Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
Introduced by HON. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
AN ACT 
REPEALING THE CANCELLATION OF REGISTRATION OF VOTERS WHO DID NOT VOTE FOR IN 
THE IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING TWO SUCCESSIVE REGULAR ELECTIONS  
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The right of the electorate to choose freely a qualified candidate at a general election implies the 
exercise of voting or abstaining from participating therein. The unnecessary burden of removing a 
registered voter in the registration of voters for the reason of not having participated in two successive 
regular elections is uncalled-for or unreasonable. This practice should be stricken down because it causes 
additional workload for COMELEC to deactivate those individuals and another troublesome set of procedures 
to re-activate those voters as the latter would be required again to appear in person before the COMELEC 
personnel. 
The right to suffrage not only includes the right to vote for one’s chosen candidate, but also the 
right to vocalize that choice to the public in general, in the hope of influencing their votes. It may be said 
that in an election year, the right to vote necessarily includes the right to free speech and expression. The 
protection of these fundamental constitutional rights, therefore, allows for the immediate resort to this 
court.1  
This bill is sought to consider a voter’s inactivity or inaction during an election and not fault the 
voter for deactivating its registration with COMELEC. To uphold the essence of democracy our nation must 
not restrict or demand its electorate to exercise its right when it chooses not to do so. 
On behalf of the people of Parañaque City’s Second District, and for the common good of the 
Filipino people, the approval of the said measure is earnestly sought. 
REP. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
2nd District, Parañaque City 
1 THE DIOCESE OF BACOLOD, REPRESENTED BY THE MOST REV. BISHOP VICENTE M. NAVARRA and THE BISHOP 
HIMSELF IN HIS PERSONAL CAPACITY, Petitioners, 
vs. COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS AND THE ELECTION OFFICER OF BACOLOD CITY, ATTY. MAVIL V. 
MAJARUCON, Respondents, January 21, 2015, G.R. No. 205728 
September 19, 2022
1:30 pm
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
Introduced by HON. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
AN ACT 
REPEALING THE CANCELLATION OF REGISTRATION OF VOTERS WHO DID NOT VOTE FOR IN 
THE IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING TWO SUCCESSIVE REGULAR ELECTIONS  
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled.  
Section 1. Section 16 of the Republic Act No. 3588 otherwise known as the “AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR 
PERMANENT REGISTRATION OF VOTERS AND FOR THIS PURPOSE TO POSTPONE THE GENERAL 
RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION OF VOTERS WHICH IS SET FOR NINETEEN HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE” is 
hereby amended to read as follows: 
Section 16. Cancellation due to death, conviction, and failure to vote in two successive 
preceding elections. The election registrar shall remove the voter's application for registration 
from the corresponding precinct book of voters of the following after entering therein the cause 
for cancellation and shall place them in the inactive file: 
(a) Those who have since died as certified at the end of each month by the local civil registrar.
(b) Those who have since been sentenced by final judgment to suffer an imprisonment of not less
than one year or found guilty of having violated their allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines
as certified at the end of each month by the clerk of court, the clerk of the municipal court in
chartered cities and the justice of the peace.
The election registrar shall notify by mail or by personal delivery the registered voter of his 
cancellation and the ground thereof and require the surrender of his voter's identification card. In 
cases of death, all notices and requirements shall be directed to the voter's next of kin. 
The name canceled shall be published on the bulletin board immediately stating the reason for the 
cancellation and shall be reported to the Commission on Elections and the Provincial Central File 
together with copies of the certified statements of the local civil registrar, the clerk of court, the 
clerk of the municipal court of chartered cities and the justice of the peace. The Provincial Central 
File and the Commission on Elections shall accordingly remove the application for registration of 
the voters and file them in the inactive file after entering in their re- of notice of the decision by 
the barrio council concerning registration. 
Sec. 2.  Section 123 of the Batas Pambansa Blg. 881 or otherwise known as the “Omnibus Election Code 
of the Philippines” is hereby amended to read as follows: 
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Section 123. Cancellation and exclusion in the transfer of names. - In transferring 
the names of the voters of the precinct from the list used in the preceding election to the current 
list, the board shall exclude those who have applied for the cancellation of their registration, those 
who have died, those who have been excluded by court orders issued by the provisions of this 
Code, and those who have been disqualified, upon motion of any member of the board or any 
elector or watcher, upon satisfactory proof to the board and upon summons to the voter in cases 
of disqualification. The motion shall be decided by the board without delay and in no case beyond 
three days from its filing. Should the board deny the motion, or fail to act thereon within the 
period herein fixed, the interested party may apply for such exclusion to the municipal or 
metropolitan trial court which shall decide the petition without delay and in no case beyond three 
days from the date the petition is filed. The decision of the court shall be final. The poll clerk shall 
keep a record of these exclusions and shall furnish three copies thereof to the election registrar 
who shall, in turn, keep one copy and send the two other copies thereof to the provincial election 
supervisor and the Commission, to be attached by them to the permanent list under their custody. 
 
Sec. 3. Separability Clause. – Should any provision of this Act be declared invalid, or unconstitutional, 
the remaining provisions shall continue to be valid and subsisting. 
 
 
 
Sec. 4. Repealing Clause. –  Section 16 paragraph (c) of REPUBLIC ACT No. 3588 and Section 123 of 
the Election Code of the Philippines stating the cancellation of registration of those who did not vote in the 
immediately preceding two successive regular elections is hereby repealed. All laws, executive orders, 
administrative orders, rules, and regulations or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Act are hereby 
amended, repealed, or modified accordingly. 
 
Sec. 5. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette 
or any newspaper of general circulation. 
 
Approved,