PH Legislative - Fiscal's

1. 1. The Legislative Branch PS 301 – INTRODUCTION TO PHILIPPINE PUBLIC

ADMINISTRATION DAY 8
2. 2. Preliminaries
3. 3. Definition of Government “Government” has been defined as that institution or
collection of institutions through which a sovereign society makes and implements law
which enable men to live with each other or which are imposed upon the people forming
the society by those who have the authority of prescribing them.
4. 4. Definition of “Government of the Republic of the Philippines.” Under Section 2(1) of
the Administrative Code of the Philippines, the “Government of the Republic of the
Philippines” is defined as “the corporate governmental entity through which the functions
of government are exercised throughout the Philippines, including, save as the contrary
appears from the context, the various arms through which political authority is made
effective in the Philippines, whether pertaining to the autonomous regions, the provincial,
city, municipal, or barangay subdivisions, or other forms of local government.” In other
words, it refers to the corporate institution which acts as an instrument through which the
people exercise their sovereignty. It is composed of the central or national government
and local government units.
5. 5. Overview of the Structure of the Philippine Government. As provided in Article II of
the Constitution, the Philippine Government is democratic and republican. It follows the
separation of powers, so that as provided in Articles VI, VII and VIII, it divides itself into
three branches: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial.
6. 6. Overview of the Structure of the Philippine Government. Although these branches
have their own particular powers and functions, they form only one coherent government
with a common purpose.
7. 7. Overview of the Structure of the Philippine Government. Independent Constitutional
Commissions were also created as constitutional safeguards for the other aspects of
governance in the Philippines, such as audit of public funds, conduct of elections, and
maintenance of civil service. The intricacies of Philippine bureaucracy are laid down in
the Constitution of Government.
8. 8. The Doctrine of Separation of Powers entails: First, the division of the powers of the
government into three, which are legislative, executive, and judicial; and
9. 9. The Doctrine of Separation of Powers entails: Second, the distribution of these powers
to the three major branches of the government, which are the Legislative Department,
Executive Department, and the Judicial Department.
10. 10. The Doctrine of Separation of Powers entails: Basically, it means that the Legislative
Department is generally limited to the enactment of the law and not to implementation or
interpretation of the same; the Executive Department is generally limited to the
implementation of the law and not to the enactment or interpretation of the same; and the
Judicial Department is generally limited to the interpretation and application of laws in
specific cases and not to the making or implementation of the same.
11. 11. Purpose of the Doctrine Prevention of Monopoly of Power
12. 12. Purpose of the Doctrine Separation of powers is said to be an attribute of
republicanism, in that, among other reasons, it seeks to prevent monopoly or
concentration of power to one person or group of persons, and thereby forestalls
 dictatorship or despotism. Sovereignty resides in the people, and it should remain that
way. Government officials, who are the representatives of the people, must exercise the
powers of their office in the interest of the public. While representational exercise of
power brings out the essence of republicanism, too much concentration of power rips it
apart, as were experienced in some administrations.
13. 13. Separation not Exclusive Important to understand is the meaning of “separation” not
as exclusivity but as “collaboration.” While each of the Departments exercises its
respective power, it does so in collaboration with the other Departments because in the
end they all belong to one unified government with a common purpose.
14. 14. Separation not Exclusive Appointment, for example, of Members of the Supreme
Court by the President must be upon the recommendation of the Judicial and Bar
Council. In here before the President, who belongs to the executive branch, appoint a
Supreme Court justice, a recommendation must first be given to him by the JBC, which is
an independent body in the judiciary.
15. 15. Separation not Exclusive Another example would be the use of public funds. In here,
the President prepares the budget, on the basis of which the Congress enacts an
appropriations bill which will then be submitted and approved by the President.
16. 16. Checks and Balances Under the doctrine, there is no absolute separation of the three
branches of the government, but to maintain their coequality each department checks the
power of the others. Generally, the departments cannot encroach each others’ power, but
constitutional mechanisms allow each one of them to perform acts that would check the
power of others to prevent monopoly, concentration, and abuse of power.
17. 17. Checks and Balances For example, the Judicial and Bar Council recommends
nominees to the President so that the latter will not capriciously appoint someone whom
he can easily convert into a puppet and thereby become his medium to control the
judiciary.
18. 18. Checks and Balances In the same way, the disbursement of public funds cannot
depend solely upon the discretion of the President, but must be based on legislation by
the Congress.
19. 19. Legislative Power The word “legislative” is derived from the Latin “lex” which
means “law.” In general, legislative power refers to the power to make and unmake laws.
20. 20. Legislative Power Laws are rules or collection of rules, whether written or unwritten,
prescribed under the authority of a political society for the common good. The
“Legislative Department” (Legislature) is the law-making branch of the government.
21. 21. Delegation to the Congress 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.
22. 22. Delegation to the Congress However, through the Constitution, the people
“delegated” the legislative power to the Congress of the Philippines.
23. 23. Delegation to the Congress 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.
24. 24. Reservation to the People The Constitution, however, makes a reservation as to the
delegation, in that it explicitly states: “… except to the extent reserved to the people by
 the provision on initiative and referendum.” In other words, there is no complete
delegation of law- making power to the Congress, as the power is reserved to the people
in cases of initiative and referendum.
25. 25. Reservation to the People Thus, laws are made or unmade, first, by the Congress in
the form of “statutes,” and second, by the people in initiatives and referendums;
Legislative power per se is exercised by the Congress and the sovereign Filipino people.
26. 26. Legislative Power as Exercised by Congress (a) Power of Appropriation Section 29
(1), Article VI speaks of the power to appropriate. It states, “No money shall be paid out
of the Treasury except in pursuance of an appropriation made by law.”
27. 27. Legislative Power as Exercised by Congress Appropriation means the authorization
by law for the use of a certain sum of the public funds. An appropriations law is
necessary before public funds may be spent by the government for its projects. The
government needs money in all its activities and projects so that the power of
appropriation, also known as the “power of the purse,” is said to be one of the most
important prerogatives of the Congress.
28. 28. Legislative Power as Exercised by Congress (b) Power of Taxation The power, which
is one of the inherent powers of the state, is generally exercised by the legislative
department. The Constitution limits such power as follows: “The rule of taxation shall be
uniform and equitable. The Congress shall evolve a progressive system of taxation.”
Taxation must be uniform, equitable, and progressive. Any law passed by the Congress
contrary to this provision is null and void.
29. 29. Legislative Power as Exercised by Congress (c) Power of Concurrence Section 21,
Article VII states that “no treaty or international agreement shall be valid and effective
unless concurred in by at least two-thirds of all the Members of the Senate.” This refers
to the power of concurrence of the Congress in which no treaty can become binding and
effective as a domestic law without the two-thirds concurrence of the Members of the
Senate.
30. 30. 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.
31. 31. Non-Delegation of Powers 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.
32. 32. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions In order to address the numerous and
complex demands of legislative function, the Constitution provides exceptions to the rule.
Further delegation is permitted in the following cases:
33. 33. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (a) Delegation to the people at large. The
Congress further delegates its legislative power by allowing direct legislation by the
people in cases of initiative and referendum;
34. 34. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (b) Delegation of emergency powers to the
President. Section 23 (2), Article VI of the Constitution states that “in times of war or
other national emergency, the Congress may, by law, authorize the President, for a
 limited period and subject to such restrictions as it may prescribe, to exercise powers
necessary and proper to carry out a declared national policy.” Emergency powers are
delegated to the President by the Congress to effectively solve the problems caused by
war or other crisis which the Congress could not otherwise solve with more dispatch than
the President;
35. 35. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (c) Delegation of tariff powers to the
President. Section 28 (2), Article VI of the Constitution states that “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.” Tariff powers are delegated to the President
by the Congress to efficiently and speedily solve economic problems posed by foreign
trade which the Congress could not otherwise address with more dispatch than the
President;
36. 36. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (d) Delegation to administrative bodies. The
Congress delegates the so called “power of subordinate legislation” to administrative
bodies.
37. 37. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (d) Delegation to administrative bodies. Due
to the growing complexity of modern society, it has become necessary to allow
specialized administrative bodies to promulgate supplementary rules, so that they can
deal with technical problems with more expertise and dispatch than the Congress or the
courts.
38. 38. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (d) Delegation to administrative bodies.
Regulations or supplementary rules passed by the administrative bodies are intended to
fill-in the gaps and provide details to what is otherwise a broad statute passed by
Congress. For the rules and regulations to be valid and binding, they must be in
accordance with the statute on which they are based, complete in themselves, and fix
sufficient standards. If any of the requirements is not satisfied, the regulation will not be
allowed to affect private rights; and
39. 39. Non-Delegation of Powers - Exceptions (e) Delegation to the local governments. This
delegation is based on the principle that the local government is in better position than the
national government to act on purely local concerns. Legislative power is therefore given
to them for effective local legislation.
40. 40. Restrictions and Disqualifications 1. Conflict of Interest. The Constitution demands
transparency in the Congress, particularly in the financial and business interests of its
members, in order for the legislature to be aware of a “potential conflict of interest.”
41. 41. Restrictions and Disqualifications Potential conflict of interest happens when a
legislator derives financial advantage from a law which he legislates or was legislated
during his term and the body was not notified of such conflict. It constitutes betrayal of
public trust in that the personal interest of the legislator is placed over that of the public.
Note however that the legislator can still propose a law even if there is a potential conflict
of interest for as long as he has notified the body about it. The purpose therefore of this
requirement is to allow the House to better examine the legislation vis-à-vis the legislator.
42. 42. Restrictions and Disqualifications 2. Incompatible Office. In keeping with doctrine of
separation of powers, the Constitution provides that “no Senator or Member of the House
of Representatives may hold any other office or employment in the Government, or any
 subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including government-owned or
controlled corporations or their subsidiaries, during his term without forfeiting his seat.”
43. 43. Restrictions and Disqualifications This disqualification refers to the “incompatible
office” which is any other office in the government that if held by a member of the
Congress would result to the forfeiture of his seat in the Congress. The provision allows a
member to hold an incompatible office but the result is the automatic forfeiture of his
seat. For example, if during the term of Senator Pedro he becomes the head of a
government-owned and controlled corporation, he will no longer be Senator because of
the automatic forfeiture, the GOCC being an incompatible office.
44. 44. Restrictions and Disqualifications 3. Forbidden Office. Another disqualification
involves the so-called “forbidden offices” or offices which have been created or the
emoluments of which were increased while the legislator was a member of the Congress.
The purpose of this disqualification is to prevent legislators to create an office or to
increase its emoluments for personal gain.
45. 45. Restrictions and Disqualifications Pursuant to this disqualification, a Senator, for
example, cannot be appointed to a civil or military office which was created while he was
still a senator. The disqualification lasts for the entire six-year term even if the member
resigns before the end of his term.
46. 46. Independent Bodies Electoral Tribunal To ensure fairness and impartiality in deciding
election contests involving members of the Congress, each House in the Congress shall
have an Electoral Tribunal. Each Electoral Tribunal shall be the sole judge of all contests
relating to the election, returns, and qualifications of their respective Members.
47. 47. Independent Bodies Each shall be composed of nine members, three are Justices of
the Supreme Court, and six are members of the Senate or the House of Representatives,
as the case may be. The Chairman shall be the senior Justice. While the member Justices
are designated by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the six other legislator
members are chosen on the basis of proportional representation from political parties and
party-list organizations (duly registered under the party-list system) in the Congress.
48. 48. Independent Bodies Thus, if there is an election contest, for instance, involving the
qualifications of Congressman Juan, the case shall be decided by the House of
Representatives Electoral Tribunal which is the sole judge of election contests involving
the Members of the House of Representatives.
49. 49. Independent Bodies Commission on Appointments Another independent body in the
Congress is the Commission on Appointments which was created to check the appointing
power of the President, specifically in appointments to importance offices in the
government.
50. 50. Independent Bodies It consists of twenty five members: the Senate President, as ex
officio Chairman, twelve Senators, and twelve Members of the House of Representatives.
The Senators and Members of the House are elected by their respective Houses based on
proportional representation from the political parties and party-list organizations (duly
registered under the party- list system) in the Congress.
51. 51. Independent Bodies The function of the Commission is to approve or disapprove the
nominations submitted to it by the President to appointments that require its approval. For
example, before a Cabinet Member may be appointed, the President must first submit his
nomination for approval to the Commission on Appointments. With the approval, there
could be no appointment.
52. 52. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress 1.) Power to Declare the Existence of
War Section 23 (1), Article VI states that “the Congress, by a vote of two-thirds of both
Houses in joint session assembled, voting separately, shall have the sole power to declare
the existence of a state of war.”
53. 53. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress This means that when the Philippines
is under attack by foreign invaders, the Congress by means of enacting a law, affirms that
the Philippines is already at war with the enemy. War is not solely controlled by the
President who is the commander in chief of the military; it is likewise controlled by the
legislature because it has power over the money used in the war.
54. 54. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress 2.) Legislative Inquiries The Congress
also conducts legislative inquiries which power is necessarily implied in its power to
legislate. Legislative inquiry is a process held in the Congress especially conducted to
compulsorily obtain requisite information from witnesses in aid of legislation. The
process and the requite information taken are necessary to legislate wisely and
effectively.
55. 55. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress The Constitution provides limitations,
to wit: (1) the inquiries must be in aid of legislation; (2) it must be in accordance with the
duly published rules of procedure of the Congress; and (3) the rights of persons appearing
shall be respected.
56. 56. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress 3.) Question Hour Inquiries may also
be conducted to obtain information from the heads of departments on matters pertaining
to how laws are implemented. This is called the question hour.
57. 57. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress The manner of obtaining information,
however, is not compulsory because of the doctrine of separation of powers. The heads of
the departments are alter egos of the President; to maintain the co-equality of the
executive and legislative branch, either House of Congress may only request for the
appearance of the department heads.
58. 58. Non-legislative and other Powers of Congress Conversely, the department heads may
appear but the Congress is not obliged to hear them. Question hour is different from
legislative inquiry in that appearance in the former is not compulsory, while appearance
in the latter is compulsory; information derived in the former is in exercise of “oversight
functions,” while informative derived in the latter is in aid of legislation; and the former
is not among the traditional processes of a presidential government, while the latter is an
inherent legislative power under a presidential government.