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Phils. Law Center for rules that are already in Cojuangco group and Eduardo Cojuangco, Jr.
force at the time the Admin Code of 1987 and the other between PCA and Eduardo
became effective. These requirements of Conjuangco, Jr. The PC-ECJ (1st contract)
publication and filing were put in agreement allegedly contains, inter alia,
place as safeguards against abuses on the part Cojuangco’s personal and exclusive option to
of lawmakers and as guarantees to the acquire the FUB (UCPB) shares from Pedro
constitutional right to due process and to and his group. The PCA –Cojuangco agreement
information on matters of public concern (2nd contract) shows PCA’s acquisition of the
and, therefore, require strict compliance. In said option from Eduardo Cojuangco, Jr.
National Association of Electricity
Consumers for Reforms v. Energy Regulatory ISSUE: W/N the PCA –Cojuangco agreement
Board, this Court emphasized that both the cannot be accorded the status of a law
requirements of publication and filing of for the lack of the requisite publication?
administrative issuances intended to
enforce existing laws are mandatory for the HELD: Section 1 of PD No. 755 incorporated, by
effectivity of said issuances. While MOF Circular reference, the “Agreement for the
No. 1-85, as amended, may be unimpeachable Acquisition of a Commercial Bank for the
in substance, the due process requirements of Benefit of the Coconut Farmers” executed by
publication and filing cannot be disregarded. the PCA. It bears to stress that the PCA –
Moreover, none of the provisions of EO Cojuangco Agreement referred to in Section 1
No. 137 exempts MOF Circular No. 1-85, as of PD 755 was not reproduced or attached as an
amended from the aforementioned annex to the same law. And it is well-settled
requirements. that laws must be published to be valid. In fact,
publication is an indispensable condition for the
Cojuangco v. Republic effectivity of a law. The publication, as further
FACTS: In 1971, RA No. 6260 was enacted held in Tañada, must be of the full text of the
creating the Coconut Investment law since the purpose of publication is to inform
Company (CIC) to administer the Coconut the public of the contents of the law. Mere
Investment Fund (CIF). The declaration of referencing the number of the presidential
martial law saw the issuance of several decree, its title or whereabouts and its
presidential decrees, which included PD No. 755 supposed date of effectivity would not
providing for the implementation of the satisfy the publication requirement. In this
Agreement for the Acquisition of a Commercial case, while it incorporated the PCA-
Bank for the benefit of Coconut Farmers, Cojuangco Agreement by reference, Section 1
purportedly designed to improve the coconut of PD 755 did not in any way reproduce the
industry through the collection and use of the exact terms of the contract in the decree.
coconut levy fund. Relevant to the petition is Neither was a copy thereof attached to the
the acquisition of the First United Bank, decree when published. We cannot, therefore,
which was renamed as United Coconut extend to the said Agreement the status of a
Planters Bank (UCPB). Concerning the law. Consequently, we join the Sandiganbayan
intended acquisition, FUB was the bank of in its holding that the PCA –Cojuangco
choice which Pedro Cojuangco’s group had Agreement shall be treated as an ordinary
control of. The plan, then, was for PCA to buy all transaction between agreeing minds to be
of Cojuangco’s shares in FUBwhich did not governed by contract law under the Civil Code.
ensue since Cojuangco had the exclusive option
to acquire the former’s FUB controlling
interests. Two deeds emerged from the
agreement: one between Pedro
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rate of system loss to be included in its schedule must also be published if their purpose is to
of rates. enforce or implement existing law pursuant also
to a valid delegation."
On 8 June 2001, R.A. No. 9136 or the Electric
Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA) was There are, however, several exceptions to the
also enacted. Section 38 of the EPIRA abolished requirement of publication. First, an
the ERB, and created the Energy Regulatory interpretative regulation does not require
Commission (ERC). The ERC issued an Order publication in order to be effective. The
which provides that rural electric cooperatives applicability of an interpretative regulation
should only recover from their members and "needs nothing further than its bare issuance
patrons the actual cost of power purchased for it gives no real consequence more than
from power suppliers. The ERC also ordered what the law itself has already prescribed." It
BATELEC, et al. to refund their respective over- "adds nothing to the law" and "does not affect
recoveries to end-users. In addition, the ERC the substantial rights of any person." Second, a
also adopted the new "grossed-up factor regulation that is merely internal in nature does
mechanism" in the computation of the over- not require publication for its effectivity. It
recoveries of the electric cooperatives to be seeks to regulate only the personnel of the
remitted to their consumers. administrative agency and not the general
public. Third, a letter of instruction issued by an
Thus, BATELEC I, et al. moved to reconsider the administrative agency concerning rules or
said orders but the ERC denied the same. On guidelines to be followed by subordinates in the
appeal, the CA upheld the validity of the ERC performance of their duties does not require
Orders. publication in order to be effective.
Hence, this petition. BATELEC I, et al. aver that The policy guidelines of the ERC on the
these ERC Orders are invalid for lack of treatment of discounts extended by power
publication, non-submission to the U.P. Law suppliers are interpretative regulations.
Center, and for their retroactive application. Publication is not necessary for the effectivity of
the policy guidelines. As interpretative
ISSUE: Whether or not the assailed orders are regulations, the policy guidelines of the ERC on
invalid for non-publication, non-submission to the treatment of discounts extended by power
the U.P. Law Center and for their retroactivity? suppliers are also not required to be filed with
the U.P. Law Center in order to be effective.
HELD: The petition is partly meritorious.
In Republic v. Sandiganbayan, this Court
CIVIL LAW: publication of laws recognized the basic rule "that no statute,
decree, ordinance, rule or regulation (or even
Procedural due process demands that policy) shall be given retrospective effect unless
administrative rules and regulations be explicitly stated so." A law is retrospective if it
published in order to be effective. In Tada v. "takes away or impairs vested rights acquired
Tuvera, this Court articulated the fundamental under existing laws, or creates a new obligation
requirement of publication, thus: "We hold and imposes a new duty, or attaches a new
therefore that all statutes, including those of disability, in respect of transactions or
local application and private laws, shall be consideration already past." The policy
published as a condition for their effectivity, guidelines of the ERC on the treatment of
which shall begin fifteen days after publication discounts extended by power suppliers are not
unless a different effectivity date is fixed by the retrospective. The policy guidelines did not take
legislature. Administrative rules and regulations away or impair any vested rights of the rural
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electric cooperatives. Furthermore, the policy Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, without duly
guidelines of the ERC did not create a new published rules of procedure, in clear
obligation and impose a new duty, nor did it derogation of the constitutional requirement.
attach a new disability. The respondents in G.R. No. 179275 admit in
their pleadings and even on oral argument that
However, the grossed-up factor mechanism the Senate Rules of Procedure Governing
amends the IRR of R.A. No. 7832 as it serves as Inquiries in Aid of Legislation had been
an additional numerical standard that must be published in newspapers of general circulation
observed and applied by rural electric only in 1995 and in 2006. With respect to the
cooperatives in the implementation of the PPA. present Senate of the 14th Congress, however,
In light of these, the grossed-up factor of which the term of half of its members
mechanism does not merely interpret R.A. No. commenced on June 30, 2007, no effort was
7832 or its IRR.It is also not merely internal in undertaken for the publication of these rules
nature. The grossed-up factor mechanism when they first opened their session.
amends the IRR by providing an additional Respondents justify their non-observance of the
numerical standard that must be observed and constitutionally mandated publication by
applied in the implementation of the PPA. The arguing that the rules have never been
grossed-up factor mechanism is therefore an amended since 1995 and, despite that, they are
administrative rule that should be published published in booklet form available to anyone
and submitted to the U.P. Law Center in order for free, and accessible to the public at the
to be effective. Senates internet web page, invoking R.A. No.
8792.
As previously stated, it does not appear from
the records that the grossed-up factor ISSUE: Whether or not the invocation by the
mechanism was published and submitted to the respondents of the provisions of R.A. No. 8792,
U.P. Law Center. Thus, it is ineffective and may otherwise known as the Electronic Commerce
not serve as a basis for the computation of Act of 2000, to support their claim of valid
over-recoveries. The portions of the over- publication through the internet is a substantial
recoveries arising from the application of the compliance of the constitutional requirement of
mechanism are therefore invalid. Furthermore, publication.
the application of the grossed-up factor
mechanism to periods of PPA implementation RULING:NO. Section 21, Article VI of the 1987
prior to its publication and disclosure renders Constitution explicitly provides that [t]he
the said mechanism invalid for having been Senate or the House of Representatives, or any
applied retroactively.PARTLY GRANTED of its respective committees may conduct
inquiries in aid of legislation in accordance with
Garcillano v. House of Representatives its duly published rules of procedure. The
Committee on Public Information, Public Order requisite of publication of the rules is intended
Safety, National defense and security to satisfy the basic requirements of due
information and communications technology process. R.A. 8792 considers an electronic data
and suffrage and electoral reforms message or an electronic document as the
functional equivalent of a written document
FACTS:Petitioners in G.R. No. 179275 seek to only for evidentiary purposes. In other words,
disallow the Senate to continue with the the law merely recognizes the admissibility in
conduct of the questioned legislative inquiry on evidence (for their being the original) of
the issue of “Hello Garci” tapes containing the electronic data messages and/or electronic
wiretapped communication of then President documents. It does not make the internet a
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and COMELEC
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