House bill eyes mandatory SALN disclosure for President, VP

Members of the Liberal Party (LP) in the House of Representatives refiled the Freedom of Information (FOI) bill which mandates the disclosure of the Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) of the country's President, Vice President, and other high-ranking government officials.

The proposal was made under House Bill 2897, or the People’s Freedom of Information Act of 2025, which also requires disclosure of all information pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as government research data used as a basis for policy development. 

“Current inconsistencies and lack of mandatory disclosure highlight the need for a legislated FOI policy. Ang panukalang ito ay isang makapangyarihang sandata laban sa katiwalian, disimpormasyon, at kawalan ng katapatan at pananagutan sa pamahalaan,” House Deputy Minority Leader ML party-list Rep. Leila de Lima, who is one of the bill's authors.

(This measure is a powerful weapon against corruption, disinformation, and lack of honesty and accountability in government.)

Aside from the mandatory disclosure of SALN of the President and Vice President, House Bill 2897 also mandates SALN disclosure of the following officials:

• Members of the Cabinet
• Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives
• Justices of the Supreme Court; the Commissioners of the Constitutional Commissions and other constitutional offices
• Officers of the Armed Forces with the rank of general or the equivalent flag rank.

In addition, House Bill 2897 states that Filipino citizens, upon request, have a right to and will be given access to any record under the control of government agencies.

The proposed bill also mandates websites of government agencies to contain a matrix of requests made, their status, and the decision regarding the request. Once the information is released to one party, the information must be accessible to all.

“Katapatan at pananagutan ang dapat maging SOP sa gobyerno. Public office is a public trust. Wala dapat itinatago sa taumbayan na siyang dapat pinanggagalingan ng kapangyarihan sa pamahalaan," de Lima added.

(Honesty and accountability should be the standing operating procedure of the government. The government should not hide in the shadows because all government authority emanates from the people.)

Lawmakers from the Liberal Party bloc in the House pose after filing the People’s Freedom of Information Act of 2025 at the House of Representatives on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. The bill, which covers the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government, as well as GOCCs, constitutional commissions, LGUs, SUCs, AFP, and other bodies, aims “to push for more transparency and accountability sa gobyerno natin,” said ML Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima. Tina Panganiban-Perez/GMA Integrated News

Exemptions

The mandated proposed bill, however, does not include sensitive personal information contained in the SALN such as: 

• Home address of the SALN declarant
• Details of any unmarried children below 18 years of age living in the SALN declarant's household, if any, particularly their names, dates of birth, and ages
• Signatures of the SALN declarant and SALN co-declarant. 

Likewise, government-issued ID numbers of the SALN declarant and SALN co-declarant will be redacted to protect the dignity, safety, and security of the public officer, provided that all SALNs for previous years shall be archived and kept available to the websites. 

House Bill 2897 also limits access to information if it involves sensitive information such as:

• Information relating to national security, foreign affairs, internal/external defense, law enforcement procedures, and trade secrets;
• Records or minutes of advice given and of opinions expressed during decision-making or policy formulation of the Chief Executive;
• Assistance to OFWs, including but not limited to their cases and records on criminal and family cases
• The information requested involves records of foreign diplomats on diplomatic and consular missions, their arrival and departure, and other information that could compromise their safety.
• The information requested is exempted under a treaty or bilateral agreement to which the Philippines is a party.
• The information requested is obtained by either House of Congress, or any committee thereof, in executive session.
• Information requested is premature and/or is a mere draft
• Matters of privileged communication – as defined in the Rules of Court, and
• Information pertaining to personal privacy, and other constitutionally or legally protected information, among other sensitive details and information.
• Those protected under or the “Data Privacy Act of 2012.”

The first FOI bill was filed way back in the 8th Congress by then Camarines Sur Rep. Raul Roco.  Several versions of the FOI bill have since been refiled every Congress, but it has never gained significant support in the House and the Senate.

Then President Rodrigo Duterte issued Executive Order (EO) No. 2 in 2016 on FOI, but the EO’s coverage only included the executive branch and did not carry sanctions for non-compliance on the part of the government.

But under House Bill 2897, failure to comply will be punished with imprisonment of one to six years and a fine ranging from P100,000 to P1 million.

Caloocan Rep. Edgar Erice, Zamboanga del Norte Rep. Adrian Michael Amatong, Dinagat Islands Rep. Arlene “Kaka” Bag-ao, Muntinlupa Rep. Jaime Fresnedi, Albay Rep. Cielo Krisel Lagman, and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Alfonso Umali Jr. are the other lawmakers who filed House Bill 2897. —VAL, GMA Integrated News