AN ACT DEFINING THE CRIMES OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIC SABOTAGE, PRESCRIBING PENALTIES THEREFOR

[ REPUBLIC ACT NO. 12022, September 26, 2024 ]

AN ACT DEFINING THE CRIMES OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIC SABOTAGE, PRESCRIBING PENALTIES THEREFOR, VESTING JURISDICTION OVER SUCH OFFENSES WITH THE COURT OF TAX APPEALS, PROVIDING MECHANISMS FOR ITS IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT, REPEALING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10845 OR THE "ANTI-SMUGGLING ACT OF 2016"

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

CHAPTER I
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Anti-Agricultural Sabotage Act".

CHAPTER II
GENERAL AND COMMON PROVISIONS

Section 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote the productivity of the agriculture sector, protect farmers and fisherfolk from unscrupulous traders and importers, and ensure reasonable and affordable prices of agricultural and fishery products for consumers.

It is the policy of the State to prevent smuggling of agricultural and fishery products, which negatively affects supply, production, and price stability of agricultural products and threatens food security. The State shall also eliminate hoarding, profiteering, and cartel that unduly restrain supply and manipulate prices. These illegal acts likewise deprive the State of much needed taxes and revenues for economic development.

The State shall therefore impose severe sanctions on the nefarious acts of smuggling, hoarding, profiteering, and cartel of agricultural and fishery products as a self-preservation measure to shield itself from the manipulative scheme of economic saboteurs, protect the livelihood of our farmers, plus leakages in tax and duty collections on these products, protect the State from tax evaders and non-payors of duties, and ensure the well-being of agricultural and fishery producers, the welfare of the consumers, and the soundness of the economy.

Section 3. Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act:

Section 4. Covered Agricultural and Fishery Products. - The following agricultural and fishery products are covered under this Act: rice, corn, beef and other ruminants, pork, poultry, garlic, onion, carrots, other vegetables, fruits, fish, salt, and other aquatic products in their raw state or which have undergone the simple process of preparation or preservation for the market within the primary and post-harvest stages of the food supply chain, palm oil, palm olein, raw and refined sugar, and tobacco.

Section 5. Daily Price Index. - In support of the implementation of this Act, the Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS) and the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) are hereby mandated to establish, strengthen, and maintain a DPI:

Provided, That the BIR, in consultation with the NTA, will set a minimum price for the sale of tobacco products. The minimum retail price shall take into account the applicable taxes, reasonable production cost, and trade margins for the lowest priced brands registered wit the BIR.

The AMAS and BAR, in coming up with the prices, shall ensure that the DPI exhibits transparency and accountability and is published on their official websites and social media platforms. These agencies shall be subject to a periodic audit by an independent party to be decided upon by the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Council (Council).

The DA shall finish the establishment of the DPI within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act.

Failure in the implementation of this section shall render the head of the concerned offices of the DA liable for administrative and criminal prosecution in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Section 6. Regulation and Reportorial Requirements. - Upon effectivity of this Act, all persons engaged in a business involving agricultural and fishery products shall maintain records of their business, which shall be safely stored for five (5) years from the dates of transactions.

All persons with warehouses, cold storage facilities, or any property involved in the storage of agricultural and fishery products, whether owned, leased, or maintained through third persons, shall, upon effectivity of this Act, register the storage facilities with the appropriate regulatory agencies, stating therein:

They shall prepare a monthly report on the operations of the said facilities, which shall include an inventory of any agricultural product in the facilities at any given time, which shall be electronically submitted quarterly to the Council under Section 15 of this Act, through the regulatory agency.

Failure to produce documents and/or records required to be acquired or maintained under this Act, applicable laws, rules, regulations in connection to a business transaction, or failure to produce a copy of an updated report of the operations of the facilities as submitted to the Council through the regulatory agency, upon demand by any member or a combination of members of the Enforcement Group, shall constitute a prima facie evidence of violation of this Act: Provided, That the collection, storage, utilization, and transmission of such record submitted to the Council shall be in accordance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the "Data Privacy Act of 2012".

CHAPTER III

ECONOMIC SABOTAGE

Section 7. Agricultural Smuggling as Economic Sabotage. - Smuggling is the fraudulent act of importing or bringing of assisting and fishery products into the country, or the act of assisting in receiving, concealing, buying, selling, disposing, storing, or transporting such products, with full knowledge that the same have been fraudulently imported.

The crime of agricultural smuggling as economic sabotage is committed when the value of each or of the combination of agricultural and fishery products smuggled by a person is at least Ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00) computed using the DPI at the time the crime was committed.

Agricultural smuggling as used in this Act shall be committed through any of the following acts:

The Enforcement Group, on the strength of a Letter of Authority (LOA) issued by the Council, shall have the authority to visit areas where the agricultural and fishery products are located, for the purpose of ensuring compliance with this Act and other relevant laws concerning the importation, storage, and/or sale of agricultural and fishery products. The Enforcement Group shall give due notice to the relevant persons, who may be the owner, possessor, or person exercising control over the agricultural and fishery products, to provide proof of compliance with this Act, particularly import documents and proof of payment of duties and taxes in the case of business establishments other than importers, within twenty-four (24) hours, pending which, the goods shall be placed in the constructive custody of the Enforcement Group.

In the event that the relevant person fails to produce such evidence of compliance within twenty-four (24) hours, the Enforcement Group shall immediately apply for a seizure order and file the relevant case or criminal action in the court. Pending the issuance or denial of the seizure order, the subject goods shall remain in constructive custody.

The mere possession or presence of agricultural and fishery products which have been the subject of smuggling referred to in the Act in any fish port, fish landing site, resort, airport, BOC-controlled port, or any warehouse, cold storage, vessel, transport conveyance, and other storage areas shall constitute prima facie evidence of agricultural smuggling as economic sabotage.

Any provision of the CMTA to the contrary notwithstanding:

Section 7-A. Implementation of the National Single Window (NSW). - The BOC and all Trade Regulatory Agencies shall fully implement the NSW program as originally mandated in Executive Order No. 482, series of 2005, within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act.

Upon the effectivity of this Act and until the full implementation of the NSW, the BOC and Trade Regulatory Agencies concerned shall, immediately after approval of import application and receipt of notice of arrival, furnish the Council with electronic copies of the following:

Failure to implement the NSW and/or furnish the Council with the above-enumerated documents shall subject the head of the concerned office of the BOC and Trade Regulatory Agencies to administrative and criminal prosecution in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Section 8. Agricultural Hoarding as Economic Sabotage. - Agricultural boarding as economic sabotage is committed by a person or combination of persons by having stocks of agricultural and fishery products in excess of thirty percent (30%) of their normal inventory level ten (10) days after the declaration of an abnormal situation by the Council or after the declaration of an emergency or state of calamity by competent authority.

Upon the declaration of an abnormal situation by the Council, or an emergency or state of calamity by competent authority, all persons shall sell to the public their stocks of agricultural and fishery products in excess of their normal inventory level within ten (10) days from the said declaration

After ten (10) days from said declaration, the Enforcement Group, on the strength of a LOA issued by the Council, shall have the authority to visit areas where the agricultural and fishery products are located, for the purpose of ensuring compliance with this Act and other relevant laws concerning the sale of agricultural and fishery products to the general public. The Enforcement Group shall give due notice to the relevant persons, who may be the owner, possessor, or person exercising control over the agricultural and fishery products, to provide proof of compliance with this Act, particularly documentary proof that stocks are within normal inventory level or final contracts of sale covering existing stocks, within twenty-four (24) hours, pending which the goods shall be placed in the constructive custody of the Enforcement Group.

In the event that the relevant person fails to produce such evidence of compliance within twenty-four (24) hours, the Enforcement Group shall immediately apply for a seizure order and file the relevant case of criminal action in court. Pending the issuance or denial of the seizure order, the subject goods shall remain in constructive custody.

In cases where the business has been in existence for more than a year, the normal inventory level shall be the average inventory for the twenty-four (24)-month period preceding the declaration by the Council of an abnormal situation, or declaration by competent authority of emergency or state of calamity; otherwise, normal inventory level, shall be the average of the months from the start of the business.

Section 9. Agricultural Profiteering as Economic Sabotage. - Agricultural profiteering as economic sabotage is the sale or offer for sale of agricultural and fishery products at a price at least ten percent (10%) in excess of the DPI, at the time of the declaration of an abnormal situation by the Council, or emergency or state of calamity by competent authority.

Profiteering shall not apply to retailers who purchase goods from wholesalers, importers, or producers, and directly sell in smaller quantities to the general public, usually in wet markets, talipapa, and cooperative stores with capitalization not exceeding Two hundred thousand pesos (P200,000.00), and farmers and fisherfolk selling their own harvest, produce, or catch.

There shall also be a prima facie evidence of profiteering whenever a product is sold or offered for sale at a price thirty percent (30%) in excess of the DPI at the time of said declaration.

Profiteering shall not apply to price increase, set by manufacturers of tobacco as a consequences of mandated excise tax increases in accordance with law.

The Enforcement Group, on the strength of a LOA issued by the Council, shall have the authority to visit areas where the agricultural and fishery products suspected to be the subject of profiteering are located and shall give due notice to the relevant persons, who may be the owner, possessor, or person exercising control over the agricultural and fishery products to provide justification for the unreasonable price increase, such as cost of acquisition and sales receipts, within twenty-four (24) hours, pending which the products shall be placed in the constructive custody of the Enforcement Group.

In the event that the relevant person fails to provide justification for the unreasonable price increase within twenty-four (24) hours, the Enforcement Group shall immediately apply for a seizure order and file the relevant case or criminal action in court. Pending the issuance or denial of the seizure order, the subject goods shall remain in constructive custody.

Section 10. Engaging in Cartel as Economic Sabotage. - There shall be prima facie evidence of engagement in cartel as economic sabotage when two (2) or more persons competing for the same market and dealing in the same agricultural and fishery products agree to perform uniform, simultaneous, or complementary acts among themselves and actually perform such acts designed to artificially and unreasonably increase or manipulate the supply or prices of such projects, thereby stifling competition, as defined as in Section 14 of Republic Act No. 10667 or the "Philippine Competition Act", to the detriment of consumers, or the decrease in farmgate prices to the detriment of the agricultural and fishery producers:

Provided, That an agreement herein refers to any type or form of contract, arrangement, understanding, collective recommendation, or concerned action, whether formal or informal, explicit or tacit, written or oral:

Provided, further, That any person or persons include unincorporated entity or entities, domestic or foreign, including those owned or controlled by the government, engaged directly or indirectly in any economic activity.

The Enforcement Group, on the strength of a LOA issued by the Council, shall have the authority to visit areas where the agricultural and fishery products suspected to be the subject of cartel are located and shall give due notice to the relevant persons, who may be persons suspected of engaging in cartel, to provide justification within twenty-four (24) hours for the unreasonable increase of prices or manipulation of supply or prices of said products, such as cost of acquisition and sales receipts, or documentary proof that stocks are within normal inventory level or final contracts of sale covering existing stocks, whichever is applicable under the circumstances, pending which the products shall be placed in the constructive custody of the Enforcement Group.

In the event that the relevant persons fail to provide justifiable reasons within twenty-four (24) hours for the unreasonable increase of price or manipulation of supply or prices, the products shall remain in constructive custody and shall be the subject of a criminal action to be filed against the violators.

CHAPTER IV
OTHER PROHIBITED ACTS

Section 11. Financial Agricultural Economic Sabotage Crimes. - Any person who directly or indirectly, willfully and without lawful excuse, possesses, provides, collects, uses, or makes available property, funds, financial, or other related services, or funds the creation of dummy or fictitious entities, with willful intention that they be used, in full or in part, to carry out or facilitate the commission of any of the crimes of agricultural economic sabotage shall suffer the penalty provided under Section 14(b) of this Act.

Section 12. Use of Government Storage Facilities. - Cold storage, warehouses, and similar facilities intended for agricultural and fishery products granted by the government to cooperatives and associations shall exclusively be used by their farmers and fisherfolk members. Renting out to or allowing the use in any way by non-members, such as traders and other private businesses, is prohibited and will cause the revocation of the grant. The government shall then immediately repossess the storage facility, and the erring cooperatives and associations shall be perpetually disqualified from being granted storage facilities by the government.

Section 13. Violations of the Enforcement Group. - It shall be a crime for an employee of a member of the Enforcement Group to commit any of the following acts, which shall be penalized under Section 14(f) of this Act:

CHAPTER V
PENAL PROVISIONS

Section 14. Penalties. -

Provided, That when the offender is a juridical person, criminal liability shall attach to its president, chief operating officer, manager, or any officer who participated in the decision that led to the commission of the prohibited act:

Provided, further, That the agricultural and fishery products subject of the prohibited acts and the properties used to commit the crime of agricultural economic sabotage such as, but not limited to, vehicles, aircrafts, storage areas, warehouses, boxes, cases, trunks, and other containers of whatever character used as receptacle of agricultural and fishery products, shall be confiscated in favor of the government, subject to Section 19 of this Act:

Provided, finally, That the penalties imposed under this Act shall separate from any other penalties incurred under other existing laws.

CHAPTER VI
IMPLEMENTING RULES

Section 15. Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Council - The Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Council, herein referred to as the Council, is hereby created and shall be chaired by the President or the delegated permanent representative. It shall have the following members:

Provided, That the representatives of the member agencies shall at east have the rank of undersecretary:

Provided, furthermore, That one-third of the members, with the chair or a designated permanent representative present, shall constitute a quorum:

Provided, finally, That members of the Council shall be duly notified at least three (3) days prior to the scheduled meeting.

An Advisory Board is hereby created to provide the Council with expert assistance and advice. The Advisory Board shall have one (1) representative from each of the following agricultural sectors, whose membership shall be nationwide:

Provided, further, That the sector representative shall be chosen by the President of the Philippines from a list of three (3) nominees submitted by the sector, and shall serve for a fixed term of three (3) years unless earlier replaced by the President upon recommendation of the sector: Provided, further, That the sector representatives must have prior experience or knowledge in pricing or trading agricultural and fishery products: Provided, further, That the appointed sectoral representative shall continue to hold office after the expiration of their term until a successor is appointed.

Section 16. Powers and Functions of the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Council. The Council shall have the following powers and functions:

Section 17. Special Term of Prosecutors. - To assist the Council in the expeditious prosecution of criminal cases covered under this Act, the Secretary of the DOJ is hereby mandated to constitute a special team of prosecutors all over the country, which shall have the following powers and duties, among others:

Section 18. Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Enforcement Group. - To assist the Council, the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Enforcement Group, herein referred to as the Enforcement Group, is hereby created. It shall be composed of the following agencies:

The Enforcement Group, in addition to each agency's existing regulatory powers, shall have the following power and functions:

The PNP Chief, and the Secretaries of the DOF and the DOJ may authorize lawyers of their respective agencies or their attached agencies to provide legal assistance to any employee or member of the Enforcement Group who is facing a complaint or charge before the prosecutor's office, the court, or any competent body, arising from an incident related to the performance by the member or employee of his or her official duties under this Act: Provided, That government lawyers so authorized shall have the power to administer oaths: Provided, further, That when necessary, a private counsel may be provided at the expense of the Government. The Secretaries of the DOF and the DOJ, and the PNP Chief shall jointly promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this section.

CHAPTER VII
ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL PROCEDURES

Section 19. Custody of Confiscated, Seized, or Surrendered Products and Properties in the Agricultural Crimes of Economic Sabotage and Other Prohibited Acts; Destruction of Smuggled Products; Disposition or Donation of Locally Sourced Products. - The Council shall take charge and custody of all confiscated, seized, or surrendered agricultural and fishery products subject of the crime of economic sabotage and the properties used in the commission thereof, which shall be disposed of in the following manner:

Provided, That locally sourced agricultural and fishery products subject of the crimes of hoarding, profiteering, and cartel may be donated by the Council to the Department of Social Welfare and Development or LGUs, or disposed of in any manner:

Provided, further, That properties used in the commission of the crimes of agricultural economic sabotage such as, but not limited to, vehicles, vessels, aircrafts, storage areas, warehouses, boxes, cases, trunks, and other containers of whatever character confiscated, seized, or surrendered in favor of the government, may be auctioned off, subject to existing rules and regulations. The proceeds of the auction of the properties shall be deposited in a special account created in the name of the Council to be used as additional funding in the establishment and maintenance of the DPI, the operations of the Enforcement Group, monetary rewards and other incentives to informers, and the compensation of damages arising from wrongful or illegal seizure, confiscation, destruction, or disposal of agricultural and fishery products and properties, among others.

Section 20. Institution and Prosecution of Criminal Proceedings. - Any criminal action arising from the violation of this Act shall be instituted by any of the following agencies: the NBI, the PNP, the PCG, and the DOF.

Criminal actions and proceedings instituted under this Ac shall be brought in the name of the Government of the Philippines and shall be prosecuted and handled by the DOJ with the assistance of the instituting agency: Provided, That nothing in this Act shall be construed or interpreted as diminishing the jurisdiction of the implementing agencies under Republic Act No. 10863, Republic Act No. 10667, and Republic Act No. 7581 to conduct inquiry on, investigate, hear, and decide cased involving any violation of the CMTA, the Philippine Competition Act, and the Price Act, and institute the appropriate civil or criminal proceedings.

Section 21. Citizen's Suit. Any person may directly file a criminal complaint with the DOJ-Special Team of Prosecutors and/or an administrative complaint with the appropriate government agency. The complaint shall be verified and supported with affidavits and other evidence.

Section 22. Prescription of Offenses. - The crimes punishable by life imprisonment under this Act shall prescribe in twenty-five (25) years. Other crimes under this Act with lower number of years of imprisonment shall prescribe in accordance with Act No. 3326.

Prescription shall begin to run from the day the violation of the law was committed, and if the same be not known at the time, from the discovery thereof by the offended party, the law enforcement authorities or their agents. The period shall be interrupted by the filing of an information or the institution proceedings against the offender. It shall again run when such proceedings are terminated without the accused being convicted or acquitted, or when such proceedings are unjustifiably stopped through no fault of the accused.

CHAPTER VIII
JURISDICTION

Section 23. Jurisdiction. - The provisions of existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding, all violations referred to herein shall be under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court of Tax Appeals, herein referred to as the Court. It may create its offices in the Visayas and Mindanao for this purpose.

CHAPTER IX
FINAL PROVISIONS

Section 24. Transitory Provision. - All pending criminal complaints or cases filed and/or prosecuted under Republic Act No. 10845 or the "Anti-Smuggling Act of 2016" and other laws shall continue to be addressed under the said laws until resolved with finality.

Section 25. Congressional Oversight Committee. - There is hereby created a Congressional Oversight Committee on Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage (COCAAES) composed of seven (7) members from the Senate and seven (7) members from the House of Representatives, with the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform (CAFAR) and the chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture and Food, as joint chairpersons. The six (6) other members from the Senate shall be composed of three (3) members from CAFAR, two (2) from the Committee on Ways and Means, and one (1) from the minority, while the six (6) members from the House of Representatives shall be composed of three (3) members from the Committee on Agriculture and Food, and three (30 from the Committee on Ways and Means, to be designated respectively by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

The COCAAES shall conduct a mandatory review of the implementation of this Act three (3) years after its effectivity and every three (3) years thereafter.

Section 26. Appropriations. - The initial amount of Five hundred million pesos (P500,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated under the Office of the President for the implementation of this Act, which shall be allocated as follows:

Thereafter, such amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act shall be appropriated in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Section 27. Reportorial Requirements. The Council shall submit a quarterly report to the COCAAES on the progress and accomplishments made in the implementation of this Act/

Section 28. Separability Clause. - If any portion of this Act is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the portions or provisions which are not affected shall continue to be in full force and effect.

Section 29. Repealing Clause. - Republic Act No. 10845 is hereby repealed. All laws, decrees, executive issuances, rules, and regulations inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed and/or modified accordingly.

Section 30. Effectivity. - This Act is self-executory and shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation without the need for the issuance of implementing rules and regulations.

Approved,

This Act, which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2432 and House Bill Nos. 3917 and 9284, was passed by the Senate of the Philippines and the House of Representatives on August 6, 2024.

Approved: SEP 26 2024

(SGD.) FERDINAND ROMUALDEZ MARCOS JR.
President of the Philippines