single proprietorships who knowingly sell, lend, lease, 
assign, consent, or allow the unauthorized use of their import permits for purposes of 
smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, or cartelling.
(c) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than fourteen (14) years but not more than 
seventeen (17) years and a fine equal to the fair value of the smuggled, hoarded, 
profiteered, or carteled agricultural and fishery products and the aggregate amount of 
the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall be imposed on the following:
i. 
The registered owner and its lessee or charterer, in case of lease, of a 
chartered boat, motorized commercial vessel of more than three (3) gross 
tonnage, who knowingly transports the agricultural and fishery product 
subject to economic sabotage, regardless of quantity:
ii. 
The registered owner and its lessee, in case of lease, of six (6) or more 
wheeler trucks, vans and other means of transportation, who knowingly 
transports the agricultural and fishery product subject to economic sabotage, 
regardless of quantity;
iii. 
The registered owner and lessee of a warehouse, or any property, who 
knowingly stores the smuggled, hoarded, profiteered, or cartelled agricultural 
and fishery product subject to economic sabotage; or
iv. 
The registered owner, lessee, president or chief executive officer of the 
private port, fish port, fish landing sites, resorts, and airports who knowingly


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allows the agricultural and fishery product to be smuggled into the country, 
or to be hoarded within their facilities.
(d) The penalty of imprisonment of not less than twelve (12) years but not more than 
fourteen (14) years and a fine equal to the fair value of the smuggled agricultural 
and fishery product subject to economic sabotage and the aggregate amount of 
the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall be imposed on the following:
i. 
The registered owner and its lessee or charterer, in case of lease, of a 
chartered boat, motorized commercial vessel of three (3) gross tonnage or 
less, who knowingly transports the agricultural and fishery product subject to 
economic sabotage, regardless of quantity;
ii. 
The registered owner and its lessee, in case of lease, of less than six (6) 
wheeler trucks, vans and other means of transportation, who knowingly 
transports the agricultural and fishery product subject to economic sabotage, 
regardless of quantity.
In all cases, smuggled perishable agricultural and fishery products shall be 
confiscated and disposed of in any the following manner within seven (7) days after 
due examination and judgment of the products:
(a) Destruction:
(b) Return to the country of origin;
(c) Shipment to a third country; or
(d) Donation pursuant to Section 1141 and 1146 of the CMTA.
The concerned DA Regulatory Agency having jurisdiction over a particular 
agricultural and fishery product which gained unauthorized entry into the Philippines 
shall effect the condemnation of said commodities.
Properties used in agricultural smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, cartel, or other 
market abuse shall be forfeited in favor of the government.
When the offender is a juridical person, criminal liability shall attach to its 
president, chief operating officer or manager who consents to or knowingly tolerates 
the commission of the prohibited crime.
Any person, natural or juridical, found guilty under this Act shall also suffer the 
penalty of perpetual absolute disqualification to engage in any business involving 
importation.
In applying the abovementioned penalties, if the offender is an alien and the 
prescribed penalty is not life imprisonment, he/she shall be deported after serving the 
sentence without further proceedings for deportation.
If the offender is a government official or employee, the penalty shall be the 
maximum as hereinabove prescribed and the offender shall suffer an additional 
penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office, to vote and to participate in any 
public election.


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SEC. 6. Liability for Other Forms of Market Abuse. - Other forms of market 
abuse shall be punishable by imprisonment of four (4) years to six (6) years for each 
and every offense with an order issued by law enforcement authorities.
CHAPTER IV
ENFORCEMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION
SEC. 7. Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council. - There is hereby created an 
Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council to be headed by the Secretary of the DA as 
Chairperson, with the Secretary of the Department of Finance (DOF) and the 
Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as Vice Chairpersons.
The Council shall include as members one (1) representative from the following:
(a) 
Department of Justice (DOJ);
(b) 
Department of Health (DOH);
(c) 
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG);
(d) 
Department of National Defense (DND);
(e) 
Department of Transportation (DOTr);
(f) 
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA);
(g) 
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA);
(h) 
National Security Council (NSC);
(i) 
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI);
(j) 
Philippine National Police (PNP);
(k) 
Bureau of Customs (BOC);
(l) 
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG);
(m) Philippine Ports Authority (PPA);
(n) 
Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC);
(o) 
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); and
(p) 
At least three (3) representatives from national organizations of farmers and 
fisherfolk, representing members from crops, livestock/poultry, and fisheries 
sectors.
Provided, That the representatives from the government sector shall have at 
least the rank of Assistant Secretary or its equivalent.
SEC. 8. Powers and Functions of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council.
- The Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council shall have the following powers and 
functions:
(a) 
To formulate a national anti-agricultural smuggling plan and extend immediate 
assistance for the suppression of real-time commission of agricultural smuggling:
(b) 
To coordinate the preparation of appropriate and effective measures to prevent 
and suppress agricultural smuggling activities as provided for in this Act;
(c) 
To establish a mechanism of information sharing among concerned agencies;
(d) 
To monitor agricultural smuggling cases being handled by participating law 
enforcement and prosecution agencies;


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(e) 
To facilitate international cooperation on intelligence, investigations, training, and 
capacity building related to agricultural smuggling prevention, suppression and 
prosecution:
(f) 
To coordinate the support and participation of the business sector, local 
government units and non-government organizations in agricultural smuggling 
prevention programs and other related projects;
(g) 
To recommend the enactment of appropriate laws, issuances, measures and 
policies:
(h) 
To perform all other matters related to agricultural smuggling prevention and 
suppression, and such other functions and duties as may be necessary for the 
proper implementation of this Act.
SEC. 9. Special Team of Prosecutors. - To assist the Council in the 
expeditious prosecution of criminal and other cases covered under this Act, a special 
team of prosecutors from the DOJ shall be assigned and shall have the following 
powers and functions:
(a) 
To evaluate evidence gathered by the Inspectorate and Enforcement Service 
(lES) of the DA and to determine whether or not violation of this Act and other 
related laws and regulations has been committed;
(b) 
To apply for the issuance of warrant of seizure and detention in appropriate 
cases;
(c) 
To initiate and conduct preliminary investigations and timely file and prosecute 
the appropriate administrative and criminal charges against the person, group, 
or entity responsible for smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and cartel; and
(d) 
To apply for the issuance of search warrant or warrant of arrest before the courts 
in appropriate administrative or criminal cases.
SEC. 10. Reportorial Requirement. - The Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Council 
shall submit a quarterly report to the Office of the President and Congressional 
Oversight Committee on Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM) on the 
progress and accomplishments made in the implementation of this Act.
SEC. 11. Prescription of Crimes.
prescribe in twenty (20) years.
The crimes punishable under this Act shall
CHAPTER V 
JURISDICTION
SEC. 12. Jurisdiction. - Regional Trial Courts shall have jurisdiction over any 
violation of the provisions of this Act. Jurisdiction shall lie if any of the elements was 
committed within the Philippines, or when by such commission, any damage is caused 
to a natural or juridical person who, at the time the offense was committed, was in the 
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There shall be designated special anti-agricultural smuggling courts manned by 
especially trained judges to handle agricultural smuggling cases.
CHAPTER VI
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
SEC. 13. General Principles Relating to International Cooperation. - All 
relevant international instruments on international cooperation in criminal matters, 
arrangements agreed on the basis of uniform or reciprocal legislation, and domestic 
laws, to the widest extent possible for the purposes of investigations or proceedings 
concerning criminal offenses related to agricultural economic sabotage shall be given 
full force and effect.
CHAPTER VII 
CENTRAL AUTHORITY
SEC. 14. Department of Agriculture. - The Department is designated as the 
central authority in all matters related to anti-agricultural smuggling.
SEC. 15. Inspectorate and Enforcement Service. - Within thirty (30) days 
from the effectivity of this Act, a Service, to be known as the Inspectorate and 
Enforcement Service (lES), shall be created and headed by an Undersecretary of the 
DA.
SEC. 16. Powers and Functions of the lES. - The lES shall have the following 
powers and functions:
(a) To effect searches, seizures, and arrest, and to exclusively file administrative and 
criminal cases before the prosecutor;
(b) To inspect warehouses where seized commodities are stored to ensure that such 
commodities are not being ferreted out or removed without proper documentation; 
and
(c) To secure copies of documents pertaining to the nature and particulars of the 
commodity or goods subject of importation, i.e., quantity or volume, technical or 
qualitative specifications, port of destination, estimated date of arrival in the 
Philippines, cargo manifest, reference values from the BOC, and transaction 
values of imported goods, among others, from government agencies concerned 
and non-government sources like pre-shipment companies at the port of origin, 
and commercial banks, in accordance with existing laws, rules, and regulations.
CHAPTER VIII 
FINAL PROVISIONS
SEC. 17. Appropriations. - The amount of Five Hundred Million Pesos 
(P500,000,00000 ) shall be appropriated annually for the implementation of this Act.
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SEC. 18. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The DA, in consultation with 
concerned agencies, shall promulgate the implementing rules and regulations of this 
Act within sixty (60) days upon its effectivity.
SEC. 19. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared invalid 
or unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain in full force 
and effect.
SEC. 20. Repealing Clause. - Republic Act No. 10845, otherwise known as the 
“Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016,” is hereby repealed. All laws, decrees, 
executive issuances, and rules and regulations inconsistent with the provisions of this 
Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
SEC. 21. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
complete publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved,
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