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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

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SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS KQuiney 9

First ieats Session

4359 ©

House Bill No.

Introduced by AKBAYAN Representative Tomasito S. Villarin

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) was established in 1966 as a
quasigovernment agency that leads, promotes, and accelerates sustainable
development in the Laguna de Bay Region of the Philippines. Regulatory and
law-enforcement functions are carried out with provisions on environmental
management, particularly on water quality monitoring, conservation of
natural resources, and community-based natural resource management.
Laguna de Bay is the largest inland water body in the Philippines covering
about 900 square kilometers.

The Lake Region straddles the country's most highly urbanized areas
including six provinces, twelve cities, and 49 municipalities of which 29 are
lakeshore towns. The lake is considered a major lifeline for most of the
countryside folks. Fisheries is still the lake's most dominant use with an
estimated annual potential yield of 80,000 to 90,000 MT of both fishpens
and open water fisheries. Croplands in the lakeshore towns, aside from
providing food to the local population - contribute significantly to the food
supply of Metropolitan Manila. Laguna de Bay provides resources and
services such as food, power, domestic water supply, habitat for a variety of
living organisms, and a means of mobility of the lakeshore dwellers. It is
thus considered a major lifeline of many countryside people.

Laguna de Bay, however, is in a critical condition. It has been cited in the
2007 Laguna Lake Monitor that 70 percent of the pollution in the lake
comes from uncontrolled solid and liquid wastes from domestic sources.
Unlike industries which are point sources of wastes, domestic sources (also
called non-point sources) are more difficult to regulate - much more control.
There is, thus, a need for a shift in attitude and behavior among the lake
stakeholders. Behavioral change among lake stakeholders can be best
achieved through awareness raising and education by experiential learning.

What is clearly of the most urgent necessity is to have a body specially
tasked to create and manage an overarching conservation policy. For this
reason, this bill will be a decisive first step in a new direction of rational and
people-centered conservation.


Early passage of this bill is earnestly sought.

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TX SITO S, VILLARIN


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 4359

Introduced by AKBAYAN Representative Tomasito S. Villarin

AN ACT
CREATING THE LAGUNA LAKE CONSERVATION AUTHORITY (LLCA),
THEREBY REPEALING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 4850, AS AMENDED,
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE LAGUNA LAKE DEVELOPMENT
AUTHORITY ACT OF 1966, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

SEC. 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Laguna Lake
Conservation Authority Act of 2016".

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State
to conserve and promote Laguna Lake in a sustainable manner along with
the surrounding areas that comprise its region, hereinafter referred to as the
Bay Region, with Laguna Lake and the systematic management and
protection of its water resource as the focal point.

For this purpose, the State hereby adopts a participatory integrated
water resources management (IWRM) approach to the interconnection and
integration of its various ecosystems, using the Lake's watersheds as
planning units, and involving the stakeholders in the planning and
execution process,

In accordance with the IWRM approach, and to allow the lake to
realize its various potentials including that of being a fish production
resource of national importance, any development program in the region
shall always consider the Precautionary Principle in protecting the health of
the people, the sustainable management of the environment and the
prevention of any ecological harm, resource deterioration or pollution.

SEC. 3. Definition o/Terms. - As used in this Act:

1) Laguna Lake or Laguna de Bay - that area covered by the lake water
when it is at the average annual maximum lake level of elevation

at


12.50 meters, as referred to a datum 10.00 meters below mean lower
low water (M.L.L.w.) of Manila de Bay. Lands located at and below
such elevation are public lands which form part of the bed of said
lake.

2) Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) - a process that
promotes the coordinated conservation and management of water,
land and related resources in order to maximize the resultant
economic and social welfare considerations in an equitable manner
without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.

3) Watershed - the geographic area of land that drains water to a
shared destination or to an area of land that drains down slope to the
lowest point. The water moves through a network of drainage
pathways, both underground and on the surface. Other terms used
interchangeably with watershed include drainage basin or catchment
basin.

4) Environment - the physical factors of the total surroundings of
human beings, including but not limited to the lakes and other bodies
of water, land, air, atmosphere, climate, sound, odor, plants, insects,
animals, its biological and physical factors, all its life support systems
and all other surrounding matters that affects directly or indirectly the
existence of human life and other life forms in a specific area,

5) Shoreland / Lakeshore areas / Buffer Zone - that part of the lake
along the entire lakeshore lying at elevation 12.50 m. and below and
alternately submerged or exposed by the annual or seasonal rising
and lowering of the lake levels. This is a linear strip of land of
approximately 14,000 hectares esigned to separate the incompatible
elements or uses or to control pollution or nuisance and for identifying
and defining development areas or zones and area for fisherfolk
settlement.

6) Groundwater - sub-surface water that occurs beneath a water table
in soils and rocks, or in geological formations.

7) Aquaculture - fishery operations involving all fonns of raising and
culturing fish and other fishery species in fresh, brackish and marine
water areas. Areas for aquaculture in Laguna Lake shall not exceed
6000 hectares.

8) Aquastructure - also refers to a fish pen, which is a structure
enclosing a particular area in the lake which makes use of bamboos or
anahaw poles surrounded by nets, fastened by a weight of sinkers
embedded in the lake bed; and fish cage, which is an inverted
mosquito net fastened to bamboos or such other structures used for
culturing fishery/aquatic resources.


9) Efftuent - means discharge from known sources which is passed
into a body of water or land, or wastewater flowing out of a
manufacturing plant, industrial plant including domestic, commercial
and recreational facilities.

10) Municipal Fisherfolk - persons who are directly or indirectly
engaged in fishing and other fishery-related activities whose income
from such activities do not exceed twenty thousand pesos (Php
20,000) a month.

11) Pollution - any alteration of the physical, chemical and biological
properties of any water, air and resources of the Philippines, or any
discharge thereto of any liquid, gaseous or solid wastes as are likely to
render such water, air and land resources harmful, detrimental or
injurious to the public health, safety or welfare, or which will
adversely affect their utilization for domestic, commercial, industrial,
agriculture, recreational or other legitimate purposes.

12) Precautionary Principle - the principle stating that lack of full
scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-
effective measures to prevent environmental degradation, where there
are threats of serious or irreversible damage.

13) Conservation - an ethic of resource use, allocation, and protection
which has as its primary focus the maintenance of the health and
biological diversity of the natural world, such that management of the
environment does not despoil, exhaust or extinguish.

SEC. 4 .Danger Zone/High Risk Areas. - Danger Zone/High Risk Areas are
areas with high level of threat to the lives and well-being of people that
cannot be addressed through scientific, physical and engineering methods,
and thus not suitable for settlement and permanent structures. Areas can
only be declared as Danger Zone/High Risk Area after conducting proper
technical study and public consultations with affected families.

SEC. 5. Laguna Lake Region. - For the purposes of this Act, the Laguna
Lake Region, shall comprise the provinces of Laguna and Rizal; the cities of
Calamba, Sta. Rosa, San Pablo, Pasay, Caloocan, Quezon, Manila, Makati,
Mandaluyong, San Juan, Pasig, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Antipolo, Tagaytay,
Tanauan, Taguig and Lipa; the towns of Silang, Carmona, Dasmarifias and
General Mariano Alvarez in Cavite Province; the towns of Mauban, Real,
Lucban and Sampaloc in Quezon Province; the towns of Sto. Tomas and
Malvar in Batangas; and the town of Pateros in Metro Manila and all areas
that drain into the Laguna Lake: Provided, That any cities or towns that may
be subsequently created in the future out of the aforementioned
municipalities and cities surrounding Laguna Lake shall form part of the
Laguna Lake Region.


SEC. 6, Users of Laguna Lake - All fishery related activities in Laguna Lake
shall be — utilized by ~—s municipal _fisherfolk and _ their
cooperatives/organizations who are listed as such in the Registry of
Municipal Fisherfolk; prOVided that organized municipal fisherfolk shall
have preferential rights in the utilization of Laguna Lake.

SEC. 7. Fisherfolks Settlement Site/Area. - The LLCA shall establish and
create fisherfolk settlement areas in coordination with concerned agencies of
the government, where certain areas of the public domain, specifically near
the fishing grounds, shall be reserved for the settlement of the municipal
fisherfolk. Nothing in this section shall be construed to vest ownership of
any resettlement area to a municipal fisherfolk for whom said areas may
have been reserved for or had been actually granted to. The LLCA in
coordination with Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), DILG and other
agencies concerned, shall establish a fisherfolk settlement area that shall be
seen in the context of an integrated, holistic and self-reliant community to
include alternative source of income.

SEC. 8. Laguna Lake Conservation Authority. - The Laguna Lake
Conservation Authority, hereinafter referred to as LLCA, is hereby created to
replace the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA). It shall pursue the
conservation and management of the Bay Region and shall maintain its
principal office at a convenient place within the Bay Region, and its branch
offices in such places within the Bay Region as are necessary for the proper
conduct of its business.

SEC, 9. Powers and Functions. - The LLCA shall have the following powers
and functions:

{a) Periodically conduct a comprehensive survey of the Bay Region,
and monitor and update the same, on the basis of which it shall
prepare a sustainable regional development master plan to be
drawn up with accredited municipal fisherfolk organizations, other
concerned government agencies, the private sector as well as other
stakeholders,

Such survey includes but is not limited to a study of the Region's
water supply, water quantity and quality in the Lake as well as in
all its major tributary rivers, the state of its watersheds, irrigation,
transport route, reservoir of floodwater, hydroelectric and other
power potentials, scenic and tourist spots, and other physical and
natural resource potentials, taking into account the socio-economic
conditions prevailing in the area.

All concerned public and private agencies shall provide the LLCA
the necessary data for the purposes of the said survey;

(b) Develop a long-term conservation and management program of the
Bay Region in consonance with a regional master plan which shall

4


be formulated in consultation with all stakeholders, concerned
government agencies, local government units (LGUs), private and
civil society in the Bay Region;

(c) Review all plans, projects and programs that relate to the

development of the Bay Region that are proposed and submitted by
LGU , public corporations and private persons or corporations to
ensure that they conform to the environmental standards
prescribed by the LLCA and other environmental laws and
standards;

‘The LLCA shall collect reasonable fees as may be determined by
the Board for the processing of such plans, programs or projects.
Provided that any future expansion of such plans, programs, or
projects shall be subjected to review and to payment of additional
fees as may be determined by the LLCA Board;

(d) Implement infrastructure projects within the context of its

conservation and management master plan, such as for flood
control, irrigation, water supply, solid waste management,
wastewater and sewerage, roads, housing, including the
readjustment, relocation, or resettlement of the fisherfolk
population within the 12.S-meter lakeshore area as may be deemed
necessary and beneficial.

Should any of these projects be financed wholly or in part by the
LLCA, it shall have the authority to collect reasonable fees and tolls
from users or beneficiaries to recover the costs of construction,
operation and maintenance of the projects. For infrastructure
projects that are in the nature of social overhead capital projects,
the LLCA shall be entitled to receive the corresponding financial
assistance from the government to be appropriated out of the funds
of the national treasury not otherwise appropriated;

(c) Undertake massive information, education campaign among the

()

stakeholders, in close coordination with the LGUs and other
government, agencies within the Laguna de Bay Region to better
understand’ the importance of environmental protection and
conservation of the Laguna Lake and its watersheds;

Determine new areas of fishery development, taking into account
the overall development plans and programs for Laguna Lake and
related bodies of water, and promulgate rules and regulations
governing fisheries development in the Bay Region. Accordingly, it
shall engage in experimental or pilot fish production in Laguna
Lake and other bodies of water within its jurisdiction, in
collaboration with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources
(BFAR). It shall improve present fishery techniques and practices to
provide equitable access to the Lake's fishery resources for the

5


socio-economic amelioration of small fisherfolk, the improvement of
their communal fishing grounds, and sustainable aquaculture
development and operation. In hiring laborers for fishery-related
projects, there shall be preference for qualified shore land
residents;

(g) Regulate the use of shoreland areas by enjoining LGUs within the
Bay Region to establish watershed management councils or
wetlands whenever suitable and consistent with LLCA policies;

(h) Develop surface and groundwater supply sources for municipal,
agricultural, commercial, and industrial use, in close coordination
with the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) or Local Water
Utilities Administration (LWUA), as the case may be, pursuant to
existing laws, executive orders and other issuances which may be
necessary to accomplish the aims and purposes of the LLCA;

(i) Enter into agreements with LGUs, governmental agencies and
corporations and the private sector for the supply, treatment,
distribution and marketing of such water;

() Establish and enforce anti-pollution standards on municipal,
agricultural, commercial and industrial wastewater and effluents
being discharged into the lake in coordination with appropriate
government agencies;

(k) Conduct a continuing research, development and extension
program, in close coordination with the academe, Department of
Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Department of
Science and Technology (DOST), on lake water quantity and quality,
integrated watershed management, and enterprise development and
management with the end in view of promoting sustainable
development in the region;

() Adopt rules and regulations governing the approval of sewage
works and industrial waste disposal system and the issuance of
clearance and/or permits in accordance with the provisions of this Act
where necessary; and inspect the construction and maintenance of
sewage works and industrial waste disposal systems for compliance
with the conditions of the clearance and/or permit;

(m) Require all projects or activities in or affecting the Laguna de Bay
Region to secure Environmental Compliance Certificates (ECCs) as
required under Presidential Decree No. 1586, and grant clearance
and/or permits for any projects or activities located within or affecting
the Bay Region including, but not limited to, industrial and
commercial activities, navigation, irrigation, power generation,
housing, resettlement and other forms of land developments,
construction and operation of aquastructures, aquaculture


development, dredging or reclamation and similar or related activities,
and to impose necessary safeguards for lake water quantity and
quality control and management and to collect the necessary fees for
said activities and projects;

(n) Issue, renew, or deny permits subject to reasonable guidelines for
the discharge of sewage, industrial waste, or for the installation or
operation of sewage works and industrial disposal system or parts
thereof for the prevention and abatement of pollution; and require
subdivisions, condominiums, clinical and medical establishments,
mortuaries, public buildings, other similar human settlements, to
construct appropriate central sewerage system and sewage treatment
works. The LLCA may impose reasonable fees and other similar
charges for the issuance or renewal of all permits herein required;

(0) Issue orders or decisions to compel compliance with the provisions
of this Act and its implementing rules and regulations only after
proper notice and hearing;

(p) Make, issue, alter, or modify orders or decisions, after notice and
hearing, requiring the discontinuance of pollution specifying the
conditions and the time within which such discontinuance must be
accomplished;

(q) Revoke, suspend or modify any clearance and/or permit issued
under this Act, after due notice and hearing, whenever the same is
necessary to prevent or abate pollution;

(t) Deputize or request the assistance of appropriate government
agencies or instrumentalities for the purpose of enforcing this Act and
its implementing rules and regulations and the orders and decisions
of the LLCA AND LGU's;

(s) Inspect, and investigate and monitor conditions relating to
pollution and existing or imminent environmental dangers; and to
authorize a representative to enter any public and private property
devoted {o agricultural, commercial and industrial use for this
purpose;

(t) Extract janitor fish and other harmful and invasive species that
pose a danger to productivity of the lake and to small fisherfolk’s
livelihood;

(u) Exercise such powers perform such other functions as may be
necessary to carry out its duties and responsibilities under this Act.

SEC. 10. Corporate Powers. - The Authority has the following corporate
powers:


a) Succeed in its corporate name;
b) Sue and be sued in its corporate name;
c) Adopt, alter and use a corporate seal;
d) Adopt, amend, or repeal its by-laws;

¢) Enter into contracts to enable it to carry out its purposes
and functions under this Act;

f) Acquire, buy, purchase, hold or lease, such personal and
real property as it may deem necessary in the transaction of
its business or in relation to carrying out its purposes under
this Act and to lease, mortgage, sell, alienate, or otherwise
encumber, utilize, exploit or dispose any such personal and
real property held by it, subject to individual or communal
right of private parties or of the government or any agency or
enterprise thereof;

g) Exercise the right of eminent domain whenever the LLCA
deems it necessary to achieve the objectives of this Act;

h) Borrow funds from any local or foreign sources independent
of the bonds it may issue or may continue to issue to carry
out the purposes of this Act;

i) Purchase, hold, alienate, mortgage, pledge or otherwise
dispose of the shares of the capital stock of, or any bond,
securities, or other evidence of indebtedness created by any
other corporation, co-partnership, or government agencies or
instrumentalities; and while the owner of said stock to
exercise all the rights of ownership, including the right to
vote thereon: Provided, That the LLCA shall not invest its
funds in any high risk debt instruments issued without
recourse to commercial banks or investment houses as well
as in-any highly speculative stocks;

j) Perform any and all acts which a corporation, co-partnership
or juridical person is authorized to perform under the
existing laws or which may be enacted hereafter;

k) Provide incentives to encourage the private sector to enforce
conservation activities.

1) Issue such other rules and regulations as may be necessary
from time to time to achieve the purposes of this Act, the


same to take effect thirty (30) days after its publication in a
newspaper of general circulation.

SEC. 11. Board of Directors. - The LLCA shall be governed by a Board of
Directors who shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines and
shall be composed of the following:

1) Secretary of Environment and Natnral Resources, Chairman

2) General Manager, LLCA, Vice-Chairman

3) Governor, Province of Laguna

4) Governor, Province of Rizal

5) Secretary, Department of Agriculture

6) Secretary, National Economic and Development Authority

q

Secretary, Department of Public Works and Highways
8) Chairman, Metro Manila Development Authority

9)

Representative of the Bay Region City and Municipal Mayors'
Association to be constituted sixty (60) days from the passage of
this Act from among the mayors of towns and cities that comprise
the Bay Region as defined in Section 3 of this Act

10) Two (2) representative of the Laguna Fisherfolk Federation
11) Representative of the Rizal Fisherfolk Federation

12) Representative of the NCR Fisherfolk Federation

13) Two (2) representative of women fisherfolk federation

14) Two (2) fepresentatives of youth fisherfolk organization.

The representatives of the Laguna Fisherfolk, Rizal fisherfolk and NCR
fishefolk: shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines to be chosen
from among the nominees recommended by the Laguna, Rizal, NCR
Fisherfolk Coalition respectively, upon consultation with the concerned
sector. The term of the appointive members shall be six (6) years without
reappointment, or until their successors are duly appointed and qualified
Vacancy, other than through the expiration of the term, shall be filled for the
unexpired term only. Ex-officio Cabinet members can designate alternate


representatives to the Board, given the demands of their Cabinet-level
position,

SEC. 12. Powers and Functions. - The Board of Directors shall exercise the
following powers and functions:

a. Prescribe policies, rules and regulations to govern the conduct of
business of the LLCA including the rules and procedures of the
Authority;

b. Upon the recommendation of the General Manager, to approve the
LLCA's organizational and administrative structures and
corresponding staffing pattern as may be deemed necessary: fix
their reasonable compensation, allowances and other benefits;
prescribe their duties and establish such methods and procedures
as may be necessary to insure the efficient, honest and economical
administration of the provisions and purposes of this Act; Provided,
however, That the personnel of the LLCA below the rank of
Assistant General Manager shall be appointed by the LLCA General
Manager; Provided, further, That the personnel appointed by the
LLCA General Manager, except those below the rank of Department
Heads, and others of comparable rank, shall be subject to the
confirmation by the Board; Provided, further, That the personnel of
the LLCA shall be selected only from civil service eligibles and be
subject to Civil Service rules and regulations; Provided, finally,
That the LLCA shall be exempt from Republic Act No. 6758,
otherwise known as the Salary Standardization Law;

c. Upon the recommendation of the General Manager, to approve the
annual and supplemental budget of receipts and expenditures of
the LLCA, and to authorize such operating and capital
expenditures and disbursements of the LLCA as may be necessary
or proper for the effective management, operation and
administration of the LLCA;

d. Create and organize a Technical Advisory Council composed of
representatives from both the government and non-government
sectors as the Board may determine to assist and advise the Board
in the conduct of public consultations with all Bay Region
stakeholders towards a better considered formulation of LLCA
plans and policies.

e. Perform such other functions as may be necessary to carry out the
provisions of this Act.

SEC. 13. Board Meetings. - The Board shall meet at least once a month,

10


SEC. 14. Per Diems and Allowances. - The members of the Board shall
receive a per diem for every meeting not exceeding the sum of Php 10,000.00
per month.

SEC. 15. General Manager; Powers and Functions. - The General Manager
shall be the Chief Executive Officer of the LLCDA. As such, he/she shall
have the following powers and functions

s which
and

a, Submit for consideration of the Board policies and measur:
he believes to be necessary to carry out the purpos:
objectives of this Act;

b. Execute, administer, and implement the policies, plans, programs
and projects approved by the Board;

c, Manage and supervise the operation and administration of the
LLCA;

d. Appoint all officials and employees of LLCA below the rank of
Assistant General Manager, remove, suspend or otherwise
discipline them for cause, in accordance with existing Civil Service
rules and regulations, and submit quarterly reports to the Board
on personnel selection, placement and training;

e. Render an annual report to the Board and various stakeholders
regarding the operation of the LLCA including its latest financial
statement;

f, Represent the LLCA in all dealings with offices, agencies and
instrumentalities of the government and will all persons and other
entities, public or private, domestic and foreign;

g. Perform such other functions as may be provided in the By-Laws
and as may be vested in him/her by the Board.

SEC. 16. Qualifications of the General Manager. - The General Manager
shall be a citizen and resident of the Philippines. He/She shall have
demonstrated executive competence and experience in the field of public
administration, economic planning, environmental and natural resource
management, or in the establishment and management of large agricultural,
commercial or industrial enterprises, No person shall be nominated as
General Manager unless he/she be of unquestioned integrity and
competence,

SEC. 17. Tenure of Office of the General Manager. - The General Manager
shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines for a fixed term of six
(6) years. In case of resignation, retirement, separation, transfer, re-
assignment, removal and other cause of cessation from office, the
replacement shall serve only for the unexpired portion of the term.

ve


SEC. 18. Compensation. - The General Manager shall receive such
compensation as may be determined by the Board with the approval of the
President of the Philippines which shall be chargeable against the annual
appropriation of the LLCA.

SEC. 19. Management Structure. - In carrying out the activities of the
LLCA, the General Manager shall be assisted by two Assistant General
Managers (one for Operations and another for Administration) who shall
have such powers, duties, and functions as the General Manager may
prescribe and or delegate and shall act as the General Manager in the
absence of or during the temporary incapacity of and/or until such time as
a new General Manager is duly appointed.

The Authority shall have the following departments under the direct
supervision and control of the General Manager:

a) Corporate Legal Affairs Department which shall provide legal advice
and support to all the corporate units on legal implications of the
various undertakings of the Authority and divided into Litigation
Division, and Research and Documentation Division.

b) Administrative Department which shall be responsible for providing
services relating to human resource management, records
management, and general services.

c) Finance Department which shall be responsible on revenue planning,
generation and enhancement, assistance on budgetary and financial
matters, and safekeeping of corporate assets.

d) Policy Planning and Management Services Department which will
undertake policy research and development, and advise the General
Manager on policy positions and public advocacy measures for
approval of the Board.

¢) Integrated Water Resources Management Services Department which
will serve as .the main technical ann of the Authority and shall
integrate the functions of Lake basin management and conservation.
It shall oversee the management of the Laguna Lake and its river
systems including the shorelands.

1) Environmental Protection Department which will manage all the
environmental regulatory functions of the Authority __ like
clearance/permits and licensing, monitoring and surveillance,
enforcement and adjudication and environmental quality compliance.

The Board shall periodically review the appropriateness of the existing
organizational structure and amend the same whenever it may deem

12


necessary and beneficial to achieve the purposes of this Act and to be able
to respond efficiently to LLCA's mandate as herein provided.

SEC.20. Annual Fees. - The LLCA is hereby authorized to collect annual
fees for the use of the lake waters, its tributaries and shoreland areas for all
beneficial purposes including but not limited to fisheries, aquaculture,
municipal, agricultural, irrigation, commercial, industrial, hydroelectric
generation and other power potential, transport and navigation, waste
disposal purposes, recreation and dredging/reclamation from all private and
public entities whether government or non-government agencies, among
others the water utilities sector. All the fees so collected shall be accordingly
appropriated for the sustainable development of the lake and its watershed
areas. Provided, that the fees collected for fisheries may be shared between
the Authority and other government agencies and LGUs as follows: thirty-
five (35) percent of the fish pen fee goes to shore land LGUs, five (5) percent
goes to the Project Development Fund nd the remaining sixty (60) percent
shall be retained by LLDA; PrOVided, however, that the share of LLDA shall
form part of its corporate funds and shall not be remitted to the National
‘Treasury as an exception to the provisions of Presidential Decree No. 1234.

SEC. 21. Capitalization and Financing. - The LLCA shall have an
authorized capital of ONE BILLION PESOS. The authorized capital stock of
One Billion Pesos (PI, 000,000,000.00) shall be divided into Ten Million
Pesos (PIO, 000,000.00) shares of stock with a par value of One Hundred
Pesos (100) per share. The National Government shall subscribe to Six
Million Shares, the province of Laguna to One Million shares, the province of
Rizal to One Million shares and the balance of Two Million Shares shall be
open for subscription of other government agencies or LGUs and other
private individuals or corporations within the Bay Region.

The shares of stock of the LLDA shall be divided into:
1) 7,000,000.00 common shares (voting); and

2) 3,000,000.00 preferred shares (non-voting) with such fixed rates of
return as shall be determined by the Board. Provided, however, That
preferred shares shall enjoy preference with respect to distribution of
dividends and assets in case of dissolution.

SEC. 22. Appropriations. - The amount of Three Hundred Million Pesos
(Php300,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated to carry out the provisions of
this Act which shall be included in the General Appropriations Act of the
year following its enactment. The additional amount of Three Hundred
Million Pesos (Php300,000,000.00) shall be divided to shares of stock in
accordance with the proportion provided in the preceding paragraph.

SEC. 23. Domestic and Foreign Borrowing Authority. - The

Administration shall have the authority to borrow money from all domestic
and foreign loan sources whether government or private: Provided, that its

123


loan outstanding both from domestic and foreign sources shall not exceed
an aggregate ceiling of Nine Hundred Million U.S. Dollars (US$900, 000,
000.00): Provided, that all domestic and foreign borrowings of LLCA shall be
approved by the Department of Finance (DOF), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
(BSP) and other entities as required by pertinent laws and regulations.

SEC. 24 Authority to Contract Foreign Loan. - The Administration is
hereby authorized to contract loans, credits, in any convertible foreign
currency or capital goods, and to incur indebtedness from time to time with
foreign governments, or any international financial institutions or fund
sources, including supplier's credits or deferred payment arrangements, the
total outstanding amount of which, excluding interests, shall not exceed its
aggregate domestic and foreign borrowing authority of Nine Hundred Million
US Dollars (US$900, 000, 000.00) or the equivalent thereof in other
currencies, on terms and conditions promulgated by the Secretary of
Finance and the Monetary Board for the accomplishment of its objectives;
and to enter into and execute contracts and other documents specifying
such terms and conditions,

"The President of the Philippines, his or her duly authorized
representative, is hereby authorized to negotiate and contract with foreign
governments or any international financial institution or fund sources in the
name and on behalf of the administration, one or several loans, for the
purpose of implementing the Administration's program for the promotion
and development of local water utilities through the Administration's
financing or lending operations. "The President of the Philippines, his or her
duly authorized representative, is hereby further authorized to guarantee,
absolutely and unconditionally, as primary obligor and not as mere surety,
in the name and on behalf of the Republic of the Philippines, the payments
of the loans, credits and indebtedness up to the amount herein authorized,
over and above the amounts which the President of the Philippines pursuant
to loan agreements entered into with foreign governments or any
international financing institution or fund sources.

"The loan credits and indebtedness contracted under this section shall be
in accord with the provisions of Republic Act No. 4860, or the Foreign
Borrowing Act as amended, The provisions of Section 123 of Republic Act
No. 7653, otherwise known as the New Central Bank Act; The provisions of
Section 23 of Central Bank Circular No. 1389, as amended; Section 20,
Article VII and Section 21, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution and other
pertinent laws and regulations’.

SEC. 25. Creation of LLCA Environmental Adjudication Panel. - For the
purpose of effectively carrying out the quasi-judicial powers of the Authority
within the Bay Region, the LLCA Environmental Adjudication Panel (LEAP)
is hereby created composed of a Chairman and two (2) other members
representing the Office of the General Manager, the Corporate Legal Affairs
Department and the concerned department depending on the matter under
controversy to be designated by the General Manager. The LEAP is hereby

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mandated to take cognizance and adjudicate violations of this Act including
all existing and relevant laws, LLCA policies, rules and regulations, Any
decision, order or resolution must be concurred by the majority member of
the panel and duly approved by the General Manager.

The Corporate Legal Affairs Department shall serve as Secretariat of the
LEAP.

SEC. 26. Creation of a Lake Police Force. ‘The National Police Commission
shall constitute and assign a special police force, to be known as the Laguna
Lake Police, exclusively for the Bay Region, trained especially for
enforcement of laws on fisheries and environmental laws and the rules and
regulations duly promulgated by the LLCA.

‘The extent of operational supervision and control by the LLCA General
Manager over the Laguna Lake Police shall be the same as that of local chief
executives over police force of LGUs as defined in the Department of Interior
and Local Government Act of 1990 (R.A. 6975), in relation to Sec. 78 of the
Local Government Code of 1991 (R.A. 7160). The LLCA Board, the local
government units (LGUs) and the leadership of the Philippine National Police
shall within sixty (60) days from the passage of this Act constitute a
technical working group that will further delineate and define the nature
and character of this unit in order to avoid any overlap and potential conflict
with the LGU police units within the Bay Region.

SEC. 27. Exemption/rom Tax. - The LLCA shall be exempt from:

a) all taxes, licenses, fees, imposts, charges costs, duties, incidental to
its operations and service/filing fees in any court or administrative
proceedings in which it may be a party, restrictions and duties to the
Republic of the Philippines, its provinces, cities, municipalities and
other government agencies and instrumentalities; and

b) all income taxes, franchise taxes and realty taxes to be paid to the

National Government, its provinces, cities, municipalities and other

government agencies and instrumentalities,

SEC. 28. Fines and Penalties. - The LLCA is authorized to impose
administrative fines and other penalties it may deem reasonable and
appropriate as determined and approved by the Board for non-compliance
with permit conditions and for undertaking development activities without
clearance/petroit from the LLCA against any person, juridical or otherwise,
within the Bay Region who may be found violating, or have in fact violated,
any of its rules and regulations;

Likewise, the LLDA is authorized to institute the necessary legal proceedings

against those who shall commence to implement any development activities
within the Bay Region not cleared nor approved by the LLCA.

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SEC. 29. Damages. - Compensation for any damage to the shoreland, water
and aquatic resources of Laguna Lake and its tributaries resulting from
failure to meet established water and effluent quality standards or from
such other wrongful act or omission of a person, private or public, juridical
or otherwise, punishable under the law shall be awarded to the LLDA for
water quantity /quality control and management projects.

SEC. 30. Penal and Civil Liability Clause. - Any person, natural or
juridical, who shall violate any of the provisions of this Act or any rules and
regulations promulgated by the Authority pursuant thereto shall be liable to
imprisonment of not exceeding three (3) years or to a fine not less than Fifty
‘Thousand Pesos (Php50, 000.00) or both at the discretion of the court. This
is without prejudice to the imposition of penalties as may be provided under
existing and relevant laws, rules and regulations.

If the violator be a corporation, partnership or association, the officer /
officers of the organization concerned shall be held liable.

The LLCA is hereby authorized to initiate, tile, prosecute and defend all
suits, actions or to pursue separate civil actions for damages resulting from
infractions of the provisions of this Act, rules or regulations issued pursuant
thereto and/or conditions embodied in the clearances or permits issued by
the Authority.

SEC. 31, Auditor. - The Chairman of the Commission on Audit shall be the
ex officio Auditor of the LLCA. For this purpose, he may appoint a
representative who shall be the Auditor of the LLCA, and the necessary
personnel to assist said representative in the performance of his duties. The
Chairman of the Commission on Audit or his authorized representative shall
submit to the Board soon after the close of each calendar year, an audited
statement showing the financial condition and progress of the LLCA for the
calendar year just ended.

SEC. 32. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The LLCA in
coordination with the proper standing Committees of both the Senate and
the House of Representatives and other concerned agencies and fisherfolk
federation shall promulgate the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for
this Act, within one (1) year after its enactment: Provided. That the rules and
regulations issued by other government agencies and instrumentalities for
the prevention and/or abatement of water pollution not inconsistent with
this Act shall supplement the rules and regulations issued by the LLCA
pursuant to the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 33. Repealing Clause. - Republic Act No. 4850 as amended,
Presidential Decree No. 813 and Executive Order No. 927 and all laws,
orders, issuance, rules and regulations inconsistent herewith are hereby
repealed.

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SEC. 34. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectiveness of
the other provisions hereof

SEC. 35. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following
its publication in at least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation

Approved.

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