AN ACT DECLARING THE EXISTENCE OF A NATIONAL EMERGENCY ARISING FROM THE CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19) SITUATION AND A NATIONAL POLICY IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, AND AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES FOR A LIMITED PERIOD AND SUBJECT TO RESTRICTIONS, TO EXERCISE POWERS NECESSARY AND PROPER TO CARRY OUT THE DECIDED NATIONAL POLICY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Eighteenth Congress
First Regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-second day of July, two thousand nineteen.

[ REPUBLIC ACT NO. 11469, March 24, 2020 ]

AN ACT DECLARING THE EXISTENCE OF A NATIONAL EMERGENCY ARISING FROM THE CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19) SITUATION AND A NATIONAL POLICY IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, AND AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES FOR A LIMITED PERIOD AND SUBJECT TO RESTRICTIONS, TO EXERCISE POWERS NECESSARY AND PROPER TO CARRY OUT THE DECIDED NATIONAL POLICY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known and cited as “Bayanihan to Heal As One Act".

Section 2. State of National Emergency. - Presidential Proclamation No. 922 s. 2020, was issued declaring a State of Public Health Emergency throughout the Philippines due  to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the Code Alert System for COVID-19 was raised to Code Red Sublevel Two (2) in accordance with the recommendation of the Department of Health (DOH) and the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. Further Presidential Proclamation No. 929, s. 2020, was issued declaring a State of Calamity throughout the Philippines and imposed an Enhanced Community Quarantine throughout Luzon.

In view of the continuing rise of confirmed cases of COVID-19, the serious threat to the health, safety, security, and lives of our countrymen, the long-term adverse effects on their means of livelihood, and the severe disruption of economic activities, a state of national emergency is hereby declared over the entire country.

Section 3. Declaration of Policy. - The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected nations worldwide, including the Philippines, and has caused and is continuing to cause loss of lives and disruption to the economy. Thus, there is an urgent need to: (a) mitigate, if not contain, the transmission of COVID-19; (b) immediately mobilize assistance in the provision of basic necessities to families and individuals affected by the imposition of Community Quarantine, especially indigents and their families; (c) undertake measures that will prevent the overburdening of the healthcare system: (d) immediately and amply provide healthcare, including medical tests and treatments, to COVID-19 patients, persons under investigation (PUIs),or persons under monitoring (PUMs); (e) undertake a program for recovery and rehabilitation, including a social amelioration program and provision of safety nets to all affected sectors; (f) ensure that there is sufficient, adequate and readily available funding to undertake the foregoing; (g) partner with the private sector and other stakeholders to deliver these measures and programs quickly and efficiently; and (h) promote and protect the coUectiv interests of all Filipinos in these challenging times. By reason thereof, and in order to optimize the efforts of the President to carry out the tasks needed to implement the aforementioned : policy, it is imperative to grant him authority subject to limitations as hereinafter provided.

Section 4. Authorized Powers. - Pursuant to Article VI. action 23 (2) of the Constitution, the President is hereby authorized to exercise powers that are necessary and proper to carry out the declared national policy. The President shall have the power to adopt the following temporary emergency measures to respond to crisis brought by the pandemic:

Section 5. Reports to Congress and Creation of an Oversight Committee. - The President, during Monday of every week, shall submit a weekly report to Congress of all acts performed pursuant to this Act during the immediately preceding week. The report shall likewise include the amount and corresponding utilization of the funds used, augmented, programmed, reallocated and realigned pursuant to this Act.

For this purpose, the Congress shall establish a Joint Congressional Oversight Committee composed of four (4) members of each house to be appointed by the Senate President and the House Speaker, respectively. This Committee shall determine whether such acts, orders, rules and regulations are within the restrictions provided herein.

Section 6. Penalties. - In addition to acts or omissions already penalized by existing laws, the following offenses shall be punishable with imprisonment of two (2) months or a fine of not less than Ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) but not more than One million pesos (P1,000,000.00)or both, such imprisonment and fine, at the discretion of the court:

Provided, however, That if the offender is a corporation, association, partnership or any other juridical person, the penalty shall be imposed upon the president, directors, managers, managing partners, as the case may be, who participated in the commission of the offense or who shall have knowingly permitted or failed to prevent the commission of the same. If the offender is an alien, he shall, in addition to the penalties herein prescribed, be deported without further proceedings: Provided, further, That if the offender is a public official or employee, he shall, in addition to the penalties prescribed herein, suffer perpetual or temporary absolute disqualification from office, as the case may be.

Section 7. Construction or Interpretation. - Nothing herein shall be construed as an impairment, restriction or modification of the provisions of the constitution, in case the exercise of the powers herein granted conflicts with other statutes, orders, rules or regulations, the provisions of this Act shall prevail.

Section 8. Separability. - If any provision of this Act or the application of such provision to any person or circumstance is declared invalid, the remainder of this Act or the application  of such provision to any other person or circumstance shall not be affected by such declaration.

Section 9. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect immediately upon its publication in a newspaper of general circulation or in the Official Gazette and shall be in full force and effect only for three (3) months, unless extended by Congress: Provided, That the powers granted under this Act may be withdrawn sooner by means of a concurrent resolution of Congress or ended by Presidential Proclamation.

Approved,

This Act was passed by the Senate of the Philippines as Senate Bill No. 1418 on March 23, 2020 and adopted by the House of Representatives as an amendment to House Bill No. 6616 on March 23, 2020.

Approved: MAR 24 2020

(SGD.) RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE
  President of the Philippines 

Implementing Rules and Regulations of Section 4(aa) of Republic Act No. 11469,
Otherwise Known as the "Bavanihan to Heal As One Act"

RULE I
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

Section 1.01. Title. These rules ("Rules") shall be known and cited as the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Section 4 (aa) of Republic Act No. 11469, otherwise known as the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act".

Section 1.02. Purpose. These Rules are issued to prescribe the guidelines and procedure for the implementation of Section 4(aa) of the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act".

Section 1.03 Interpretation Clause. These Rules shall be interpreted to harmonize with  Section 4 (n) of the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act" which provides that the President shall have the power to "ensure the availability of credit to the productive sectors of the economy especially in the countryside through measures such as, but not limited to, lowering the effective lending rates of interest and reserve requirements of lending institutions".

Moreover, these rules shall be liberally construed to ensure the fulfillment of the policy objective of Section 4(aa) of the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act”.

Section 1.04. Declaration of Policy. The COV1D-I9 pandemic has greatly affected nations worldwide, including the Philippines, and has caused and is continuing to cause loss of lives and disruption to the economy. Thus, there is an urgent need, among other things, to: (a) undertake a program for recovery and rehabilitation, including a social amelioration program and provision of safety nets to all affected sectors; (b) partner with the private sector and other stakeholders to deliver these measures and programs quickly and efficiently: and (c) promote and protect the collective interests of all Filipinos in these challenging times.

RULE II
DEFINITION OF TERMS

Section 2.01 Definition of Terms. As used in these Rules, the following terms shall mean:

RULE III
MANDATORY GRACE PERIOD

Section 3.01 Mandatory Grace Period. All Covered Institutions shall implement a 30-day grace period for all loans with principal and/or interest falling due within the ECQ Period without incurring interest on interest, penalties, fees and other charges. The initial 30-daygrace period shall automatically be extended if the ECQ period is extended by the President of the Republic of the Philippines pursuant to his emergency powers under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.

ection 3.02 Non-application of interests, fees and charges to future payments. All Covered Institutions shall not charge or apply interest on interest, fees and charges during the 30-day grace period to future payments/amortizations of the individuals, households, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).and corporate borrowers.

Section 3.03. Prohibition on waivers. Covered institutions are prohibited from requiring their clients to waive the application of the provisions of the "Bayanihan to Heal as One Act", including among others, the mandatory 30-day grace period. No waiver previously executed by borrowers covering payments falling due during the ECQ Period shall be valid. Nonetheless, the grant of grace period by the above-mentioned Covered Institutions shall not preclude the borrowers from paying their obligations as they fall due during the period of ECQ should they so desire.

RULE IV
SCOPE OF APPLICATION

Section 4.01 Coverage. The mandatory thirty (30)-day grace shall apply to all loans with principal and/or interest, falling due within the ECQ Period. Loans shall mean loans extended by Covered Institutions to individuals, households, MSMEs, corporate borrowers, and other counterparties.

Section 4.02. Application to multiple loans. The mandatory 30-day grace period shall apply to multiple loans of individuals and entities, with principal and/or interest falling due within the ECQ Period. The grace period shall apply to each loan.

RULE V
EFFECT OF THE GRACE PERIOD

Section 5.01. Relief for loans. Borrowers whose loan/s with principal and/or interest falling due within the ECQ Period shall be entitled to avail of the 30-day grace period without incurring interest on interest, penalties, fees and other charges. For this purpose, no additional DST shall be imposed as a consequence of the relief so granted. Further, no DST shall be imposed on credit extensions and credit restructuring, micro-lending including those obtained from pawnshops and extensions thereof during the ECQ Period.

Section 5.02. Treatment of accrued interest. The accrued interest for the 30-day grace period may be paid by the borrower on staggered basis over the remaining life of the loan. Nonetheless, this shall not preclude the borrower from paying the accrued interest in full on the new date following the application of the 30-day grace period or extended grace period, as the case may be.

RULE VI
PENAL PROVISIONS

Section 6.01. Penalties. Violation of the provisions of these Rules shall be subject to the appropriate penalties set forth in the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, as well as existing laws, rules and regulations.

RULE VII
EFFECTIVITY

Section 7.01. Separability Clause. Should any provision herein be declared unconstitutional or contrary to law, the same shall not affect the validity of the other provisions of these Rules.

Section 7.02. Effectivity. These Rules shall take effect immediately upon publication.

The Office of the National Administrative Register (ONAR) of the UP Law Center shall be provided three (3) certified copies of these Rules.

(SGD.) CARLOS G. DOMINGUEZ
Secretary

APR 01 2020