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Article Vi - The Legislative Department
Article Vi - The Legislative Department
The original legislative power of the people is exercised via initiative and referendum.
In this manner, people can directly propose and enact laws, or approve or reject any act
or law passed by Congress or a local government unit.
Provided that these two limitations are not exceeded, Congress legislative power is
plenary.
Composition
24 senators who shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the Philippines, as
may be provided by law.
Qualifications
1. Natural-born citizen;
2. At least 35 years old on the day of election;
3. Able to read and write;
4. A registered voter; and
5. Philippine resident for at least 2 years immediately preceding the day of the election.
Note: The qualifications of both Senators and Members of the House are limited to
those provided by the Constitution. Congress cannot, by law, add or subtract from
these qualifications.
Term of Office:
6 years, commencing (unless otherwise provided by law) at noon, 30 June next following
their election.
Term Limitations:
1. No Senator shall serve for more than 2 consecutive terms.
2. Voluntary renunciation of office for any length of time shall not be considered as an
interruption in the continuity of his service for the full term for which he was elected.
Sections 5-7. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Composition:
1. Not more than 25 members, unless otherwise fixed by law; and
2. Party-list Representative
Election of 250 members
1. They shall be elected from legislative districts apportioned among the provinces,
cities and the Metropolitan Manila area.
2. Legislative districts are apportioned in accordance with the number of inhabitants of
each area and on the basis of a uniform and progressive ratio.
1. Each district shall comprise, as far as practicable, contiguous, compact and adjacent
territory;
2. Each city with at least 250,000 inhabitants will be entitled to at least one
representative.
3. Each province will have at least one representative.
4. Legislative districts shall be re-apportioned by Congress within 3 years after the
return of each census. According to Jack, however, while the apportionment of
districts is NOT a political question, the judiciary CANNOT compel Congress to do this.
5. The standards used to determine the apportionment of legislative districts is meant
to prevent gerrymandering, which is the formation of a legislative district out of
separate territories so as to favor a particular candidate or party.
Qualifications
1. Natural born citizen of the Philippines;
2. At least 25 years old on the day of the election;
3. Able to read and write;
4. Registered voter in the district he seeks to represent; and
5. A resident of such district for at least one year immediately preceding the day of the
election.
Term of Office
1. Each member of the House shall be elected for a term of three (3) years which shall
commence (unless otherwise provided for by law) at noon on 30 June next following
their election.
2. Voluntary renunciation of office for any length of time shall not be considered as an
interruption in the continuity of his service for the full term for which he was elected.
Term Limitations
No member of the House of Representatives shall serve for more than three (3)
consecutive terms.
No increase in their salaries shall take effect until after the EXPIRATION OF THE FULL
TERM (NOT TENURE) OF ALL THE MEMBERS OF THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES APPROVING SUCH INCREASE.
Note: Since the Constitution provides for rules on salaries and not on emoluments,
our distinguished legislators can appropriate for themselves other sums of money such
as travel allowances, as well as other side benefits.
(i) Protection is only against forum other than Congress itself. Thus for
inflammatory remarks which are otherwise privileged, a member may be sanctioned by
either the Senate or the House as the case may be.
(iii) Congress need NOT be in session when the utterance is made, as long as it
forms part of legislative action, i.e. part of the deliberative and communicative process
used to participate in legislative proceedings in consideration of proposed legislation or
with respect to other matters with Congress jurisdiction.
Sec. 12. All Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall,
upon assumption of office, make a full disclosure of their financial and
business interests. They shall notify the House concerned of a potential
conflict of interest that may arise from the filing of a proposed legislation of
which they are authors.
2.) Continues in session for as long as it sees fit, until 30 days before the opening of
the next regular session, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.
Special Sessions:
3.) Each House may choose such other officers as it may deem necessary.
Election of Officers
Quorum to do business:
1. Majority of each House shall constitute a quorum.
2. A smaller number may adjourn from day to day and may compel the attendance of
absent members.
3. In computing a quorum, members who are outside the country and thus outside of
each Houses coercive jurisdiction are not included.
Internal Rules:
1. Each House shall determine its own procedural rules.
2. Since this is a power vested in Congress as part of its inherent powers, under the
principle of separation of powers, the courts cannot intervene in the implementation of
these rules insofar as they affect the members of Congress.
3. Also, since Congress has the power to make these rules, it also has the power to
ignore them when circumstances so require.
Discipline:
1.) Suspension
2.) Expulsion
2.) BUT an enrolled bill prevails over the contents of the Journal.
3.) An enrolled bill is the official copy of approved legislation and bears the
certifications of the presiding officers of each House. Thus where the certifications are
valid and are not withdrawn, the contents of the enrolled bill are conclusive upon the
courts as regards the provision of that particular bill.
Adjournments:
1.) Neither House can adjourn for more than 3 days during the time Congress is in
session without the consent of the other House.
2.) Neither can they adjourn to any other place than that where the two houses are
sitting, without the consent of the other.
Note: The congressional members of the ETs shall be chosen on the basis of
proportional representation from the political parties and party-list organizations.
Jurisdiction:
1.) Each ET shall be the sole judge of all CONTESTS relating to the election, returns,
and qualifications of their respective members. This includes determining the validity or
invalidity of a proclamation declaring a particular candidate as the winner.
3.) In the absence of an election contest, the ET is without jurisdiction. However, the
power of each House to expel its own members or even to defer their oath-taking until
their qualifications are determined may still be exercised even without an election
contest.
1.) Since the ETs are independent constitutional bodies, independent even of the
House from which the members are respectively taken, neither Congress nor the Courts
may interfere with procedural matters relating to the functions of the ETs, such as the
setting of deadlines or filing their election contests with the respective ETs.
2.) The ETs being independent bodies, its members may not be arbitrarily removed
from their positions in the tribunal by the parties which they represent. Neither may
they be removed for not voting according to party lines, since they are acting
independently of Congress.
3.) The mere fact that the members of either the Senate or the House sitting on the
ET are those which are sought to be disqualified due to the filing of an election contest
against them does not warrant all of them from being disqualified from sitting in the ET.
The Constitution is quite clear that the ET must act with both members from the SC and
from the Senate or the House. If all the legislator-members of the ET were to be
disqualified, the ET would not be able to fulfill its constitutional functions.
4.) Judicial review of decisions of the ETs may be had with the SC only insofar as the
decision or resolution was rendered without or in excess of jurisdiction or with grave
abuse of discretion constituting denial of due process.
Note: The 12 Senators and 12 Representatives are elected on the basis of proportional
representation from the political parties and party-list organizations.
Voting/Action
2.) The CA shall act on all appointments within 30 session days from their submission
to Congress.
3.) The Commission shall rule by a majority vote of all the Members.
Jurisdiction
1.) CA shall confirm the appointments by the President with respect to the following
positions:
2.) Congress CANNOT by law prescribe that the appointment of a person to an office
created by such law shall be subject to confirmation by the CA.
Meetings of the CA
2.) Meetings are held either at the call of the Chairman or a majority of all its
members.
3.) Since the CA is also an independent constitutional body, its rules of procedure are
also outside the scope of congressional powers as well as that of the judiciary.
Note: The ET and the CA shall be constituted within 30 days after the Senate and the
House of Representative shall have been organized with the election of the President
and the Speaker.
Appropriation bills
1. The primary and specific aim of an appropriation bill is to appropriate a sum of
money from the public treasury.
1. Thus, a bill enacting the budget is an appropriations bill.
1. BUT: A bill creating a new office, and appropriating funds therefor is NOT an
appropriation bill.
Revenue Bill
1. A revenue bill is one specifically designed to raise money or revenue through
imposition or levy.
1. Thus, a bill introducing a new tax is a revenue bill, but a provision in, for instance, the
Videogram Regulatory Board law imposing a tax on video rentals does not make the
law a revenue bill.
Bills of local application
A bill of local application, such as one asking for the conversion of a municipality into a
city, is deemed to have originated from the House provided that the bill of the House
was filed prior to the filing of the bill in the Senate even if, in the end, the Senate
approved its own version.
Limitations:
1. For appropriation bills:
1. Congress cannot increase the appropriations recommended by the President for the
operation of the Government as specified in the budget.
1. Each provision or enactment in the General Appropriations Bill must relate
specifically to some particular appropriation therein and any such provision or
enactment must be limited in its operation to the appropriation to which it relates.
1. The procedure in approving appropriations for Congress shall strictly follow the
procedure for approving appropriations for other departments and agencies.
1. A special appropriations bill must specify the purpose for which it is intended and
must be supported by funds actually available as certified by the National Treasurer or
to be raised by a corresponding revenue proposal therein.
1. Transfer of appropriations:
1. Rule: No law shall be passed authorizing any transfer of appropriations
2. BUT the following may, BY LAW, be authorized to AUGMENT any item in the general
appropriations law for their respective offices from savings in other items of their
respective appropriations
President
ii. It will remain in full force and effect until the GAB is passed by Congress.
i. As a mandatory requirement
ii. The title does not have to be a complete catalogue of everything stated in the
bill. It is sufficient if the title expresses the general subject of the bill and all the
provisions of the statute are germane to that general subject.
iii. A bill which repeals legislation regarding the subject matter need not state in the
title that it is repealing the latter. Thus, a repealing clause in the bill is considered
germane to the subject matter of the bill.
1. Readings
1. In order to become a law, each bill must pass three (3) readings in both Houses.
2. General rule: Each reading shall be held on separate days & printed copies thereof in
its final form shall be distributed to its Members three (3) days before its passage.
3. Exception: If a bill is certified as urgent by the President as to the necessity of its
immediate enactment to meet a public calamity or emergency, the 3 readings can be
held on the same day.
4. First reading only the title is read; the bill is passed to the proper committee
Second reading Entire text is read and debates are held, and amendments introduced.
Third reading only the title is read, no amendments are allowed. Vote shall be taken
immediately thereafter and the yeas and nays entered in the journal.
1. To OVERRIDE the veto, at least 2/3 of ALL the members of each House must agree to
pass the bill. In such case, the veto is overriden and becomes a law without need of
presidential approval.
1. Item veto
1. The President may veto particular items in an appropriation, revenue or tariff bill.
1. This veto will not affect items to which he does not object.
1. Definition of item
TYPE OF BILL ITEM
1. Revenue/tax bill Subject of the tax and the tax rate imposed thereon
1. Veto of RIDER
1. A rider is a provision which does not relate to a particular appropriation stated in the
bill.
2. Since it is an invalid provision under Section 25(2), the President may veto it as an
item.
Specific limitations on legislation
1. No law shall be enacted increasing the Supreme Courts appellate jurisdiction without
the SCs advice and concurrence.
1. No law shall be enacted granting titles of royalty or nobility.
Section 28. POWER TO TAX
Limitations:
2) It should be EQUITABLE
4) The power to tax must be exercised for a public purpose because the power exists
for the general welfare
5) The due process and equal protection clauses of the Constitution should be
observed.
2) The exercise of such power by the President shall be within the specified limits
fixed by Congress and subject to such limitations and restrictions as it may impose.
a) Charitable institutions
c) Mosques
e) All lands, buildings and improvements actually, directly and exclusively used for
religious, charitable, or educational purposes.
2) Limitations.
government orphanage; or
leprosarium
c) BUT the government is not prohibited from appropriating money for a valid secular
purpose, even if it incidentally benefits a religion, e.g. appropriations for a national
police force is valid even if the police also protects the safety of clergymen.
d) ALSO, the temporary use of public property for religious purposes is valid, as long
as the property is available for all religions
3) Special Funds
a) Money collected on a tax levied for a special purpose shall be treated as a special
fund and paid out for such purpose only.
1) Through the system of initiative and referendum, the people can directly propose
and enact laws or approve or reject any act or law or part thereof passed by the
Congress or local legislative body.
2) Required Petition