Declaration of State of Imminent Disaster bill okayed

The Senate on Monday, June 9, 2025 passed on final reading a bill seeking to bridge the gap between disaster preparedness and disaster response.

Senate Bill No. 2999, otherwise known as An Act Establishing a Mechanism on the Declaration of State of Imminent Disaster, was passed with 21 affirmative votes, no negative vote and zero abstention. The bill was authored and sponsored by Senate President Pro-Tempore Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, co-authored and sponsored by Sen. Pia Cayetano and co-authored by Joel Villanueva and Majority Leader Francis "Tol" Tolentino.

Estrada said the enactment of the bill is crucial, particularly since the Philippines--for the third straight year-- emerged on top of 193 countries in the world with the highest disaster risk based on a report by the World Risk Index 2024.

He said the data underscores a pressing need to give preferential attention to national policies that would reduce the Philippines' vulnerabilities, manage disaster risks and speed up response and recovery.

"The measure seeks to strengthen our disaster resilience amid the expected harsher impacts of climate change, and plugs a crucial gap between disaster preparedness and response," Estrada stressed.

He said the proposed legislation is an innovative policy that would empower government agencies to act before a disaster will strike rather than take action after its aftermath.

Under the act, the President, upon the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), may declare a state of imminent disaster over a cluster of barangays, municipalities, cities, provinces and regions.

The local chief executive, also upon the recommendation of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management (DRRM) councils, may also declare a state of imminent disaster through an executive order in their respective jurisdictions that are forecasted to be affected by an imminent disaster.

The NDRRMC and the DRRM councils shall conduct a pre-disaster risk assessment in anticipation of a highly probable disaster with projected catastrophic impacts, which shall serve as the basis for the declaration of a state of imminent disaster.

Once enacted into law, local government units (LGUs) shall be required to include anticipatory action measures in their regular programs, plans and activities (PPAs) under their respective local DRRM funds. The unused disaster funds may also be utilized for the anticipatory action measures under the bill. LGUs may also obtain other funding from other sources to fulfill the objective of the act.

"The distribution of funds shall be graduated and proportionate to the forecasted severity, lead time and anticipated extent of damage as determined in the pre-disaster risk assessment," according to the bill.

The proposed legislation imposes a fine of not less than P50,000 but not more than P500,000 or imprisonment of not less than six years and one day but not more than 12 years or both at the discretion of the court to any individual, corporation, partnership, association or other judicial entity that commits any of the prohibited acts under the bill.

In addition to the fine and penalties mentioned above, public officers found guilty of violating the act also face perpetual disqualification from office or forfeiture in favor of the government of the objects that the instrumentalities used in committing the prohibiting acts.

"This landmark legislation provides explicit guidelines for efficient mobilization of resources during disasters, and marks a definitive shift from a reactive and passive response toward a more proactive, anticipatory approach in times of calamities," Estrada said.