THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
1 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
Second Regular Session 
1 
S E N A T E  
5 OEC.-6 
P 6 3 0  
s. No. 2175 
INTRODUCED BY THE HONORABLE MAR ROXAS 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill seeks to allow the underprivileged and homeless citizens in urban and 
resettlement areas who are actual occupants of government-owned lands dedicated to 
socialized housing to have the primary right in acquiring the said land. 
Presidential Decree No. 1517, the Urban Land Reform Act, was issued by then 
President Marcos in 1978. The decree adopted as a State policy the liberation of human 
communities from blight, congestion and hazard, the promotion of their development and 
modernization, and the optimum use of land as a national resource for public welfare. 
In 1992, Congress passed Republic Act No. 7279 or the “Urban Development and 
Housing Act of 1992.” The law lays down as a policy that the State shall undertake a 
comprehensive and continuing urban development and housing program to uplift the 
conditions of the underprivileged and homeless citizens in urban areas and resettlement 
areas by making available to them decent housing at affordable cost. Pursuant to this, all city 
and municipal governments were mandated to conduct an inventory of all lands and 
, improvements within their respective localities and, in coordination with the National 
Housing Authority, the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, the National Mapping 
Resource Information Authority, and the Land Management Bureau, identify and acquire 
lands for socialized housing and resettlement areas. Said lands shall be disposed of to 
qualified beneficiaries of the program. 
Since the law’s inception, the shelter security units (Le., the number of lots, house 
only, and house and lot packages,) constructed, financed or administered by the government 
grew from 84,778 units in 1992 to 113,806 in 2003. With the goal of achieving a significant 
improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020, the government and 
the private sector provided shelter security units to 382,285 households from 2001 to 2004. 
However, at the present Philippine population growth rate of 2.36%, the country’s 84 
million population as of August 2004 i s  expected to double to about 168 million in 29 years. 
Thus, the housing backlog remains a significant concern. 
Under Republic Act No. 7279, lands for socialized housing are to be acquired through 
several modes. These modes include the following: (1) community mortgage; (2) land 
swapping; (3) land assembly or consolidation; (4) land banking; (5) donation to the 
government: (6) joint venture agreement; (7) negotiated purchase; and (8) expropriation. 
Government-owned and foreclosed propeaies shall be acquired through negotiated 
purchase. Under the law’s implementing rules and regulations, negotiated purchase allows 


the transmission of property from one person to another hy agreement among the parties. In 
the case of government-owned and foreclosed land, the parties include the actual occupants 
and the National Housing Authority or the local government units, as the case may be. 
While the law gives qualified beneficiaries who are actual occupants of government- 
owned and foreclosed land the right of first refusal. However, nothing precludes the 
government from bidding out the land and offering it to other qualified beneficiaries. Thus, 
there have been instances where the homeless and underprivileged were not given priority 
in owning government-owned lands they actually occupied because these lands were sold to 
other qualified beneficiaries who could afford to pay more. While it is the intent of the law 
to uphold transparency and accountability in the disposition of government-owned 
properties through public bidding, there is a need to balance this with the mandate of the 
State to make decent housing affordable to the Underprivileged and the homeless, especially 
to the land's actual occupants. 
This bill addresses that situation by providing for a mode of acquisition where 
government-owned land is acquired without public bidding in cases where the actual 
occupants of the land who are qualified beneficiaries signify their intentions to acquire the 
land for their own. Only when the actual occupants refuse to exercise such right and cannot 
afford to pay the valuation set for the land shall it be subjected to public bidding. 
In view of the foregoing, the urgent approval of this bill is earnestly sought 
Senator \ 


THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
1 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
Second Regular Session 
1 
5 D E C . 4  P G  30 
INTRODUCED BY THE HONORABLE MAR ROXAS 
AN ACT 
UPHOLDING THE RIGHT OF ACQUISITION BY QUALIFIED BENEFICIARIES OF 
GOVERNMENT-OWNED LANDS THEY ACTUALLY OCCUPY, AMENDING CERTAIN 
PROVISIONS OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7279, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE URBAN 
DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING ACT OF 1992, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives in Congress assembzed: 
Section 1. Section 10 of Republic Act No. 7279, otherwise known as the “Urban 
Development and Housing Act of 1992” is hereby amended to read as follows: 
‘SECTION 10. 
Modes of Land Acquisition. - The modes of acquiring 
lands for purposes of this Act shall include, among others, community 
mortgage, land swapping, land assembly or consolidation, land banking, 
donation to the Government, joint-venture agreement, negotiated purchase, 
and expropriation: Provided, however, That expropriation shall be resorted to 
only when other modes of acquisition have been exhausted Provided, further, 
That where expropriation is resorted to, parcels of land owned by small 
property owners shall be exempted for purposes of this Act: Provided, finally, 
That abandoned property, as herein defined, shall be reverted and escheated to 
the State in a proceeding analogous to the procedure laid down in Rule 91 of 
the Rules of Court. 
For the purpose of socialized housing, government-owned and 
foreclosed properties shall be acquired by the local government units, or by 
the National Housing Authority primarily through negotiated purchase: 
Provided, That qualified beneficiaries who are actual occupants of the land 
shall be given the right of first refusal. FOR THIS PURPOSE, NEGOTIATED 
PURCHASE SHALL MEAN THE TRANSFER OF PROPERTY FROM ONE 
PERSON TO ANOTHER BY AGREEMENT AMONG THE PARTIES. 
WHERE THE ACTUAL OCCUPANTS OF GOVERNMENT-OWNED 
PROPERTY FOR SOCIALIZED HOUSING SIGNIFY THAT THEY INTEND 
TO EXERCISE THEIR RIGHT OF FIRST REFUSAL, THEY MAY ACQUIRE 
SAID PROPERTY THROUGH NEGOTIATED PURCHASE, SUBJECT TO 
THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 
A) THE SUBJECT PROPERTY HAS BEEN CERTIFIED FOR 
SOCIALIZED HOUSING PURPOSE; 


B) THE OCCUPANT IS A QUALIFIED BENEFICIARY, IN 
ACCORDANCE WITH SECTIONS 16 AND 17 OF THIS 
ACT; 
C) THE OCCUPANT HAS RESIDED ON THE SUBJECT 
PROPERTY FOR AT LEAST TEN (10) YEARS, AS 
CERTIFIED BY THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNIT 
CONCERNED; AND 
D) ANY SUBSEQUENT DISPOSITION OF THE PROPERTY 
SHALL BE SUBJECT TO THE LIMITATIONS PROVIDED 
IN SECTION 14 HEREOF. 
THE COST OF LAND ACQUISITION 
SHALL BE 
MADE 
AFFORDABLE, TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION THE LAND VALUATION 
REQUIRED IN SECTION 13 OF THIS ACT. 
EXCEPT IN THE AFOREMENTIONED INSTANCE, ALL OTHER 
SALE OF GOVERNMENT-OWNED PROPERTY UNDER THIS ACT SHALL 
BE SUBJECT TO PUBLIC BIDDING, AS PROVIDED FOR BY LAW. 
Section 2. Separability Clause - If any part or provision of this Act shall be held 
unconstitutional or invalid, other provisions hereof that are not affected thereby shall 
continue to be in full force and effect. 
Section 3. Repealing Clause - All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules 
and regulations, or parts thereof, which are not consistent with this Act, are hereby repealed, 
amended or modified accordingly. 
Section 4. Effectivity Clause - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved.