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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

8009

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by HON. STRIKE B. REVILLA

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to prohibit the expiration of the validity of prepaid load credits and its
eventual forfeiture.

It is important that the government finds a middle ground where protecting consumer
rights goes hand in hand with unduly hampering an industry from gaining a return of its
investment and maximizing its ability to profit.

As of 2018, there are more or less One Hundred Thirty Million (130,000,000) prepaid
subscribers, most of which view having prepaid load credits as a basic necessity in which
every peso of such prepaid load matters. With the occurrence of the COVID-19 Pandemic
this 2020, households have resorted to cutting their expenses in order to save more money.
This is one simple way the government can help the households of its prepaid load credits
subscribers.

More importantly, during critical situations, the ability to have prepaid load credits in
order to message or call may be the difference from savings lives, all the more with elders
who may be unfamiliar with the expiry of prepaid load credits or are unable to monitor when
their prepaid load credits would expiry.

In view of the foregoing, immediate consideration and approval of this bill is
earnestly sought.

REP. STRIKE B. REVILLA
2" District, Cavite

WOV 16 2020


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

8009

House Bill No.

Introduced by HON. STRIKE B. REVILLA

AN ACT
PROHIBITING ALL PUBLIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS ENTITIES AND
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY PROVIDERS FROM
IMPOSING AN EXPIRATION PERIOD ON THE VALIDITY OF PREPAID LOAD
CREDITS AND THEIR FORFEITURE

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

SEC. 1. This Act shall be known as the “Prepaid Load Protection Act”.

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is hereby declared the policy of the State to
recognize the important role of information and communications technology.
It also recognizes the vital role of the private sector with economic growth
But most of all, it recognizes the importance of protecting the interest of its
citizens and their general welfare, and as such, it must establish standards of
conduct for business and industry.

Towards this end, the State shall implement measures to achieve among
others, the protection of consumers against deceptive, unfair, and
unconscionable sales act and practices

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act:

a. Active Prepaid Account — refers to a number with any activity involving
voice, short messaging system (SMS) or text, mobile data, value added
services (VAS), or any other telecommunications service within a period of
one year;

b. Dormant Prepaid Account — refers to a number without any
activityinvolving voice, short messaging system (SMS) or text, mobile data,
value added services (VAS), or any other telecommunications service
within a period of one year;

c. Information and Communications Technology (ICT) — refers to the totality
of electronic means to access, create, collect, store, process, receive,
transmit, present, and disseminate information;

sd. Information and Communications Technology Provider (ICT Provider) —
refers to any entity in the ICT sector, which includes telecommunications
and broadcast information operators, ICT equipment manufacturers,


multimedia content developers and providers, ICT solution providers,
internet service providers, ICT training institutions, software developers,
and ICT-ES providers;

. Prepaid — refers to the type of account that requires its owners to purchase
load credits before telecommunications services can be used;

f. Prepaid Load Credit — refers to the monetary value or the consumable
amount loaded via prepaid card or electronic load to a device that enables a
subscriber to use telecommunications services;

g. Prepaid Subscriber — refers to any person, natural or juridical, who avails of
telecommunications entity and/or information and communications
technology provider by purchasing credit in advance of service use. The
purchased credit is used to pay for telecommunications services at the point
the service is accessed or consumed;

h. Public Telecommunications Entity (PTE) — refers to any duly authorized
public telecommunications entity that offers voice, short messaging system
(SMS) or text, mobile data, value added services (VAS), or any other
telecommunications service to the public for a fee; and,

i, Telecomunications — refers to any process which enables a
telecommunications entity to relay and recevive voice, data, electronic
messages, written or printed matter, fixed or moving pictures, words, music
or visible or audible signals, or any control signals of any design and oft
any purpose by wire, radio, or other electromagnetic, spectral, optical, or
technological means.

SEC. 4. Prohibited Acts. — The following shall constitute prohibited acts of any PTE or
ICT provider and are hereby declared unlawful:

a. Imposition of an expiration period on the validity of unused prepaid load
credits, whether purchased via prepaid card or electronic load;

b. Forfeiture of such prepaid load credits on an active prepaid account, save
for the purpose of availing of the mobile number portability service; and,

c. Refusal to give a refund to any prepaid subscriber whose load credits were
forfeited without any valid cause.

In view of paragraph b, a prepaid account that has become dormant shall be
deducted one peso for every day inactivity from its remaining load credits
until such credits are fully consumed.

SEC. 5. Penal Provision. — Any director, officer, employee, or agent of a PTE or ICT
provider providing prepaid telecommunications services who shall violate any
of the acts mentioned under Sec. 4 hereof shall, upon conviction, be subject to
the penalty of a fine of not less that One Hundred Thousand Pesos
(PHP100,000.00) but not to exceed One Million Pesos (PHP1,000,000.00) or
imprisonment of not less than two (2) years but not more than six (6) years, or
both, upon the discretion of the court.

If the violation was committed by or in the interest of a juridical person duly
licensed to engage in business in the Philippines, the following penalties shall
be imposed

a. First offense —a fine of Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (PHP500,000.00);


b. Second offense — a fine of One Million Pesos (PHP1,000,000.00) plus
suspension of license to engage in business for a period of thirty (30) days;
and,

c. Thitd offense — a fine of Two Million Pesos (PHP2,000,000.00) plus
immediate revocation of license to engage in business.

SEC. 6. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). — Within ninety (90) days from
the effectivity of this Act, the National Telecommunications Commission
(NTC) shall coordinate with the Department of Information and
Communications Technology (DICT), and the Department of Trade and
Industry (DTI) to promulgate rules and regulations and other issuances as may
be necessary to ensure the effective implementation of this Act, including the
issuance of proper and adequate information dissemination of its contents and
benefits to the general public.

‘The IRR issued pursuant to this Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in a newspaper of general circulation.

SEC. 7. Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act shall be deemed
unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions not affected thereby shall
remain in force and effect.

SEC. 8. Repealing Clause. ~ All Acts, Presidential Decrees, Executive Orders and
‘Administrative Orders, Rules and Regulations, and other such issuances or
parts thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 9. Effectivity — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in
the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,