Deputy Majority Leader Luigi Villafuerte and Rep. Migz Villafuerte have cited President Marcos’ push in his 5th State of the Nation Address (SONA) for an overhaul of the almost half-century-old National Building Code (NBC) hoping this presidential endorsement would serve as a strong impetus for senators to finally pass their version of this House-approved measure this Second Regular Session of the 20th Congress.
The Villafuertes expressed hope that this presidential pitch in the latest SONA for a makeover of the NBC would prompt senators to review this antiquated Code and then pass their version of a new NBC, which the House of Representatives had already passed to boost the resiliency of Philippine infrastructure in future disasters.
Luigi recalled that the House passed House Bill (HB) No. 6615 in December 2025 yet, “in an effort to reform the 49-year-old NBC Code, with an eye to climate-proofing and making our buildings more resilient against earthquakes, fires, floods, landslides, storms and volcanic eruptions, among others.”
The deputy majority leader and Rep. Migz, who chairs the House committee on information and communications technology (ICT), are among the authors of the House-passed HB 6615, which proposes a “New Philippine Building Act,” to prepare our country for, among others, the so-called “The Big One” earthquake that experts fear could knock down at any time at least 10% of structures in Metro Manila.
Migz Villafuerte said the proposed NBC overhaul is meant to gird up our country for, among others, the so-called “The Big One” earthquake that experts fear could knock down at any time at least 10% of structures in Metro Manila.
Counterpart bills on amending the NBC are pending in the Senate.
The 5th SONA last Monday marked the opening of the Second Regular Session of the 20th Congress.
Migz and Luigi Villafuerte have likewise given their full backing to the proposed laws of President Marcos in his 5th SONA to cushion not only on low-income Filipinos but on the middle class and small entrepreneurs as well the fallout from the economic crunch touched off by the war-induced global oil shock, particularly bigger relief from income tax payments and electricity bills.
“We give our full backing to the long-overdue overhaul of the EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act) by junking the systems loss charge and the VAT (value-added tax) on this charge that DUs (distribution utilities) pass on to power consumers as these are responsible for jacking up our monthly electricity bills,” Migz, who chairs the House committee on information and communications technology (ICT), said.
Luigi, a deputy majority leader, said, meanwhile, that, “We are likewise supporting the President’s proposed legislation to expand the tax breaks not only for low-income Filipinos but for the middle class as well by exempting those earning up to P350,000 annually from paying income taxes and exempting small businesses from paying the CIT (corporate income tax).”
The Villafuertes said the President’s proposals “spell genuine relief for Filipinos reeling from the elevated cost of living arising from the global oil shock touched off by the Middle East conflict that seem to have no end in sight at this point amid the on-and-off hostilities between the United States and Iran for five months now.”
As regards the NBC bill, Migz said that alongside the President’s endorsement of an NBC overhaul, he and Luigi are hoping that, “The death toll from the collapse of the still-unfinished nine-storey building in Barangay Balibago, Angeles City last May and the powerful earthquake off Maasim, Sarangani last June would be enough reasons for senators to review the NBC, which was released in 1977, and then pass their counterpart to the House-passed bill overhauling this Code.”
In his latest SONA, the President said that: “Ganoon din dapat ang taas ng kalidad at tibay ng lahat ng mga pribadong imprastraktura. Ang lahat ng gusali sa ating bansa ay dapat handa, at kayang manatiling matatag at nakatindig laban sa anumang banta ng sakuna at kalamidad.”
Luigi Villafuert said the NBC is ripe for an overhaul in light of the affirmed vulnerability of the Philippines with its recent ranking as No. 1 most disaster-prone country in the world with a Risk Index of 46.91%—or significantly higher than its 2018 score of 26.70%.”
“Kaya akma lamang na bigyang-halaga at pagtuunan ang pag-amyenda ng National Building Code upang maging alinsunod ito sa mga modernong pamantayan,” Mr. Marcos said.
The mixed-use building being built in Balibago gave way before dawn of May 24 after that weekend’s strong winds and heavy rains in that city.
At least 30 people were confirmed dead and 8 others were injured, as the incident trapped dozens of workers in the building that was still in its finishing stages before the collapse.
As for the Mindanao tremor, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that the June 8 tectonic quake had killed 61 people and injured 1,400 persons, and with infrastructure damage to 725 structures reaching P1 billion.
The June 8 temblor had also damaged 54,000 houses, of which 9,900 were destroyed and 44,000 others were partially damaged.
Migz and Luigi noted that the urgent passage of the NBC is being spearheaded by Surigao del Sur Rep. Romeo Momo Sr., a lead author of the House-passed bill and chairman of the House committee on public works and highways.
Momo had said that the overhaul of building regulations are necessary as the current ones under the NBC are no longer relevant in the face of urbanization and environmental hazards.
Migz said the proposed NBC overhaul is meant to gird up our country for, among others, the so-called “The Big One” earthquake that experts fear could knock down at any time at least 10% of structures in Metro Manila.
The House-passed HB 6615 was the substitute bill for several measures similarly aiming to overhaul the NBC, including HB 2396, or the “New Philippine Building Act,” which the Villafuertes had introduced with CamSur Rep. Tsuyoshi Anthony Horibata and Bicol Saro Rep. Terry Ridon.
In the 19th Congress, the House had passed on third and final reading HB 8500 that sought to replace the NBC.
Among the authors of the House-approved HB 8500 in the previous Congress were Migz Villafuerte, Horibata, the Bicol Saro partylist and then-Rep. and now CamSur Gov. LRay Villafuerte.
Luigi noted that the NBC was established through President Decree (PD) No. 1096, which then-President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. issued 49 years ago to set standards for the design, construction and maintenance of structures in the country.
The last time that major changes were introduced to NBC was in 2005.
Luigi said the NBC is ripe for an overhaul in light of the affirmed vulnerability of the Philippines with its recent ranking as No. 1 most disaster-prone country in the world with a Risk Index of 46.91%—or significantly higher than its 2018 score of 26.70%.”
In a global review and assessment by the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank of 22 countries across geographic regions, they recalled that these two institutions suggested that “the Philippines needs to modernize its outdated building code, including adding provisions to address resilience to strong wind events and flooding, for the design of retaining walls, the design of seismic isolation systems, and inclusion of design provisions for confined masonry buildings and vernacular timber building types.”
Experts expect the “Big One” to be an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or higher that could hit Metro Manila and nearby areas directly on the Marikina Valley fault line, killing as many as tens of thousands of people.
