Zubiri refiles SIM Card Registration, Dep't of Water bills in 19th Congress

Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri has refiled in the 19th Congress the SIM Card Registration Bill and the measure creating the Department of Water Resources.

In a text message to reporters, Zubiri said the SIM Card Registration Bill that he filed excludes the provision on social media.

To recall, former President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed the SIM Card Registration Bill which was passed in the 18th Congress, as he disagreed with the inclusion of social media in the measure without providing proper guidelines and definitions thereto.

Zubiri has yet to provide a copy of the SIM Card Registration Bill that he filed in the 19th Congress.

The lawmaker also refiled a bill seeking to create the Department of Water Resources.

The said department was first pushed under the Duterte administration. However, several Senate bills seeking its creation were not tackled at the committee level in the 18th Congress.

Apart from the two, Zubiri, who is poised to be the next Senate president, filed his other pet bills which include the proposed Regional Specialty Hospitals Act, Department of Disaster Resilience Act, Basic Education Teacher's Pay Increase, Barangay Health Workers Act, Magna Carta for Barangays, Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, Medical Reserve Corps Act and the bill seeking the establishment of the Negros Island Region. —KG, GMA News