The House of Representatives on Monday, March 6, approved on third and final reading the proposed E-Governance Act that aims to digitalize the delivery of government services and improve government services.

The shift to digitalization is under House Bill (HB) No. 7327, or “An Act institutionalizing the transition of the government to E-Governance in the digital age, creating for the purpose the Philippine Infostructure Management Corp. (PIMC) and appropriating funds therefor.”

Voting 304-4-0, the lower chamber approved the bill that was a consolidation of 21 related measures.

House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, the principal author of the proposed law, said the measure aims to make government services more accessible to the people.

“The bill would make it easier for people to transact with and avail themselves of services from the government through digital platforms. It would make the delivery of services more effective, efficient, and transparent,” he said in a statement.

The bill was co-authored by Senior Deputy Majority Leader and Ilocos Norte 1st District Rep. Ferdinand Alexander Marcos and Tingog Party-list Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez and Jude Acidre.

The proposal seeks to adopt “a policy to create, foster and sustain a digitally empowered and integrated government that provides secure, responsible and transparent citizen-centered services and harnesses the potential of open data for promoting economic growth and a globally competitive Filipino nation.”

It would also aim to “promote the use of the internet, information and communications technology (ICT) and emerging technologies within and across government agencies to provide citizen-centric government information and services, and improve the public trust and citizen participation in the government.”

Under the proposed measure, the institutionalization of the digitalized government services would cover all executive, legislative, judicial, and constitutional offices, including local government units, state universities and colleges, government-owned or -controlled corporations, and similar state instrumentalities located in the country or abroad.

E-Governance is defined in the bill as the “application of ICT in establishing interaction between the different levels of government, business and the citizenry.”

“It also involves the implementation of internal government operations meant to simplify and improve both the democratic and business aspects of government,” the measure added.

The proposal seeks for an establishment of a government online payment system, citizens’ concern center, public feedback mechanisms, public service directory, and online public service portal for individuals and businesses, among others.

The bill would also create the PIMC to manage the government ICT assets, including infrastructure, platform, and software.