Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. le

Introduced by : REP. RAUL V. DEL MAR

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to put in place the enabling law necessary to implement the
Constitutional provision: “The right of the people to information on matters of public
concems shall be recognized. Access to official records, and to documents, and
Papers pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as government
research data used as basis for policy development, shall be afforded the citizen,
subject to such limitations as may be provided by law.” (Article II, Section 7),

Provisions include a clear mandate for promoting a clear transparency and
accountability in government; a convenient procedure to facilitate access to
information; remedies available for denial of access; administrative, civil and criminal
penalties for violation thereof, among others. Access to public records means access
to evidence vital to proving public officials accountable for wrongdoing. But more
than that, it serves as a great deterrent to wrongdoing.

This same measure was already approved on third and final reading by both the
House and the Senate and further approved by the Bicameral Conference Committee
constituted by both chambers to harmonize their both version in the last 14" Congress.
Unfortunately, however, while the subject Conference Committee Report was ratified
by the Senate, the same coulé-not be ratified by this House due to lack of quorum of
the last session day of the 14" Congress. Hence, refiling of this bill with the earnest
hope that approval of the same be given the highest priority it deserves.

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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL 2

Introduced by Rep. Raul V. Del Mar

AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE PEOPLE’S RIGHT TO INFORMATION

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

1. GENERAL PROVISIONS.

SECTION 1. Short Title, - This Act shall be known as the “Freedom of Information

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. ~ The State recognizes the right of the people to
information on matters of public concern and adopts a policy of full public disclosure of all its
transactions involving public interest, subject to the procedures and limitations provided by law.

Every citizen shall be afforded access to official records, documents and papers
pertaining to official acts, transactions or decisions, and government research data used as basis
for policy development, subject to such limitations provided under this Act.

This Act shall uphold and strengthen the right to information with due regard to the full
protection of the right to privacy of individuals.

SEC. 3. Coverage. — This Act covers all government agencies in the executive,
legislative, and judicial branches including departments, bureaus, offices, agencies and
instrumentalities of the national government, Constitutional Commissions and constitutionally

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mandated bodies; local government units and all their agencies; regulatory agencies; chartered
institutions; government-owned-or-controlled corporations including wholly-owned or
controlled subsidiaries; government financial institutions; state universities and colleges; the
Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police; all offices in the Congress
of the Philippines, including the offices of Senators and Representatives; and the Supreme Court
and all lower courts established by law.

SEC. 4. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act:

a) Dataset refers to an organized collection of data or information in a variety of
forms including tabular, geo-spatial or image data files;

b) Freedom of Information (FOI) request refers to a request made in accordance
with the provisions of this Act;

ce) FOI Website refers to the website with address www. foi.gov.ph that shall serve
as the government's comprehensive FOI website for all information on the FOI. It shall be the
central resource for the public to: understand the FOI law, search data and records inventories
of agencies, make a request for information that is not yet publicly available, track all FOI
requests made by other citizens, and monitor agency performance in terms of FOI. The FOI
website shall also be a platform for all government agencies to facilitate and address all FOI
requests of the public;

d@d Information refers to data that have been processed into a record, document,
paper, report, letter, contract, minutes and transcripts of official meetings, maps, books,
photographs and research material in whatever form, or films, audio and video recordings,
magnetic or other tapes and electronic data, in whatever format, which are made, received, and
under the control and custody of any government agency pursuant to law, executive order, rules
and regulations, ordinance, or are in its possession in connection with the performance of its

official duty or transaction;


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©) Machine-readable refers to formats that allow data to be extracted and processed
by computer programs;

f) Official record refers to information generated or received by a public officer or
employee or by a government agency in an official capacity or pursuant to a public function or
duty, but does not include the current status of the information;

h) Open Data Philippines Website (www.data.gov.ph) refers to the official website
containing all government data generated by agencies in the implementation of agency
mandates, programs, activities, and projects. The website shall be the central repository of all
searchable, understandable, and accessible government data;

2) Open format refers to information that is platform-independent, machine-
readable, and made available to the public without restrictions that impede its reuse;

i) Personal information refers to any information, whether or not recorded in a
material form, which reveals or describes the identity of an individual or from which such
identity can be reasonably and directly ascertained by the entity handling the information, or
when put together with other information, would directly and certainly identify an individual. It
includes signatures, addresses, telephone numbers, identification numbers, names of family
members, race or ethnicity, religion, health, education, sexual orientation, and other similar
information;

i) Public record refers to information required by law, executive orders, rules, or
regulations to be entered, kept, and made publicly available by a government agency; and

k) Public service contractor refers to a private entity, domestic or foreign, that
transacts or deals with the government or government agency or office that utilizes public funds,

to provide any form of service or goods for the official use of such government agency or office.


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IL DUTY TO DISCLOSE

SEC. 5. Mandatory Disclosure of Information. — a) Constitutionally-Mandated
Disclosure of Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) ~ Pursuant to the mandate
of Section 17, Article X! of the Constitution, the following public officials and employees shall
make their annual SALN declaration available and accessible in the official website of their
respective offices:

1) President;

2) Vice-President;

3) Members of the Cabinet;

4) Members of Congress;

5) Justices of Supreme Court;

6) Members of Constitutional Commissions and other constitutional offices;
and

7) Officers ofthe Armed Forces of the Philippines with general or flag rank.
b) Disclosure of information in agency websites ~ All agencies and branches of the

government shall publish in their websites and update on a monthly basis the following
information in full:

1) Freedom of Information Manual;

2) Rules of procedure, description of forms available, the places at which
forms may be obtained, and instructions as to the scope and contents of all papers,
reports, or examinations;

3) Substantive rules of general applicability adopted as authorized by law,
and statements of general policy or interpretations of general applicability formulated

and adopted by the agency, including subsequent amendments;


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4) Public documents or records including:

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Annual budget of government agencies;

Itemized monthly collections and disbursement;

‘Summary of income and expenditures;

Annual procurement plan and procurement list;

Items for bidding;

Bid results on civil works, and goods and services projects;
Abstract of bids as calculated;

Procurement contracts entered into by the government agency;

Construction or concession agreements or contracts entered into

by the government agency with any public service contractor or

domestic or foreign person or entity;

Private sector participation agreements or contracts in

infrastructure and development projects under Republic Act No.

6957, otherwise known as “An Act Authorizing the Financing,

Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Infrastructure

Projects by the Private Sector and for Other Purposes” as

amended by Republic Act No. 7718, otherwise known as the
“Build Operate and Transfer Law,” authorizing the financing,

construction, operation, and maintenance of infrastructure

projects and such amendatory law thereto;

Public funding extended to any private entity;

Licenses, permits, or agreements granted by any government

agency for the extraction or utilization of natural resources, as

well as the list of persons or entities who were granted the same;


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xiii)

xiv)

xv)

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xix)

Xxx),

An updated plantilla of positions including unfilled positions in
the public office or agency, and the qualifications and
requirements for each unfilled position;

Compromise agreements entered into by the government agency
with any person or entity;

Work programs, development plans, investment plans, projects,
performance targets, and accomplishments;

Audited financial statements, annual budgets, revenue allotments
and expenditures;

Guarantees given by any government agency to govemment-
‘owned or -controlled corporations and to private corporations,
persons or entities;

Utilization of the Intemal Revenue Allotment (IRA), Special
Education Fund, Local Disaster Risk Reduction Management
Fund, Local Development Fund, and other local government unit
(LGU) funds;

Bilateral or multilateral agreements and treaties in trade,
‘economic partnerships, investments, cooperation and similar
binding commitments; and

Loans from domestic and foreign financial institutions, loans and
grants for development assistance, technical assistance, utilization
of all form of donations for calamity-stricken areas and programs
entered into by a government agency with official bilateral or
multi-lateral agencies, as well as with private aid agencies or

institutions,


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All government agencies shall ensure that their websites comply with the provisions of
this Act within two (2) years from its effectivity.

In case an agency lacks the capacity to comply with the website publication requirement
of this section, the agency shall initiate a capacity-building program, coordinate with another
appropriate agency, or use an alternative mechanism to facilitate substantive compliance not
later than two (2) years from the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 6. Promotion of Openness in Government, ~ a) Duty to Publish Information —
Every government agency shall regularly publish, print, and disseminate in an accessible form
through its website and at no cost to the public, the true, accurate, and updated key information
including the following:

1) description of its mandate, structure, powers, functions, duties, and
decision-making processes;

2) description of the frontline services it delivers and the procedure and
length of time by which they may be availed of,

3) the names of its key officials, their powers, functions, and responsibilities,
their profiles and curriculum vitae;

4) work programs, development plans, investment plans, projects,
performance targets and accomplishments, budgets, revenue allotments, and
expenditures;

5) important rules and regulations, orders, or decisions: Provided, That the
same shall be published within fifteen (15) calendar days from promulgation;

6) datasets generated in the implementation of agency mandates, programs,
activities, and projects such as statistics, figures, and geospatial data;

7) current and important database and statistics that the database generates;

8) _ bidding processes and requirements; and


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9) mechanisms or procedures by which the public may participate in or
otherwise influence the formulation of policy or the exercise of its powers.

b) Accessibility of Language and Form ~ Every government agency shall endeavor
to translate key information into Filipino and the regional languages, and present them in popular
form and means.

SEC. 7. Publication of Government Data in the Open Data Philippines Website.— For
purposes of enhancing the public's access to government information and abiding by the
intemational commitments of the Philippines to transparency and government openness, all
government agencies shall publish in the Open Data Philippines website, datasets generated in
the implementation of agency mandates, programs, activities, and projects. These datasets shall
be updated, whenever permissible, at least once in every quarter of every year, and shall be,
whenever practicable, in a machine-readable and open format.

The Open Data Philippines website shall be maintained and administered by an Open
Data Task Force under the Office of the President, or any such similar body designated by the

President of the Philippines for this purpose.

IIL THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION

A. Access to Information
SEC. 8. Access to Information. — Every Filipino citizen has a right to and shall, upon
Tequest, be given access to any record under the control of a government agency. Government
agencies and public officials have the duty to disclose and make available for scrutiny, copying,
and reproduction in the manner provided by this Act, all information pertaining to official acts,

transactions, or decisions as well as government research data used as a basis for policy


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development, subject to the exceptions enumerated under Section 10 of this Act, regardless of
the physical form or format in which they are contained and by whom they were made.

Except as provided in this Act, actions, transactions, or records of private individuals and
public officials in their private capacity shall not be the subject of mandatory disclosure under
this Act: Provided, That the SALN of public officials shall be released in accordance with
Section 8 of Republic Act No. 6713, otherwise known as the “Code of Conduct and Ethical
‘Standards for Public Officials and Employees.”

SEC. 9. Presumption in Favor of Access to Information. ~ There shall be a legal
presumption in favor of access to information. The request for information may be denied only
if it clearly falls under the exceptions provided under Section 10 of this Act. Government
agencies shall have the burden of proving that the information requested is exempted from
disclosure.

SEC. 10. Exceptions. — Access to information shall be granted unless:

a) the information is specifically authorized to be kept secret under guidelines
established by an executive order, and properly classified pursuant thereto: Provided, That,

1) the information directly relates to national security or defense and its
revelation may cause grave damage to the national security or intemal and extemal
defense of the State; or

2) the information requested pertains to the foreign affairs of the Republic
of the Philippines, and its revelation shall unduly weaken the negotiating position of the
government in an ongoing bilateral or multilateral negotiation or seriously jeopardize the
diplomatic relations of the Philippines with one or more States: Provided, That sufficient
information is disclosed to afford reasonable public participation and government
decision-making on bilateral and multilateral agreements: Provided, further, That the

executive order shall specify the reasonable period after which the information shall be


1 automatically declassified or be subject to mandatory declassification review after six

2 (6) years, and that any reasonable doubt as to classification and declassification shall be
3 settled in favor of the right to information: Provided, finally, That all classified
4 information contained in all government agency records that: (1) are more than twenty-
5 five (25) years old, and (2) have been determined to have historical value shall be
6 automatically declassified whether or not the records have been reviewed. Subsequently,
a all classified information in such records shall be automatically declassified no longer
8 than twenty-five (25) years from the date of its original classification.

9 b) the information discloses investigatory records compiled for law enforcement

10 purposes or information which are contained in such records, but only to the extent that the

11 __ production of such records or information will:

2 1) reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings;
1B 2) deprive a person of the right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication;
14 3) reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy;
15 4) the information is furnished by a confidential source and in the case of a
16 record compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal
7 investigation, or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence
18 investigation, confidential information is furnished only by the confidential source;

19 5) unjustifiably disclose investigative or prosecutorial techniques and
20 procedures; or

a 6) reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any
2 individual;

2B ©) the information pertains to a testimony, report, document, or discussion obtained

24 during an executive session of the Congress of the Philippines or any of its Committees;


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4) the information pertains to the personal information of a natural person, whether
from the public or the private sector, and its disclosure constitutes an unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy, unless such information is specifically required by law to be entered into an
official record and made available to the public, or the person has consented in writing to the
disclosure of the information, To the extent required to prevent an unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy, an agency may redact such information from a record made available to the
public. The justification for the redaction shall be explained fully in writing, and the extent of
such redaction shall be indicated on the portion of the record which is made available or
published;

) the information pertains to trade secrets, commercial or financial information, or
intellectual property obtained from a natural or juridical person other than the requesting party,
and the revelation thereof will seriously prejudice the interests of such natural or juridical person
in trade, industrial, financial, or commercial competition;

f) the information is classified as privileged communications in legal proceedings
by law or by the Rules of Court, unless the person entitled to the privilege has waived it;

2) the information is exempted from disclosure by the Constitution or law; and

h) when prematurely disclosed, the information would, in case of a government
agency that regulates financial institutions and the financial markets that they deal in, such as
commodities, interest rates, and security markets, likely lead to fraud, manipulation, or other
unlawful acts or schemes involving financial instruments, or, in the case of other government
agencies, likely impede the effective implementation of a proposed official action: Provided,
That the information shall be accessible once the anticipated danger has ceased.

For paragraphs (b) to (h) of this Section, the determination of whether any of these
grounds apply shall be the responsibility of the head of office of the government agency in

custody or control of the information, or any responsible central or field officer duly designated

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by the head of office: Provided, That with regard to collegial bodies, boards, commissions, or
other courts, the chairperson or presiding officer or member is deemed the head of office for
purposes of this provision.

SEC. 11. Qualifications to the Exceptions, — The exceptions in the preceding section
shall be strictly construed and may not be invoked to cover up a crime, wrongdoing, graft, or
corruption. Whenever the information covered by an exception may be reasonably severed from
a record, the record shall be released with the exempt information redacted, or the information
not covered by the exception shall otherwise be communicated to the requesting party.

The President, the Supreme Court, the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the
Constitutional Commissions may waive an exception with respect to information in the custody
of offices under their respective supervision or control, when they deem that there is an
overriding public interest in disclosure.

SEC. 12. Exemption from Compliance. — The government agency shall be excused
from complying with a subsequent identical or substantially similar request from the same
requesting party where it has previously complied with a request for information unless a
reasonable interval has lapsed between compliance with the previous request and the making of
the current request, or unless the information has already been made available in the website
Provided, That the government agency, in denying the request, shall comply with Section 16 of
this Act.

SEC. 13. Additional Protection of Privacy. — While providing for access to information
in public records, the right to privacy of individuals shall at all times be protected in the
following manner:

a) A government agency shall ensure that personal information in its custody or

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b) A government agency shall protect personal information in its custody or under
its control by making reasonable security arrangements against such risks as unauthorized
access, collection, use, disclosure, or disposal;

©) A director, officer or employee ofa government agency who has access, whether
authorized or unauthorized, to personal information in the custody of the agency, shall not
disclose that information except as authorized under this Act.

B. Procedure of Access

SEC. 14. Procedure of Access. ~ The following procedure shall govern the filing and
processing of a request for access to information:

a) Any person who requests access to information shall submit an FOI request to
the government office concemed. The request shall state the name and contact information of
the requesting party, provide valid proof of the identification of the requesting party, reasonably
describe the information requested and the reason for, or purpose of, the request for information:
Provided, That no request shall be denied or refused acceptance unless the reason for the request
is contrary to law or existing rules and regulations or the information requested is provided under
Section 10 of this Act. The public official receiving the request shall provide reasonable
assistance to enable all requesting parties, particularly those with special needs, to comply with
the necessary requirements under this section;

b) The receiving government office shall indicate on the request the date and time
of receipt, and the name, rank, title, and position of the receiving public officer or employee who
shall correspondingly sign the request. A copy of the request shall be furnished to the requesting
party. Each government office shall establish a tracking system to monitor the status of all
requests for information received by it;

©) Unless an earlier period is provided under existing laws, the government office

shall respond to a request that is fully compliant with requirements of sub-section (a) hereof as

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soon as practicable, but not exceeding fifteen (15) working days from receipt of the request. The
agency's response may either be to grant or deny access to the information requested; and

d) The period to respond may be extended whenever the information requested
requires extensive search of the government office’s records facilities, examination of
voluminous records, the occurrence of fortuitous events or other analogous cases. The
government office shall notify the person making the request of the extension, setting forth the
reasons for such extension, In no case shall the extension go beyond twenty (20) working days
unless exceptional circumstances warrant a longer period.

Once a decision is made to grant the request, the requesting party shall be notified of
such decision and directed to pay a reasonable fee

The same procedure applies when requesting through the FOI website, except that the
requesting party shall file the FOI request at www.foi.gov.ph.

SEC. 15. Access and Processing Fees. ~ Government offices shall not charge any fee
for accepting requests for access to information. They may, however, charge a reasonable fee to
reimburse necessary costs, including actual costs of reproduction and copying of the information
requested, subject to existing rules and regulations. In no case shall the applicable fees be so
onerous as to defeat the purpose of this Act.

SEC. 16. Notice of Denial. — If the government office decides to deny the request in
whole or in part, it shall as soon as practicable, and in any case within fifteen (15) working days
from the receipt of the request, notify the requesting party of the denial in writing. The notice
shall clearly state the ground or grounds for denial and the circumstances on which the denial is
based.

SEC. 17. Remedies in Cases of Denial. ~ a) In all government agencies other than the

Judicial Branch:


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1) The requesting party shall be informed in writing of the decision within
fifteen (15) working days from the receipt of the request. Denial of any request for access
to information may be appealed to the person or office next higher in authority following
the procedure provided in the FOI Manual as required in Section 25, paragraph (h) of
this Act: Provided, That the written appeal must be filed by the same person making the
request within fifteen (15) calendar days from the notice of denial, or from the lapse of
the period to respond to the request;

2) The appeal shall be decided by the person or office next higher in
authority within thirty (30) working days from the filing of said written appeal. If the
appeal is granted, the requested information shall be released within fifteen working days
to the requesting party from the date of the decision. Failure to decide within the period
shall be deemed an approval and will always be considered in favor of access unless
prohibited due to exceptions. Denial should also be in writing; and

3) Upon the denial of the appeal, the requesting party may file the
appropriate case in the proper courts in accordance with the Rules of Court
b) In the Judicial Branch ~ The Judiciary shall be governed by remedies as

promulgated by the Supreme Court.

‘The remedies under this section shall be sought or granted without prejudice to any other
administrative, civil or criminal action covering the same act.
In case the requesting party has limited or no financial capacity, the Public Attorney’s

Office is mandated to provide legal assistance to the requesting party in availing of the remedies

provided under this Act.

IV. LIABILITIES AND PENALTIES
SEC. 18. Administrative Liability, ~ Depending on the gravity and repetition of the act,

the following acts shall be tantamount to neglect of duty, refusal to perform official duty, or

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some other appropriate charge under existing rules of the Civil Service Commission, and shall
constitute grounds for administrative and disciplinary sanction against any public official or
employee:

a) refusal to promptly forward the FOI request, pursuant to Section 14 herein, to the
public officer within the same office or agency responsible for officially acting on the request
when such is the direct cause of the failure to disclose the information within the periods required
under this Act;

b) failure to act on the request within the periods required under this Act;

c) claim of an exception under Section 10 of this Act when the claim is manifestly
devoid of factual or legal basis;

4) refusal to comply with the decision of an immediate supervisor or of any court
ordering the release of information; and

©) approval of policies, rules and regulations manifestly contrary to the provisions
ofthis Act, and which policies, rules and regulations are the direct cause of the denial of a request
for information

SEC. 19. Criminal Liability. ~ a) The commission of the following acts by a public officer
or employee shall be subject to the penalty of imprisonment of not less than one (1) month, but
not more than six (6) months, with the accessory penalty of dismissal from the service:

1) falsely denying or concealing the existence of information mandated for
disclosure under this Act, and

2) destroying, or causing to be destroyed, information or documents being
requested under this Act for the purpose of frustrating the requesting party's access

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b) Any private individual who knowingly induces or causes the commission of the
foregoing acts shall be liable as principal by inducement in the prosecution of public officials or
employees under this section.

SEC. 20. Denial in Good Faith Not a Ground for Liability. — A denial in good faith of
a request for access to information made pursuant to the provisions of this Act shall not constitute
a ground for administrative or criminal liability.

SEC. 21. Act Not a Bar to Claim of Right to Information Under the Constitution. —
No provision of this Act shall be interpreted as a bar to any claim of denial of the right to
information under Article III, Section 7 of the 1987 Constitution.

V. ADMINISTRATIVE DUTIES OF AGENCIES

SEC. 22. One-Stop Shop. — Each government office is mandated to have a one-stop
shop for the services made available by this Act.

SEC. 23. Release to One, Release to All. - For purposes of streamlining requests for
information, an information that has been made available to an individual through a request for
information shall also be published in an appropriate website such as the FOI website, the Open
Data Philippines website, Official Gazette Online, departmental website, or local government
website, thus allowing the public access to all information that has been requested.

SEC. 24. Tracking of Requests for Information. — Websites of government agencies
shall contain a matrix of requests made, their status, and the decision regarding the request. The
matrix shall also contain links to uploaded information from approved requests. In such cases
where requests are denied, the matrix shall contain the reasons for denial and the status of the
appeal if such is made.

SEC. 25. Freedom of Information Manual, ~ For the effective implementation of this

Act, all government agencies shall prepare an FOI Manual, setting forth the following:

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a) the location and contact information of the central, regional, provincial and field
office of the agency, and such other established place where the public can obtain information
or submit requests;

b) the types of information it generates, holds, or publishes;

©) a description of its record-keeping system;

d) the person or office responsible for receiving requests for information;

e) the procedure for the filing of requests personally, by mail or through the
identified electronic means;

f) the standard forms for the submission of requests and for the proper
acknowledgement of requests;

2) __ theprocess for the disposition of requests, including the routing of requests to the
persons or offices with the duty to act on the same and the decision-making processes for the
grant or denial of requests;

h) the procedure for the administrative appeal of any denial for access to
information;

i) the schedule of service or processing fees pertinent to requests for information;

j) the process and procedure for the mandatory disclosure of information under
Section 6 of this Act: Provided, That, should the ageney lack the capacity to comply with Section
6 of this Act, a brief description of its plan to facilitate compliance within three (3) years from
the approval of this Act; and

k) such other information that will help facilitate the effective implementation of
this Act, taking into consideration the unique characteristics of the agency.

‘The FOI Manual shall also be posted in the agency website and a hard copy shall be

available at the agency reception area for use by the public.


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In no case, however, shall the absence of the aforementioned FOI Manual be a reason
for the denial of any request for information made in accordance with this Act.

‘The head of the departments and agencies may designate liaison units or committees
which shall coordinate with the other units of the agency in implementing this Act. The
composition, functions, and duties of these liaison units or committees shall be included in the
FOI Manual.

SEC. 26. Records Management, ~ Subject to existing laws, rules, and regulations,
government offices shall create and maintain an accurate and complete record of important
information in appropriate formats, and implement a records management system that facilitates
‘easy identification, retrieval and communication of information to the public.

SEC. 27. Annual Reports on Actions Taken on Requests for Access to Information.
~ All government agencies shall prepare, for each fiscal year, a report on the number of requests,
for information received, processed, granted and denied; of appeals made from denials of such
requests; and of pending court actions they are a party to as a result of such requests. These
reports may be integrated in the main annual reports of government agencies and may be posted
and published in their respective websites.

VI. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

SEC. 28. Capacity-Building and Role of the Department of Information and
Communications Technology (DICT). ~ Every government agency shall ensure the provision
of adequate training for its officials and employees to improve awareness of the people’s right
to information on matters of public concern and the provisions of this Act. Similarly, every
government agency shall endeavor to study and adopt best practices in relation to information

disclosure, records maintenance, and archiving.

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The DICT shall monitor all government agency websites for compliance with Section 5
of this Act and render the appropriate technical support to government agencies to enable their
compliance.

In the performance of its monitoring and support function of government websites and
portals, the DICT shall endeavor to continuously develop, improve, and update its information
technology system taking into consideration usability and practical accessibility of government
documents by the public.

‘The DICT shall set the standards for the file formats and the system of archival and
preservation of information to be used by all government agencies in the implementation of this
Act.

SEC. 29. Integration of Freedom of Information and Good Governance in Elementary
and Secondary Curricula, ~ To ensure well-informed generations of citizens, the right to
information, the principles of accountability and transparency, democracy and leadership, and
g00d governance shall be integrated in such subjects as “Heyograpiya, Kasaysayan at Sibika
(HEKASI)” and “Araling Pantipunan” in the elementary level and in such subjects as Social
Studies and “Makabayan” or its equivalent subjects in the high school level. The Department of
Education, in coordination with the Civil Service Commission and other relevant offices, shall
prepare the necessary modules and teaching programs consistent with the objectives of this Act.

SEC. 30. Congressional Oversight Committee, — There is hereby created a
Congressional Oversight Committee which shall be composed of six (6) members from the
Senate and six (6) members from the House of Representatives with the Chairpersons of the
Committee on Public Information and Media of the Senate and the Committee on Public
Information of the House of Representatives as joint Chairpersons of this Committee. The five

(5) other members from each chamber are to be designated by the Senate President and the


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Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively. The minority shall be entitled to pro rata
representation but shall have at least two (2) representatives from each chamber.

SEC. 31. Appropriations. — The amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act
shall be charged against the agencies’ current budget and shall thereafter be included in the
annual General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 32. Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional,
the remainder of this Act or any provisions not affected thereby shall remain in full force and
effect.

SEC. 33. Repealing Clause. — Section 3, Rule IV of the Rules Implementing Republic
Act No. 6713, otherwise known as the “Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public
Officials and Employees,” is hereby repealed. Memorandum Circular No. 78, dated 14 August
1964, otherwise known as “Promulgating Rules Governing Security of Classified Matter in
Government Offices” shall be deemed amended one (1) year after the effectivity of this Act. All
other laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations, issuances, memorandum circulars
or any part thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or amended
accordingly.

SEC. 34. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication
in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,

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