Senator Lito Lapid expressed his delight over the passage of Senate Bill No. (SBN) 1850, or the “New Agrarian Emancipation Act” on its third and final reading.
The bill aims to condone all loans including interests, penalties, and surcharges arising from the award of agricultural lands under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) as of Dec. 31, 2022.
The bill is a response to the current economic crisis, climate change, and other challenges faced by the agriculture sector, particularly the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs).
The proposed measure covers two types of loans to ARBs, which include those who have Agrarian Reform Receivables (ARR) Account with the Land Bank of the Philippines and have not paid or have incomplete payments of their amortization on the principal, interests, penalties, and surcharges of their lands under Presidential Decree 27, and subsequent amendments to RA 6657.
“Ang panukalang batas na ito ay naglalayong makatulong na maibsan ang kalagayan ng ating mga ARBs na mga magsasaka para sila ay makabangon at makabawi mula sa epekto ng COVID-19.”
“Ang panukalang batas na ito ay naglalayong makatulong na maibsan ang kalagayan ng ating mga ARBs na mga magsasaka para sila ay makabangon at makabawi mula sa epekto ng COVID-19, ang patuloy na pagtaas ng mga bilihin, climate change at iba pang mga suliranin,” Lapid said.
The New Agrarian Emancipation Act will provide much-needed financial relief to ARBs.
“The bill dismisses all cases related to the non-payment of loans of ARBs with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) motu proprio and exempts ARBs from payment of estate taxes.”
Additionally, the bill dismisses all cases related to the non-payment of loans of ARBs with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) motu proprio and exempts ARBs from payment of estate taxes.
However, the bill also includes a 10-year prohibition on the sale, transfer, or conveyance of the land except through hereditary succession or to the government or to the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) or to other qualified beneficiaries through the DAR from the issuance of the Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA).
“Ang pag-condone ng kanilang amortisasyon sa lupa ay magbibigay sa kanila ng lubos na kailangang mapagkukunang pinansyal na magbibigay sa sa ating mga beneficiaries ng pagkakataong paunlarin ang mga sakahan, pataasin ang kanilang produktibidad at isulong ang agrikultura sa ating bansa,” the veteran legislator concluded.
