House opens 3rd regular session of 18th Congress

MANILA – The House of Representatives opened the third regular session of the 18th Congress on Monday morning, hours ahead of President Rodrigo Duterte’s sixth and final State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Deputy Speaker and 1PACMAN Rep. Michael Romero presided over the hybrid session at 10 a.m.

In his opening speech, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco highlighted that the House has fully supported the legislative agenda of the Duterte administration.

Congress ‘steady partner’ of Duterte administration

Velasco said Congress, as a “steady partner” of the administration, passed laws that promoted economic development, strengthened the administration of justice and the rule of law, enhanced the protection of labor and social welfare, improved the quality of and increased access to education and information, enhanced health and emergency response systems, and strengthened political and governmental institutions.

“We chose to keep the legislative mill running even during the height of the Covid-19 community lockdowns,” he said.

Among the much-needed pandemic emergency response measures that were approved include the timely passage of the 2021 General Appropriations Act, and the proposed Bayanihan to Arise as One Act or Bayanihan 3.

“We managed to pass the 2021 budget on time. We decisively passed laws that granted the president authority to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in the Philippines, including the Bayanihan 3 or the third economic stimulus measure to further boost our pandemic response and directly provide assistance to our kababayans,” he said.

The lower chamber, Velasco said, also passed Resolution of Both Houses 2, which seeks to empower the President and future Congresses with authority to relax economic restrictions in the Constitution to facilitate the entry of foreign players in the local scene, create new jobs, and boost sources of gross domestic product (GDP).

Priorities for last regular session

Velasco noted that Congress is “right on track” to approve the remaining legislative priority measures, including bills amending the Public Service Act (PSA), Foreign Investments Act (FIA) and the Retail Trade Liberalization (RTL) Act.

“As we enter the final year of our present term in Congress, it is time for that one last big push,” he said.

To assist in the country’s economic recovery, he said the chamber is also pushing for the taxation of Philippine offshore gaming operations and e-sabong betting activities.

“We await and will closely monitor the Senate action on these measures,” he said.

He said Congress will also be reviewing relevant policies in public health and safety, including the medical stockpiling bill, to allow the Department of Health to stockpile, conserve, and facilitate the supply and distribution of pharmaceuticals and vaccines for public health emergencies.

It will also prioritize the passage of two measures seeking to establish a virology research institute in the Philippines and a center for disease control, he said.

The House would also support the ease of paying taxes bill as it will institutionalize portability of transactions and the streamlining for compliance procedures.

To address the devastating impact of Covid-19 on creative industries, the House would push for the institutionalization of the Philippine creative economy.

Velasco said that other priority measures of the lower chamber are the bill seeking to reform the military and uniformed personnel (MUP) pension system to resolve its attendant fiscal burden and sustainability risks, as well as the proposed amendment to the National Internal Revenue Code in a bid to resolve the concerns of private educational institutions on a new policy hiking its tax rate from 10 percent to 25 percent.