The Committee on Energy, chaired by Palawan Representative Jose Alvarez approved the substitute bill seeking to reduce government electricity expenditures by mandating the development and utilization of renewable energy systems in all government buildings and facilities.
The substitute bill consolidates House Bills (HBs) 458, 1261, 2804, 3040, 3126, 3667, 3942, 4138, 4601, 5090, and 5094, authored by Representatives Ping Remulla; Marcy Teodoro; Sandro Marcos; Paolo Henry Marcoleta; JB Bernos; Tom Hernandez; Aniela Tolentino; Lani Revilla, Bryan Revilla, and Jolo Revilla; Salvador Pleyto; Benjamin Agarao Jr.; and Cheeno Miguel Almario, respectively.
Marcos explained that he is pushing for HB 2804 because intensified efforts to harness and advance renewable energy sources “are critical in mitigating the adverse effects of climate change and essential in addressing the escalating costs and finite nature of fossil-based energy sources.”
Agarao’s measure, on the other hand, seeks to institutionalize and scale up the public sector’s shift to renewable energy.
“All national government agencies and local government units (LGUs) shall be mandated to source a minimum percentage of their electricity from renewable energy.”
Under the legislator’s bill, all national government agencies and local government units (LGUs) shall be mandated to source a minimum percentage of their electricity from renewable energy, with this share increasing over time.
The lawmaker stressed that the government should be at the forefront of the clean energy revolution.
“By acting now to green our own electricity consumption, the government will save taxpayers’ money in the long run.”
“By acting now to green our own electricity consumption, the government will save taxpayers’ money in the long run (every peso saved on power is a peso available for vital public services), create local jobs in the renewables sector, and fulfill our moral obligation to combat climate change,” he explained.
The substitute bill was subsequently referred to the Committee of Appropriations to ensure the availability of resources for the bill’s funding provisions.
