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The House plenary (Speaker’s office)
Congressmen have declared themselves ready for nuclear energy.
With a vote of 200-7-2 (yes-no-abstain), the House of Representatives has overwhelmingly passed on third and final reading House Bill (HB) No. 9293, or the proposed “Philippine National Nuclear Energy Safety Act”.
“This is the first step toward realizing our dream of energy security. We share this bold but promising vision of President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ R. Marcos Jr. to look into nuclear energy seriously,” Speaker Martin Romualdez said in a statement following the bill’s passage during plenary session Wednesda afternoon, Nov. 22.
The full title of the measure is, “An Act establishing the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority and providing for a comprehensive legal framework for nuclear safety, security, and safeguards in the peaceful utilization of nuclear energy in the Philippines, and appropriating funds therefore.”
Described as a landmark measure, the bill aims to establish a legal framework to govern and facilitate nuclear energy’s peaceful, safe, and secure uses.
The measure defines nuclear energy–also called atomic energy–as any form of energy released during nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, or any other nuclear transmutation.
A key provision of HB No.9293 involves the creation of the Philippine Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority or PhilATOM.
“The PhilATOM shall have sole and exclusive jurisdiction to exercise regulatory control for the peaceful, safe, and secure uses of nuclear energy and radiation sources in the Philippines,” said Romualdez.
“Indeed, to embrace change is to embrace the future,” underscored the leader of the 300-plus-strong chamber.
PhilATOM will be tasked to cooperate with the Vienna, Austria-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The agency is the world’s center for cooperation in the field of nuclear energy.
“The PhilATOM Council shall be the highest body of the Authority. The PhilATOM Council shall be comprised of the DG (director general) and the DDGs (deputy director generals). The DG shall be the Chairperson of the PhilATOM Council,” read the bill.
For decades, the utilization of nuclear energy for the nation’s power requirements has been a touchy issue for Filipinos. At times it even becomes a political issue, as it calls back to attempts of the late former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr. to tap into the energy source.
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Among PhilATOM’s functions and responsibilities is assisting the government in developing national policies and measures for controlling regulated activities and facilities.
The bill states that all regulatory functions of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) would be transferred to PhilATOM.
Moreover, all regulatory functions regarding devices generating ionizing radiation of the Radiation Regulation Division of the Center for Device Regulation, Radiation, Health and Research of the Department of Health – Food and Drug Administration will also be transferred to the Authority.
The PhilATOM Council shall be formed and have the following functions and responsibilities: 1) Establish the general policy of the Authority and its strategic plans; 2) Adopt the annual budget and balance sheet of the Authority; 3) Adopt the organizational structure of the Authority; 4) Issue regulations, standards and guides of the Authority; 5) Adopt the schedule of fees and charges for authorizations; 6) Issue authorizations for nuclear and radiation facilities and its associated activities; and 7) Any other functions designated by the President.
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