THE House Committee on Appropriations passed a Substitute Bill introducing necessary amendments to the country’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Policy after its deliberations today.
“We are one step closer to making it easier for disaster-stricken areas to access the necessary funds they need for recovery and rehabilitation,” said Rep. Alan 1 B. Ecleo, the House Committee on DIsaster Resilience Chairman and one of the principal authors of the Bill.
Entitled, “An Act Strengthening The Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction And Management System, Amending For The Purpose Republic Act No. 10121, Otherwise Known As The ‘Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction And Management Act Of 2010,’” the Bill introduced by Cong. Alan Ecleo last May 2023 aims to:
1. Extend the period within which disaster-stricken Provinces can access the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund from two years under the present law to three years;
2. Subject the country’s disaster resilience policy to an Annual Sunset Review to be conducted by the Congressional Oversight Committee; and
3. Assign the Chairperson of the Committee on Disaster Resilience of the House of Representatives as Co-Chairperson alongside the Senate’s Chairperson of National Defense and Security of the said Committee.
“While the law provides so much in terms of Disaster Response and Rehabilitation, it is in dire need of an update to keep up with the changes and challenges of the times,” said Rep. Ecleo in his sponsorship speech.
“I personally witnessed the need to update this important law when my very own district was destroyed by Supertyphoon Odette back in 2021. In our efforts for recovery and rehabilitation, several aspects would have been more efficient and less challenging had the law been updated.”
The Bill also exempts the NDRRM Fund from reversion into the General Treasury Fund upon non-usage after the fiscal year, a provision introduced by House Speaker Martin Romualdez, one of the Substitute Bill’s co-authors.
