By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter
AT LEAST five new bills have been added to the Marcos administration’s list of priority legislation expected to be approved by Congress before June 2025, including proposals to allow foreign investors to lease land for up to 99 years and amend a 2019 law that liberalized the rice sector.
In a statement, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) on Tuesday agreed to prioritize the passage of 28 bills before the end of the 19th Congress in June 2025.
Of the 28 bills, 18 are considered “top priority,” while 10 are only “second priority.”
“The timely passage of these bills is critical in strengthening the country’s economic governance and ensuring that we are on track in implementing infrastructure flagship projects and maintaining fiscal sustainability,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said in a statement.
One of the new additions to the “top priority” list is the proposed changes to the Foreign Investors’ Long-Term Lease Act of 2018, which seeks to allow foreigners to lease private land (excluding agricultural land) for up to 99 years from 75 years.
Another top priority is the amendments to the Rice Tariffication Act of 2020.
The House of Representatives last month approved on final reading the bill amending the 2020 law that gave the private sector full control over rice imports amid rising prices of the staple.
Under the bill, legislators seek to empower the National Food Authority to use existing rice inventory to supply areas where shortages or price increases occur. It also allows the NFA on some occasions to buy local milled rice or directly import rice. The bill also seeks to increase the amount of the Rice Competitive Enhancement Fund (RCEF) to P15 billion from P10 billion.
Also a top priority is the bill introducing reforms in Philippine capital markets, which NEDA said “seek to facilitate capital raising for Filipino companies through the stock market and boost the value of pension funds invested in the Philippine stock market by reducing taxes on stock transactions and equalizing the dividend tax.”
The House in May approved on third and final reading a measure seeking to reform the capital markets by reducing taxes on stock transactions.
Another top priority is the proposed Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, which will “strengthen the country’s sovereignty over its archipelagic waters and maritime resources.”
Also added to the LEDAC list but considered “second priority” is the proposal to amend the 1998 Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law by lifting restrictions on the ownership and transfer of land awarded under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform program.
Also included in LEDAC’s top 18 priority measures is the bill amending the Right-of-Way Act to hasten the implementation of infrastructure projects.
The bill seeking to impose excise tax on single-use plastics was also included in the priority measures, as the government struggles to find more sources of revenues to fund social services and infrastructure projects.
The proposed rationalized mining fiscal regime, which seeks to impose margin-based royalties and a windfall profit tax on mining companies, and the bill to amend the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) were also included in the priority list.
The Partners for Affordable and Reliable Energy earlier said lawmakers should amend the EPIRA to give regulators the authority to revoke franchises of underperforming concession holders.
The CREATE MORE bill, which seeks to further lower the taxes on domestic and foreign companies, was also included in the top 18 priority bills of LEDAC, along with the bill seeking to impose a value-added tax on digital services and the measure creating a Department of Water Resources.
Eight of the LEDAC’s top 18 priority bills that are already in “advanced stages” are changes to the Government Procurement Reform Act and the proposed Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, Anti-Financial Accounts Scamming Act, Self-Reliant Defense Posture Revitalization Act, Philippine maritime Zones Act and New Government Auditing Code.
The ARAL Bill, which seeks to establish a national learning intervention program in response to the deteriorating quality of Philippine education, is also among LEDAC’s top priorities.
The Philippines ranked 77th among 81 countries in the 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), with Filipino students aged 15 performing poorly in math, reading and science compared with learners from other countries.
“The priority bills deal mostly with infrastructure and tax revenues. Unfortunately, none of these bills are focused on education and human capital development,” Ateneo de Manila economics professor Leonardo A. Lanzona said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
“In light of recent studies that indicate that Filipinos are only reaching 52% of their potential and below average PISA scores, there is a need to work on improving the educational sector that crucially affects the future of the country,” he added.
Meanwhile, NEDA said bills tagged as “second priority” for passage include the proposal to amend the Agrarian Reform Law and Philippine Immigration Act as well as the proposed Blue Economy Act, Enterprise-Based Education and Training Framework Act and Open Access in Data Transmission Act.
The Waste-to-Energy Bill and the proposed Mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, Unified System of Separation, Retirement and Pension of Military and Uniformed Personnel, E-Government Act/E-Governance Act are also considered as second priority bills — measures that the Senate President said need “further clarification.”
House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez said 25 of the 28 bills set for passage within the 19th Congress “are already in their final stages and approved” by the lower chamber.
“We are committed to approving the remaining three of the 28 measures named during our LEDAC meeting,” he said.
Senate President Francis Joseph Guevara Escudero the upper chamber has already passed three of 20 bills targeted for passage by June such as the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System Act, the Negros Island Region Act, and the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act.
“The new priority list correctly focuses on economic bills which should spur economic growth given concerns relating to inflation and stunted wages of ordinary Filipino workers,” said public investment analyst and former lawmaker Terry L. Ridon.
“Agrarian law amendments should cover squarely concerns of land reform beneficiaries relating to post-coverage disenfranchisement, as this defeats the original purpose of redistributing wealth in the countryside,” he added.