Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte (left), Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero (Facebook)

Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. LRay Villafuerte has expressed confidence that his fellow Bicolano, Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero, will put on the express lane the pending priority measures of the Marcos administration in the waning days of the 19th Congress. 

“I am taking Senate President Chiz [Escudero] on his word about his shared commitment with the President [Marcos] and Speaker Martin [Romualdez] on giving priority to the passage of essential and meaningful measures in the remaining 73 sessions days of the 19th Congress,” Villafuerte said.

Villafuerte, president of the National Unity Party (NUP), had expressed optimism that the Romualdez-led House of Representatives would have a closer, more harmonious working relationship with the Senate under Sorsogon native Escudero's watch during the third and final regular session. 

The House had already passed on third and final reading nearly all of the priority measures identified by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC), as well as those given special mention by President Marcos in his past two State of the Nation Addresses (SONA). 

The same cannot be said of the Senate, the reins of which was taken over by Escudero only at the tail end of the second regular session, which was quickly followed by a lengthy legislative break. 
 

Escudero recently said that an initial six LEDAC bills will be prioritized by the Senate. These are the proposed “Blue Economy Act”, “Enterprise-Based Education and Training Framework Act”, “Open Access in Data Transmission Act”, “Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy (CREATE MORE) Act, creation of the Department of Water Resources (DWR), and the amendatory law to the “Universal Health Care (UHC) Act". 

Villafuerte had co-authored the House-passed versions of five of these measures, namely House Bill (HB) No.9662 or the Blue Economy Act, HB No.7400 or the Enterprise-Based Education and Training Framework Act, HB No.9663 on the establishment of the DWR, HB No.0006 or the Open Access in Data Transmission Act, and HB No.9794 on CREATE MORE. 

He had also co-written HB No.4738 on the proposed amendatory law to the UHC, which is still under deliberation at the committee level in the House. 

The third regular session will start on Monday, July 22. It will coincide with President Marcos' third SONA.