OCT 22, 2015

NR # 3995

House okays amendments to Social Security Act of 1996

The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading a proposal to
grant the Social Security Commission (SSC) with powers, duties, and accountabilities to
allow it to respond with dispatch to clamors of additional benefits to its members and
adjustments to any future fiscal and economic challenges.
The SSC under the law is the body that directs and controls the Social Security
System (SSS) and is composed of the Secretary of Labor and Employment or his duly
designated undersecretary, the SSS president and seven appointive members.
The House approved House Bill 1161, seeking to amend Republic Act 8282,
otherwise known as the Social Security Act of 1997, to rationalize the duties, powers
and accountabilities of the SSC comparable to the policy making bodies, such as the
Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Philippine Health Insurance Corp.
(PhilHealth) and Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF).
Rep. Ibarra M. Gutierrez III (Party-list, Akbayan), principal author of the bill, said
the measure would be a welcome development for ordinary and privately-employed
individual SSS members, who would be able to avail of the privileges enjoyed by
members of good standing, which would otherwise not be available under the existing law.
This measure provides a strong incentive for those that have been in arrears on
their principal payments for their employees contributions, to immediately settle what is
due and overdue because of the possibility of eliminating the huge burden of dealing with
delinquency penalties, said Gutierrez, a vice chairman of the House Committees on
Human Rights, and on Revision of Laws.
The bill for one, seeks to amend Section 4 of RA 1161, pertaining to the duties and
powers of the SSC and the SSS, so that the SSC is empowered to condone, enter into a
compromise, or release, in whole or in part, penalties imposed upon delinquent social
security contributions regardless of the amount involved under such valid terms and
conditions it may prescribed when the financial position of the employer demonstrates a
clear inability to pay the assessed delinquency.
The SSC shall submit to both the Senate and the House of Representatives an
annual report on the exercise of powers under this provision, stating among others the
following: names and addresses of employers whose penalty delinquencies have been the
subject of compromise or condonation; amount involved; amount compromised or
condoned; and the justifications thereon, to determine that said powers are reasonably
exercised and the SSS is not unduly deprived of revenues.

The bill also allows the SSC to determine and fix from time to time, through rules
and regulations, the minimum and maximum monthly salary credits of memberemployees, the schedule and the rate of contributions of employers and memberemployees, the rate of penalty on due but unremitted contributions of employers and
member-employees and unpaid loan amortizations of member-employees, taking into
consideration actuarial calculations, rate of benefits, inflation; and other relevant socioeconomic data.
Secondly, the bill seeks to amend Section 18 of RA 1161 pertaining to employees
contributions, so that beginning on the last day of the calendar month, when an
employees compulsory coverage takes effect, and every month thereafter, during his
employment, the employer shall deduct and withhold from such employees monthly
salary, wage, compensation or earnings, the employees contribution in an amount
corresponding to his salary, wage, compensation, or earnings during the month in
accordance the monthly salary credits, schedule and the rate of contributions as it may be
determined and fixed by the commission.
Moreover, the monthly salary credits, schedule, and rate of contribution shall also
apply to self-employed and voluntary members.
Lastly, the bill amends Section 22 of RA 1161, pertaining to remittance of
contributions, so that the penalty rate on delinquent contributions per month shall be
determined and fixed by the Commission through rules and regulations taking into
consideration the current inflation rate and other socio-economic data.
The bill is co-authored by Reps. Winston Castelo, Rene L. Relampagos, Jesus N.
Sacdalan, Agapito H. Guanlao, Luzviminda C. Ilagan, Fernando L. Hicap, Gina P. De
Venecia, and Rufus B. Rodriguez. (30) rbb