Photo credit: House of Representatives

Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez announced on Wednesday, September 20,2023 that the House of Representatives has successfully approved 18 out of the 20 priority measures targeted for approval by the Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) by December this year.

The Speaker expressed confidence in having all 20 bills approved before the end of September, three months ahead of the commitment date set by the Senate and the House of Representatives in the previous LEDAC meeting held on July 5.

Romualdez, who leads the 311-member House of Representatives, presented the report during a full council meeting convened by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. at Malacañang Palace.

He stated, "Today, I am pleased to announce that 18 out of these 20 have already been approved by the House of Representatives on Third and Final Reading. We are on track to approve the two remaining measures before the October recess."

The following measures have already been approved on third and final reading by the House of Representatives from the LEDAC's priority list:

1. Amendment to the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT)/Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Act
2. National Disease Prevention Management Authority or Center for Disease Control and Prevention
3. Internet Transaction Act/ E-Commerce Law
4. Health Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team (HEART) Act
5. Virology Institute of the Philippines
6. Instituting a National Citizens Service Training (NCST) Program
7. Valuation Reform Bill (Package 3)
8. E-Governance Act/ E-Government Act
9. Ease of Paying Taxes
10. Waste-to-Energy Bill
11. New Philippine Passport Act
12. Magna Carta of Seafarers
13. Rightsizing the National Government
14. Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA)
15. Amendment to the Bank Secrecy Law
16. Trabaho Para sa Bayan (National Employment Recovery Strategy) - Enrolled bill transmitted to Malacañang
17. Automatic Income Classification Act for Local Government Units - Ready for transmittal to Malacañang
18. Philippine Salt Industry Development Act - Undergoing bicameral conference committee deliberations

As for the two remaining LEDAC measures, Romualdez reported that HB 8969, also known as the Military and Uniformed Personnel Pension System Act, was approved on second reading during the plenary session and is slated for approval on third and final reading next week.

Additionally, the Committee on Agriculture and Food approved a substitute bill consolidating all measures seeking amendments to the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, paving the way for its scheduled approval in plenary by next week.

Romualdez also mentioned that the House has initiated plenary deliberations on the proposed P5.768 trillion national budget for 2024, known as the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), with the goal of passing it on third and final reading by September 27, 2023.

The Speaker credited these accomplishments to the hard work and commitment of the House members and the cooperation of the Executive branch.

Romualdez also provided an update on the measures identified by President Marcos in his latest State of the Nation Address, revealing that seven have been approved on third and final reading, while two are at the second reading stage. He expressed confidence in having all these measures approved before the Christmas break when Congress resumes session in November.

Romualdez noted that last year, the House processed a record total of 1,150 bills and resolutions, approving 173 measures on final reading in less than six months. This year, they aim to exceed this output or at least match the intensity.