FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES. 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
Senate Bill No. 1237 
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INTRODUCED BY SEN. MANNY VILLAR 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Railways are proven means of travel and transporting goods. Europe, the United 
States and Japan are showcases of the efficiency and reliability of the system. 
The need to revitalize and strengthen our mass transit system is vital to the 
orderly development and continued.growth of our country. At present, our national roads 
and highways are not sufficient to ,serve the needs of the traveling public. Neither are 
they an efficient means of traveling or transporting goods. 
This bill thus seeks to create a National Railways System to provide and maintain 
an adequate, efficient, inexpensive, convenient public transport system responsive to 
the needs of our country. 
In view of the foregoing, the approval of this bill is earnestly requested. 
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FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
Senate Bill No, 1237 
INTRODUCED BY SEN. MANNY VILLAR 
AN ACT 
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ACCELERATING THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NATIONAL RAILWAY SYSTEM, 
CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE THE NATIONAL RAILWAY AUTHORITY, 
PRESCRIBING ITS POWERS FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines 
in Congress assembled: 
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SECTION 1. Title, - This Act shall be known as the "National Rai/ways Act". 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to 
promote, accelerate and develop an integrated national railway system to provide and 
maintain an adequate, efficient, inexpensive, convenient and reliable public transport 
system responsive to the needs of the citizenry for the socioeconomic development of 
the country. 
SEC. 3. Creation of the National Railway Authority, - There is hereby created a 
corporate body to be known as the National Railway Authority (NRA), hereinafter 
referred to as the "Authority", It shall have its principal office in the Metropolitan Manila 
Area, but may establish branches and agencies elsewhere within the country as may be 
necessary for the proper conduct of its business and discharge of its functions, It shall 
be under the direct control and supervision of the Office of the President. 
SEC. 4. Functions of the NRA. -The Authority shall have the following functions: 
(a) Formulate and adopt a comprehensive development plan for a national railway 
system with ecological and environmental standards; 
(b) Promote and encourage the active participation of the private sector, both local 
and international, in the development and implementation of a comprehensive 
development plan; 
(c) Implement or cause the implementation of the national railway plan, policies 
and programs according to a schedule of priorities consistent with the needs 
and available resources; , 
(d) Control and develop, construct, operate and maintain railway facilities including 
parking stations and terminals for freight, goods and cargoes; 
(e) Regulate the schedule, frequently, routing and pricing of railway services; and 
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(f) Call upon any government agency for such assistance as may be necessary in 
the discharge of its duties and functions. 
SEC. 5. General Powers of the NRA. - The NRA will also have the following 
powers: 
(a) To have continuous succession under its corporate name; 
(b) To sue and be sued; 
(c) To adopt, alter and use a corporate seal; 
(d) To amend and real its By-Laws; 
(e) To acquire, own, hold, administer, and lease such real or personal property as 
it deems necessary or convenient in the transaction of its business and to 
lease, mortgage, sell, alienate or otherwise dispose of any such real or 
personal property held by it; 
(f) To enter into any obligation, assign or accept the assignment of, and to rescind 
any agreement or contract necessary or incidental to the proper functioning of 
the Authority; 
(g) To contract loans, indebtedness, and credit accommodations, in any local or 
convertible foreign currency, from any international financial institutions, 
foreign government entities, and local or foreign private commercial banks or 
similar institutions under terms and conditions prescribed by law, rules and 
regulations, and to 
issu~ commercial papers and bonds in connection 
therewith; 
(h) To invest its funds and other assets in such areas it may deem proper in the 
course of its operations; 
(i) 
To construct, own, lease, operate and maintain public utilities, infrastructure 
facilities and such auxiliary support service needed to develop and operate and 
maintain a national railways system; 
0) 
To design, construct, maintain, and operate by itself or by delegation to, or 
through contractual arrangement such auxiliary infrastructure support facilities 
as, but not limited to, parking structures above or below ground, including the 
means of access; 
(k) To fix rates of railway transportation fee; 
(I) 
To regulate rates of fees, such as but not limited to, parking fees, porterage 
fees and such other fees levied in relation with the use of the railway system; 
(m) To prescribe, fix and regulate the route of railway transport; 
(n) To receive donations, grants, bequests and assistance of all kinds and to utilize 
the same; 
(0) To exercise the right of eminent domain in the name of the Republic of the 
Philippines and in the acquisition of real estate by excess condemnation or 
escheat proceedings, including appurtenant properties. The title thereto shall 
be registered in the name of the Government and thereupon all such 
properties shall be entrus.ted to the Authority as agent of the Government; 
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(p) 
To form, establish, organize, and maintain subsidiary corporations or joint 
ventures formed in accordance with the Philippine Corporation Code, to 
encourage public and private sector participation in the development of the 
railway system; 
(q) To privatize any part or all'of the railway system or any subsystem under the 
Authority, in accordance with the law;. 
(r) To promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the 
objectives of this Act; and' 
(s) To perform such other po,!"ers as may be necessary to carry out the purposes 
of this Act. 
SEC. 6. Conduct of Comprehensive Studies. - The Authority, in coordination with 
such other government agencies as may be necessary, shall undertake comprehensive 
studies for the rehabilitation and/or 'construction of, but not limited to, such railway lines 
extending from San Fernando, La Union to Laoag, lIocos Norte to Metro Manila passing 
through Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija and Bulacan; south line rail 
extension from Comun, Camalig, Albay to Matnog, Sorsogon; a Libmanan-Daet line, a 
railway line from Iloilo City to Roxas City in Panay, and a line from lIigan City to 
Cagayan de Oro City in Mindanao. 
SEC. 7. Board of Directors. - The powers of the Authority shall be vested in and 
exercised by a Board of Directors, hereinafter referred to as the "Board", which shall be 
composed of seven (7) members to be appointed by the President of the Philippines. 
The Chairman and three (3) members of the Board shall serve for four (4) years 
while the remaining there (3) members shall serve for three (3) years. Any member of 
the Board may be suspended or removed by the President of the Philippines at any time 
for cause. In the event of a vacancy in the Board, the appointees shall serve the 
unexpired term of the predecessor. 
No member of the Board shall be appointed unless he is a natural-born citizen of 
the Philippines, at least thirty-five (315) years of age, of good moral character, competent 
and experienced in one or more of the following fields: transport planning, engineering, 
economics, management, finance, corporate and transportation law, and marketing. 
The Chairman of the Board shall be designated by the President from among the 
members of the Board. 
SEC. 8. Powers and Functions of the Board. - The Board shall have the following 
powers and functions: 
(a) To formulate policies, plans- and programs, projects, rules and regulations to 
carry out effectively the functions of the Authority; 
(b) To direct the management, operations and administrations of the Authority; 
(c) To create offices or positions necessary for the efficient operation of the 
Authority; to appoint and lix the remuneration and other emoluments of 
subordinate officers and personnel of the Authority in accordance with the 
Revised Compensation and Position Classification System, and to remove or 
otherwise discipline such officers/employees for cause in accordance with Civil 
Service Rules and Regulations; 
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(d) Establish financial and operations performance targets for management as basis 
for evaluating and monitoring corporate performance; 
(e) To authorize such expenditures as are in the interest of the effective and efficient 
administration and operations of the Authority; 
(f) To exercise such other powers as may be necessary to accomplish the purposes 
for which the Authority was organized. 
SEC. 9. Management. -. The general conduct of the operations and management of 
the Authority shall be vested in a' President who shall serve as the Chief Executive 
Officer primarily responsible for carrying out the program of the Authority and the 
policies of the Board. 
The President/Chief Executive Officer must be natural-born citizen, at least thirty-
five (35) years of age on the day of the appointment, of good moral character and with 
recognized executive ability and competence in the field of transportation, business 
administration, management, finance or law. She/He shall be appointed by the 
President of the Republic of the Phi'lippines and shall serve for a term of six (6) years. 
SEC. 10. Duties and Responsibilities of the President. - The President/Chief 
Executive Officer of the Authority shall have the following duties and responsibilities: 
(a) To execute, administer and implement the policies, programs, plans, 
guidelines, decisions, rules and regulations issued and adopted by the 
Board; 
(b) To direct and supervise the operations and administration of the NRA; 
(c) To determine, with the approval of the board, the staffing pattern and the 
number of personnel of the NRA; 
(d) To direct and supervise the preparation of the agenda for the meeting of the 
Board, and to submit for the consideration of the Board such policies and 
measures as he believes necessary to carry out the purposes and objectives 
of this Act; 
(e) To represent the Authority in all dealings with other offices, agencies and 
instrumentalities of the Government and with all persons and entities, public 
or private, domestic or foreign; and 
(f) 
To exercise such other. powers and functions as the Board may assign or 
authorize. 
SEC. 11. Public Accountability. - To ensure public accountability, the Authority 
shall be subject to the Audit of the Commission on Audit (COA) and shall comply with all 
the generally accepted accounting and auditing rules and regulations and those which it 
may hereafter promulgate in pursuance of its Constitutional Mandate. 
SEC. 12. Merit System. - All officials and employees of the Authority shall be 
selected and appointed on the basis of merit and fitness in accordance with the 
comprehensive and progressive merit system to be established by the Authority 
immediately upon its organization· in accordance with Civil Service law, rules and 
regulations. The recruitment, transfer, promotion, and dismissal of all its personnel 
including temporary workers shall be governed by such merit system. 
SEC. 13. Prohibition Against Issuance of Restraining Orders and Preliminary 
Injunctions or Preliminary Mandatory Injunctions. - No court in the Philippines, except 
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the Supreme Court, shall have the jurisdiction to issue any restraining order, preliminary 
injunction, or preliminary mandatory injunctions in any case, dispute, or controversy 
involving any contractor project involving the NRA, to prohibit any person or persons, 
entity or government official from proceeding with, or continuing the execution or 
implementation of any such contract or project, or pursuing any lawful activity necessary 
for the execution, implementation or operation of such contract or project. 
SEC. 14. Abolition of the PHilippine National Railways and the Light Rail Transit 
Authority. - The Philippine National Railway and the Light Rail Transit Authority are 
hereby abolished. Their powers and functions, balance of appropriations and all 
applicable funds, records, assets, and property are transferred to ands absorbed by the 
Authority. The Authority shall succeed to all rights and assume all contracts and 
liabilities of the herein abolished agencies in accordance with the Auditing code and 
other pertinent laws, rules and regulations. 
The existing qualified personnel of the Philippine National Railways and Light 
Rail Transit Authority covered by Civil Service law, rules and regulations shall be 
absorbed by the Authority. Those incumbents whose positions are not included therein 
or who are not reappointed shall be deemed separated from the service or retired under 
existing laws and regulations. 
SEC. 15. Applicability of the Corporation Law. - Insofar as they are not 
inconsistent with this Act, the provisions of the Corporation Law shall be applicable to 
the operations of the Authority. 
SEC. 16. 
Congressional Oversight Committee. - A Congressional Oversight 
Committee is hereby created, composed of the Chairpersons of the Committee on 
Public Services and the Committee on Government Corporations of the Senate and the 
Chairpersons of the Committee on Transportation and Communications and the 
Committee 
on 
Government Enterprises 
and 
Privatization 
of the 
House 
of 
Representatives and four (4) additional members form each House, to be designated by 
the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively, 
The Oversight Committee shall, among others, monitor and ensure the effective 
implementation of this Act. 
SEC. 17. Separability Clause. - If any of the provisions of this Act is declared 
invalid, the provisions thereof not affected by such declaration shall remain in force and 
effect. 
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SEC. 18. Repealing ClaUSE!. - The provisions of Republic Act No. 4156, as 
amended, Republic Act No. 6366, Presidential Decree No. 741, Executive Order No. 
603 and Executive Order No. 210, are hereby repealed. All other laws, decrees, orders, 
proclamations, rules and regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with any of the 
provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 19. Effectivity Clause. ,- This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following 
its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, 
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