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The Customs Amnesty bill and bill seeking to separate the Philippine Ports Authority’s regulatory and commercial functions are among eight priority measures being pushed by the Philippine Exporters Confederation in the incoming 20th Congress
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The confederation is supporting once more the International Maritime Trade Competitiveness Act and the amendment of the charter of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines
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The Magna Carta for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, National Quality Infrastructure Development Act, Konektadong Pinoy Bill, and Climate Accountability Act are the other priority measures
The Customs Amnesty bill and bill seeking to separate the Philippine Ports Authority’s regulatory and commercial functions are among eight priority measures being pushed by the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc (PHILEXPORT) in the incoming 20th Congress.
The confederation is supporting once more the International Maritime Trade Competitiveness Act and the amendment of the charter of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. The Magna Carta for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, National Quality Infrastructure Development Act, Konektadong Pinoy Bill, and Climate Accountability Act are the other priority measures.
The proposed Customs Amnesty bill aims to help raise additional revenues for the government through voluntary disclosure without imposing new taxes. PHILEXPORT said it will also clear the Bureau of Customs of pending liquidation accounts and prevent harassment of importers using these pending transactions.
PHILEXPORT—the umbrella organization of Philippine exporters— again supports the International Maritime Trade Competitiveness Act, which aims to strengthen the oversight function of relevant government agencies over the imposition of local charges by international shipping lines.
The export group said international shipping costs to and from the Philippines are expensive compared with other countries in the region and believes “these high charges are caused by a lack of regulatory oversight as there is no agency assigned to oversee local charges imposed by international shipping lines.”
PHILEXPORT said through the measure, it wants to ensure that the charges are based on international best practices, reasonable, and subject to taxes, as these are charged at a local level.
Several bills for the International Maritime Trade Competitiveness Act were also filed in previous Congresses and have been supported by government and the private sector.
Another measure that PHILEXPORT is again supporting is the PhilPorts Act, which seeks to decouple PPA’s commercial and development functions. Under previous bills filed in Congress, PPA will be converted into a Philippine Ports Corporation solely for commercial and port development purposes and transfer its regulatory function to the Maritime Industry Authority.
Several industry stakeholders and business groups, including PHILEXPORT, have for years recommended the separation of PPA’s functions, citing conflict of interest and saying the exercise of both functions “unnecessarily increases logistics costs.”
Similarly, PHILEXPORT also supports the amendment of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines’ charter to delink its commercial and regulatory functions. PHILEXPORT said “evidence reveals that organizational de-linking provides greater flexibility to the regulator to focus on its core function.”
PHILEXPORT also hopes to pass the Magna Carta for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME), which seeks to extend the mandatory allocation of MSME loans by banks and remove the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas regulatory cover on SB Corporation to allow it to extend MSME development loans within an out-of-the-box framework.
Consistent with its thrust to boost Philippine export competitiveness in the international market, PHILEXPORT strongly supports the passage of bills institutionalizing the development of a national quality infrastructure in the country, or the National Quality Infrastructure Development Act.
“The inability to comply with international standards had been one of the several factors why it is difficult for our exports to gain market access and increase participation in the global value chain,” the exports group noted.
Another priority measure is the Konektadong Pinoy Bill, which aims to expand internet access in the country and ease the entry of new players in the data transmission industry.
Lastly, PHILEXPORT supports the passage of the Climate Accountability Act, which aims to institute policies and systems to tackle the climate crisis, establish institutional mechanisms for the protection of vulnerable communities from losses and damage from climate change, and hold corporations and the state accountable for violations.
“Clarification regarding the decision to designate PAGASA [Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration] as an additional agency for businesses to report to, instead of the DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources] and to add a representation from the Industry in the Climate Change Reparations Board as we are a significant stakeholder in the regulatory process and the penalties proposed in the bills,” PHILEXPORT noted.
The 20th Congress is scheduled to convene on July 28, 2025.
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