PUBLIC SERVICE ACT, PIRMADO NA NI PANG. DUTERTE

PINIRMAHAN ni Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte ang amendments sa 85-year-old Public Service Act, tatlong buwan bago ang kanyang pagbaba sa puwesto bilang punong ehekutibo ng bansa.

Ang Amendments to the Public Service Act ay binibigyan-linaw ang kahulugan ng ‘public utility’, kung saan ang hatol ay ipinaubaya na sa ating Hudikatura.

Nililimitahan ng batas na ito ang ‘public utility’ sa distribusyon at transmission ng elektrisidad, petroleum at petroleum products transmission, water distribution at wastewater systems, seaports, and public utility vehicles.

Ang 1987 Constitution ay nililimitahan ang foreign equity ng public utilities hanggang sa maximum ng 40%.

“A step towards liberalization is to limit the industries where foreign ownership is restricted. Under the new measure, the 40% cap on foreign equity ownership is lifted from public services not classified as public utility,” pahayag ni AAMBIS-OWA Party List Representative Sharon Garin.

Kinikilala din ng batas na ang regulatory powers ng Public Service Commission ay matagal nang ipinagkatiwala sa iba’t ibang administrative agencies.

“We did not introduce any change on the way industries are currently regulated. But we also made sure we did not come up with more restrictive rules than what we already have,” saad ni Garin, ang namuno sa House contingent sa Bicameral Conference Committee.

“We need more foreign investments to produce more jobs if we are to recover faster from our losses during the pandemic. Government ayuda is never enough, and neither is it sustainable,” dagdag pa nito bilang chairman House Committee on Economic Affairs.

Ang Amendments to the Public Service Act ay niratipikahan ng parehong Houses of Congress noong February 2, 2022.

“This caps the two-and-a-half years of hard work I and my colleagues did during this Congress. What better gift to give the next generation but better quality public services everyone can enjoy in the next few years, “ ani Garin.