SENATOR RALPH G.

RECTO
Katulong nyo sa Pag-Asenso
I

II

Position on Major Issues

Stopped additional requirements for issuance of PRO drivers license

Sought the extension of vehicle and drivers license

Proposed the Increase of tax exempt value of balikbayan box to P150,000

Urged focus on loose firearms not on single bullets found in luggage of OFW

Opposed MRT fare hike instead insisted on improving services first

Proposed summit for Comprehensive Traffic Program and Flood Management Plan

Pushed for the Increase in Internal Revenue Allotment share of local governments

Recommended the turnover to authorities of MILF personnel involved in the killing of SAF44

Budget initiatives

Free Internet Wi-Fi Connectivity. Increased the budget from 338.5 billion to P1.4 Billion for WI-FI
connectivity in public hospitals, airports, plazas, libraries, schools and other government buildings

Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens Program. Increased the budget for Social Pension for
Indigent Senior Citizens Program so that indigent senior citizens 67 years old and above instead of
only 77 years old and above, would be granted the monthly stipend of P500

Conditional Cash Transfer. Increased the budget of the CCT by 336 Million to include 100,000
Yolanda victims

Higher Teachers supplies allowance. Increased budget for public teachers supplies allowance
from P1,000 to P1500

Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Program. Initiated budget For rehabilitation and reconstruction
works in disasters and calamity areas including the typhoons Yolanda, and Sendong, the earthquake in
Bohol and Cebu and the siege in Zamboanga City.

Post-Budget Review Report. Proposed the inclusion of a 2015 Post-budget report that will contain
the performance based on program/project targets as indicated in the General Appropriations Act
(GAA).

Increase Budget for State Colleges and Universities (SUCs) and Philippine Science High School
(PSHS). Initiated the increase in the budgets of SUCs and PSHS for augmentation of funds for
scholarship, facilities and equipment.

Legislative Accomplishments

III
q

Major Laws Authored/Sponsored

Centenarians Act of 2016 (RA 10868)

Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (RA 10863)
Extending the Period of Implementation of the Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF)
(RA 10848)
Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Act (RA 10844)
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Act (RA 10801)
Additional Benefits for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) (RA 10754)
Tax Incentives Management and Transparency Act (RA 10708)
National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act (RA 10699)
PAGASA Modernization Act (RA 10692)
Increasing the Tax Exempt Ceiling on 13th Month Pay and Other Benefits (RA10653)
Philhealth Coverage for All Senior Citizens (RA 10645)
Philippine National Railways Charter Extension (RA 10638)
Enhancing the Philippine Basic Education System (K to 12 Program) (RA 10533)
Strengthening the National Electrification Administration (RA 10531)
International Common Carriers Tax Exemption (RA 10378)
Kindergarten Education Act (RA 10157)
General Tax Amnesty (RA 9480)
Amendments to BCDA (RA 9400)
BCDAs One-Time Tax Amnesty (RA 9399)
Lifting of the 70% Cap on Input VAT (RA 9361)
Extension of RA 9182 (Special Purpose Vehicle Act of 2002) (RA 9343)
Amendments to the Rent Reform Act (RA 9341)
Amendments to the National Internal Revenue Code (RA 9337) (Reformed VAT & Increase in Corporate
Income Tax)
Lateral Attrition Act of 2005 (RA 9335)
Increasing the Excise Tax Rates on Alcohol and Tobacco Products (RA 9334)
Philippine Overseas Shipping Act (RA 9301)
Domestic Shipping Act (RA 9295)
Restoring the Tax Exemption of Offshore Banking Units (OBUs) and Foreign Currency Deposit Units
(FCDUs) (RA 9294)
Expanding the Jurisdiction of the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) (RA 9282)
Rationalizing the Provisions of Documentary Stamp Tax (RA 9243)
Excluding Several Services from VAT Coverage (RA 9238)
Rationalization of Excise Tax on Automobiles (RA 9224)
Special Purpose Vehicle Act of 2002 (RA 9182)
Barangay Micro Business Enterprises Act of 2002 (RA 9178)
Film Development and Incentives Board (RA 9167)
Rent Reform Act of 2001 (RA 9161)
Retail Trade Liberalization Law (RA 8762)
Regional Headquarters Law (RA 8756)
Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act (RA 8425)
Special Economic Zone Law (RA 7916)

Major Laws Co-Authored

Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST) (RA 10687)
Open High School System Act (RA 10665)
Open Learning and Distance Education Act of 2014 (RA 10650)
Ladderized Education Act of 2014 (RA 10647)
Amendments to the National Health Insurance Act (RA 10606)
Revised AFP Modernization Program (RA 10349)
GOCC Governance Act of 2011 (RA 10149)
Magna Carta for Disabled Persons (RA 9442)
Prohibiting the Detention of Live or Dead Patients in Hospitals on Grounds of Nonpayment of Hospital
Bills (RA 9439)
Strengthening the Regulatory Functions of the POEA (RA 9422)
An Act to Strengthen the Office of the Solicitor General (RA 9417)
Biofuels Act of 2006 (RA 9367)
Special Economic Zone Law (RA 7916)
Comprehensive Tax Reform Law (RA 8424)

Summary of Legislative Accomplishments/Advocacies (16th Congress)

IV

HEALTH

Authored and co-sponsored RA 10645 which grants automatic Philhealth coverage to all senior
citizens
Authored bills accelerating universal Philhealth coverage, modernizing healthcare and health
infrastructure
Authored bills mandating Philhealth coverage for all women about to give birth and their newborn
children, as well as automatic Philhealth coverage for all Persons with Disabilities (PWDs)
Proposed an increase in the 2015 budget for Supplemental Feeding for school children
Advocated for the itemized listing of lump sum appropriations in the Health Budget

EDUCATION

Authored RA 10157 which institutionalizes Kindergarten

Co-authored the following laws: a.) Ladderized Education Act b.) Open Learning and Distance Education
Act ; and c.) Open High School System
Introduced an amendment to the Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education
bill (UniFAST) such that the top 10 graduates of public high schools may be granted student loan.
Authored a bill providing for a full tuition subsidy for students enrolled in State Universities and
Colleges (SUCs)
Introduced amendments to the 2015 DepEd budget for Teaching Supplies Allowance (Teachers Chalk
Allowance) from P1,000 to P1,500
Advocated for the itemized listing of lump sum appropriations in the Education Budget, i.e., DepEd
Classroom Construction, Repair, Replacement Fund

AGRICULTURE

Authored a bill granting full crop insurance coverage to farmers to compensate for damages inflicted by
calamities
Authored a bill for the disposition of the Coconut Levy Assets to accelerate the development of the
coconut industry and to benefit the coconut farmers
Authored and co-sponsored a bill extending for 5 years from 2015 until 2020 the utilization period of the
Agricultural Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ACEF)
Advocated for the itemized listing of lump sum appropriations in the Agriculture Budget, i.e., DA
Farm-to-Market Road and Irrigation Fund

ROADS/INFRASTRUCTURE/TRANSPORTATION

Authored and co-sponsored RA 10638 which extended the corporate life of the Philippine National
Railways (PNR) for another 50 years

Authored a bill creating the Special Mass Transit System Support Fund which reallocates the
Motor Vehicle Users Charge (MVUC) for our mass transit system.

Authored a bill providing safeguard mechanisms to Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects.

Authored resolutions inquiring on the propriety of the MRT/LRT fare hike and the viability of the
governments mass transit programs
Authored resolutions inquiring on the comprehensive traffic program of the government and on the
viability of the approved master plan on flood management in the NCR
Authored resolutions investigating the delays in the release of motor vehicle license plates, stickers
and tags by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and inquiring on the feasibility of extending the
validity of motor vehicle registration and drivers license; Called for the suspension of the LTO
program requiring the issuance of new car plates and reimburse those who have already renewed
Called on the LTO to suspend its order requiring applicants for a professional drivers license to
first secure a clearance from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine
National Police (PNP).
Advocated for the itemized listing of lump sum appropriations in the DPWH Budget, i.e., Right-ofWay Fund, Various Infrastructure Including Local Projects, Feasibility Studies, Engineering
Design Fund

TECHNOLOGY

Sponsored Republic Act 10692 modernizing PAGASA to allow it to better respond to disaster risk
reduction climate change adaptation.
Sponsored the bill creating the Department of Information and Communications Technology
(DICT).
Authored a bill providing for free wireless internet access in government offices, public schools and
hospitals, parks, libraries and transport terminals.
Authored a bill strengthening the utilization of ICT in all public high schools
Sponsored amendments to the 2015 national budget to increase the appropriations for the free Wi-Fi
Internet access project

Authored a bill requiring internet service providers to deliver minimum internet connection speeds of
10 Mbps for mobile broadband/internet access and 20 Mbps for fixed and fixed wireless
broadband/internet access

SOCIAL SECURITY
A. Tax Reform

Authored and co-sponsored RA 10653 which increases the tax-exempt ceiling of the 13th month pay,
Christmas bonus and other benefits from P30,000 to P82,000
Authored bills introducing reforms in the income tax system: a.) adjusting the levels of net taxable
income and nominal tax rates ; b.) exempting marginal income earners (MIEs) from the payment of
income tax and value-added tax c.) increasing the allowable personal exemption for each individual
taxpayer from P50,000 to P150,000, d.) lowering the individual income tax rates and replacing the single
corporate income tax rate with a graduated income tax rates
Authored and co-sponsored the bill exempting persons with disability (PWDs) from the value-added
tax and treats PWDs regardless of age as a dependent
Authored a bill increasing the tax-exempt value of balikbayan boxes to P150,000

B. Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Program/Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps)

Authored bills institutionalizing a Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program

Sponsored amendments to the 2014 national budget to include 100,000 families from Yolanda-affected
areas in the CCT Program
Consistently pushed for the funding of the 4Ps under the national budget, in his capacity as the Senate
Committee on Finance Vice Chairman.

C. Senior Citizens

Co-authored and co-sponsored the bill mandating a P2,000 across the board increase in the monthly
pension of SSS pensioners.
Proposed the increase in the 2015 and 2016 budgets of the DSWD for Social Pension for Indigent
Senior Citizens to cover more indigent senior citizens
Authored and co-sponsored a bill granting a P100,000 cash gift for all Filipino centenarians

D. Calamity
Proposed the inclusion of a Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Program Fund in the 2014 Budget
(RA 10633)

E. Jobs/Increase in Pay

Authored a bill providing for a 20% across the board increase in the basic salary of government
officials and employees
Authored a bill providing a Charter to govern the operations of the Overseas Workers Welfare
Administration (OWWA),

Education
q

Doctor of Humanities, honoris causa

Lipa City Public College
2010
Doctor of Humanities, honoris causa
Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology
2009
st
Course on Leadership for the 21 Century: Chaos, Conflict and Courage
John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
1997
Certificate in Business Economics
University of Asia and the Pacific, Ortigas, Pasig City
1993
Completed 36 academic units towards the degree of Masters in Public Administration
University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City
1991
Bachelor of Science in Commerce, Major in Business Management
De La Salle University, Manila
1989
Secondary Education
De La Salle, Greenhills, San Juan
1982
Elementary Education
De La Salle, Greenhills, San Juan
1978
Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City
1975

International Conferences, Symposia, Seminars & Summits

Philippine Senate Representative, World Trade Organization-Temasek Foundation and the Temasek
Foundation Centre for Trade & Negotiations (TFCTN) Parliamentarian Workshop on International
Trade 2011
Singapore, May 4-6, 2011
Official Delegate of the Philippines, United Nations Summit on the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs)
New York, U.S.A., September 19-26, 2010
Official Delegate of the Philippines, Parliamentary Panel Within the Framework of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) Public Forum 2010
Geneva, Switzerland, September 13-18, 2010
th
Head, Philippine Delegation to the 17 Session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable
Development
New York, U.S.A., May 13-15, 2009
Alternate Governor, Philippine Delegation to the Joint International Monetary Fund-World Bank Annual
Meeting
Washington D.C., U.S.A., October 9-13, 2008
Official Delegate of the Philippines, United Nations General Assembly and Millennium Development
Goals High-Level Meeting
New York, U.S.A., September 20-26, 2008
Official Delegate of the Philippines, World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference

Official Delegate, 3rd International Conference of Asian Political Parties

Official Delegate of the Philippines, World Trade Organization Conference

Hong Kong, China, Dec. 13-18, 2005

Beijing, Peoples Republic of China, September 2-5, 2004

Cancun, Mexico, September 9-13, 2003

q

Delegate, Study Tour for Philippine Government Officials on Fiscal Discipline in the Budget and
Appropriations Process
Washington D.C., USA, May 12 16, 2003
Official Delegate of the Philippines, World Economic Forum

New York City, USA, February 1-3, 2002

Guest Speaker, 4th Bi-National Conference US Federation of Philippine-American Chamber of

Commerce, Inc.
Garden Grove, California, USA, May 1999
Official Delegate of the Philippines, Joint World Bank (WB) -International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual
Meeting
Washington, D.C., USA, October 1998
nd
Official Delegate of the Philippines, 2 General Assembly of the World Scout Parliamentary Union

Official Delegate of the Philippines, Asia-Europe Young Leaders Symposis

Official Delegate of the Philippines, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit

Manila Hotel, Philippines, August 1997

Miyazaki, Japan, March 1997
Manila, Philippines, November 1996

Participant, The Role of Congress within the U.S. Political System, United States International Visitors
Program of the U.S. Information Agency
Washington D.C., USA, May 1993
Official Delegate of the Philippines, Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Union

Official Delegate of the Philippines, Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Union

Manila, Philippines, March 1993

Taiwan, September 1992

VI

Personal Information
Date of Birth:
Place of Birth:
Father:
Mother:
Wife:
Child:

January 11, 1964

Quezon City, Philippines
Atty. Rafael Reyes Recto (deceased)
Carmen Gonzalez Recto (deceased)
Governor Vilma Santos-Recto
Ryan Christian Recto