Senate approves 18 bills on last week of September

MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said on Thursday that the Senate has approved 18 bills, five of which were certified as priority bills by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., during the past three days.

“Since the start of the 19th Congress, we, along with our counterparts in the House of Representatives, are proud to have passed high-impact legislation that address both the most urgent needs of our people and the long-term development that we need to pursue for the nation,” Zubiri said.

On Monday, 17 measures were passed which included Senate Bill (SB) No. 2224, the Ease of Paying Taxes Act; SB No. 2233, the Public Private Partnership Act; and SB No. 2001, the New Philippine Passport Act.

SB No. 1846, which will create an electronic commerce bureau to protect buyers and sellers in online transactions, and SB No. 2028, which aims to provide cash incentives of P10,000, P20,000, and P100,000 for people who reach 80, 90, and 100 years old, respectively, were also passed on Monday, along with 12 other local bills on state colleges and universities in various parts of the country.

SB 2221, the proposed Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, was also approved on Wednesday after President Marcos certified it as urgent.

Meanwhile, SB No. 2218, which will create a Tatak Pinoy Council that will promote Filipino products, was passed on the second reading and is set to be approved on the third reading once the session resumes.

The Senate will go on a break on September 30, and will resume plenary sessions on November 6. Zubiri added that committee work and hearings will still proceed during the break.

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