Archipelagic lanes bill among 18 LEDAC priorities

Archipelagic lanes bill among 18 LEDAC priorities | Daily Tribune

The Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) issued 28 new measures that must be passed by Congress before the current batch of lawmakers adjourns in May 2025.

In its fifth meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, LEDAC tagged 18 of the 28 bills as "top priority" since eight of them are in the advanced stages of the legislative process.

The remaining 10 proposed measures were categorized as “second priority for passage.”

“The council came up with a list of top priority bills that the members, the leaders of both Congress commit to pass within the remaining period of the current session,” Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.

“So, these are 10 bills that are considered top priority. And there’s a second list that consists of another 10. I think that's another 10 bills. And also the other bills that are in advanced stages. They are either at the bicameral stages or already enrolled bill(s)."

The Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, which will supplement the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, is on the highest priority list, seeking to protect Philippine sovereignty over marine resources and archipelagic waterways.

The proposal, which was supported by Senator Francis Tolentino last month, would give Marcos the authority to create archipelagic sea lanes in Philippine waters and to specify the requirements for foreign aircraft and ships.

Among the proposed top priorities for passage before the end of the 19th Congress are also the Amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law, Excise Tax on Single-Use Plastics, Reform to Philippine Capital Markets, Amendments to the Right-of-Way Act, Rationalization of the Mining Fiscal Regime, Amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act, Department of Water Resources, CREATE MORE Act, and Amendments to the Foreign Investors’ Long-Term Lease Act.

Comprising the second list of priorities are the Mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, Amendments to the Universal Health Care Act, Waste-to-Energy Bill, Blue Economy Act, Open Access in Data Transmission Act, Enterprise-Based Education and Training Framework Act, Unified System of Separation, Retirement and Pension of Military and Uniformed Personnel, E-Government Act/E-Governance Act, Amendments to the Agrarian Reform Law, and the Philippine Immigration Act.

Other bills on advanced stages of deliberation are the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, amendments to the Government Procurement Reform Act, the Anti-Financial Accounts Scamming Act, Self-Reliant Defense Posture Revitalization Act, Philippine Maritime Zones Act, Academic Recovery and Accessible Learning (ARAL) Program Act, VAT on Digital Services and New Government Auditing Code.

To create consensus versions of the priority measures, Balisacan pressed for increased collaboration between the Legislative and Executive branches.

Balisacan said the prompt adoption of the measures is essential to bolstering the nation’s economic governance and guaranteeing that the nation is adhering to its infrastructure flagship projects.

“We thank the leadership of both houses of Congress for their commitment to fast-track the passage of these important measures. These bills represent our concerted effort to shape the nation’s economic governance, foster growth, and ensure a prosperous future for all Filipinos,” Balisacan said.