House Committee tackles Cha-cha
2 December 2008 - Constitutional Amendments Committee Chairman Victor Francisco Ortega (La Union, 1st district) clarified that the controversial House Resolution (HR) 550 has already been withdrawn last 12 August 2008. The resolution proposes to change the term of office of local elective officials except barangay officials, and members of the House of Representatives from three to four years and to synchronize local and national elections.

Rep. Hermilando Mandanas (Batangas, 2nd district) stated that he has withdrawn the said resolution because it was untimely. He stressed though that the resolution covers only local elective officials. However, the transitory provision provides for the resetting of the 2010 national elections to the second Monday of May 2011. Consequently, it extends the terms of officials who are set to end their term in 2010, which includes the President.

HR 550 was withdrawn by Rep. Mandanas together with his other proposed measure HR 548, which seeks to unite the executive and legislative functions of government.


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Report No. 145
Do we need more Congressmen?

On 28 August 2006, the ARMM Regional Assembly passed the Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act 201 to carve out eight towns from the first district of Maguindanao and create the province of Shariff Kabungsuan. The ARMM is authorized to create local government units such as barangays and municipalities, but the Supreme Court clarified that the power to create a province or a city-since it entails the creation of a legislative district,-is exclusively vested in Congress. Read more >>


Report No. 144
Laws Lying in Wait

In 2008, Congress enacted 19 laws of national scope. These included key economic reform measures identified by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC), three of which still await full implementation.

RA 9504, signed on 17 June 2008, grants tax relief to minimum wage earners and higher income tax exemptions to individual taxpayers. Section 9 of the Act states that the law shall take effect 15 days following its publication in at least two newspapers of general circulation. On 25 September, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), through Revenue Regulation 10-2008, set its effective date to commence on 6 July 2008. Read more >>

Keep track of important economic- or business-related bills in 16 key sectors: Agriculture, Banking, Demographics (Population, Health, Education), Environment, Governance, Industry, Information & Communication Technology, Investments, Labor, Property, Public Finance, Tourism, Trade, Transportation, and Utilities [energy, power, water].