(A legal article in Philippine context)

I. Overview: What “Law” Means in the Philippine System

In the Philippines, an Act of Congress (commonly called a Republic Act or RA) is a statute enacted by the Congress of the Philippines—composed of the House of Representatives and the Senate—and approved by the President, or passed despite a presidential veto, or allowed to lapse into law by presidential inaction within the constitutional period.

The core rules on how a bill becomes a law are found primarily in the 1987 Constitution, particularly Article VI (The Legislative Department), plus each chamber’s internal rules, legislative practice, and implementing doctrines (including the requirements on publication and effectivity).

II. Constitutional Foundations and Governing Principles

A. Bicameralism and presentment

The Philippines uses a bicameral legislature. As a general rule, for a bill to become law it must:

Pass the House of Representatives, and
Pass the Senate, in the same form; then
Be presented to the President for approval or veto.

B. The “one subject–one title” rule

The Constitution requires that every bill shall embrace only one subject, which must be expressed in the title. This rule seeks to prevent “riders” and surprise provisions and to keep legislation intelligible and transparent.

C. The three-readings rule and legislative due process safeguards

As a general rule, a bill must undergo three readings on separate days, and printed copies must be distributed to members at least three days before final passage. A major constitutional exception exists when the President certifies that the bill is urgent and necessary to meet a public calamity or emergency (or similar urgent public need), allowing the bill to move faster.

D. The journal and vote requirements

On final passage, the vote must typically be taken by yeas and nays, and entered in the Journal of the chamber, reinforcing accountability.

III. What Counts as a “Bill” (and Key Classifications)

A bill is a proposed statute filed in either chamber (subject to origination rules below). Bills may be broadly classified as:

Public bills – affecting the general public (most legislation).
Private bills – affecting specific individuals or entities (rare).
Local bills – applying to particular localities (still must comply with constitutional limits).
General Appropriations Bill – the annual national budget (special constitutional rules apply).
Special appropriation bills – appropriations outside the annual budget (also with special limitations).

IV. Origination Rules: Which Chamber Must File First?

While most bills may originate in either chamber, the Constitution requires that certain types must originate exclusively in the House of Representatives, although the Senate may propose or concur with amendments. These include:

Appropriation bills
Revenue or tariff bills
Bills authorizing increases of public debt
Bills of local application
Private bills

Practical implication: A tax measure or the national budget typically starts in the House, but must still pass the Senate and satisfy bicameral approval in identical text.

V. The Step-by-Step Legislative Process

Stage 1: Filing/Introduction of the Bill

A bill is filed by:

A member of the House (Representative) or the Senate (Senator), or
Sometimes as a “by request” measure reflecting executive or stakeholder proposals, though it remains a legislator’s bill.

Each filed bill is assigned:

A bill number (e.g., HB No. ___ or SB No. ___),
A short title, and
Referral information.

Stage 2: First Reading (Formal Presentation)

First reading is typically ministerial:

The title and number of the bill are read on the floor.
The bill is referred to the appropriate committee(s) (or multiple committees) based on subject matter.

Key point: No substantive debate usually occurs at this stage. The real work begins in committee.

VI. Committee Action: Where Most Bills Live or Die

A. Referral to committee(s)

Committees are specialized bodies (e.g., Justice, Ways and Means, Health, Education). Referral may be:

Primary (main subject), and/or
Secondary (related issues).

B. Committee hearings and consultations

Committees may conduct:

Public hearings (inviting agencies, experts, interest groups, affected sectors),
Technical working groups (TWGs) for line-by-line drafting, and
Stakeholder consultations.

Committee power is decisive: A bill can stall indefinitely without committee action.

C. Committee report

After deliberation, the committee issues a report recommending that the bill be:

Approved (often “with amendments” or as a substitute bill),
Disapproved, or
Referred for further study, consolidation, or archiving.

If approved, the bill is placed on the chamber’s calendar for plenary consideration.

VII. Plenary Consideration: Second Reading and Third Reading

Stage 3: Second Reading (Substantive Debate and Amendments)

Second reading is the main plenary battleground and often includes:

Sponsorship speech – the committee chair or sponsor explains the bill’s purpose and provisions.
Interpellation – members question the sponsor; this is where policy, legality, costs, and consequences are tested.
Period of amendments – members propose changes:
- Committee amendments (official committee revisions), and
- Individual amendments (by any member, subject to chamber rules).

After amendments are resolved, the chamber votes to approve the bill on second reading.

Stage 4: Third Reading (Final Passage)

On third reading:

The bill is usually no longer open for amendment (except under limited circumstances allowed by rules).
The title may be read, and the chamber votes—often by nominal voting (yeas/nays recorded).

If the bill obtains the required votes, it passes that chamber.

VIII. Transmission to the Other Chamber and the “Mirror” Process

After a bill passes the originating chamber, it is transmitted to the other chamber, where it undergoes the same core steps:

First Reading → Committee → Second Reading → Third Reading

The second chamber may:

Pass the bill without amendment (best case), or
Pass with amendments, creating disagreement between the chambers’ versions, or
Reject or let the bill lapse.

IX. Reconciling Differences: Bicameral Conference Committee

A. When it happens

If the House and Senate pass different versions, the bill cannot be sent to the President yet. The chambers typically convene a Bicameral Conference Committee (“bicam”) composed of selected legislators from both chambers.

B. What the bicam does

The bicam negotiates and produces a Bicameral Conference Committee Report, reconciling differences and agreeing on a single consolidated text.

Reality check: The bicam is powerful and often decisive; many crucial compromises are finalized here.

C. Ratification by both chambers

The bicam report must be ratified by:

The House, and
The Senate.

Typically, ratification is an up-or-down vote on the report (no further amendments), because the goal is to approve a unified text.

If either chamber fails to ratify, the bill generally fails unless renegotiated or revived through further legislative action.

X. Enrollment and Authentication: Preparing the Final Bill for the President

Once both chambers have approved the exact same text (either directly or via bicam ratification), the bill is:

Enrolled (final official copy prepared), and
Authenticated by legislative officers (commonly involving the signatures/attestation of the chamber secretaries and the presiding officers such as the Speaker and the Senate President, following internal procedures).

The enrolled bill is then transmitted to the President for action.

XI. Presidential Action: Sign, Veto, or Do Nothing

Under the Constitution, the President has the power to:

A. Sign the bill → It becomes law

Upon presidential approval, the bill becomes a Republic Act and is assigned an RA number as part of official enactment practice.

B. Veto the bill → It returns to Congress with objections

If vetoed, the President sends the bill back with a veto message stating objections.

1. General veto

The President may veto the whole bill.

2. Line-item veto (limited)

For certain bills—most notably appropriation, revenue, or tariff measures—the President may veto particular items (subject to constitutional limits). The remainder may become law, depending on constitutional and doctrinal rules.

C. Inaction → The bill lapses into law after 30 days

If the President does not sign or veto within 30 days from receipt, the bill becomes law as if signed, unless Congress has adjourned in a way that prevents return (the Philippine Constitution’s structure is commonly understood to require action within the 30-day period; Philippine practice treats lapse after 30 days as enactment).

XII. Veto Override: Congress Can Enact a Vetoed Bill

Congress may override a presidential veto by a two-thirds vote of all the members of each House, voting separately.

High threshold, high rarity: Overrides are possible but politically difficult, especially when coalitions align with the President.

XIII. Publication and Effectivity: When the Law Actually Becomes Enforceable

A. Publication is indispensable (as a rule)

As a general doctrine in Philippine law, statutes and similar issuances must be published to be effective, because people must have notice of the law.

B. Default effectivity rule

Unless the statute provides otherwise, the commonly applied default is: effectivity after 15 days following publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation, consistent with prevailing rules and jurisprudential doctrine.

C. Effectivity clauses in statutes

Many laws include an effectivity clause such as:

“This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication…,” or
“This Act shall take effect immediately upon publication…,” or
“This Act shall take effect on [a specified date]…”

Important: Even “immediate effectivity” clauses are generally implemented with publication as the trigger for actual enforceability, because notice remains a core requirement.

XIV. After Enactment: Implementing Rules, Regulations, and Administrative Issuances

A statute often delegates details to agencies through:

Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR),
Administrative orders, circulars, or guidelines.

A. Limits of IRRs

IRRs must:

Conform to the law and the Constitution,
Not expand or restrict statutory rights beyond what the law authorizes, and
Stay within delegated authority.

B. When IRRs matter

Many regulatory statutes are not fully operational until IRRs are issued—though the law is already valid upon effectivity. Delays in IRR issuance can create implementation gaps, but they do not normally nullify the statute itself.

XV. Special and High-Impact Legislative Pathways

A. Urgent bills and the “President’s certification”

The Constitution allows the three-readings-on-separate-days requirement to be dispensed with if the President certifies the bill’s immediate enactment is necessary to meet a public calamity or emergency (or similarly urgent public need), enabling expedited passage.

B. The General Appropriations Act (GAA) and budget legislation

The GAA is a yearly law and typically involves:

Executive budget preparation and submission,
House action first (origination requirement),
Senate review and amendments,
Bicam reconciliation,
Presidential review with possible line-item vetoes.

Budget legislation is politically sensitive and procedurally intense, with constitutional constraints on “lump sums,” augmentation, and the separation of powers affecting execution.

C. Constitutional amendments are not “ordinary bills”

Amending the Constitution follows distinct processes (e.g., constituent assembly, constitutional convention, people’s initiative under certain limits), and requires ratification in a plebiscite. These are not ordinary statutes.

D. People’s initiative and referendum

The Philippine system recognizes forms of direct legislation conceptually through initiative and referendum mechanisms (as implemented by statute and subject to constitutional/jurisprudential limits). This is separate from the standard congressional bill process, but it belongs in the broader landscape of how “law” may be proposed or approved in the system.

XVI. Common Failure Points and Practical Realities

Even if the formal steps are clear, bills often fail because:

No committee action (the bill is never calendared or reported out).
Competing priorities and limited session time.
Political opposition or coalition breakdown.
House–Senate deadlock and failed bicam ratification.
Veto threats prompting sponsors to abandon or rewrite.
Constitutional vulnerabilities (one-subject rule issues, improper origination, due process concerns, or overbroad delegations) causing later judicial invalidation.

XVII. A Textual “Flowchart” of the Process

Bill filed → First Reading (referral to committee) → Committee hearings/TWG → Committee report → Second Reading (sponsorship → interpellation → amendments → vote) → Third Reading (final vote) → Transmittal to other chamber → (repeat process) → If versions differ: Bicameral Conference Committee → Bicam report → House ratification + Senate ratification → Enrollment/authentication → President: sign / veto / inaction (30 days) → If veto: possible override (2/3 each House) → Publication → Effectivity → Implementation (IRR, enforcement, programs, appropriations, etc.)

XVIII. Key Takeaways

Philippine lawmaking is bicameral, committee-driven, and constitutionally structured around three readings, transparency, and recorded accountability.
The President is not a mere formality: the executive has approval and veto powers, with line-item veto in key fiscal measures.
Even after enactment, publication and effectivity rules determine when the law becomes enforceable, and IRRs often define how it operates in practice.
The bicameral requirement—needing the same exact text—is a central checkpoint, making bicam reconciliation one of the most influential stages.