Department of Water

The measure proposes to create a primary agency responsible for formulating national policies, ensuring coordination, and overseeing the management of Philippine water resources. It is one of the priority measures under the Legislative-Executive Development Authority Council (LEDAC) for the 19th Congress. The proposed measure then aims to strengthen these existing laws. Further, the measure seeks to create an independent, quasi-judicial body called the Water Regulatory Commission, which will rationalize the country’s economic and administrative regulation of water utilities.  

The House version of the measure was approved in third and final reading on December 12, 2023, a significant development PSA has reflected in this month’s legislative update.

At the Senate, SB 2771 was recently passed in first reading after 22 senators endorsed its committee report. The bill establishes a national framework for water resource management and creates the Department of Water Resources and the Water Regulatory Commission. It is a consolidation of 10 senate bills introduced by senators last year.

These developments indicate the incumbent administration’s strong support for the measure. In July 2023, President Marcos Jr. recalled the fundamental importance of water security in the country during his second State of the Nation Address (SONA), a concern he proposed as a priority legislation in his 2022 state address.

The senate plenary hearing, led by Senator Grace Poe, the co-sponsor of the bill, reiterated that the proposed Department of Water Resources will serve as the apex body overseeing the water sector, primarily responsible for policymaking, planning, coordination, implementation, monitoring, and administration. This new department will ensure the comprehensive, sustainable, climate-resilient, and integrated development and management of the country’s water resources.

The Philippines’ problem with water management has been a long-standing issue.  The Asian Development Bank and the United Nations had highlighted the need for a central authority to lead the management of the Philippines’ water resources. With this in mind, provisions in SB 2771 seeks to consolidate the functions of 45 executive agencies, including 16 departments, 16 attached agencies, the academic sector, and 14 bureaus or offices that currently handle overlapping and conflicting responsibilities related to water security.

To address the deeply rooted inefficiencies and overlapping functions within the current water management system, DWR is set to “untangle the bureaucracy of the Philippine water sector” as the bill proposes to absorb National Water Resources Board (NWRB), the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), DILG’s Water Supply and Water Unit, DENR’s River Basin Control Office, Manila Bay Coordinating Office, the interim agency Water Resource Management Office, functions of the DPWH, the National Sewerage and Septage Management Program, and the Manila Bay Task Force on Pasig Rehabilitation.