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Fundamentally, legislative power is an attribute of sovereignty, in that the Constitution itself, the fundamental law of the
State, is a legislation of the sovereign people. However, through the Constitution, the people “delegated” the legislative
power to the Congress of the Philippines. Section 1, Article VI states that “Legislative power shall be vested in the
Congress of the Philippines…” The delegation of power entails a surrender of authority to the representatives, or in
the case of legislative power, to the Congress. Thus, law-making can only be performed by the Congress, even if the
law it enacts involves the people.
What is the Principle of Non-delegation of Powers?
The Congress cannot further delegate the power delegated to it by the people. This is in keeping with the principle of non-
delegation of powers which is applicable to all the three branches of the government. The rule states that what has been
delegated cannot further be delegated – potestas delegata non delegari potest (“no delegated powers can be further
delegated.”) . A delegated power must be discharged directly by the delegate and not through the delegate’s agent.
It is basically an ethical principle which requires direct performance by the delegate of an entrusted power.
Further delegation therefore constitutes violation of the trust reposed by the delegator on the delegate. The people,
through the Constitution, delegated lawmaking powers to the Congress, and as such, it cannot as a rule delegate
further the same to another.
Exceptions to the Principle of Non-delegation of Powers
Permissible Delegation:
1. Delegation of tariff powers to the President
Article 6, Section 28(2). “The Congress may by law authorize the President to fix within specified limits, and
subject to such limitations and restrictions as it may impose, tariff rates, import and export quotas, tonnage and
wharfage dues, and other duties or imposts, within the framework of the national development program of the
Government.”
the reason for this delegation is the necessity, not to say expediency, of giving the chief executive the authority to
act immediately on certain matters affecting the national economy lest delay result in hardship to the people.
The conditions for the vesture of emergency powers in the President are the following:
a. There must be war or another national emergency.
b. The delegation must be for a limited period only.
c. The delegation must be subject to such restrictions as the Congress may prescribe.
d. The emergency powers must be exercised to carry out a national policy declared by the Congress.
Important points:
Ideally, the law must be complete in all its essential terms and conditions when it leaves the
legislature so that there will be nothing left for the delegate to do when it reaches him except enforce it.
It is intended to map out the boundaries of the delegate’s authority by defining the legislative policy
and indicating the circumstances under which it is to be pursued and effected. The purpose of the sufficient
standard is to prevent a total transference of legislative power from the lawmaking body to the delegate.