House accomplishments highlighted

Jamalul said the transition period provides the Bangsamoro nation an opportunity to build the foundations to address development challenges

The House of Representatives on Saturday highlighted its accomplishments for the second regular session of the 18th Congress under the leadership of House Speaker and Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco.

In its performance report titled “Paving the Nation’s Path to Recovery,” it underscored that despite the challenges caused by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, lawmakers were able to pass bills that are “consistent in pursuing a legislative agenda anchored on saving lives, sustaining economic growth, and spearheading a public policy that is responsive and effective to the health crisis.”

The House has two-fold priorities, the report indicated, which are to help Filipinos hit by the pandemic and to revive the country’s economic conditions.

“With these priorities in mind, the House of Representatives has not let the prevailing situation distract itself from the work that has to be done. The House of Representatives has performed commendably in spite of the current limitations and challenges,” the report stated.

“On these two fronts, the House of Representatives worked tirelessly to pass key legislative measures, mandating a whole-of-government approach to fight the pandemic,” it further read.

The report particularly emphasized the passing of two Bayanihan laws — Republic Acts 11469 and 11494 — which provided P250 billion in emergency cash assistance to low-income families and displaced workers and a P165-billion economic stimulus package, respectively.

During the second regular session of the Velasco-led House, the solons passed 501 bills on third reading, and approved 131 resolutions, bringing the total of approved measures to 803.

At least 72 of these were signed into law. Lawmakers have also passed 20 out of 30 measures in the Common Legislative Agenda of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council or LEDAC, consisting mostly of the legislative priorities of President Rodrigo Duterte.

Five out of the 20 measures were enacted, while the rest remained pending in the Senate.

The Chamber of Congress also ensured the timely passage of the 2021 General Appropriations Act, the report stated.

Since financing the stimulus measures was a challenge, the House passed two significant economic measures to complement the national budget and help absorb the large financial shock: The Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law (RA 11534) and the Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer (FIST) law (RA 11523).

The Department of Finance projected that the CREATE law will provide more than P1 trillion worth of tax relief over the next 10 years.