Request for solons’ SALNs may soon need House plenary approval

MANILA, Philippines — The public may soon face stricter rules in accessing the statements of assets, liabilities, net worth (SALNs) of House members after the chamber adopted on second reading a resolution providing new rules on releasing the public document.

Under House Resolution No. (HR) 2467, plenary approval or approval of the majority of the 292 district and party-list representatives is needed before any SALN could be released. This is a rule that is non-existent now, ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio said. “First-time ‘yan,” he added.

The resolution was filed on Wednesday and was adopted on second reading on the same day as HR 00176, according to its legislative status in the House website.

HR 2467 is almost similar to HR 1410, which the previous leadership of Davao del Norte 1st District Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez filed but was not able to approve.

House Majority Leader Fredenil Castro confirmed to INQUIRER.net that the rule was based on the previous leadership’s HR 1410.

“Matagal na ‘yan, approval na lang ‘yung kahapon,” Castro said in a phone interview, adding that the House has the authority to craft rules governing the SALNs of its members.

Rule IV, Section 15-M of the House Rules states that the Speaker should “prepare, in consultation with the Committee on Rules, the rules and regulations governing public access to personal data and related information, including statements of assets and liabilities, of Members of the House.”

HR 2467 noted that House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo created the “SALN Review and Compliance Committee” (SRCC) and Castro designated Rep. Yedda Romualdez as the chair; Reps. Raymond Mendoza and Delphine Lee, as vice chairpersons; and Reps. Vicente Veloso, Cristina Roa-Puno, Joey Salceda, Milagros Aquino-Magsaysay, and Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo as members.

The resolution should still be approved on third and final reading before it could be in effect. Here are the highlights of the new House rules:

Approval

Once a duly-accomplished SALN request was endorsed by the Secretary-General to the SRCC, its Secretariat would evaluate the request and would forward the request to the SRCC for its action.

Section 14 of the rule gives the Committee the power to deny or grant requests for SALN copies. After getting the committee approval, the request would be referred to the plenary for final determination.

“A request for access to SALN may be approved if none of the grounds for its denial under the Constitution, existing law or jurisprudence exist,” Section 15 reads.

Requesting

Rule V of the resolution states that the public may request copies of SALNs to the House Office of the Secretary-General by filling out two copies of SALN request form. Only the latest copies the SALNs could be requested, and requests for previous SALNs could be allowed if “considered as justified” by the Secretary-General and the SRCC members and its Secretariat.

A P300 fee per copy of SALN would be paid to cover the cost of reproduction and certification, exclusive of mailing cost and other related expenses.

The requesting party is required to provide his or her identification data like name, address, mobile number; and to indicate the nature of the request, the SALN being requested, and the purpose for requesting. Photocopies of two government-issued IDs should accompany the form.

For members of the media, “proof under oath of media affiliation and certification of the accreditation of media accreditation as a legitimate media practitioner” is required.

For students, a photocopy of a valid school ID, a certification by the school or teacher that the request is for “purpose of an academic paper or thesis that the school teacher requires,” and a certification from the educational institution that the requesting student is enrolled.

A request for any SALN filed more than 10 years from the date of the request or for the SALN of a retired or former House member will be “denied outright for lack of administrative jurisdiction.”

All House members, officers, and employees are required to file their SALNs within 30 days after assumption of office, on or before April 30 every year, and within 30 days after separation from the service.

‘Thwarts constitutional mandate’

Tinio said the House Makabayan opposition bloc is opposed to this rule that  “practically thwarts the constitutional mandate that SALN of public officials and employees shall be disclosed and made available to the public.”

“Public disclosure of SALN as a safeguard against corruption would be rendered ineffective if not useless (by this rule),” Tinio underscored.

Aside from the Constitution, Republic Act No. 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees states that “Public officials and employees have an obligation to accomplish and submit declarations under oath of, and the public has the right to know, their assets, liabilities, net worth and financial and business interests including those of their spouses and of unmarried children under eighteen (18) years of age living in their households.”

The law also states that SALNs “must be available for inspection at reasonable hours” and “must be available for copying by 10 days after it has been filed.” 

In May 2017, the lower House failed to release a summary of its members’ SALN after it created a review committee to draft rules on the request for the public document. The said committee, chaired by Oriental Mindoro 2nd District Rep. Reynaldo Umali, drafted HR 1410.

READ: House fails to release SALN summaries after creating new review committee

In 2012, former Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. also formed a similar committee to create guidelines for disclosure of the public document. /je

READ: House forms committee for SALN disclosure

Read HR 2467 and 1410 here: