House approves 210 bills during 1st regular session

Producing a total of 210 bills in the past year, the first regular session of the 17th Congress has so far been “productive,” as far as the House of Representatives under the leadership of Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez is concerned.

Among the important pieces of legislation that have been passed were bills on free college education, wi-fi in public places, tax reform, irrigation, longer validity of passports from five years to 10 and driver’s licenses from three to five years.

The first half of the increase in the pension of retirees from the private sector covered by the Social Security System, inclusion of casinos in the coverage of antimoney laundering and the death penalty bill, among many others, also materialized.

In accordance with established legislative procedure, the 210 measures that the House approved were transmitted to the Senate for its own action.

One hundred thirty-seven bills are pending in various committees, 29 measures have been approved by both houses of Congress, 22 measures on second reading stage, one bill with the bicameral conference committee and 21 others await Senate action.

Overall, like those consolidated or substituted bills, as well as referral of resolutions on inquiries, the House has processed a total of 1,247 measures during the total 97 session days.

On average, the House processed 13 measures per day during this period.

The House approved various proposed laws of historic and practical significance, like those that respective bicameral conference committee reports have already ratified.