DAR DA R - Legal Inform Inf ormati ation on System Syst em
No date supplied Handbook for CARP Impl Implementors ementors No date supplied
ACKNOWLEDGMENT BARIE would like to thank thank the the following offices offices for their their valuable inp uts: Lega l Aff Affairs airs Office, Bureau of Land Acquisition and Distribution, Spe cial Concerns Office, Policy and Strategic Research Service, and the Land Use Conversion Committee. Likewise, BARIE would like to thank Mr. Gil R. Tuparan for writing portions of the initial draft. FOREWORD The Dep artment of Agraria n Reform is cog niza nt of the the role that that various DAR Frontliners, Frontliners, like the the MAROs and ARPTs play in the the implementation of the Comprehe nsive Agraria n Reform Program at the gras sroo ts leve l. As frontliners, frontliners, they a re the first contact of the prog ram's vario us clie ntele. It is from them that the the a graria n reform be neficiaries , the th e landowners, and the ge neral public ge t their their first first impressions impressions o f DAR as a s ocial d evelop ment agency. In the the course of implementing implementing the program, these these field implementors are often faced faced wit with h issues and proble ms due to varied understanding and interpretati interpretation on of the the CARP law and its implementing implementing guidelines a nd issuances. To add ress this, BARIE, BARIE, in coordina tion with with other DAR units, units, produce d in 1993 1993 the first first edition of the Handb Handb ook for CARP Implementors. This resource ma terial which was distributed to all MAROs and o th distributed ther er field pe rsonnel was de velope d to e nhance the knowledge, att attitu itude de and co mmit mmitment ment of DAR front frontliners liners in implementing implementing the program. Since last year, however, however, new implementing implementing guidelines as well as amendments to to the existing Administ Administrative rative Orders were issued. This prompted BARIE BARIE to to produce th the e Second Edit Edition ion of the Handbook for DAR Frontliners Frontliners to ensure that the the resource material is well updated and resp onsive to th the e nee ds o f the the field implementors. The Handboo k which whi ch is also presented in a q uestion-and- answer format, format, contains an updated discussio n of the the va rious provisions of the program and its implementing implementing mechanisms, procedures and guidelines. It is hoped th that at this this Handbook will be a valuable reference tool tool in transforming transforming our field field pe rsonnel into into successful and multi-faceted multi-faceted impleme nt ntors ors of the the ag rarian reform reform program. (SGD.) ERNESTO D. GARILAO Secretary HANDBOOK HA NDBOOK FOR CARP IMPLEMENTORS TABLE OF CONTENTS Chap ter 1
:
AGRA RIAN REFORM CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLE PRINCIPLES S
1.1
Meaning of Agraria n Reform
1.2
Agraria n Reform Issues: Land Tenur Tenure e Impr Improvements ovements vs. Support Services
1.3
Big Farms vs. Small Farms
1.4
Public vs. Private Lands
1.5
Agraria n Reform: Counter-Insurgenc y Tool?
Chap ter 2
:
COMPREHENSIVE AGRA RIAN REFORM PROG RAM
Chapter 3
:
CARP COVERAGE
3.1
CARP Scop e
3.2
Implementation Sched ule
Chap ter 4 4.1
:
EXEMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS
Exclusions 4.1.1. 4.1. 1.
Poultry, Livestoc k and Swine Raising
4.2
Exemptions
4.3 4. 3
Procedures Gove rnin rning g Exempt Exemption ion of Lands Under Sec. 10, RA 6657
4.4
Proce dures for Issuance of Exemption Cleara nce Based on DOJ Opinion No. 44
Chapter 5
:
LAND ACQUISI ACQUISITION TION
5.1
Requisities in Land Acquis ition
5.2
Mode s of Acquisi tion 5.2.1 5.2. 1
Compulso ry Acquisi tion
5.2.2 5.2. 2
Voluntary Volunt ary Offer to Sell
5.2.3 5.2. 3
Voluntary Volunt ary Land Trans fer/Direct Payme nt Scheme
5.3
Executive Orde r No. 407 As Amende d
5.4 5. 4
Procedures in Land Acquisition
5.5
Prioritiza tion of Lands for Cove rage
5.6
Reco nstitu nstitution tion of Title
5.7
Untitled Untit led Private Prope rties
5.8 Chap ter 6
Field Investigation :
AGRA RIAN REFORM BENEFI BENEFICIARIE CIARIES S
6.1
Qualifica tion of Beneficia ries
6.2
Orde r of Priority
6.3
Farmworker Beneficia ries
6.4
Scree ning of Beneficia ries
Chapter 7
:
LANDOWNER'S LANDOWNER 'S RETEN RETENTION TION AND AWARD TO CHI CHILDREN LDREN
7.1
Retention Limit
7.2
Land Ownership Ceiling
7.3
Qualifica tions for the Exercise of the Right of Retention
7.4
Award to Lando wner's Children
7.5
Sele ction of Retained Area
7.6
Proce dures for the Exercise of the Right of Retention and Award to Qualified Children
7.7
When to Exercise the Right of Retention
7.8
Ob ligations of Lando wners and Limits to the Disp osition of the Retained Areas
7.9
Tenants in Retained Areas
7.10
Retention Under PD 27
7.11 7.1 1
Homestea d Lands
Chap ter 8
:
LAND SURVEY
Chapter 9
:
LAND VALUA VALUATION TION AND LANDOWNER'S COMPENSA COMPENSATION TION
9.1
Just Compe nsation
9.2
Land Valuation Factors
9.3
New Land Valuation Formula
9.4
Summary Administrative Proce eding s
9.5
Concerned Parties' Involveme nt in the Land Valuation Proce ss
9.6 9. 6
Modes of Compensation
9.7
Land Bank Bonds
9.8
PD 27 Lands
9.9
EO 407 Lands
9.10
Mt. Pinatubo- Aff Mt. Affected ected Areas
Chapter 10
:
LAND DISTRIBUTION
10.1
Basic Principle s in Land Distribution
10.2
Award Ceiling
10.3
Land Distribution Proce ss
10.4
Individual vs. Collec tive Distribution
10.5
Rights and Ob ligations of Beneficia ries
Chap ter 11
:
PAYMENT BY BENEFIC BENEFICIARIES IARIES
11.1 11. 1
Pay ment Unde r RA 6657
11.2 11 .2
Payme nt in OLT Lands
11.3 11 .3
Pay ment Under VLT/DPS
11.4 11 .4
Payme nt in Lahar- Affected Areas
Chap ter 12
:
SUPPO RT SERVICE SERVICES S
12.1
Suppo rt Servic es to Lando wners
12.2
Suppo rt Servic es to Agraria n Reform Beneficia ries
Chap ter 13
:
AGRICULTURAL LEASEHOLD
13.1 13. 1
Laws and Issuances on Leasehold
13.2
Tenancy Relationship
13.3 13. 3
Rights Right s and Responsibilities of Lessee
13.4 13. 4
Rights Right s and Responsibilities of Lessor
13.5
Leas e Rental
13.6
Fixing the Leas e Rental
13.7
Other Related Laws and Issuance s
Chapter 14
:
PRODUCTION AND PROFIT SHARI SHARING NG
14.2
DAR' s Authority
14.3
Main Features
14.4
Role of the MARO
Chap ter 15
:
COMMERCIAL FARM DEFERMENT
15.1
Meaning of Commercia l Farms and Commercia l Farm Deferme nt
15.2
Rationale for Deferme nt
15.3
Requireme nts
15.4
Deferment Period
15.5
DAR's Role During Deferme nt Period
Chap ter 16
:
LAND USE CONVERSION
16.1
De finition
16.2
DAR's Stand on Conversio n
16.3
DAR's Lega l Manda te
16.4
DAR's Role in Conversio n
16.5 16. 5
Mechanics of Land Use Conversion Application, Approval and Monit Monitoring oring
16.6
LGU's Authorit Authority y to Recla ssify
Chapter 17
:
LAND TRANSACTION
17.1 17. 1
Laws and Issuances Gove rnin rning g Agricult Agricultural ural Land Transaction
17.2 17. 2
Land Transactions In Involving volving Ago- Tourism Develo pment
17.3
Land Trans actions Aft After er 15 June 1988
17.4
Right of Pre- emption
17.5
Right of Rede mption
17.6
Valid Trans actions
17.7
Invalid Transa ctions
Chap ter 18
:
PUBLIC LANDS
18.1 18. 1
Public Alienable and Disposa ble Lands
18.2
Integra Int egra ted Socia l Fores try Program
18.3
Settlement Areas
18.4
Public Agricultural Lands Turned Ove r by the National Liveliho od Suppo rt Fund
18.5 18. 5
Lands of th the e Public Domain Covered by Cancelled or Expired
Pasture Pastur e Lea se Agreements and Timber License Agreeme nt nts s Per EO 407 18.6 18. 6
Lands of th the e Public Domain Covered by Cancelled or Expired Fishpond Lease Agreements
Chap ter 19
:
LANDED ESTATES
Chapter 20
:
BARANGAY AGRARIAN REFORM COMMITTEE (BARC)
20.1
Laws and Issuance s on BARC
20.2
Functions of the BARC
20.3
BARC Compo sition
20.4
BARC Office rs
20.5
Formation of BARC
20.6
Mediation and Conciliation
Chapter 21 21.1
:
DAR ADJUDICATION BOARD (DARAB)
DARAB Jurisdic tion
HANDBOOK FO R CARP IMPLEMENTORS IMPLEMENTORS CHAPTER 1 AGRARIAN REFORM REFORM CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLE PRINCIPLES S 1.1
MEANING OF AGRARIAN REFORM What is Agrarian Reform Reform? ? Section 3 of RA 6657 has 6657 has defined ag rarian reform reform as:
"the redistribution of lands, regar regardless dless of crops or fruits produ produced, ced, to farmers and regular farmworkers farmworkers who are landless, irrespective of tenurial arrangement, arrangement, to include the totality of factors and support services designed to lift the economic status of the beneficiaries, and all other arrangements arrangements alternative to t he physical redistribution of lands, suc h as production or profit-sharing, labor administration and the distribution of shares of
Basically, agrarian reform is land reform — the the transfer transfer of control control and ownership of agricultural agricultural land to the the actual tillers tillers — plus a pac kage of support services: economic and p hysical infrastruct infrastructure ure support se rvices (ECOPISS), (ECOPISS), (e.g., credit, extension, irrigation, roads and b ridges, marketin marketing g facilities), a nd human resource and institut institutional ional development or social infrastructure building and strengthening (SIBS). What is being "Reformed" in Agrarian Reform Reform? ? Agrarian reform reform seek s to correct numerous numerous de fects in the the country's country's a grarian structu structure. re. Foremost among these these is the concentration concentration of land ownership in only a few people , such that that the the huge majority of the population does not have acce ss to land. Acco rding to the the 1980 Census of Agriculture, farms less than three hectares in size p redo minate in the Philipp Philipp ines, repre senting nearly 70% of the 3.4 3.4 million total number number of farms. However, they cover only 30% of the country's 9.7 million hectares total farm area. In contrast, farms with areas of more than 10 hectares are very few, constituting only 3.5% of the number of farms. Yet they cover 26% of the farm area. So what's wrong with that ? The concentration concentration of the the ownership ownership of lands in the the hands of a very few means means that th the e majority is deprived of the the opp ortu ortunit nity y to use land as a bas ic production resource. resource. The failure to access land results in unemployment, unemployment, low incomes, low productivity, productivity, poo r purchasing power, and sluggish rural economies.
A more equitab le distribution of land ownership, on the other hand, hand, promo tes a more equitable distribution of income which, in turn turn,, promotes grea ter eco nomic activity. More producers and income earners, require more services and good s which other other sectors of the the economy p roduce. The increase in domes tic demand and prod ucti uction on results result s in b roadba sed, sustainable eco nomic growth. growth. And And that's that's o nly the economic sid e o f it. it. With Wit h improved standards of living, living, greater peop le participation participation in the the community's community's affairs affairs is expected. This will will lead to a more dynamic and genuine genuine democracy. 1.2
AGRARIAN REFORM REFORM ISSUES: ISSUES : LAND TENURE IMPROVEMENT vs . SUPPORT SERVICES DELIVERY Land redistribution is so costly, why don't don't we just use the money for credit, extension, infrastructure, infrastructure, post harvest harvest facilities , etc ., for greater productivity ?
Such a strategy strategy would b enefit those those who own or control the land. It is not surprising, therefore, that more often than than not, it is a strategy prop ounded b y those those who alrea dy own land. For the the benefits of agricultural agricultural investment investments s to seep down and reach the lower economic strata, strata, inequitable land ownership structu structure re will have have to b e dismantled first. first. Broadening the land ownership base makes agricult agricultural ural develop ment more quickly and ea sily felt by the majority. majority. 1.3
AGRARIAN REFORM REFORM ISSUES: ISSUES : BIG FARMS vs . SMALL FARMS Aren't small farms farms less efficient and less productive? productive? Instead of breaking breaking up the lands, shouldn't we consolidate consolidate them into plantations to achieve economies of scale?
The argument that that large large farms are more efficient efficient th than an small farms farms is usually invoked by those who own export and cash crop plantations plantations as an excuse to exc lude their their landholdings from agrarian reform. reform. The issue can b e answered by e xamining whether whether economies of sca le do exist. A study study mad e on c oconut and other tree tree crops did not show any increasing yield per hectare as farm size increase s. In the the case of sugar, another another study has shown that average production cost per hectare, in fact, tends tends to be higher for larger farms. ( Adriano, Adriano, Quisumbing, Quisumbing, and Hayami, Toward Toward an Alternative Land Reform Reform Paradigm, Paradigm, 1990 ).
Furth Fur thermore, ermore, if breaking up the lands would would not be economically viab le, then then this this need not be done. Agrarian Agrarian reform reform can be undertaken by breaking up the land ownership ownership pattern but farm farming ing can b e d one co llectively.
Why don't we just distribute public and governmen government-owned t-owned lands? Why Why are we covering the private private farms which which are productive productive? Productive Producti ve private lands lands are covered under agrarian reform reform for various reasons. These include: a.
Public and government-o government-o wned lands already already have occupants occupants and and claimants. claimants. The sheer sheer extent extent of landlessness makes coverage of private lands inevitable; inevitable;
b.
One of the pilla rs of agra rian reform reform is the principle that the tiller of the the land has has the primac y of the right to own it;
c.
It is in productive private private lands, particularly particularly where the necessa ry investment investments s have been made, where where the the beneficiary beneficiary has greatest greatest chances chances of success. success.
1.5
AGRARIAN REFORM REFORM : COUNTER-INSURGENCY TOOL? Will agraria agrarian n reform cure all of the country's ills?
No, although it is a step in the the right direc tion. The co untr untry y has too many probl ems. But attempts to solv e them will will not yield s ustainable re sults unless unless the root cause is address ed — inequitable inequitable distribut distribution ion of resources. Since the Philippines is b asically an ag ricult ricultural ural country, country, land is the most important resource. resource. By a ddressing th the e p roblem of inequitable inequit able distribu distribution tion of the the land, agrarian reform is a major step towards reso lving the country's country's p roblems. Is agrarian agrarian reform an anti-insurge anti-insurgency ncy tool? No, agrarian reform reform is not being carried out to to solve th the e insurgency problem. However, However, agrarian reform reform answers answers the the clamor for social justice justice and the upliftm upliftment ent of th the e socio economic status of the the landles s. It provides a pe aceful means for radical so cial change and liberation from poverty. poverty. CHAPTER 2 COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM PROGRAM What is the constitutional mandate mandate for agraria agrarian n reform reform? ? Agraria n reform reform derive s its mandate from from bas ic principle s enshrined in the the Constitution. Constitution. The Philipp ine Constitutions Constitutions of 1935, 1973 and 1987 all attest to to this.
The 1935 Constitution mandated Constitution mandated a p olicy of social justice to insure insure the well-being a nd economic se curit curity y of the the pe ople.
The 1973 Constitution provided Constitution provided th that at "The "The State shall formulate and implement an agrarian reform program aimed at emancipating the tenant from the bondage of the soil ." soil ."
The 1987 Constitution contains Constitution contains more spe cific provisions on ag rarian reform. reform.
Article II, Decla ration of Principle s and State Polic ies, Section 21 — "The State shall promote comprehensive rural development and agrarian reform." reform."
Article XII, National Economy and P atrimony, Section 21 — " The State shall promote industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural development and agrarian agrarian reform,, . . ." reform
Article XIII, XIII, Soc ial Jus tice and Human Rights, Section 4 — "The State shall, by law, undertake an agrarian reform program founded on the right of farmers and regular farmworkers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till or in the case of other farmworkers, to receive a just share of the fruits thereof ."
taking into account ecological, developmen developmentt or equity considerations, and subject to the payment of just compensation compensation.. "In determining the retention retention limits, the State shall respect the right of small landowners. landowners. The State shall f urther provide provide incentives f or voluntary landsharing ." Article XIII, XIII, Sec tion 6 — "The State shall apply t he principles of agrarian reform, whenever whenever applicable in accordance with law ." ." What presidential issuances and legislations provide t he legal mandate for the Compre Comprehensive hensive Agrarian Reform Program? Various Vari ous ad mini ministrat strations, ions, from the the Commonwealth to to the Philippine Republic have issued d ecrees and p assed legislations on a grarian reform. reform. Under the prev ious adminis tration, Proclamation No. 131 and 131 and Executive Order No. 229, 229, both dated 22 July 1987 were issued when then President Corazon C. Aquino still exercised legislative p owers. These inst institu ituted ted the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) (CARP) a nd prov ided th the e mec hanism for its implementation. implementation. Republic Repub lic Ac t No . 6657 : An Ac t Instit uting a Comprehensive Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Reform Program to Promote Social Justice and Industrialization, Providing the Mechanisms for its I mplementation and/or and/or other Purposes,, was subse quentl Purposes quently y pa ssed by Congress, signed into law on 10 June 1988 1988 and be came e ff ffective ective on 15 June 1988. 1988. This is now known as the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL) of 1988. (By tradition, the anniversary of CARP is commemorated on this date). CHAPTER 3 CARP COVERAGE 3.1
CARP SCOPE What is the scope of CARP ?
The ownership or control of abo ut 10.3 million hectares 1 of ag ricult ricultural ural land, represe nt nting ing abo ut one-third of the the total land a rea o f the the Philippines shall be tr transferr ansferred ed over a ten-ye ar period to an estimated 3.9 million beneficiaries. beneficiaries.
What lands are covered by CARP ? The CARP covers, regardles s of tenuri tenurial al arrangement and commodity produced, all public and private lands devoted to or suitable suitable for agricult agriculture ure and not not classified classified as mineral, forest, forest, reside nt ntial, ial, co mmercial or industrial' land. The two criteria for cov erag e, therefore therefore , are (1) suitab suitab ility of the land for ag ricultur riculture; e; and (2) its its class ification. Specifically, th the e following following lands are covered by CARP: CARP: a.
all alienable and dispos able lands of th the e public public domain devo ted to or suit suitable able to to agricultu agriculture; re;
b.
all lands of th the e public domain in exces s of th the e specific limit limits s as determined determined by Congress; Congress;
c.
all other lands owned owned by th the e government devoted to or suitable to agricult agriculture; ure; and
d.
all private private lands devoted to to or suitable suitable to to agriculture agriculture regardless of the the agricultural agricultural products raised raised or that that can be raised therein. therein. (Section 4 RA 6657 ) Other major issuances on CAR CARP P are:
3.2
IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE When are these lands covered ? All lands within within the the scope of CARP CARP have been cove red by the program beginning 15 June 1988, 1988, the the date of CARP's CARP's effectivit effectivity. y.
However,, in consideration of the However the capa city of the the Gove rnm rnment ent to to implement the the program, the acquisition and distributi distribution on of agricultural agricultural lands covered by the program have been prioritized as follows:
Phase I — This started immedia tely upon effectivity of the the law and is prog rammed to be c omple ted within four years (1988-1992)
*
rice and corn lands which are covered by PD 27 ;
*
idle or abandoned;
*
voluntarily offered;
*
foreclosed by government financial institutions (GFIs);
*
acquired by the Presidential Commission on Good Governmen Governmentt (PCGG) (PCGG);; and
*
owned by the Government
Phase II — This also start started ed in 1988 and is programmed to be co mpleted in four years (1988-1992). (1988-1992).
*
all public agricultural lands which are to be opened for new developmen developmentt and and resettlement; and
*
private agricultural lands with areas above 50 hectares in so far as the excess over 50 hectares is concerned concerned
Phase III-A — This started on the fourth year and is programmed completed within three years (1992-1995) *
priva te agric ultur ultural al lands with area s from 24 to 50 hectares , in so far far as the the exc ess over the the retention limit. Phase III-B
— This is programmed to start on the sixth year and to be completed within four years (1994-1998) *
priva te agric ultur ultural al lands with area s abo ve the retention limit up to 24 hectares
Public lands and other other lands owned by the the gove rnm rnment ent and and gove rnmen rnment-owned t-owned or controlled controlled corpo ration rations s which which are leased and op erated by multinati multinational onal corporations or ass ocia tions were progra mmed for immedia te acquis ition and distribution right after the the effectivity of the the law for comp letion within within three three ye ars (1988-1991). (Sections (Sections 6 and 8, RA 6657 ) Does the order order of priority priority mean that all areas areas under under Phase II must first be acquired and and distributed before before those in Phase Phase III can be covered? Strictly Str ictly speaking, no. Startin Starting g 15 June June 1994, 1994, Phase III-B III-B lands can already be ac quired and distributed distributed eve n if not all Phase Phase II lands have be en covered. However, given DAR's backlo g in cove ring even those those p rivate agricultural agricultural lands 50 hectares hectares and ab ove, a nd the backlog in vo lunt luntary ary offer to to sell, for practical purposes, p riorit riority y should be given to the the comp letion of backlog in the earlier phases. Given such phasing, how many hectares can now (1994) (1994) be be acquired if a landowner's landowner's property property has an area area of? a.
40 has > 40 less 5
35 has.
b.
70 has > 70 less 5
65 has.
c.
20 has > 20 less 5
15 has.
* *
if th there ere is a backlog, unless unless voluntarily voluntarily off offered, ered, it is advise d that that th this is land land not not be covered yet. In Instead, stead, give priorit priority y to to the the completion completion of th the e backlog.
This example c onsiders only the landowner's landowner's retention retention right but does not take take into account the the award to qualified qualified children. The opinion of some that that in the the case of (a) in the the example, only 16 hectares hectares can be compulsorily acquired (40 less 24 has.) has.) has been taken by DAR to to have no legal basis. This has be en clarified clarified under Memorandum Circular No. 4, Series of 1993. 1993. CHAPTER 4 EXEMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS 4.1. EXCLUSIONS What lands are not covered by CARP ? The following following lands a re not covered by CAR CARP: P: a.
those th ose which are not suit suitable able for agricult agriculture, ure, and those those which which are classified as mineral, mineral, forest, forest, residential, residential, commercial or industr industrial ial land;
c.
those which are exe mpt pursuant to Sec. 10, RA 6657; 6657 ;
d. those which which are dev oted to po ultry ultry,, swine, swine, or lives tock raising as of June 15, 15, 1988 pursuant to the Supreme Court ruling on Luz Farms vs. The Honorable Secretary of Agraria n Reform (G.R. No. No. 86889, 4 Dece mber 1990); 1990) ; and e.
those th ose which are retained retained by the landowner (not (not covered insofar as land acquisition acquisition and distribut distribution ion but covered with respect to other provisions, particularly particularly leasehold).
4.1.1 POULTRY, LIVESTOCK AND SWINE RAISING What was the basis of t he Supreme Court Court in ruling that poultry, swine and livestock farms are not covered by CARP ? The Supreme Court checked the intent of the framers of the Constitution and determined that poultry, swine, and livestock farms are not included in the scope of the agrarian reform program constitutionall constitutionally y ma ndated to be implement implemented. ed.
Are all agricultural agricultural lands devoted to livestock , poultry and swine raising now now automatically excluded from CARP coverage? coverage? No. To qualify for exclusion, the following requirements must be met: 1. The land or portions th thereof ereof must have been exclusively, directly and actually actually used for for livestock, po ult ultry ry and swine raising as of 15 June 1988. 1988. 2. The farm farm devo ted to th the e above purpose purpose s must satisfy the animal/land ratio, as well well as animal/infrastructure ratio as provided for in Section III-B of Administrative of Administrative O rder No. 09, Serie s o f 1993 1993 entitled entit led "Rules and Regulation Regulations s G overning the Exclusion of Agricultu Agricultural ral Lands Used for Livestock, Poultry and Swine Raising from the Coverage of CARP". Can a landowner landowner now convert his crop land to a poultry farm and then apply for ex clusion from CARP ? No, as s tat tated ed in AO in AO 03- 93 93,, the land must already be devo ted to livestock, poultr poultry y a nd swine raising as of 15 June 1988. 1988. Nevertheless, Nevertheless, the landowner who wishes to co nvert his his crop land for this this purpose must apply for conversion, the processing o f which which shall be gove rned by AO by AO Nos . 1 and 1 and 2, Series of 1990. 1990 . Among other requirements, there should be: 1.
the conse nt of agra rian reform bene ficiaries and/o r their waiver of rights; and,
2. certification from from the the Regi Regi onal Director of the Dep artment of Agriculture that the poultry, lives tock or swine project is of grea ter eco nomic value than than the pres ent agricultural use. Conversion of the the crop land without without the the b enefit of conversion approva l will be c onstru onstrued ed as a n intent intent to to a void applica tion of RA 6657 and 6657 and shall be considered as invalid and illegal. The land will be co vered under CARP CARP without without prejudice to the filing filing o f charges a gainst the the la ndowner ndowner.. Suppose a landowner landowner has been granted exclusion from CARP f or his landholding devoted to livestoc k raising but subsequently, he/she stopped its opera operations tions and went into c rop production, can the land still be subject t o CARP ? production, Yes, the the area or portion no longer used for livestock raising purpose s hall automatically automatically revert to the the ca tegory of agricultural agricultural land and s hall be c overed by CARP. CARP. What are the procedures procedures in applying for exclusion of a landholding landholding devoted to livestock , poultry and swine raising ? 1.
Lando wner files the app lication for for exc lusion with the DAR Provincia l Agraria n Reform Office, toge toge ther with the doc umentary requireme nts;
2. The PARO, PARO, with with the ass istance of the BARC, the MARO, the the Municipa Municipa l Livestoc k Inspe Inspe ctor, and a livestock/ poultry and swine specia list of the DA shall conduct a field investigation, investigati on, and prepare report of findings findings a nd recommendations for submission to the Regional D irector irector.. 3.
Regional Director Director undert undertakes akes final final review review and evaluation of th the e application and issues th the e Order of Exclu Exclusion sion or Denial.
4.2
EXEMPTIONS
What lands are exempted from CARP coverage? coverage? The following are exe mpted from the the cove rage o f CARP: CARP: a. Lands actually, actually, directly directly,, and exclusively used and found found to to be necessary for parks, wildlife, wildlife, forest forest reserves, reserves, reforestation, reforestation, fish fish sanctuaries sanctuaries and breeding grounds, watersheds water sheds a nd mangroves, national defense, school s ites and campuses includin including g exp eriment erimental al farm stations stations operated by public or private schools for educational purposes, seeds and se edlings rese arch and pilot production centers, church church sites and co nvents appurtenant appurtenant thereto, thereto, mosque sites and Islamic centers centers ap purt purtenant enant thereto, thereto, communal burial grounds grounds a nd cemeteries, pe nal colonies a nd penal farms actually worked b y the inmates, inmates, a nd gov ernment and private rese arch and quarantine centers; and b.
Lands with with eighteen percent (18 (18%) %) slope and over, excep t th those ose already develop ed as of 15 June 198 1988. 8. (Sec. 10, RA 6657 )
What is the sc ope of the exemption that may be granted ? The e xemption means that the the subje ct parcel o f land will not be a cquired and distribu distributed ted under the CARP for for as long as th the e rea sons for the exemp tion continue continue to exist. However,, the other components of the However the program, e .g. .g.,, lease hold and the Integrated Integrated Soc ial Forestry Program may be implemented where applicab le. A state college claims t hat although part part of its property is cultiv ated by farmers, that area cannot cannot be covered under CARP CARP because it is reserved for the future expansion of the campus. Is that parcel exempted ? The area reserved for fut future ure expansion a ppea rs not to to be actually and directly used for a campus. Unfortu Unfortunately nately,, in the case o f the the Central Mindanao University vs. DARAB (CA-G.R. No. 19174 dated 23 August 1990), the Supreme Court ruled that the University has the prerogative to determine whether a particular part of the school property is necessary for educational purposes . Therefore, Therefore, in this this case , that that parcel is ex empted. A landowner landowner claims that his agricultural land is exempted because he has recently developed it into a pilot production center for hybrid hybrid seeds. Is the landholding landholding exempted ? No. The four conditions must have been all present as of 15 June 1988.
A landowner landowner was granted granted exemption because his agricultural agricultural land was found to be a qualified qualified private research research center for c orn breeding. breeding. Subsequently, he gave up his breedin breeding g operations and went into commercial production produ ction of feed grains. May the landholding landholding be covered ? Yes. For the exemption to continue, the reason for which the exemption was granted must continue to exist. A parcel of land cultivated by farmers is found to be within a forest reserve. May it be immediately covered by DAR under CARP ? No. Coverage Coverage whi while le po ssible, will have to wait until until Congress, taking into into ac count ecological, deve lopmental and equity considerations, shall have determined by law the spe cific limits limits of the the public domain. Thereafter, Thereafter, a reclassification reclassification of the the said areas a s alienable and disp osable land will also have to be d one. (Sec. 4, RA 6657) 6657 )
Why are lands with 18% s lope and undeveloped undeveloped exempt from CARP c overage? The ex emption is spec ifi ifically cally mentioned in Section 10, RA 6657 and 6657 and is based on the Forestry Code which provides that such lands should not be disposed of and developed for agriculture agriculture beca use this type of land is highly suscep tible to soil e rosion. The principle is deba ted in the light of cultural cultural practices which could make th the e p reservation of the the ecolog ical ba lance in such areas feasible. However, unt untilil and unless the laws are c hanged, such lands are not cove red by CAR CARP P.
Since lands 18% slope or over if developed are are not exempt from CARP, CARP, can DAR subject these lands to acquisition and distribution? distribution? Such lands can be allocated to q ualif ualified ied oc cupants but the the manner of acquisition and distribution distribution depends on the following: 1. If classified as forest forest land, they they shall be allocated by the the DENR DENR under th the e Int Integrated egrated Social Forestry Forestr y Program; 2. If classified as alienable and dispos able, they they shall shall be allocated by DEN DENR R and DAR pursuant to the provisions of the Public Land Act and the Joint DAR-DENR AO No. 2, Series of 1988; and 3. 6657.. 6657
If private agricult agricultural ural land, then, then, th they ey shall be acquired in in accorda nce with with th the e provisions of RA
What Administrative Orders govern the exemption of lands from CARP ? 1. DAR Administrative Order No. 10, Series of 1994 , "Amending AO No. 13, Series of 1990 entitled Rules and Procedures Governing Exemption of Lands from CARP Coverage under Section 10 of RA No. 6657, 6657, to Auth Authorize orize all Regional Directors to Hear and D ecide App lications for Exemption Exemption for All All Land Siz es" 2. DAR Administrative Order No. 06, Series of 1994 , "Guidelines for the the Issuance of Exemption Clearances ba sed on Sec. 3 (c) RA 6657 6657 and the depa rt rtment ment of Justice Justice (DOJ) Opinion No. 44 Series of 1990"
4.3
PROCEDURES GOVERNING EXEMPTION OF LANDS UNDER SEC. 10, RA 6657
What are the procedures procedures followed in s ecuring exemption of lands under Sec. 10 of RA 6657 from from CARP c overage overage? ? The p erson/s or representati representative/s ve/s ownin owning, g, a dminist dministering ering or managing th the e landholdings may file for exe mption of the the la nds from CARP CARP cov erage at the Municipal Municipal Agrarian Reform Office.
1. The MARO MARO shall prep are an Appli cation for Land Exemption Folde r (ALE (ALEF) F) which contains the following followi ng documents: *
written writt en ap plica tion
*
ownership doc uments and other muniments of tit title le
*
evidence to support application
* copy of proclamation, topographic map, sketch map, area deve lopment plan, aff affidavit, idavit, certification from government agency, etc. 2. MARO cond ucts inves tigation of the land with with the ass istance of the BARC and prepares report of findings and recommendations and forwards them together with the ALEF to the Provincial Agrarian Reform O ff fficer. icer. 3. The PARO PARO reviews and evaluates th the e ALE ALEF F and prepares comments, comments, fin findings dings and recommendations. If all documents are in order, forwards them to the Regional Director. 4. The RD reviews and evaluates the the ALE ALEF F and the the findings findings and recommendations of th the e PARO PARO and the MARO. MARO. If documents are in order, issues an Order of Approval or Order of Denial. This applies to ap plications for exemption for for all land siz es. 5. The RD forwards forwards the Orde r to the PARO for distribution to to the the contending parties and counsel, if any, copy furnished furnished the Office of the Secre tary, Underse cretary for Field Op erations, Legal Affairs Affairs Office and the Manage ment Inf Information ormation Service within within 15 days from the release of the the O rder. The Order be comes fin final al 15 day s from receipt of the th e same, unless an appe al is made to the the DAR Secretary. 6.
In case of denial of th the e application, DAR shall cause th the e acquisition acquisition and distribu distribution tion of the property.
What is the recourse of a party who disagrees disagrees with the decision of the Regional Regional Director ? Any pa rty who disa gree s with the RD's d ecis ion may file a written motion for reco nside ration within 15 15 day s from rec eipt of the O rder. The RD s hall then rule on the mo tion for reconsideration. Should Should the motion for for reconsideration be deemed , the aggrieved party could ap peal to the the DAR Secretary within within the the ba lance of the 15 day pe riod. The Secretary shall render a de cision within within 30 days aft after er receipt of the appe al.
4.4
PROCEDURES FOR ISSUANCE OF EXEMPTION CLEARANCE BASED ON DOJ OPINION NO. 44
What are the procedures procedures for the issuance of exemption clearances based on DOJ Opinion No. 44? 44? 1. The landowner or his duly authorized authorized representative files files the the application for for exemption wit with h the the Regional Regional Office Office of the the DAR where th the e land is located. The applica tion should be ac companied by the following following documents: a.
duly notariz ed Specia l Power of Att Attorney, orney, if the app licant is not the lando wner himself;
b.
certified true true cop ies of the list of the land which which is the subje ct of the app lication;
c.
currentt tax declaration covering th curren the e property;
d.
location or vicinit vicinity y map;
e.
certification from the Dep utized Zo ning Administration that the land has bee n recla ssified to resid ential, industrial industrial or comme rcial use prior to to 15 15 June 1988; 1988;
f.
certification from the HLRB that the pertinent z oning ordinance has bee n app rove d by the Boa rd prior to to 15 15 June 1988; 1988;
g. certification from the National Irrigation Administration that the land is not cov ered by AO No. 20, Serie s o f 1992, 1992, i.e., that the area is not irrigated, nor scheduled for irrigation rehabilitation nor irrigable with firm funding commitment, and h. proof of payment of distur disturbance bance compe nsation, if th the e area is presently being occupied by farmers, or waiver/un waiver/undertaking dertaking by the the occupants that that th they ey will vacate the area whenever required. 2. The Regional Office Office conducts joint investiga tion with the duly authoriz authoriz ed represe ntatives of the DAR prov incial and municipal offices offices that have jurisdiction ove r the property, and a report prepared wit within hin thir thirty ty (30) (30) d ays fr from om the filing filing o f completed a pplication.
a.
presence of potential beneficiaries;
b.
payment of distur disturbance bance compensation;
c.
initial init ial activit activities ies related to coverag e;
d.
certification from the MARO on whether or not the land has bee n pla ced under PD 27 or 27 or whether whether a CLOA or EP has been issued over sa id prop erty erty..
3. The investiga tion repo rt is submitted submitted to the Regio nal Director who prep ared the Orde r for Denia l or Grant of the Exemption Clearance not later than than fift fifteen een (15) (15) days from the rece ipt of the repo rt. IaEScC 4. The exe mption fold fold er, together with with the draft orde r is forwarde forwarde d to the Lega l Aff Affairs airs Office of the DAR Central Central Office Office which shall review the the same and upon prope r review forwards the folder to the Office of the Secretary not later than fifteen (15) days from receipt of the folder. 5. The Secretary signs the the Order for for Denial or Grant and a copy o f the the order is furn furnished ished to the the Land Use Use Conversion Committ Committee ee for purposes purposes o f monit monitoring oring and statist statistical ical information. CHAPTER 5 LAND LAN D ACQUISITION 5.1
REQUISITES IN LAND ACQUISITION
What lands are acquired under CARP ? Only the private lands de voted to or suitable for agriculture, agriculture, regardless of the the ag ricult ricultural ural products raised or c an be raised therein, are subject of land ac quisiti quisition. on. The lands o f the th e p ublic domain s uit uitable able for agriculture agriculture already belong to the State State a nd are just distribut distributed ed th through rough either Free Free Patent Patents s for Alienable and Disposa ble (A&D) lands o r Certifi Cert ificates cates o f Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) (CLOAs) for resettlement resettlement sites. In In add iti ition, on, stewardship co nt ntracts racts are awarded for public lands cove red b y the Integrated Integrated Social Forestry Program (ISFP). It must be noted that the the private agricultural agricultural lands include those owned by p rivate entities entities and those owned o r held by gove rnmen rnmentt agencies, c orporations, and instrumentalities. Specifically, the the following lands may be acquired under CARP: a.
rice and corn lands under PD 27/ 27/ EO 228; 228;
b.
idle or abando ned lands;
c.
lands foreclosed foreclosed by private private and gove rnm rnment ent fin financial ancial inst institu itutions; tions;
d.
priva te agric ultur ultural al lands
e.
public lands suit suitable able for agricult agriculture; ure;
f.
lands acquired by PCGG;
g.
lands used by mult multinat inational ional corporations
What are the requisites in land acquisit ion ion? ? The following requirements requirements must be met for land acquisition to be completed: a.
That the land is priva tely owned and found suitable for ag ricultur riculture; e;
b.
That th there ere are beneficiaries willin willing g to to take take over the the ownership ownership of th the e land and make it productive;
c. That th the e landowner is paid just just compensation; or a tr trust ust depo sit is made in his/her name ifif th the e value is c ontest ontested; ed; and d.
That tit title le to to the land is transferred in the name of the Republic of the Philippine s.
However, full payment of just compensation and transfer of title to the Republic of the Philippines are not requisites in VLT/DPS. Moreover, under EO 407, 407, the pay ment of just just compensation to the gov ernment instrumentality as landowner may come even after land distribution. 5.2
MODES OF ACQUISITION
What are the modes of acquiring lands for distribution under CARP ? CARP ? Private agricultural agricultural lands cove red by CAR CARP P are a cquired through through any of the following following mode s: a.
Compulso ry Acquis ition (CA);
b.
Voluntary Volunt ary Offer to Sell (VOS);
c.
Voluntary Volunt ary Land Transfer/D irect Payme nt Scheme (VLT/DPS);
d.
Operation Land Transfer (OL (OLT) T) under PD 27 and 27 and EO 228; 228; and
What are the basic diff erences among these modes? modes? a.
OLT is gove rned by PD 27 and 27 and EO 228 and 228 and has be en in op eration since 1972. 1972. It follow follows s a diff different erent set of procedures, particul particularly arly in land valuation.
b.
Land acquisition under OLT and CA is done through through the the mandate of the law whether whether or not not the lando wner disa gree s to to part with his property.
c. CA follows th the e schedule of CAR CARP P implementation implementation base d on the the area of th the e landowner's landholdings. landholdings. In In contrast contrast VOS VOS may be done even for lands not yet scheduled by law to be acquired. d. EO 407 as 407 as amended pertains only to government agencies a s landowners in a p ropriety capacity, or to public A & D lands under their administration administration by virtue virtue of presidential proclamation. e. VLT/DPS, VL T/DPS, on the the other hand, hand, is a voluntary voluntary arrangement entered into into by a landowner and a qualified farmer-be farmer-be neficiar neficiary y to directly directly transfer transfer the the land to to the the beneficiary under terms and conditions mutually agreed by them but with payment terms not less favorable to the farmer than if it were the government purchasing the land and transferring it to the beneficiary. 5.2.1 COMPULSO COMPULSORY RY ACQUISITION What are the existing administrative orders on compulsory acquisition of lands? lands?
a. Administrative O rder No. 11, Series o f 1994 — 1994 — Revising the Rules and Regulations Covering the Valuation Valu ation of Lands Volu Volunt ntarily arily Offered or Compulsorily Acquired Acquired as Em Embodie bodie d in Administrative Administrative Orde r No. 06, Series of 1992; b. Administrative O rder No. 01, Serie s o f 1993 1993 — An Orde r Amending Certain Certain Provisions of Administrative O rder No. 09, Se ries o f 1990, 1990, entitled "Rev ised Rules G ove rning the Acquisition of Agricultural Lands subje ct to Voluntary Offer to Sell a nd Compuls ory Acq uisition Pursuant to RA 6657" 6657" c. Administrative O rder No. 12, Serie s of 1990 — 1990 — Policy Guidelines and O perating Procedures in the th e Identification Identification and Acquisition of Idle and Aba ndoned Lands. What lands are covered by compulsory acquisition? acquisition? Except in the the case of tenanted tenanted rice and co rn lands under PD 27, 27, which are acq uired following following a diff different erent set of rules, compulsory acq uisit uisition ion (CA) is done for all p rivate agricultural agricultural lands which become d ue for coverag e following the phasing of implementation earlier discussed. However, CA is suspended in those those cases wher where e the landowners op t for other other mode s of co mpliance, e.g., voluntary voluntary land tr transfer ansfer or stock d istr istributi ibution on op tion. CA is resumed once th the e neg otiati otiations ons in these o th ther er modes fail. Compulsory acquisition is also done in idle and abandoned lands regardless of their size and phasing, and in lands whose commercial farm deferment is revoked. What are idle or abandoned lands? lands ? Idle or abandoned lands refer to to ag ricult ricultural ural lands not cultivat cultivated, ed, tilled or dev elope d to produce a ny crop nor devo ted to any specific economic p urpose continuously continuously for a period o f three three (3) years immediately p rior to the the receipt of notice of acquisition by go vernment as provided under RA 6657. 6657 . They do not, however, include the following: a.
those th ose that that have beco me permanentl permanently y or regularly devo ted to non-ag ricult ricultural ural purposes;
b. those th ose that have become unproductive by reason of force majeure majeure or any other other fortu fortuitous itous event, provided that that prior prior to to such event, event, such land was previously used used for agricultural agricult ural or other eco nomic purpose. (Section 3, RA 6657) 6657 ) Can the DAR compulsorily acquire a landholding whose ownership is under litigation or judicial proceedings? proceedings? Yes, if it is clear that no matter what the outcome of the litigation may be, the land is still covered under CARP. In such case, the DAR shall select the retained area and the compensation for the land shall b e held in trust trust pending the resolution of the the disp ut utes. es. However, if one or bo th of the However, the parties to the case are groups of individuals, the the hectarage involved in the poss ible ex ercise o f the the right of retent retention ion should be considered in the the acquisition of the land. However, in the case o f PCGG/APT acquired a ssets whose ownership is contested in court, the However, the DAR and the PCGG have an understanding understanding that a proper motion will be filed in court to to a llow DAR to acquire s uch property, even pe nding litigation. litigation. What if the person who is declared by the c ourt as the lawful owner subsequently disagrees with t he area chosen by DAR f or retention? What What if he has exercis ed retention in another property ? property The CLOA could be amended by the DAR or the landowner filing a petition with the DARAB. However, if the landowner is no longer entitled to retention, then the area previously set aside for retention may also be covered. A couple owning only 30 hectares died in January January 1988 leaving as heirs six c hildren with with ages ranging 25-40. No partition partition of the property property has been done and and the children do do not own other agricultural agricultural lands. How many hectares may be compulsorily acquired ? None. Even if the title is still in the name of the couple, ownership automatically transferred to the children upon their parent's death. The six children are already the owners. Thus, at five hectare retention per landowner, the entire 30 hectares may be retained. AO- 01, Series of 1989 allows 1989 allows the registration registration of a de ed o f extra-judicial partition partition of the property of a dec ease d who died prior to 15 June June 1988. Note, however, that if the parents died after 15 June 1988, the land may be entirely acquired and distributed if the c hildren are neither neither actual tillers or direct farm managers. managers. If they are, they will each be entitled to an award of three (3) hectares. Otherwise, they will only be entitled to the compensation for the land. But the land will be acquired and distributed under CARP. Moreover, the DAR and the ROD will no longer allow the partition of the property except in favor of the qualified farmer-beneficiaries. This is in line with the fact that as of 15 J une 1988, by operation operation of the law, all lands in exces s of t he retention limit are already already cov ered by CARP . If in the c ourse of CARP coverage, the owner alleges alleges that the land is exempted under Sec. 10, RA 6657 , what should you do? do? Exception under Section 10 of RA 6657 is 6657 is not automatic. Under AOUnder AO- 13, Series of 1990, 1990, perso ns or representatives of persons o wni wning, ng, administering administering or manag ing lands believed to be a ctually ctually,, directly and e xclusively used and are necessa ry for any of the the p urposes under Section 10 should file file a wri writt tten en app lication with with DAR. DAR. This applica tion should be approved by the Regional Director. The MARO should, therefore, therefore, check if an application has be en filed and if the application has be en duly ap proved. Otherwise, the the MARO should treat the the matter as a CARP protest and let the Regional Director rule on the matter. ( AO-09, ( AO-09, series of 1994). 1994). If in the c ourse of coverage, the owner alleges alleges that the property is already reclassified as residential sinc e 1986, what should you do? The MARO should determine if th the e prope rt rty y is co vered b y DOJ Opinion No. 44 and 44 and whether an application for exemption has bee n filed filed b y the landowner. landowner. He should also investigate the the actual land use a nd whether whether the land is irrigated, irrigable or is programmed for irrigation. irrigation. He should also c heck the zo ning plan or municipal/city municipal/city ordinance approved by the HLURB. Only if it is clear that the said landholding does not fall within any of the above, should the MARO proceed with the acquisition of the property. If in the c ourse of coverage, the owner alleges alleges that about one year before the notice of acquisition, he has filed an application for conversion, what should you do? do? The MARO should check th the e alleg ation, i.e., i.e., whether whether there there really was a n application for conversion filed a ye ar ago . IfIf there there is none, co nversion is not possible because th the e notice of acquisition has has a lready b een issued. If there there is, the issue of conversion should first be resolve d. 5.2.2 VOLUNTARY OFFER TO SELL (VOS) What is the VOS scheme? scheme ? VOS is a scheme wherein landowners come forward and voluntarily voluntarily offer their their agricultural agricultural lands for coverage regardless of the the phasing. The DAR encourages this mode beca use VOS generally e nsures the the coop eration of the the landowners.
What are the existing policy guideline guidelines s governing VOS? VOS? The implementing implementing po licy guidelines on VOS a re: a. Administrative O rder No. 11, Series o f 1994 — 1994 — Revising the Rules and Regulations Covering the Valuation Valu ation of Lands Volu Volunt ntarily arily Offered or Compulsorily Acquired Acquired as Em Embodie bodie d in Administrative Administrative Orde r No. 06 Series of 1992;
Agricultural Lands Subjec t to Voluntary Voluntary O ffer to to Se ll and Compulso ry Acquisition Pursuant to RA 6657"; 6657"; c. Administrative O rder No. 05, Serie s of 1992 — 1992 — Clarif Clarificatory icatory Guidelines and Amendments to AO No. 09, Series of 1990. Where should the landowner file the application for VOS? VOS ? Appli cation for VO S ca n be filed e ither at the Central Central O ffice, or a t any field office of DAR. Howeve r, the the rece iving o ff ffice ice should forward the ap plica tion to the MARO of the municipality mun icipality where the the land is loca ted. What incentives are giv en to landowners landowners who offer their lands under VOS? VOS? The ca sh portion of the the compe nsation to to the landowner is increased by five pe rcent (5%), (5%), while while the LBP bond p orti ortion on is co rrespondingly dec reased by five p ercent. However However,, this incentive is not available to banks and other financial institutions. It should should be noted that the the total compensation is not increase increase d, o nly the proportion of the the c ash co mponent. May an agricultural land which has been mortgaged also be voluntarily offered under CARP ? CARP ? Yes. In this case, the MARO should secure a statement of account from the creditor and recommend the settlement of the obligation through payment in LBP bonds. Can government government financial inst itutions voluntarily offer foreclosed but redeemable properties properties which are not yet transferred to them? them? No. The GFIs have to wait for for the expiration of the redemption period. Are landowners landowners allowed allowed to withdraw lands offered under under the VOS scheme? scheme? No. The exc eptions are th the e instances p rovided in Administr Administrative ative Order No. 05, 05, Series of 1992, 1992, namely: a.
If th the e subject landholding is part of th the e landowner's landowner's retained retained area, provided the the landowner landowner has not not yet receive receive d any payment;
b.
If the lando wner wants to shift the mode of acq uisition from VOS to to VLT/D PS;
c. If the offered land is to be covered in 1994 1994 and the lando wner wants to wait wait for for the the compulso ry covera ge under Phase III-B. III-B. IfIf the Notice of Valuation has bee n serv ed, however, the the withdrawal withdrawal may no longer b e a llowed. d. If the DAR determines the landho lding to be more suitable suitable for a town town site, resettlement or institut institutional ional site to address a calamity situation. situation. It should be noted that this case is limited to calamity situations. Further, the approval of the withdrawal of the VOS does not automatically authorize the land use conversion of the land. The owner must still apply for conversion. What are the instances in which the DAR may reject a VOS application? application? The DAR may reject a voluntary offer to sell in the following instances: a.
If th the e land is not suit suitable able for agricult agriculture, ure, or has more more than than 18% slope and is underdevelope d;
b.
If th there ere are no takers takers or beneficiaries of the the land for for valid reasons (e.g., (e.g., peace a nd order situation) situation) with without out prejudice prejudice to fut future ure coverage of the the area under CARP; CARP; and and
c.
If the only identified agra rian reform bene ficiaries (ARBs) (ARBs) are the qualified children of the lando wner.
5.2.3 VOLUNTARY LAND TRANSFER/DIRECT PAYMENT SCHEME (VLT/DPS) What is the VLT/DPS mode? mode? VLT/DPS is a scheme wherein a landowner of an agricultural VLT/DPS agricultural land cove red by CAR CARP P and the qualified beneficiaries of such land a gree to the direct transfer transfer of the the ownership of the th e land, a s provide d for under Sections 20 and 21 of RA 6657. 6657 . The area to be transferred should not, however, be less than the area which the government through compulsory a cquisition would otherwise otherwise a cquire. cquire. Administrative Administrative O rder No. 13, Serie s o f 1991 1991, embod ies the rules rules and p rocedures go verning VLT/DPS. VLT/DPS.
May a landowner unilaterally unilaterally decide to distribute his land t hroug hrough h the VLT/DPS scheme? scheme? No. An agreement between the the lando wner and the the q ualif ualified ied ARBs as a pproved by the DAR is nece ssary. What is the basic requirement in VLT/DPS? VLT/DPS? It is imperative that the ARBs give their informed consent to to the landowner's VLT/DPS propo sal. Specifically, this this means th that at the the ARBs should be made aware of their rights rights and options under the law, particularly, the terms and conditions of land transfer under the "regular" compulsory acquisition mode. Among o thers, the field imp lementor (Municipa l Agrarian Reform O ff fficer icer o r Agrarian Reform Prog ram Tec hnolog ist — MARO or SARPT /ARPT) must exp lain to the ARBs: (1) that the land will sooner or later be acquired under CA subject to the phasing; and (2) about how much they will have to pay under the CA mode. VLT/DPS is a sc heme favorable to the Government for VLT/DPS for two reasons. First, First, Go vernment does not have to pay for the the land. Second, th the e a greement between the the two pa rt rties ies facilitates land acquisition and distribution. The DAR, however, ought to ensure that the beneficiaries know what they are entering into and that terms and conditions of the VLT/DPS VL T/DPS a re not disadv antageous to the ARBs. Who are the qualified beneficiaries under VLT/DPS? VLT/DPS ? The qualified be neficiari neficiaries es a re the same as th those ose who would be be neficiari neficiaries es if the land were to be covered under compulsory acq uisit uisition ion or voluntary offer offer to sell. (See Sec. 22, RA 6657). 6657 ). What is the prescribed period for the completion of VLT/DPS negotiations negotiations? Negotiations for VLT/DPS between the landowner and the beneficiaries must be completed and the agreement arrived at must be submitted within one (1) year from the time the th e DAR rece ives the notice o f application for VLT/DPS. VLT/DPS. What if negotiations for VLT/DPS are not resolved after one y ear ? If VL VLT/DPS neg otiati otiations ons remain unresolved aft after er one year, the land shall b e co vered under compulsory a cquisition cquisition.. When should the transfer of posses sion and land ownership of the land be done? done? The transfer of posses sion and ownershi ownership p s hould be done immediately after the the submitted submitted VL VLT/DPS T/DPS a greement is ap proved by th the e DAR. Certifi Certificates cates o f Land Ownership Award (CLOA) with the the pro per a nnotations to pro tect the lando wner shall b e iss ued to the bene ficiaries. May an agricultural land mortgaged to a bank be the subject of a VLT/DPS? VLT/DPS? No. Land titles titles with existing existing liens and encumbrances shall not be covered under the the VLT/DPS scheme. T his is a ruli ruling ng made by D AR to simplify VLT/DPS VLT/DPS transactions, particularly to facilitate the immediate transfer of title to the ARBs. 5.3
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 407 AS AS AMENDED
What is the significance of EO 407 ?
Other Lands of the Public Domain Suitable for Agriculture" Agriculture" directs all government instrumentalities, including government financial institutions (GFIs) and government-owned or controlled contr olled corporations (GOCCs) to immediately transfer to DAR all their landholdings landholdings s uitable for agriculture for immediate distribution to qualified beneficiaries under CARP . EO 407 is 407 is a concrete act of the Gov ernment to to d ivest itself of its its a gricult gricultural ural landholdings as an exa mple for private lando wner wners s to follow. Moreover, Moreover, inasmuch as the landowners involved are also Government agencies, EO 407 has 407 has facilitated the acquisition by the DAR of thousands of hectares of agricultural lands for distribution under CARP. EO 407 cov 407 cov ers the following: following: *
all agricultural agricultural lands owned or contr controlled olled by gove rnm rnment ent depa rt rtments, ments, agencies or instrum instrumentalit entalities, ies, including including lands foreclosed foreclosed by go vernment fin financing ancing instit institut utions; ions;
* lands covered by cancelled or expired Timber License License Agreements Agreements (TLAs) and Pastur Pasture e Lease Agreements (PLAs) for redistri redistribution bution by the the DENR, DENR, in coordination wit with h the DAR, to qualified ARBs identified by the DAR; and * lands covered by cancelled or expired Fishpond Lease Lease Agreements (FLA (FLAs) s) for redistri redistribution bution by the the Department of Agricult Agriculture ure (DA), in coordination wit with h the DAR to to qualified qualifi ed ARBs ide nt ntifi ified ed by th the e D AR. EO 448 included 448 included within the the cov erage of EO 407 all 407 all reservations or po rt rtions ions thereof, which which are suitable for ag ricult riculture ure and a re no longe r needed for the the purpose for which which they were established. EO 506, 506, however, further amended EO 407 to 407 to exclude: * all exist ing and proposed national national parks, game refuge, bird sanctuaries wildlife reserves, wildern wilderness ess areas and other protected areas, areas, including old growth or virgin forests and all forests above 1,000 meters elevation or above 50 percent s lope until such time that they are segregated for agricultural agricultural purposes or retained under the National National Integrated Protected Areas Syst em (NIPAS) of DENR . 5.4
PROCEDURES IN LAND ACQUISITION
What are the basic steps in land acquisition? acquisition?
a.
Identificat Ident ification ion and documentat documentation ion of th the e landholdings, landowners and beneficiaries;
b.
Land survey;
c.
Review and completion of data/documents;
d.
Land valuation and compensation; and
e.
Transfer of title from the lando wner to the Republic of the Philippine s.
What are the changes in procedures for land acquisition c ontained in AO-01, in AO-01, Series Series of 1993? 1993? a. The number number of steps has has been reduced reduced by transfer transferring ring fr from om the the DAR Regional Off Office ice to to the the Provincial Office Office the review a nd comple tion of documents before submission of the claim folder to the Land Bank of the Philippines. b. The conduct of the the field field investigation investigation can proceed ev en if th the e LBP representati representative ve is unavailable. unavailable. This was made possible by dividing the the Field Field Investigation Investigation Report into two parts. Part I contains data on the landholding and its suitability to agriculture. Part II, on the other hand, provides data inputs for the determination of the land valuation. Part I can be accomplished even without th the e p resence o f the the LBP represe nt ntative ative although the the d ata are subject to review by LBP. c. The conduct of public hearing was was dele ted. In lieu thereof, thereof, the the Notice Notice of Coverage Coverage , Field Investigation Investigation Report and the the Notice Notice of Land Land Acquisition Acquisition and Valuation Valuation shall be posted for a pe riod of one week o n the the bulletin boards of the the ba rangay/municipal/provincial halls where where the property is located. d.
CARP forms were simplified and reduce d in number.
e. The acquisition process has bee n facilitat facilitated ed by requiring requiring the the LBP to immediately immediately open a trust trust account in in the the name of th the e landowner, landowner, whether whether th the e landowner accep ts or rejects the land valuation. Actu Actual al releas e, howeve r, shall b e e ff ffected ected o nly after the the landowner's co mpliance of a ll the requirements. requirements. What is the first step in land acquisition? acquisition ? Land acq uisit uisition, ion, regardless of the mode, b egins with the the identification identification of landowners, landholdings and beneficiaries cove red by CAR CARP P. Under the the Land Acquisition and Distribution Distribution Tracking System (LADTRACKS) (LADTRACKS) and the CARP Scope Validati Validation on project, field o ff ffices ices hav e b een tasked to prepare a mas ter list or inventory invent ory of landholdings in their their area of cove rage. This inventory is d erived from the LISTASAK LISTASAKA A statements, statements, as v erifi erified ed or comple ment mented ed by th the e reco rds of the Register of Deed s and Asses sor's O ff ffices, ices, review o f the the municipal town town plan and z oning ordinances, field surveys, interview and community community consultations, consultations, and g eneral knowledge of the the land ownership pattern in the the ba rangays o r municipalities. municipalities. With these bas ic tools, the lando wners who With who o wn agricultural agricultural lands in ex cess of the retention retention limit limit may be easily determined and their lands cla ssified acc ording to the implementation phase or order of priority of CARP. 5.5
PRIORITIZATION OF LANDS FOR COVERAGE
What are the criteria for prioritizing the c overage of landholdings landholdings in t he master list ? Quality land distribution cannot be overemphasized. More than just meeting the targets, land distribution should be done with the end in mind of uplifting the farmer beneficiaries' living condition. Priorit Priority y should, therefore, be give n to areas where succe ss of be neficiari neficiaries es d evelop ment is paramount. paramount. The following following should b e the basic considerations in the the p riorit rioritiza iza tion of covered area s: a.
Barangays covered by identif identified ied ARC ARCs; s;
b. Leve l of orga niza tion of the farmers — Consistent with the peo ple- centered dev elop ment thru thrust st of the DAR, the higher the the leve l of orga niza tion of farmers, the the grea ter should be the priority. This will not only facilitate the land acquisition and distribution process but also hasten the development of viable agrarian reform communities in the area; c. Incidence of ag rarian unrest unrest — The greater the the incidence of unrest, the higher should be the priority to to promote the the reso reso lution of the agra rian disp utes. Utmost care should however, be made to ensure that th the e landholding is indeed covered by CARP; d.
Number Num ber of farmer farmers s to be benefitted benefitted — The higher higher the the number, number, th the e greater should should be the the priority, priority, again in in line line with with peop le- centered developme nt nt;;
e. Size of the the landholding — In Inasmuch asmuch as nearly nearly the the same efforts efforts will have to be expended for either either big or small landholdings, itit makes sense to put higher priorit priority y on the th e large r landholding; f. Presence of support factor factors s — Areas with with coope rative landowners, supportive communit community y leaders and local government executives, active BARC BARCs s and POs/NGOs, etc. should should receive higher priority priority be cause it is in these areas where agrarian reform reform implementation implementation will have greater chances o f success; g. Presence of a titl title e over the the property — Titled properties are easier to acquire because, as it is the the norm under our Torren's Torren's Title Title System, th the e title title is the the strongest strongest proof of the land ownership. Untitled properties require much more difficult documentation to ensure that the land actually exists and that the current landowner is being addressed. Thus, all other other considerations being equal, titled titled prope rt rties ies should receive higher priority. priority. ScaHDT RECONSTITUTION OF TITLE
What can be done in case the original title of the land got lost or was destroyed due to fire, flood or force majeure in the register of deeds? deeds? In general, lost or de stroyed original co pies of certificates certificates of title title a re reconstituted reconstituted through through judicial judicial proceedin proceedings gs pursuant pursuant to Section 110 of the Property Registration Decree (PD ( PD No. 1529). 1529). The procedure is prescribed in Republic Act No. 26 and 26 and implemented in LRA Circular No. 35 dated 13 June 1983. However, RA 6732 as 6732 as implemented by LRA Circular No. 13 dated 26 July 1989, allows for administrative reconstitution when reconstitution when the original copies of the certificates of title in the Office Off ice o f the the Register of De eds are de stroyed due to fire, fire, flood, or other force majeure as determin determined ed by the LRA administrator administrator,, where the destroyed records c onstit onstitut ute e a t least ten percent (10%) of the total number of titles but in no case shall these be less than 500. Thus, administrative reconstitution is allowed in Batangas City, Malolos, Bulacan, and in the the p rovinces of Eastern Samar, Samar, Camarines Sur, Sur, Isabela, and Oriental Mindoro where the Offices Offices of the Register of Deeds were des tr troyed oyed by fir fire. e. The law a lso co vers a dminist dministrative rative reconstitut reconstitution ion of cop ies o f original certificates certificates of title title d estroyed b y fire, flood or other force force maje ure which occurred occurred fif fifteen teen years before its effectivity in 1989. What if it is the owner's duplicate copy which is lost while the original is still on file? file ? Then a petition for the issuance of a new owner's duplicate copy shall be filed with the Regional Trial Court. (Sec. 109, PD 1529) 1529) Who should file the petition for reconstitution of title ? LRA Circular No. 35, Series of 1983 provides that the landowner or an interested party should file a petition for reconstitution with the Clerk of Court of the Regional Trial Court having jurisdiction of said property, in case of judicial reconstitution; or with the Register of Deeds concerned, in the case of administrative reconstitution. However, in orde r not to delay acquisition and distribution, However, distribution, the DAR issued Memorandum Circular No. 05, Series of 1994 which 1994 which provides th that at the the d uly authorize authorize d DAR lawyer can file the petition in the Regional Trial Court in case of judicial reconstitution, or with the Register of Deeds concerned in case of administrative reconstitution, provided that a Notice Noti ce o f Coverage has already been issued covering the property. However, However, the the DAR shall ende avor to se cure a written written permission from from the registered owner/s of lost or destroyed tit titles. les. What are the procedures procedures for judicial reconstitution? reconstitution? 1. The petition is filed with with the Clerk of Court of the the Reg Reg ional Trial Court which has jurisdiction over the the prope rty rty.. Such petition petition is acc ompa nied by a plan and technical description of the subject land, and a certification from the ROD that the original copy of the title was burned, lost, mutilated, etc. Photocopies of the Notice of Coverage shall also be submitted if the DAR is the petitioner. 2.
The Office of the Solic itor Gene ral, Office Office of the Prose cutor for the City or Provinc Provinc e, DENR-LMB, DENR-LMB, LRA, and ROD concerned are furnished furnished with with cop ies of the petition.
3. Publica tion (twice) in the Official Gaz ette and posting in the bulletin boards of the resp ective municipality of the notice of initial hearing. Adjo ining owners and interested interested parties are also fur furnished nished cop ies of the notice. 4.
Proce ssing in the Land Regis tration Authorit Authority. y.
5.
Court proceed ings and court decision.
6.
Surrender of the owner's duplic ate Certificate of Title to the ROD.
7.
Reconstitut Reconstit ution ion proper of a new Original and Owner's Owner's Duplicate Cert Certificat ificate e of Title by th the e ROD.
What are the procedures procedures for administrative reconstitution? reconstitution? 1. The petition accompa nied by three three (3) photocopies of the the owner's authent authenticated icated duplicate certificat certificate e of titl title; e; latest latest tax tax dec laration and Notice Notice of Coverage (if DAR is the the petitioner) petit ioner) and an affidavit regarding circumstances circumstances of the the p roperty are filed with the the ROD concerned; 2.
Publication and posting requirement requirements; s;
3.
Proce ssing by the Recons tit tituting uting Officer de signa ted by the LRA Administrator;
4.
Issuance of Orde r to Recons tit titute ute by the Recons tit tituting uting Officer;
5.
Revie w by the the LRA Administrator of the Orde r of Recons tit titution ution and affirmation affirmation thereof, if prop er;
6.
Surrender of the Owner's or Co- Owner's duplicate Certif Certificate icate of Title to the ROD; and
7.
Issuance of reconstit reconstitut uted ed title title and delivery of owner's or co- owner's duplicate Cert Certifi ificate cate of Title by the the ROD ROD concerned to the the landowners landowners or to to DAR.
Who will shoulder the cost of the reconstitution proceedings? proceedings? Administrative re cons tit titution ution normally d oes not cos t anything, exc ept for incid ental co sts like photoc opie s. Howeve r, judicial re constitution requires p ublica tion which could be substantial (around P1,500 at 1993 prices). If the petition was filed by DAR, then it shall shoulder this cost chargeable against CARP funds. Otherwise, it will have to be borne by the farmer-beneficiary or the coop erative or farmers association. 5.7
UNTITLED PRIVATE PROPERTIES
Can untitled private properties be placed under CARP ? DAR's pe tit tition ion on the issue of placing untitled untitled o r unregistered unregistered p rivate agricultural agricultural lands under CARP is that if there there is no adve rse claimant ove r the the s ubject landholding (e.g., there th ere is no court case), then submission of documentary and/or testimonial testimonial evide nce shall be conclusive proo f of ownership. ownership. The landholding may b e ac quired under CARP CARP and the landowner entitled entitled to p ayment in accorda nce with pertinent pertinent laws laws and DAR rules and reg ulati ulations ons as resolved under DOJ Opinion No. 176, Series of 1992. 1992 . What if there are two or more claimants and there is a pending court case, to whom shall payment be made? made? If th there ere are tw two o or more claimants and there is a pe nding court case, co verage of the the land under CARP CARP should proce ed a nd the processing o f claim folder should continue continue without interruption. But payment of said property shall only be effected to the claimant who has been declared by the Court as the lawful owner. What safeguards have been insti tuted to ensure that untitled and unregistered private agricultural lands being covered by the program are properly properly s uppor upported ted by adequa adequate te documents? documents ? Under Administrative Under Administrative O rder No. 01, Serie s o f 1993 1993, seve n items are listed as documentary requirements requirements for processing claim folders of untitled untitled properties. These a re: 1. Survey plan of th the e property duly duly approved by the Land Management Bureau, and if not availab le, a sketch plan certifi certified ed to by said office, office, and technical technical description thereof; 2.
Certifi Cert ified ed copy of the the present Tax Declaration in th the e name of claimant wit with h correct correct lot lot number/s number/s and area per approved plan;
3.
Instru In strument ments s of acquisition acquisition covering the the subject property, property, such as Dee d of Sale, Donation, Transfer Transfer,, etc. in favor favor of claimant and those those of his/her predece ssor/s interest; interest;
4. Certifi Cert ification cation of th the e Assess Assess or concerned showing showing th the e Tax Declaration issued, the the declarant/s, th the e area covered, and the the basis for th the e issuances and cancellations cancellations thereof pertaining to the property/ies from the first declaration up to the tax declaration issued in the name of the claimant; 5. Certifi Cert ification cation from from the the Clerk Clerk of Court Court concerned whether whether or not the the property/ies identified identified in th the e plan is/are covered b y land registration registration procee procee dings or civil case, and if the th e same is used as bond or b ail in other other court actions; actions; 6. Certifi Cert ificates cates of the the DENR-LMS DENR-LMS stati stating ng the the year the the property/ies identifi identified ed in the the plan may already already be co nsidered as private agricultural agricultural land, and the the persons having the the best claim of ownership thereof; and
survey plan is/are fr free ee from all liens and encumbrances. 5.8
FIELD INVESTIGATION
How will the landowner know that his or her land is being covered by CARP ? CARP ? A landowner who ha s be en ide ntif ntified ied should be notified by the MARO that his or her la ndhold ing is no w covered by issuing a Noti Notice ce o f Coverage p ersonally de livered or s ent by registered mail. In that that Notice, Notice, the landowner is also informed of his or her right to select the retained area and of the field investigation which will be conducted on the landholding. A copy of the Notice s hall als o b e p osted for at leas t one wee k on the b ulletin boa rd of the municipa l and barangay halls where the land is located. After identifying and documenting documenting the ownership ownership of the land, what what must be done next ? The suitability suitability of the land cov ered under CARP should next be established. This is done p rimaril rimarily y by undertaking the field investigation of the property to ascertain its suitability, productivity, and tenurial characteristics. Who are involved in the field investigation? investigation? Aside from the MARO or ARPT and the lando wner conce rned, re pres entatives from the Dep artment of Environment Environment and Natural Resource s (DENR), Dep artment of Agriculture Agriculture (DA) and Land Bank o f the the Philippines (LBP), as well as th the e BARC and p rospective a grarian reform beneficiaries beneficiaries s hould be invit invited ed to participate in the conduct of the the field investigation. What if the invited representatives are not available? available? The field investigation can procee d prov ided they were g iven due notice of the time time a nd date of the investigation to to be conducted, i.e., they they were sent copie s of Notice of Conduct of Field Investigation. If it is the LBP representative who is not available, the DAR field implementor(s), together with the other parties shall conduct the field investigation investigati on and acco mplish Part I of the Field Investigation Report. Such Such report shall b e forwarded to the LBP representative for valida tion. What if there is a difference in the fi ndings of the DAR and the LBP ? In the event that there is a difference or variance in the findings of the DAR and the LBP as to the propriety of coverings the land under CARP, whether in whole or in part, on the issue of suitability suitability to to ag ricult riculture, ure, degree o f development or slope, and on the issue affecting affecting idle lands, the conflict conflict shall be resolved by a compos ite team team co mposed of DAR, DA, DENR, and LBP representatives which shall jointly conduct further investigation thereon. The team shall submit its written report of findings within five days from the conclusion of the inspection. Such findings shall be binding to both DAR and LBP pursuant to the Joint Memorandum Circular of the DAR, LBP, DENR, and DA dated 27 January 1992. If the issue involved is on the suitability to agriculture and its development, the chairperson shall be the DA representative. If it is on the percentage slope, the DENR DEN R representative shall be th the e c hairperson of the team. Why must the BARC and prospective ARBs be involved in the field invest igation igation? ? It is is important to to involve not only the other concerned CARP implementing implementing age ncies but also th the e BARC and the pros pective b eneficiaries beca use the peo ple from the locality have a wealth of information on the physical, agricultural and tenurial characteristics of the land. It is also wise to involve them from the beginning to generate their support and encourage their crucial participation participation in the the de velopment proces s. CHAPTER 6 AGRARIAN REFORM BENEFICIA BENEFICIARIES RIES 6.1
QUALIFICATIONS QUALIFICA TIONS OF BENEFICIARIES
What are the qualifications of an agrarian reform beneficiary ? To be an ag rarian reform reform beneficiary, one must: a.
be landless;
b. be at lea st 15 yea rs old or head head of the the family family at the time the prop erty was transferred transferred in the name of the Republic of the Philippines; and c. have the the willin willingness, gness, ability and aptitude aptitude to to cultivate cultivate th the e land and make make it as productive productive as poss ible. (S (Section ection 23, Republic Republic Ac t No. 6657 ) Items (b) and (c) a bove are meant to ensure that Items that the the recipients of the land will judiciously use it and make it a productive a gricult gricultural ural land. What is the definition of landless? landless ? A landles s p erso n is de fined by Section 25, RA 6657 as 6657 as one who owns less than three (3) hectares of agricultural land. Section 7, RA 6657 also 6657 also provides th that at an owner-tiller may s til tilll be a b eneficiary of another land he or she do es not own but is actually cultivatin cultivating g to th the e e xtent of the the difference diff erence b etween the the a rea o f the the land he/she owns and the award ceiling o f three three hectares. Thus, a tenant who owns one hectare o f agricultural agricultural land may still qualify qualify a s a beneficiary for two two hectares of land. Who are disqualified from becoming beneficiaries? beneficiaries? a.
Those who who fail fail to meet th the e qualifications qualifications as provided for for under Section 22 of RA 6657. 6657 .
b.
Beneficiaries Beneficiari es who have culpably sold, dispos ed or abando ned th their eir lands.
c. Beneficiaries whose lands have been foreclose foreclose d by the the LBP LBP or reposse ssed by the landowner (in th the e case of VL VLT/DPS) for non-pa yment of an aggreg ate of th three ree annual amortizations. d. 6.2
Beneficiaries Beneficiari es who who have converted converted their their land to non-ag ricult ricultural ural use wit without hout prior approva l by DAR. DAR. ORDER OF PRIORITY
What is the order of priority among the possible beneficiaries? beneficiaries? Section 22 of RA 6657 provides 6657 provides th that at lands cove red by CARP shall be distributed distributed a s much as poss ible to landless resid ents of the the same b arangay o r, in the the abse nce thereof, thereof, landless residents of the sa me municipality. municipality. The order of priority then starts with: a.
Qualified children. children. The q ualif ualified ied children of the the lando wner are the first first group entitled entitled to be beneficiaries of the land. They are entitled entitled to receive th three ree hectares e ach.
to exceed th three ree (3) hectares, he or she may be awarded a n additional area represe nt nting ing the the difference, subject to to the availability of land. c.
The order of priorit priority y th then en goes down as follows:
*
regula r farmworkers;
*
seas onal farm farmworkers; workers;
*
other farmworkers;
*
actual til tillers lers or occupants of public lands;
*
collectives or coope ratives of th the e beneficiaries; and
*
others direc tly working on the land.
Given such order of priority, must all farmers in a c lass be allocated three hectares each before anyone in the next clas s can be identified as also a beneficiary of the land? For example, all regular farmworkers farmworkers must first be allocated three hectares before any seasonal farmworker can be identified ? Strictly speaking, that would be a correct interpretation. The CARP, however, seeks to help as many farmers as pos sible a nd make th them em be nefi neficiaries ciaries of the program. Thus, a more libe ral interpretati interpretation on is often better, better, provided the economic via bility of the the award is not sa crif crificed. iced. In this this regard, a series of media tion conferences conferences a mong the possible beneficiaries may b e co nduct nducted ed to a llow the the participatory determination determination of how many beneficiaries there ought to be and what each b eneficiary will receive. 6.3
FARMWORKER BENEFICIARIES
Who is c onsidered a farmworker farmworker ? Farmworker is defined as a natural person who renders service for value as a n employee or laborer in an a gricult gricultural ural enterprise enterprise or farm regardless of whether whether his/her compensation is paid on a d aily, weekly, monthly monthly or "pakyaw" basis. basis.
What are the different c ategorie ategories s of farmworkers? farmworkers? Regular farmworker is a natural person who is emplo yed on a p ermanent basis by an agricultural agricultural enterprise enterprise o r farm. farm. Seasonal farmworker is a natu natural ral person who is employed on a recurr recurrent, ent, periodic o r intermit intermittent tent basis by an ag ricult ricultural ural enterprise enterprise or farm, wheth whether er as a pe rmanent or a non- permanent laborer, such as "dumaan "dumaan", ", " sacada sacada"" and the like. Other farmworker is a farm farmworker worker who is neither a regular nor a seas onal farmworker. farmworker. Example Example is a farm farmworker worker who does several farm activities activities b ut is not paid for his/her his/her labo r. Technical Techn ical farmworker is a natu natural ral person e mployed by an agricultural agricultural enterprise or farm, who is highly educa ted and tr trained ained a nd pe rf rforms orms functions functions in scientific, scientific, engineering, medica l, teaching and other fields, fields, but who is not ve sted with managerial or supervisory fu functi nctions ons (e.g., chemists, agronomists, veterinarians, soil a nalysts). Managerial or Supervisory farmwor Managerial farmworker ker is a natu natural ral person who is e mployed by a n agricultural agricultural enterprise enterprise or farm vested with powers or prerogatives: (1) to lay do wn and execute management policies; (2) to hire, transfer transfer,, suspend, layoff, recall, discharge, a ssign or disc ipline employe es; and/or (3) to effectively effectively recommend such managerial actions. Who among these farmworkers farmworkers c an qualify as beneficiaries beneficiaries? ? They a re those found to be directly working on the land, whether whether as regular regular,, sea sonal or other farmworkers farmworkers at the the time the field implementors conduct actual investigation investigation and documentation. documentat ion. However, However, other workers (such as technical farmworkers) farmworkers) who a re directly employ ed by the a gri-business enterpri enterprise se o r corporation, exce pt those holding managerial or supervisory po sitions may be co nsidered as beneficiaries provided th they ey meet the basic q ualif ualifications ications in Section Section 22,RA 22, RA 6657. 6657 . Even a farmworkers farmworkers who has ceased to work as a result of pending agrarian or labor dispute but is willing willing to to be an awardee o f the the agricultural agricultural land may be considered a beneficiary provided he/she has filed an a ppea l for reinstatement reinstatement and has not yet obtained a s ubstant ubstantially ially equivalent and regular farm employment. AO-02, ( Series of 1993). 1993). What if a f armwor armworker ker who has already been identified as qualified beneficiary gets promoted to managerial managerial or supervisory posit ion prior to land transfer ? The farmworker farmworker may still qualify qualify as a wardee of the land provided he/she gives up the the manage rial or supervisory position. AO-02, ( Series of 1993) Series 1993) What is meant by an agrarian or labor dispute ? It refers refers to any controversy relating to tenurial tenurial a rrangement rrangements, s, whether leasehold, tenancy tenancy,, stewardship, or otherw otherwise, ise, over land de voted to agriculture, agriculture, including disputes concerning farmworkers, farmworkers, asso ciations or represe nt ntation ation of persons in neg otiati otiation, on, fixing, maintaining, maintaining, changing or se eking to a rrange terms and co ndit nditions ions of such tenurial arrangements. It also includes contr controversy oversy relatin relating g to co mpensation of lands acq uired under RA 6657 and 6657 and other terms and conditions of transfer of ownership from landowners to farmworkers, tenants tenant s a nd other ARBs, whether whether the disputants disputants s tand in proximate relation o f farm operator and beneficiary beneficiary,, lando wner and tenant, or lesso r and lessee . Can farmworkers who are husband and wife each receive three hectares? hectares? Yes, they they may be e nt ntitl itled ed to three hectares ea ch provided th that at their their vested rights to the the land hav e be en duly established, in which which case, th they ey shall b e issued sepa rate CLOAs. CLOAs. ( AO-02, AO-02, Series Series of 1993) 1993) 6.4
SCREENING OF BENEFICIARIES
Is it the landowner landowner who selects the beneficiaries of his/ her landholding landholding ? No. The landowner doe s not have th the e right to select who the beneficiaries should be. Except in the case of Voluntary Voluntary Land Transfer or Direct Payment Scheme, land acquisition and distri distribution bution involves tw two o separate tr transactions. ansactions. First, t he government buys the land from t he landowner landowner and then sells it to the farmer-beneficiaries farmer-beneficiaries.. It is not the landowner, therefore, who is selling the landholding to the farmer-beneficiaries. farmer-beneficiaries. It is the Municipal Agrarian Reform Officer (or the Agrarian Reform Reform Program Technologist), Technologist), together with the BARC who sc reens the beneficiaries. beneficiaries. Even in the cas e of VLT/DPS, the landowner landowner cannot just s elect a beneficiary. The beneficiary must qualify and it is s till the MARO and the BARC who will do the screening . What is the recourse of farmers who claim they have a priority over those who have been identified by the MARO as the beneficiaries of the land ? The farmers can file a protest with the MARO or the PARO who is currently processing the claim folder. Once a written protest is filed, the MARO or PARO shall comment on the said protest and submit the same to the Regional Director who shall rule on the protest. If the parties disagree with the RD's decision, they can file a written motion for
What can be done in cas e the tenants or tillers refuse t o be interviewed and identified as beneficiaries? beneficiaries? The MARO and the BARC should advise the potential ARBs about the consequences of their refusal. If they still refuse, the MARO and BARC should execute a certification to this effect and post it in conspicuous places for 30 days. Thereafter, new ARBs may be instituted. The MARO should, however, exercise great care under this situation. Refusal to be identified identified as beneficiaries can be d ue to several reaso ns, such as lack o f assurance of support services which used used to b e provide d by th the e landowner, fear fear of the landowner espec ially if the farmers farmers are unorganized. That is why why,, MAROs should not overlook th the e importance o f social p reparation activities activities p rior to land distribution. distribution. What can be done in case the occupants of an idle and abandoned agricultural land are found to have prematurely entered the landholding ? Premature entry is strongly disco uraged. Should it happen, however, the first Premature first consideration should be whet whether her the occupants are th the e q ualif ualified ied b eneficiaries of the land, or some o th ther er persons have supe rior rights rights to receive th the e land. In the the latter case, the occupants should be ejected from the the land and disq ualif ualified ied to b e be neficiari neficiaries es thereof. The se cond co nsideration is whether whether or not the the landowner consents or has no o bjections to the occupancy a nd under what terms terms and co ndit nditions. ions. The landowner and the occupants may a gree o n a lea se a rrangement in in the the mea nt ntime ime that acquisition acquisition of the the land under CARP CARP has not bee n completed. On the other hand, what can be done if no one is willing to be a beneficiary of the land ? land ? The DAR c annot yet acquire the agricultural agricultural land if it has no takers. The DAR must distribute distribute all lands it acquires and is not in the business of warehousing land. What can be done is note such lands with no takers and off offer er it to those those who may later on be interested or those who could not be accommod ated in the distribution distribution of other other areas. What can be done if FBs have been erroneously erroneously identified but still their names have been entered and registered in the CLOAs? CLOAs? If the the CLOA is already registered with the the ROD, then an a ppropriate ex clusion proceed ing could be fil filed ed wit with h the the D ARAB. ( AO-02, AO-02, Series of 1994) 1994) CHAPTER 7 LANDOWNERS' LANDOWNER S' RETEN RETENTION TION AND AWARD TO CHI CHILDREN LDREN 7.1
RETENTION LIMIT
What is the retention right of landowners under the CARP ? No less than the Constitution grants landowners the right to retain a portion of their lands covered by agrarian reform. Under the CARP, this retention right is limited to a maximum of five five hectares p er landowner. landowner. The only ex ceptions are a s follows: a. Landowners whose lands have been covered by PD 27 are 27 are a llowed to kee p the area they o riginally retained retained thereunder. thereunder. Thus, if a landowner retained retained se ven hectares under OLT, OLT, he/she is a llowed under CARP to to ke ep the said area. b. Original homestead homestead grantees or their their direct compulsory heirs heirs who who still own th the e original homestead homestead as of 15 June 1988 1988 are allowed to retain th the e same areas as long as they continue to cultivate the cultivate the same homestead . Thus, a landowner may, for example, co nt ntinue inue to keep his/her 12-hec 12-hec tare homestead. 7.2
LAND OWNERSHIP CEILING
What is the land ownership ownership ceiling ? The land ownershi ownership p ce iling is likewise five hectares. A person who doe s not own agricultural agricultural land may not buy more than five hectares. A person who a lready o wns two two hectares of agricultural agricultural land may buy only up to three three hectares more. This is in line with the the State's ob jective of controlling controlling a nd de mocratizing the ownership of land as a natural resource. 7.3
QUALIFICATIONS QUALIFICA TIONS FOR THE E XERCISE OF THE RIGHT OF RETENTION
Who may apply for retention? retention? All owners o f private a gricultural lands with a total area of more than five hectares , ex cep t those those who have alrea dy b een g ranted full retention (7 hectares ) unde r PD 27. 27. May a corporation also retain five hectares? hectares? Yes. The law grants both natural and juridical pe pe rsons the right of retent retention. ion. Note Note that juridical juridical p ersons include c orporations, partnerships, partnerships, co operatives, o r other bodies wit with h separate legal personality. Note also that a corporation is a person sep arate and distinct from from its stockholders and incorporators. Thus, a corpo ration may retainonly retain only five hectares and hectares and not five hectares for each incorporator. Are co-owners co-owners allowed to retain five hectares only ? Persons owning an agricultural agricultural land under under a co -o wnersh wnership ip may retain five five hectares ea ch. This is because the co- owners remain as separate pe rsons each entitled entitled to retain five hectares. Thus, in the the ea rlier case o f a 30-hectare prope rt rty y owned b y a couple who die d be fore 15 June June 1988, the the six children were the co- owners of the the land upon the effectivity effectivity of RA 6657.. Even if the title has not been transferred to their names, the six children are entitled to retain the 30 hectares at five hectares each. 6657 A married couple claims that as husband/wife they they are entitled to five hectares each. Should the claim be granted ? It depe nds. The criterion is the the prop erty relations relations be tw tween een the husband and wife. IfIf the the p roperty relations relations are governed by the system of comp lete sepa ration of property property — as evidenced by a valid a nt nte e nuptial marriage se tt ttlement lement — then then the spouses are se parate landowners and may, therefore, therefore, retain five five hec tares each fr from om their respective prop erties. The spouses should submit evidence that they are entitled to retain more than five hectares. On the part of the DAR, it is important to note the date of the marriage. If the marriage was s olemnized before 03 August 1988 1988,, then it is gove rned by th the e Civil Code. In the absence of an ag reement for for the sepa rati ration on of prop erty erty,, spo uses who own only conjugal properties may retain a total of not more than five hectares from such properties. However, if either or both of them are landowners in their own respective rights (whether (wh ether capital or pa raphernal), they may retain not more than five hectares eac h from their their respective landholdings. On the other hand, if the marriage was contracted on or after 03 August 1988, or under the New Family Code, Code , a husband ownin owning g ca pital property and/or a wif wife e owning paraphernal prope rt rty y may retain five five hectares e ach, if they they e xecuted a judicial sepa ration of properties properties p rior to to the marriage. In the the abse nce of such contract/agreement, contract/agreement, all properties, whether whether capital, parap hernal, and conjugal shall be considered to be held in absolute community, community, i.e., i.e., the the ownership relationship is one. Therefore, only a total of five hectares may be retain retained. ed. ( AO-11, AO-11, Series of 1990 ) In no case, however, shall the the total retention retention of the couple excee d ten hectares. 7.4 AWARD TO LANDOWN LANDOWNERS' ERS' CHILDREN CHILDREN Is the award to children part of the landowner's retention? retention? No. The landowner is e nt ntitled itled to retain only five hectares. Any Any award to the qualified qualified children is a result of the the children being qualified beneficiaries of the program.
Is t he award to children automatic ? No. The law only grants the children a preferential right right to to b e a warded the land of their parents. parents. They must still qualify qualify a s be neficiar neficiaries. ies.
What qualifications must the child of a landowner landowner meet in order to qualify for a three-hectare award award ? To qualify, the child of a landowner must be: a.
At leas t fift fifteen een years old as of 15 June 1988, the effectivity of RA 6657; 6657 ; and
b. Actually tilling tilling the the land or directly manag manag ing the the farm farm from from 15 15 June 1988 1988 up to to the the time time of land acquisition. What is the meaning of the phrase "directly managin managing g the farm" ? "Directly managing" refers to the cultivation cultivation of the land through through pe rsonal supervision under the system o f labor administration. (DAR (DAR Memo Circular No. 04-1994) 04-1994) It should be int interpreted erpreted along th the e lines of farm management as an a ctual major activity activity be ing performed by the landowner's child from which which he or she derives income. Farm manageme manageme nt should should likewise b e the child's primary occupation.
If the land is tenanted, can a landowner's landowner's child qualify for an award on the basis of a c laim that he is directly managing the farm? farm? As of 15 June 1988, tenants on the la nd sho uld hav e b eco me le sse es. As les see s, they ha ve the oblig ation to pay th the e le ase rent rental al but they have th the e right to directly manage th the e land. T he child ca nnot nnot,, therefore, therefore, cla im that he is managing the land. Hence, he cannot qualify for an award. What if the child meets the qualifications above but already owns ten hectares? hectares? Must he or she still be awarded three hectares? hectares? As ea rlier sa id, the c hild is to be awarde d la nd not be cause he or s he is a child of the lando wner but beca use he o r she is a q ualif ualified ied b eneficiary eneficiary.. (However, (However, the the preference comes preference comes fr from om his or her being a child of the landowner.) Therefore, in addition to the qualifications above, the child must meet all other requirements to be a beneficiary. Not being landless, he or she do es not qualify for an award. If a landowner's child qualifies as preferred beneficiary, will Land Bank pay the landowner for the area to be awarded award ed to the c hild? In turn, will t he child amortize t he property property ? No, the rules on landowner's co mpensation and amo rt rtization ization by beneficiaries will not apply, exc ept if the the child awardee is a tenant in his/her own right. right. In which which case, th the e Land Bank will finance finance the ac quisiti quisition. on. However, However, tenancy be tw tween een the landowner and the child must have already been established p rior to 15 June 1988. 1988. (Memo Circular No. 04, Series of 1994) 1994) 7.5
SELECTION OF RETAINED AREA
What are the criteria in the selection of the retained area? The a rea chose n for retention retention should be compac t and contiguous. ItIt should also be least prejudicial to th the e e nt ntire ire landholding and th the e majority of the farmers thereon. thereon. (Sec. (Sec. 6, RA 6657 and AO and AO 11, Series Series of 1990 ) Can a landowner landowner who owns properties properties in different locations choose separate areas areas t otaling five hectares from among the said properties? No. The law provides that the the area to be retain retained ed should b e compa ct and contiguous. contiguous. 7.6
PROCEDURES FOR THE EXERCISE OF THE RIGHT OF RETENTION AND AWARD TO QUALIFIED CHILDREN
Where should the landowner file the application for retention and award to qualified children? children ? The landowner should file the application using DAR's Retention Form No. 1 in any DAR office, whether at the Central, Regional, Provincial or Municipal Office. If filed in an office off ice o th ther er than the the MARO where the landholding is located, the receiv ing office office s hould forward forward the ap plication to the MARO concerned. What are the requirements in applying for retention or award to children? children? The lando wner should execute an aff affidavit idavit as to the the total area of his/her landholding. IfIf applying for award to qualified children, the the lando wner should submit a list of his/her children who were at least fifteen (15) years old as of 15 June 1988 and who have been actually cultivating or directly managing the farm. What happens after the MARO receives the application for retention or award ? award ? The MARO, with the assistance of the BARC shall conduct a field verification and investigation to: 1.
determine total landho lding in relation to the retention and award app lied for;
2.
in the the case of homestead, homestead, to determine determine whether whether th the e original homestead homestead grantee or the the direct compulsory heirs still own and and actually culti cultivate vate the the homestead;
3.
determine qualifica tions of the app licants and their children app lying for retention and/o r award; and
4.
identify identif y affected affected tenants tenants and determine determine whether whether th they ey opt to to beco me lessees in the the retained retained area or to to become land transfer transfer beneficiaries beneficiaries in another another landholding. landholding.
The MARO then prepares the Retention Folder containing the documentation of the field investigation and the findings and recommendations. The folder is then submitted to the PARO for revie w. Who approves approves the application? application? The Regional D irector approves or disap proves th the e ap plication after after reviewing and ev aluatin aluating g the report and recommendations submitted submitted by the Provincial Agrarian Agrarian Reform Officer (PARO). What happens after the Regional Director has approved the application for retention? retention? 1. If the app lication for retention is appro ved , the the Regional Director shall issue Certificate Certificate of Retention (Retention Form No. No. 3) and forward forward this, this, together with with the retention folder to the PARO. 2.
The PARO, PARO, in coordination wit with h the the Land Land Management Bureau of th the e DENR, DENR, shall segregate the the appropriate retained retained area.
3.
The DENR DENR shall furn furnish ish th the e DAR Regional Office Office four copies of the the approved segrega tion plan and techn technical ical description.
4. On the the basis of the the owner's owner's duplicate copy of the the title, title, th the e approve d segrega tion plan and technical technical description, th the e PARO PARO shall request the the Register Register of Deed s to prepare tw two o se parate titles titles a ll in the name of the landowner: a.
for th the e landholding covered by compulsory acquisition, acquisition, voluntary voluntary off offer er to to sell or voluntary voluntary land transf transfer/direct er/direct payment scheme; and
b.
the th e landowner's retain retained ed area
What is the recourse of the landowner whose whose application for retention is disapproved ? The lando wner should make an app eal to th the e DAR Se cretary within within fift fifteen een (15) da ys upo n receipt of the decisio n. Otherwise, Otherwise, the decision b y the Regional D irector
7.7
WHEN TO EXERCISE THE RIGHT OF RETENTION
When may the right of retention be exercised ? A landowner whos e a gricultural land is co vere d b y CARP may exe rcise his or her rig ht of retention retention any time be fore the land is co mpulso rily ac quired . If the land is already the subject of compulsory acquisition, the landowner must apply for retention within sixty (60) days from the date of receipt of the Notice of Coverage. If the landowner does not respond d espite due notice, he or she will be de emed to have waived the right to choose the retained area and the DAR shall be the one to choose. Note that the waiver is on the right to choose; the landowner still has the right to retain. If the land is voluntarily offered for sale, the landowner may exercise right of retention at the time of the voluntary offer. When may qualified children apply for an award of not more than three hectares each? each ? The application must be filed within a period of thirty (30) days from date of receipt by the landowner of the Notice of Coverage or from the date of the Voluntary Offer to Sell. However, for those However, those areas for which which notices notices o f coverage have alrea dy b een sent to the landowners, qualified qualified children have at least one (1) yea r to file file an a pplication reckoned from 31 March 1994 (date of effectivity of DAR Memo Circular No. 04, Series of 1994). 1994 ). In case of failure of the children to file their application within the specific period, the property shall be distribut distributed ed to qualified beneficiaries pursuant to to Se ction 22 of RA 6657. 6657 . 7.8
OBLIGATIONS OF LANDOWNERS AND LIMITS TO THE DISPOSITION OF THE RETAINED AREAS
What is the obligation of the landowner landowner with respect t o his or her retained area area? The landowner has the obligation to cultivate the retained area directly or through labor administration in order to make it productive. This is in line with the CARP principle that land has a social function function and land o wnersh wnership ip has a social res ponsibility ponsibility.. AO ( No. 11, 11, Series of 1990 ) What are the limits to the disposit ion of the retained area? area? 1. land.
A landowner landowner may sell the the land even to one not not qualified qualified to be a beneficiary, provided that after after th the e sale, the buyer will will not own more more than five hectares hectares of agricultural agricultural
2. The landowner may not eject the the tenants tenants in the the retained retained area. The retained retained area is not not covered by the the land acquisition acquisition components of CARP CARP but may still be cove red by the leasehold provisions. 3. 7.9
The landowner may not conve rt the use of the land from from agric ultur ultural al to to nonnon- agric ultur ultural al use use without without the ap prov al of the DAR. TENANTS IN RETAINED AREAS
What options are available to a tenant in the retained area? area?
The tenant may may choo se to remain in the the retained retained a rea as a lessee , in which which case, he o r she waives the right to be awarded land under the CARP. The tenant may alternatively opt to be a beneficiary in other lands that may be available for distribution. The tenant must decide within one year from the time the landowner manifests his or her choice of the area for retention. ( Sec. 6, RA 6657 ) If the the tenant chooses the first option, option, his or her security of tenure tenure shall be respected and he or she ma y not be e jected from the the land. 7.10 RETENTION UNDER PD 27 Who among the OLT landowners are not entitled to retain seven hectares ? 1.
Those who as of 21 October 1972 1972 owned more more than than 24 hectares tenanted tenanted rice or corn lands; or
2. Those who as of th the e above date, owned owned less th than an 24 hectares of tenant tenanted ed rice or corn lands but additionally owned th the e followi following: ng: a.
more than than sev en (7) hectares of other agric ultur ultural al lands , whether tenanted or not, whether cultivated or not; or
b.
lands used for residential, commercial, indust industrial rial or other urban purposes.
3.
Thos e who filed their app lications for for retention after 27 August 1985 (the dea dline set by AO- 01, Series of 1985) 1985) a nd did not comply with the the requirements. requirements.
The ab ove landowners shall only be entit entitled led to a maximum of five five hectares as retent retention ion area. ( AO AO No. 04, Series of 1991) 1991) Who among the OLT landowners landowners are still entitled to t he seven-hectare retention? retention? 1.
Lando wners who comp lied with the requireme nts of either LOI 41, 41, 45 45 or or 52 52..
3.
Those who filed filed their their applications aft after er the the deadline but complied with with the the requirements requirements of the the LOI LOI cited cited abov e.
4. Heirs of a dece ase d landowner who manifested while still still alive the the intention intention to to exerc ise the right of retention retention prior to 23 23 August 1990 (the finality of the the Supreme Court decision o n the Association of Small Landowners vs. The Honorable Secretary of DAR). Heirs must show proof of the the o riginal landowner's intenti intention. on. AO (AO No. 04, Series of 1991) 1991) A landowner landowner who retained retained seven hectares of rice land under under PD 27 now now wants to retain an additional five hectares of coconut land under RA 6657 . Should the landowner's claim be granted ? No. The landowner may not retain retain a tot total al of twelve (12) hectares. He/she may, however, voluntarily voluntarily offer the the sev en-hectare rice land and apply for the the retention retention of five hectares of coconut land. Following Following the the d ecision on the Association of Small Landowners Landowners cas e, the landowner shall keep th the e se ven hectares originally retained in PD 27 while 27 while the fivehectare coconut land shall b e c overed under CARP CARP. Note also that if a landowner retained only two (2) hectares of rice land under PD 27, 27, he/she may still retain three hectares under RA 6657. 6657 . When is landowner deemed to have waived his/her right of retention under PD 27 ? As pro vide d in DAR Administrative Order No. 04, Series of 1991 , the performance of any of the following acts signifies waiver: 1.
signing of th the e Landowner-Tenant Landowner-Tenant Production Production Agreement and Farmer's Farmer's Undertaking Undertaking (L (LTPA-FU) TPA-FU) covering th the e subject property;
2.
entering enteri ng int into o a direct payment scheme agreement as evidenced by a Deed of Transfer over the the subject property; and
3. signing/submission of other documents indicating indicating consent to have have the subject property covered, such as the the form-letter form-letter of the the Land Bank on the the disposition of th the e cash and bond portions of a land transfer claim for payment, the Deed of Assignment, Warranties and Undertaking executed in favor of the LBP. Other similar similar acts may likewise be constru construed ed as waiver. The ab ove list is not exclusive. 7.11 HOMESTEAD LANDS What is DAR's policy i n the case of homestead lands? lands?
1.
The original homes homes tead grantee or his/her direc t comp ulsory heirs still own the land on 15 June 1988; and
2.
The original homestead homestead grantee or his/her his/her direct direct compulsory heirs heirs cultivate cultivate the the land as of 15 June 1988 1988 and continue continue to to cultivate cultivate the the same.
In the the abs ence o f these these conditions, the the homestead land will not be e xempted from OLT or CARP cove rage. However, the the g rant rantee ee or the heirs can retain seve n or five hectares, as the case may be The ex cess areas s hall be c overed by CARP. CARP. The Alita Alita Case, notw notwith ithstanding, standing, it is is the mandate of the law that that in all cases , the security security of tenure tenu re of the the farmers farmers and farmworkers farmworkers on the the land shall be respe cted. cdtai CHAPTER 8 LAND SURVEY What should be done in the case of titles/ landho landholdings ldings covered by CARP but with defectiv e technical descriptions or no available survey records? The Provincial Agrarian Reform Officers (PAROs) should turn over to their counterpart Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officers (PENROs) of DENR, all titles/landholdings tit les/landholdings co vered by CARP with with defective technical descriptions or where no availab le survey reco rds could b e found. This is an agree ment reached reached between the the DAR and DENR last 23 July 1992.
PAROs should immediately conduct an inventory of these reco rds. If in spite of previous exhaustive PAROs research conducted, the defect could not be remedied, then they should turnover turnover the the records (xerox copies of titles, titles, s urvey plans, sketch plans, e tc. tc.). ). The PENROs PENROs are under instructions instructions to check th these ese records with the the existing records availab le at the Land Manag ement Bureau, Bureau, the National Archives, Archives, o r the Land Registration Authority. Authority. If, however, after another exhaustive If, exhaustive research, the co rrect technical technical de scription cannot be recovered , then a resurvey of the subject landholding landholding will have to be e xecuted as p rovided for in th the e Joint DAR-DENR Circular No. 06, Series of 1991. 1991 . What sort of defects are covered by this agreement ? The de fects may fall under under any o f the the following following ca tegories: 1.
Polygon does not close;
2.
Titled but title is not ava ilable ;
3.
Title ava ilab le but without technical des cription;
4.
Surveyed unt untitl itled ed private private property property but survey plan or techn technical ical description is not available ;
5.
Awarde d to survey contractor but not submitted due to non- pay ment of contractor;
6.
Surveye d by administration but not submitted in spite of reques t to submit the survey ; and
7.
Other defec ts.
CHAPTER 9 LAND VALUATION AND LANDO WNE WNERS' RS' COMPENSA COMPENSATION TION What is the basic requirement in the acquisition of private agricultural lands? lands? The Constitution itself provides landowners two basic rights — the right to retention and the right to be paid just compensation. Payment of just compensation is required before a title can be transferred from the landowner to the Republic of the Philippines.
9.1 JUST COMPENSA COMPENSATION TION What is just compensation? compensation? In various Supreme Court rulings, rulings, just compensation in general has been d efined as "fair market value" . It is the th e p rice which a buyer will pa y without without coercion and a s eller will accep t without without compulsion. There are th those ose who argue that since since a grarian reform reform is a social justice program, it is not correct to interpret just compensation as the price which the land will bring in the open market. If two contracting parties with with unequal powers are a llowed to determine and ag ree on the value o f the the land in the the op en market, the the party with with less p ower would tend to be on the losing e nd. For properties cove red by CAR CARP P, however, just compensation cannot be a n absolute amount disregarding particulariti particul arities es o f productivity, productivity, distance to the market place , etc. Hence, land valuation is not an exa ct science but an exe rcise fraught with with inexact inexact e stimat stimates. es. This requires integrity, integrity, conscientiousness and prudence on the part of those those responsible for determining determining its its value. What is important important ultim ultimately ately is that the the land va lue approx imates as clo sely a s po ssible, what is broad ly considered by th the e co mmun mmunity ity to be just just.. AO (AO 06, Series of 1992 ) Does full payment mean payment in cash directly to the landowner landowner ? No. Full Full payme nt need not all be in cash directly to the landowner. Payment Payment can be partly in cash a nd pa rt rtly ly in bo nds. Also Also for those c ases wher where e the landowner contests the valuation of the property, Section 16, RA 6657 and 6657 and AO AO 01- 93 93 provide provide th that at full full payment of just compensation may be considered achieved upon the Land Bank's de posit of the value of the land in a trust account in the name of the landowner. Once this deposit is made, the title can be transferred in the name of the Republic of the Philippines. 9.2
LAND VALUATION FACTORS
What does the law provide as the factors to be considered in the valuation of lands under CARP CARP ? Section 17, RA 6657 enumerates 6657 enumerates ten (10) (10) factors to be considered in the the d etermin etermination ation of just compensation: a.
cost of acquisition
b.
current curr ent value of like properties
c.
nature of the land
d.
actual use
e.
income
f.
sworn valua tion by the lando wner
h.
asses sment made by gove rnmen rnmentt asses sors
i.
the th e social and economic benefit benefits s contribut contributed ed by th the e farmers farmers and farmworkers farmworkers and by th the e government
j. 9.3
non- pay ment of taxes or loa ns se cured from any g ove rnment financing financing ins tit titution ution on the land. NEW LAND VALUATION FORMULA
What Administrative Orders govern land valuation under CARP ? AO No. 11, Series of 1994, 1994, "Revising " Revising the Rules and Regulations Covering the Valuation of Lands Voluntarily Offered or Compulsorily Ac quired as Embodied in AO No. 06, Series of 1992 "; "; and AO No. 06, Serie s of 1992, 1992, "Rules " Rules and Regulations Regulations A mending the Valuation of Lands Voluntarily Offered and Compulsorily Compulsorily A cquired as Provided for Under AO 17, Series of 1989 as Amended,, Iss ued Pursuant Amended Pursuant to RA 6657 ". ". What can be considered as a major improvement in the latest Administrative Orders on land valuation? valuation? By giving more weight on the net income from the land in the formula, AO No. 06- 92 92 has has substant substantially ially raised th the e la nd va lue. Furth Furthermore, ermore, AO AO No. 11-94 has 11-94 has dropped the landowner's LISTASAK LISTASAKA A declaration from the formula. formula. These are e xpected to lesse n landowners' rejection o f the the o ff ffered ered price a nd facilitate facilitate th the e a cquisition of the the la nd. What is now the basic f ormula for the valuation of lands covered by VOS and CA? CA? The ba sic formulation formulation for for the valuation of lands covered by VOS and CA regardless o f the the date o f offer offer or cov erage of the the claim is: LV = (CNI x 0.6) + (CS x 0.3) + (MV x 0.1) where: LV = Land Value CNI = Capitalized Net Income CS = Comparable Sales MV = Market Value Value pe r Tax Dec laration Capitalized Net Income refers to the the difference difference b etween the the gross sales (AGP x SP) a nd the cost of operations (CO) cap italized a t 12%. 12%. In In equation form, form, this this is e xpresse d as: CNI = (AGP x SP) - CO ___________ _____ ____________ _______ _ 12 where: AGP = l atest av aila ble 12 month's gros s pro duction immed iately p rece ding the d ate o f offer in case of VOS o r date of notice o f cove rage in cas e o f CA. SP = the average of the the latest availab le 12-month's selling prices p rior to to the date of receip t of the the claim folder by LBP for for proces sing, such prices to b e se cured from the the Depa rt rtment ment of Agricult Agriculture ure (DA) a nd other ap propriate regulatory bo dies or, in their their ab sence, fr from om the Bureau of Agricultural Agricultural Statistics. Statistics. IfIf possib le, SP data shall be gathered from fr om the barangay or municipality municipality where the property is located. In the the a bsence th thereof, ereof, SP may be secured wit within hin the the province or region. CO = Cost of Op erations When the the cost of ope ration rations s could not be ob tained or verified, an assumed new income rate (NIR) (NIR) of 20% shall be used. Landholdings p lant lanted ed to coconut which which are prod ucti uctive ve at the time of offer/coverage shall continue to use the 70% NIR. This formula formula shall be used if all three factors factors are present, relevant and app licable. When the the CS factor is not present and CNI and MV are applica ble, the formula formula s hall be: LV = (CNI x 0.9) + (MV x 0.1) When the the CNI factor factor is not prese nt nt,, and CS and MV a re ap plicable, th the e formula shall be : LV = (CS x 0.9) + (MV x 0.1) When both the the CS and CN CNII are not present and only MV is applica ble, the formula shall be: LV = MV x 2 In no no ca se shall the value o f idle land using the abov e formula exceed th the e lowest value o f a land within within the the sa me estate under consideration or within within the the sa me ba rangay or municipality mun icipality (in that that order) a pproved by LBP within within one (1) yea r from from rece ipt of claim folder. In case of VOS, however, the land value which will be adopted will be whichever is lower of the computed value using the formula and the landowner's offer. The LO's offer, however, shall be grosse d up from the date of the offer offer up to the date of receipt of claim folder by LBP from from DAR for processing. The da te of receipt of claim folder by LBP from DAR shall mean the date when the the claim folder is d etermin etermined ed b y LBP to be completed with all the the required d ocuments and valuation inputs inputs duly verified and va lidated, and is ready for final final computation/processing. computation/processing. Why are there only three factors in the formula when the law states ten fact ors to be considered in determining just compensation? compensation? Although the formula contains only three fac tors, a s tudy of the formula would show that all ten factors a re ac tually co nside red in its a pplic ation. Who is responsible for c omputing land values? values? Executive Order No. 405 dated 14 June 1990 transferred 1990 transferred the responsibility for land valuation from the DAR to the Land Bank of the Philippines.
9.4
SUMMARY ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDING PROCEEDINGS S
Is the land valuation done by Land Bank final ? The final determination determination of just compensation is a judicial function. function. The Land Bank merely conducts administrative valuation which may be contested in the court of proper jurisdiction. ( Magana v s. Paitan, Paitan, G.R. No. 60269 dated 13 September 1990) 1990 ) If the landowner accepts the value offered by Government, then the administrative valuation is final and serves a s the basis of the the landowner's co mpensation. However, However, if the the landowner rejects or doe s not respond to the Government's offer, the DAR itself will advise the DAR Adjudication Board, through the
may still reject or not respo nd to this offer offer and inst instead ead file a ca se before the Specia l Agrarian Courts. Courts. In the meantime that the landowner is contesting the valuation of the land or is not responding to the Gove rnm rnment's ent's offer, offer, the Gov ernment may p roceed to distribute distribute the prop erty upon dep osit in a trust account of the initial value offered. Where will the summary administrative proceedings be conducted ? Will a landowner residing in Mindanao be required to go to the central office ? Not necessarily. It would depend on the total amount of compensation in question. If the government's offer does not exceed two million pesos (P2,000,000), the proceedings shall be conducted by th the e Provincial Agrarian Reform Adjudicator concerned. If the the comp ensation offered offered is more than two million pesos but does not exceed five million (P5,000,000) then the case will be handled by the Regional Agrarian Reform Adjudicator (RARAD). But if the amount in question exceeds five million pesos, then the proceed ings shall be conducted by th the e DAR Adjudication Board (DARAB). AO ( No. 08, Series of 1993) 1993) Is the Adjudication Board's decision final and executory ? Although the final determination o f the the va lue of the land is a judicia l function, unless the la ndowner o r any p arty- in-interes t files a c ase with the the Spe cial Agra rian Court within within fifteen fif teen (15) (15) d ays fr from om receip t of the the d ecision, then the the d ecision o f the the a djudicator/s beco mes final and e xecutory. 9.5
CONCERNED PARTIES' INVOLVEMENT IN THE LAND VALUATION PROCESS
Are landowners landowners and agrarian agrarian reform reform beneficiaries beneficiaries involved in the process of v aluation? Yes. The proces s o f land valuation must involve involve th the e a grarian reform beneficiaries, beneficiaries, their organiza tion tions, s, the BARC, and the landowner concerned. Their involvement is e nsured in various provisions of the law. law. Section 3, EO 129-A declares 129-A declares that . . . "partnership between government and organization of farmers and farmworkers in agrarian reform policy formulation, program implementation and evaluation shall be institutionalized . . . . " Section 47, RA 6657 specifies 6657 specifies that the BARC shall, among other things, " assist in initial determination of the value of the land ". ". Section 18, RA 6657 further 6657 further states that "The " The LBP shall compensate the landowners in such amount as may be agreed upon by the landowner and the DAR and the LBE . LBE . . . " 9.6
MODES OF COMPENSATION
How will landowners be compensated ? Under Volunt Voluntary ary Land T ransf ransfer, er, the the lando wner will will be paid directly in cash o r in kind by th the e farmer-be neficiar neficiary y under terms mutually mutually ag reed upon by th them em subjec t to DAR approval. Under Compulsory Acquisition, Acquisition, the Land Ba nk of the Philippines s hall compe nsate the landowner in the following following mode: a.
Cash payment whi which ch shall vary according to land size ;
b.
LBP bo nds or other gov ernment financial instruments.
Under Voluntary Offer to Sell, the landowner will be paid under the same mode as CA except that the cash portion is higher by five percent (5%). What proportion proportion of the total compensation is in cash cash? ? Cash portion shall vary a ccording to the siz e o f the the landholdings. T he larger the landholding, the smaller the ca sh portion. The underlying principle is that small landowners are presumed to have greater need for cash to aid them in their bid to shift their capital from agriculture to industry. Payment shall be under the the following terms and co nditi nditions: ons: a.
Lands abov e 50 has. — 25% cash; 75% bonds
b.
Lands abov e 24-50 has. — 30% cash; 70% bonds
c.
Lands 24 has. & be low — 35% cas h; 65% bond s
Cash portion is increased b y 5% for VOS. Why not pay the landowners landowners the full amount in cash? cash? The compe nsation package under CARP CARP is already much improved co mpared to the compensation schemes of pas t land reform reform programs. This is so, precise ly to make the program more acceptable to landowners and facilitate the shift of their capital from agriculture to industry. Full payment in cash is not feasible. This will tremendously increase the current funding requirements for CARP which the government can ill afford at present. Furthermore, this will infuse a large amount of money into the economy which could result in inflation. 9.7
LAND BANK BONDS
What are the features of the new LBP-bonds ? Compared with previous LBP bonds , the present bonds are de fin finitely itely more attractive. attractive. a. Past LBP LBP bonds have a maturity maturity of 25 years. This means, bond holders can only get the the principal at th the e end of 25 years. On the the other other hand, the the new LBP bonds mature in ten years, and one-tenth of the face value of the new bonds matures every year from the date of issue until the tenth year. b.
The new LBP bonds also bear market rates of int interest erest the the same as those those of 9191- day treasury bills. Old LBP bonds have have a fixed six percent (6%) int interest erest rate. rate.
c.
Finally,, these Finally these bonds have alternative alternative uses. uses. They may may be used by the the landowner, landowner, his successo successo rs in int interest, erest, or his his assignees, for any of th the e following: following:
* acquisition of land land or other real properties of the the government, government, including including assets under th the e Asset Asset Privatization Privatization Trust, Trust, and other other assets foreclosed foreclosed b y government fin financial ancial institutions; *
acquisition of shares of stock of gove rnm rnment ent owned or controll controlled ed corporations, or shares shares of stocks owned owned by the the government in private corporations; corporations;
*
substitut substit ution ion for surety or bail bonds for th the e provisional release of accused persons, or for performance bonds;
* security for loans with with some government fin financial ancial instit institut utions, ions, provided provided the procee ds are invested invested in an economic enterpri enterprise, se, preferably in a small-and- medium scale industry; * pa yment for vario us taxes and fee fee s to gov ernment, up to a certain perc entage of the outstanding balanc e of the financial instrument, instrument, and provid ed further further that the PARC shall have determined the allowable percentage mentioned; *
payment for for tuit tuition ion fees fees of the the immediate immediate family family of the original landholder landholder in government universit universities, ies, colleges, trade schools, and other other inst institu itutions; tions;
*
payment of bills in public hospitals; and
*
other uses as the PARC may allo w from time to time.
9.8
PD 27 LANDS LANDS
Are PD 27 lands lands also covered by this valuation formula? formula? No, they are governed by Executive Order No. 228. 228. Under this EO, the valuation formula under PD 27 is 27 is retained. Valuation Valuation shall be ba sed on the Average Gross Producti Production on (AGP) de term termined ined by th the e Ba rangay Committee Committee on Land Production (BCLP). (BCLP). Land value is comp ut uted ed using the the following formula: formula: Rice Lands LV = AGP x 2.5 x P35 * Corn Lands LV = AGP x 2.5 x P31 ** *
gove rnmen rnmentt support price for one cavan of 50 kilos of palay on 21 October 1972 1972
**
gove rnmen rnmentt support price for for one cavan of 50 kilos of corn on 21 21 October 1972 1972
Lease rentals pa id to the landowner by the farmer-b farmer-b eneficiary after after 21 October 1972 shall shall be considered as a dvance payment for the the land a nd shall, therefore, therefore, be deducted from the cost. Aren't PD 27 lands lands grossly undervalu undervalued ed since 1972 support prices are still being used ? The Preside nt ntial ial Agrarian Reform Reform Council (PARC (PARC)) has recogniz ed th this is proble m. Many of the landowners covered by PD 27 have 27 have not yet been pa id. Had these these la ndowners been p aid a t the the time of the the taking of their lands lands a nd the proceeds of the the co mpensation depo sited in a ba nk, the money would have e arned the same interest rate rate compounded annually as authorized under the banking laws, rules and regulations. To ad dress th these ese problems, th the e PARC in its its reso lut lution ion dated 25 October 1994, 1994, ap proved th the e g rant of an increment of six p ercent (6%) (6%) ye arly interest interest compo unded annually base d o n the the la nd value as d etermin etermined ed under existing valuation formula, formula, instead of revising th the e formula itself. itself. Guidelines for this this have been issued under under Administrative Administrative O rder No. 13, Serie s o f 1994, 1994, "Rules " Rules and Regulations Regulations Governing the Grant of I ncrement of Six Percent (6%) Yearly Interest Compounded Compounded Annually on Lands Covered by Presidential Decree No. 27 and Ex ecutive Order No. 228 ". Under these these guidelines, o wners of OLT OLT lands s hall be comp ensated bas ed o n the the following: following: (Computed land value using the original formula) x (1.06) n where n = number of years from date of tenancy up to effectivity date. Who are the landowners landowners qualified to receive c ompensation based on this increment formula? formula? IHTaCE 1.
Landowners whose lands lands are actually actually tenanted tenanted as of 21 October 1972 1972 or thereaft thereafter er and cove red by OLT; OLT;
2.
Lando wners who opted for Gov ernment financing through Land Bank of the Philippine s as the the mode of comp ensa tion; and
3.
Landowners who have not not yet been paid for for th the e value of th their eir land.
In the the case of landowners who who were p arti artially ally pa id, the yearly interest of six percent (6%) (6%) co mpounded a nnu nnually ally shall be applied to the the unpaid b alance. What is the reckoning date in computing the interest ? For lands tenanted as of 21 October 1972 and cove red under OLT, the date shall b e reck oned fr from om 21 October 197 1972 2 up to the date of effectivit effectivity y of AO of AO 13- 94 94.. For lands tenanted after 21 October 1972 and covered under OLT, OLT, the date s hall be reckoned fr from om the date when the land was actually tenanted tenanted up to the effectivity effectivity date of AO 13- 94 94.. What will happen to the claims of landowner-payees landowner-payees which were previously approved for payment by Land Bank ? The la ndowners shall still be entit entitled led to the difference. difference. What happens to the 25-years LBP bonds under PD 27 ? All outstanding LBP bond s that are re tained b y the orig inal la ndowner- pay ee, or by his heir, shall b e p aid by the Bank to the e xtent of their matured po rtion. One- twent twenty y fifth fifth (1/25) of their face value times the number of years from their date of issue to July 17, 1988 (date of EO 228) 228) are deemed to have matured. How can the original landowner-payee claim payment for the matured portion of his/her bond holding ? He/she should surrender the old LBP bonds to Land Bank which pays cash for the matured matured portion and conve rt the the unmatured unmatured po rt rtion ion to 10-yea r LBP bonds. Are outstanding old LBP bonds in the hands hands of bondholders bondholders other than the original original landowner-p landowner-payee ayee entitled to the same right ? No. Old LBP bo nds in the hands o f bondholders o th ther er than the the o riginal landowner-paye e a re not entitled entitled to the the s ame right. 9.9
EO 407 LANDS LANDS
What are EO 407 lands? lands ? These refer to to lands suitable to agriculture agriculture owned b y all government instrument instrumentalities, alities, including including b ut not limit limited ed to gove rnm rnment ent agencies, gove rnm rnment ent owned and contr controlled olled corporations or fin financial ancial institut institutions ions which have been ordered to be surr surrendered endered to the Depa rt rtment ment of Agrarian Agrarian Reform under Executive Order No. 407 issued on 14 June 1990 by then President Corazon C. Aquino. Will these lands be covered by t he same valuation guidelines guidelines as the private lands covered under CARP ? No, separate valuation guidelines for properties covered by EO 407 have 407 have been issued a pplicab le to cla ims of gov ernment financial financial institu institutions tions which which have signed joint jointly ly with LBP a Memorandum of Agreement dated 28 August 1992. 9.10 MT. PINATUBO AFFECTED AREAS Will landowners landowners in lahar affect ed areas whose landholdings landholdings were originally subject of acquisition and distribution be compensated ? Joint DAR-LBP Administrative Order No. 03, Series of 1994 provid ed th the e p olicy g uidelines gov erning the the a cquisition and distribution distribution of agricultural agricultural lands aff affected ected b y the Mt. Pinatubo eruptions.
Under this this guide line, agricultural agricultural lands aff affected ected by Mt. Pinatu Pinatubo bo erupti eruptions ons have been classified into three base d o n the the NEDA Region III III Geograp hic Information Information System database. T hese a re: Category I (actually affected) These a re agricultural agricultural lands actually covered with lahar and pyroclastic depos its, including including those those a reas which whi ch have b ecome silted, eroded or continuously continuously flooded for an indefinite indefinite period o f time. time. Category II (not yet affected) These are a gricult gricultural ural lands not falling under Category Category I but have the poss ibilit ibility y o f being ac tu tually ally affected.
These are ag ricult ricultural ural lands actually cove red or a ff ffected ected by ashfall but which which remain to to be productive. As a ge neral rule, lands under Categ ory III shall be acq uired a nd land owners c ompe nsated . Compensa tion of lands under Categ ory I and II shall be effected unde r the following conditions: 1.
Claims have been approv ed by LBP and:
a.
Landowner has executed a Deed of Assignment Assignment,, Warrant Warranty y and Undert Undertaking aking on or before before the the issuance issuance of th the e Joint DAR-LBP AO 03-94; 03-94 ; or,
b.
Transfer Cert Certifi ificate cate of Title was was already registered in th the e name of RP on or before the the issuance of the the same AO; or
c.
Partial Parti al payment was already eff effected. ected.
2. LBP.
Emancipation Patents/Certificates Patents/Certificates of Land Ownership Award have been registered on or before 12 June 1991 1991 rega rdles s of whether or not the claim folder is with the
CHAPTER 10 LAND DISTRIBUTION 10.1 BASIC PRINCIPLES IN LAND DISTRIBUTION What are the basic principles in land distribution? distribution? Land distribution distribution is governed by th the e following following ba sic principles and p olicies: a.
The CARP CARP seeks to promote promote the the establishment establishment of owner-culti owner-cultivatorship vatorship of economic- size farms as the the basis of Philippine agricultu agriculture; re;
b. DAR's primary mandate is to to distribut distribute e agricultural agricultural lands to to as many tenant tenants s and farmw farmworkers orkers as possible. If the agricultural land is untenanted or does not have farmworkers, it is the responsibility of the DAR to locate q ualif ualified ied b eneficiaries pursuant to to Se ction 22 and Section 7 of RA 6657; 6657 ; c.
In general, lands shall be distribut distributed ed directly directly to th the e individual beneficiaries;
d. The award of three hectares to the be neficiaries is in line with the obje ctive of forming and maintaining maint aining economic- size family farms. farms. What Administrative Orders govern land distribution? distribution? a. Administrative O rder No. 10, Serie s o f 1990 entitled, 1990 entitled, "Rules " Rules and Procedures in the Distribution of Private Agricultural Lands Agraria Agrarian n Reform Beneficiaries under RA 6657 "; and b. Administrative Orde r No. 02, Series of 1992 entitled, " Supplemental Guidelines on AO No. 10, Series of 1990, and Other Iss uances the Rights of Farmworkers". Farmworkers". When does land acquisition end and when does land distribution begin? begin? The cut- off po int in the the land ac quisition proc ess is the transfer of tit title le from the the lando wner to to the Republic of the Philippines as e vide nced b y the Transfer Certificate Certificate of Title (TCT) issued by the ROD. Immediately Immediately upon rece ipt of the the TCT, the DAR shall take pos session o f the the land and proceed wit with h land distribution. distribution. May distribution occur before the end of acquisition? acquisition? Yes. The cut-off point above is for compulsory a cquisition cases where landowner refuses refuses to c oope rate. Operationally, Operationally, distribution distribution can b egin ea rlier rlier,, pa rt rticularly icularly if the the landowner is coo perative and is willing willing to le t the the ide nt ntifi ified ed beneficiaries cultivate cultivate the land. What proof of land ownership is given to beneficiaries beneficiaries? ? Beneficiaries Beneficiari es receive th the e follow following ing titles: titles: a.
Emancipation Patents (EPs) for OLT lands ;
b.
Certifi Cert ificates cates of Land Ownership Ownership Award (CL (CLOAs) OAs) for CA, VOS, and 407 407 lands, resettlement resettlement areas and landed estates; and
c.
Free Patent Patents s for public lands.
Beneficiaries o f the Beneficiaries the Integrated Integrated Social Forestry Program co vering agro- forestr forestry y p ublic lands whose ownershi ownership p ca nnot be transferred, transferred, receive d Certificates Certificates of Stewardship Contract (CSCs) which are good for 25 years, renewable for another 25 years. Is a Certificate of Land Transfer (CLT) an evidence of ownership of the land ? No. In the case of Magana vs. Paitan (G.R. No. 60269, 13 September 1990), it was held that the mere issuance of CLT does not vest in the farmer-grantee, ownership of the land de scribed th therein. erein. ItIt merely provide s ev idence of the government's recognition of the the g rant rantee ee as th the e p art qualified qualified to avail o f the the statutory statutory requirements for acquisition acquisition under PD 27. 27. Failure of the farmer-beneficiary to comply with the requirements will result in the cancellation of the said CLT. Thus, failure on the part of a farmer/grantee to pay lease/amortization payment to the landowner or agricultural lessor when they fall due for a period of two years shall be a ground for forfeiture of the CLT. 10.2 AWARD 10.2 AWARD CEILING How many hectares of land can an awardee get ? Individual In dividual be neficiar neficiaries ies may each rece ive the following following maximum hectarages:
a.
Three hectares under RA 6657 ac 6657 ac quisiti quisition on mode s (CA, VOS, VLT/DPS, EO 407);
b. Three hectares hectares for irri irrigated gated and five hectares for unir unirrigated rigated rice and corn lands covered under under the th e O LT p rogram of PD 27; 27; and c.
Three hectares for awardees in settl settlement ement areas and landed estates.
Potential be neficiari Potential neficiaries es who o wn less than three three hectares o f agricultural agricultural land may still receive land under CARP but only to the extent of the difference between the award limit of three hectares and their present land ownership. For For exa mple: Award Ceiling
3.0 has.
ARB owns
1.2 has.
Total Area th that at may be awarded to ARB
—————— 1.8 1. 8 has.
In all cases, the ag gregate award and the total total land o wnersh wnership ip of the ARB ARB as a result of the the a ward shall not exceed th three ree hectares. Suppose the area actually occupied by a tenant slightly exceeds the three hectare award ceiling and there there is no other tenant in the landholding, how will will the exces s area be disposed ? Since there there is no guideline go verning the the allocation of excess area ov er the the allowable thr threeee- hectare ceiling under under RA 6657, 6657 , the pertinent provision of the Ministry of Agrarian Reform Administrative O rder No. 03-85, Series o f 1985 1985 can can be applied . This states states that "The "The economic family size f arm to be transferred to a bonafide farmer farmer beneficiary pursuant to PD 27 shall shall inc lude a tolerable limit of not more than ten percent (10%) or 3.3 hectares if irrigated and 5.5 hectares if unirrigated ." ." Hence, if the excess area is within the 10% tolerable limit (or 3.3 hectares under RA 6657), 6657 ), then the the total aggreg ate area ma y be awarded to the qualified farmer-beneficiary. 10.3 LAND DISTRIBUTION PROCEDURES What are the basic steps in the redistribution of lands under VOS, CA, and EO 407 ? MARO a. Upon comple tion of land acq uisition, the the first first activity done is the the valida tion of the list of qualified ARBs. This is to to ensure that that those who were identified during the acquisition phase are still present and qualified qualified to rece ive the land. b. Through a letter letter or through the CARP Beneficia ry Certificate Certificate (CBC), (CBC), the the identified ARBs are formally formally notified that that they have have be en qualified to rece ive the land. The notice also grants the the ARBs the the usufructuary usufructuary rights rights a nd privileges and o bliges th them em the duties and responsibilities over th the e land. c. The ARBs ARBs are are consulted consulted as to their preferr preferred ed mode of distribut distribution, ion, i.e. i.e.,, individual, individual, collective or co- ownershi ownership. p. Then, Then, Land Distri Distribution bution Folders are prepared based on the ARBs' preference and submitted to the PARO. PARO a.
Reviews all documents and generates generates the the Cert Certifi ificates cates of Land Ownershi Ownership p Awards (CL (CLOAs). OAs).
b.
If ARBs prefer individ ual pa rcels, then then the PARO reques ts the DENR to cond uct subd ivisio n survey.
c.
Submits the CLOAs to the DAR Regio nal Office (DARRO) who who cause s them to be signed by the Secre tary.
d.
Registers the the CLOAs with the ROD and forwards them them to the MARO for distribution.
e.
The ARBs are allowed allowed to to take take posses sion of th the e land land and use it for production.
10.4 INDIVIDUAL VS. COLLECTIVE DISTRIBUTION Is individual dis tribution always required ? No. According to Section 25, RA 6657, 6657 , the beneficiaries may op t for for collective o wner wnership, ship, such as co- ownership or farmers farmers coo perative or so me other form of collective collective organiza tion. However, the the total area that may be a warded shall not exce ed the total number number of be neficiar neficiaries ies multiplied multiplied by three hectares, exce pt in meritorious meritorious case s approve d by the PARC PARC.. Thus, nine nine ARBs under a co- ownershi ownership p may receive not more than 27 hectares. hectares. Furth Fur ther, er, in case it is not economically feasib le and sound to divide th the e land as d etermin etermined ed b y the DAR, then then it shall be o wned collectively by th the e worker be neficiar neficiaries. ies. Finally,, to ex pedite la nd distribution, Finally distribution, lands may b e initially awarded c ollectively and later distributed distributed individually after completion of the subdivision surveys. This arrangement may be done for any CARP able land whether whether private land o r public land within within proclaimed D AR settlement settlement projects or public land turned turned o ver to the DAR by other government agencies and institutions pursuant to EO No. 407, 407, as amended by EO 448. 448. How can the individual beneficiaries be ass ured of their share in the c ollectively held landholding landholding ? DAR shall ensure that the the name o f the the co operative o r the the a ssocia tion and their individual individual membe rs are p roperly annotated at the bac k of the collec tive CLOA to to p rotect the the farmer-membe farm er-membe r from from pos sible summary and unju unjust st separation by the coo perative or as sociation, and that the the fractional fractional share of ea ch ARB ARB shall be specified o ppos ite their their names. How will lands covered by collectiv e CLOAs be subdivided ? Guidelines have been provided under AO under AO No. 03, Serie s o f 1993, 1993, " Rules and Procedures Governing the Issuance of Individual Titles t o Co-Owners Co-Owners", ", should the ARBs ARBs de cide to subdivide lands held collectively. If held on a co - ownershi ownership p ba sis, lands co vered b y collective CLOA shall be subdivided in accordance with the the actual occupancy of the ARBs, ARBs, provided the share of each shall not exceed three hectares. For landholdings in the name of coope rative or farmers farmers ass ociation, subdivision shall be base d on the shares o f each member under the same c ondition that that this this shall not excee d three hectares and provided th that at the the subdivision is d etermin etermined ed by DAR to be economically feas ible. DAR may issue individual CLOAs in the name of the ARBs ARBs bas ed o n their their request and the approv ed s ubdivision plan of the landholding and s upported by a De ed o f Partiti Partition on executed b y all co -o wners named in the the co llective CLOA. Individual Individual CLOAs generated by DAR under this this subdivision shall be on Transfer Certifi Certificate cate of Title (TCT) CLOA forms to be registered with the ROD. However, if the However, the ten-ye ar period reckoned fr from om the date of the issuance of the collective CLOA has already elapse d, issuance of individual certificates certificates of title title shall alread y be subject to the procedures and requirements of the Land Registration Authority (LRA) pursuant to the Land Registration Decree ( PD 1529 1529). ). What are the procedures procedures for subdividing landholdings landholdings previously covered by c ollective CLOAs on co-ownership basis? PARO a.
Any of the co- owners shall submit to the PARO, through channel, a writt written en reque st for the subd ivisio n of the land.
b. The PARO PARO shall endorse the the request for subdivision to the the DARRO DARRO for bidding and award to to private contractors contractors or the the DAR itself may instead instead exe cute th the e subdivision survey of the target landholdings. DARRO a.
The DARRO DARRO shall bid and award th the e survey to to private contractors contractors or cause the the conduct of th the e survey by DAR survey teams teams if availab le.
b.
The survey survey retur returns ns shall be submitted submitted to th the e DENR DENR for verificat verification ion and approval.
c.
The approve d subdivision plan shall be submit submitted ted to th the e PAR PARO. O.
PARO a. Prepare a Deed of Partiti Partition on for for the the signature signature of all the the co- owners, specifying specifying the the lot number and the the exact parcel intended intended for the the co-o wner concerned, base d on the the approved subdivision plan. The Deed of Partition shall be duly notarized. b.
Retrieve the the owner's duplica te certificate of tit title le of the colle ctive CLOA CLOA from the ARBs for canc ellation by the ROD. Generate individual TCT-CLOAs f
each co-owner base d on th the e approved subdivision plan and the the duly notarized Deed of Parti Partition. tion.
d. Transmit th the e CLOAs, the the Deed of Partition Partition,, and approved subd ivision plan to the the Register Register of Deed s concerned for th the e registration. registration. The owner's duplicate duplicate certificate certificate of title of the collective CLOA shall be surrendered to the ROD for cancellation. e.
Record the the regis tered CLOAs CLOAs and transmit the same to the MARO for redis tribution to the individ ual co- owners.
How will this generation of CLOAs be treated in reporting accomplishment ? Landholdings covered by collective CLOAs already reported as accomplishment by the DAR field office concerned and subsequently subdivided and issued individual TCTCLOAs to the the o wner wners s shall be reported and monit monitored ored s eparately in the monthly reporting reporting o f the the field o ff ffices. ices. However, the the a rea co vered by collective CLOA should not be reported again as hectarage cove red upon the issuance of the the individual CLOAs. Such activities activities shall be included in the program o f the the field o ff ffice ice co ncerned for proper fu funding. nding. 10.5 RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OBLIGATIONS OF BENEFICIARIES What are the obligations of the beneficiary ? All ARBs shall e xerc ise the d ilige nce o f a go od father of the the family in the use, c ultivation, and maintenance of the land inc luding the imp rove ments thereon. Neglig ence , misuse, or unauthorized unauthorized sale of the the la nd, or a ny support extended to the ARB ARB shall be a g round for the the forfeitur forfeiture e o f his or her rights as a beneficiary.
May CARP beneficiaries s ell the land awarded to them? them? Section 27, RA 6657 provide 6657 provide s that lands awarded to the ARBs ARBs may not be sold , transferred transferred or co nveyed for a period of ten (10) (10) years fr from om the award. This may be seen as a mea ns to encourage the ARBs ARBs to cultivate cult ivate the land and make it productive productive o ver a long term. The exceptions to this rule are if the transfer is through: a.
hereditary succession;
b.
to the Gov ernment;
c.
to the Land Bank; or
d.
to other qualified beneficiaries.
If the land has been transferred to the government or to LBP, the children of spouse of the ARB shall still have the right to repurchase the land within two years. Ownership of lands awarded under PD 27 or Ownership 27 or EO 228, 228, however, may be transferred after full payment of amortization by the beneficiary. (Section 6, EO 228) 228) But there are guidelines now being formulated formulated which will determine determine where the the ten-ye ar prohibition period under Section 27 may be a pplicable , and will also provide for additional safeguards to preve nt abuse in the the se lling of PD 27 lands. 27 lands. Does this mean that after ten y ears, under the CARP, the ARB may sell to anybody provided he or she has fully paid for the land and the buyer will not have more than five hectares after the transaction? transaction? Yes, the the ARB may sell the land provide d that the the total landholdings of the the buyer a ft fter er the purchase doe s not excee d five hectares. What if the ARB no longer wants to farm? farm ? The ARB has the option to transfer or convey the rights to the land to any of his or her qualified heirs or to any other beneficiary, even if the land has not yet been fully paid. The conditions are that the transfer has the prior approval of the DAR and that the transferee will personally cultivate the land. What happens happens if t he new ARBs fail to cultiv ate the land themselves? themselves ? Then the land shall be transferred to the LBP which shall give notice of availability of the land to the BARC. The BARC in turn, shall notify the Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee (PARCCOM). Under such instances, the LBP shall reimburse the original ARB one lump sum for the amount of amortizations made including payments for the value of the improvements on the land. The new ARB will have to start amortizing anew. Can an agrarian reform beneficiary subdivide in favor of his or her children the three hectares of land awarded under CARP ? Strictly speaking, no. The th Strictly three ree hectares, as th the e ide nt ntifi ified ed e conomic- size d family farm, should be prese rved as a single operating unit to promote the the farm's eco nomic viability. Should the the be neficiar neficiary y die or be incapacitated, successio n to the the farmholding shall be go verned by th the e pe rt rtinent inent provisions of the Civil Code, Code, subject to the condition that the land shall not be fr fragmented. agmented. This means th that at the the la nd shall be tr transferr ansferred ed to the spouse of the ARB ARB or in the ab sence or incapac ity of the the sp ouse, to the eld est child who meets the qualifications to be a CARP beneficiary, particularly the requirement of willingness, aptitude and ability to cultivate the land and make it productive. The heir who succeeds on the land shall pay th the e other heirs their their corresponding le gal shares. In the the ab sence o f such children, children, e.g., if all the the children are less th than an 15 years old , the land shall be tr transferr ansferred ed to the DAR which which shall loo k for a new beneficiary on the land. Aside from those already mentioned, mentioned, what are the ground grounds s for the cancellation of Emancipation Patents (EPs) or Certificates of Land Ownership Ownership Award (CLOA) (CLOA)? ? Violations of agrarian laws, rules and regulation regulations s a re grounds for the cancellation of registered EPs or CLOAs. These include b ut are not limited limited to the the following: 1.
Misuse or diversion of fin financial ancial and support support services extended to th the e ARB; (Section 37 of RA 6657 ). ).
2. Misuse of the land; (Section 22, RA 6657) 6657 ) This refers to any a ct causing substantial substantial and unreasonab le da mage o n the the land, a nd causing the deterioration and depletion of the soil fertility and improvements thereon. It also includes the act of knowingly planting, growing, raising, or permitting the planting, growing, raising of any plant which whi ch is the source of a dangerous d rug, as de fin fined ed in PD No. 1683, 1683, as amended. ( AO AO No. 02- 94 94). ). 3.
Material misrepresentat misrepresentation ion of th the e ARB's basic qualifications qualifications as provided under under Sec. 22 of RA 6657, 6657 , PD 27 and 27 and o th ther er agrarian laws;
4.
Illegal Ill egal conversion by th the e ARB's;
5. Sale, transfer transfer,, lease or other forms of conveyance by a be neficiar neficiary y of the the right to use use or any other usuf usufruct ructuary uary right right over the land land acquired by virtue of being a beneficiary in orde r to circumvent the the p rovisions of the d iff ifferent erent agrarian laws. (Lands awarded under PD 27/ 27/ EO 228, 228, however, may be transferred after full payment of amortization). 6.
Default in th the e obligation to to pay an aggrega te of th three ree (3) consecutive amortizations amortizations in case of VLT/DPS, VLT/DPS, excep t in cases of fort fortuit uitous ous events and force majeure; majeure;
7.
Failure of the ARBs to to pay for at leas t three (3) annual amortizations to the LBP LBP,, excep t in cas es of fortu fortuitous itous events and force maje maje ure;
8. Neglect or abando nment of the awarded land continuou continuously sly for for a period of tw two o (2) calendar years as determined determined by the the Secretary or his his authorized authorized representative (Section 22, RA 6657 ); ); 9. The land is foun found d to be exempted/ex cluded fr from om PD 27/ 27/ EO 228 or 228 or CARP coverage or to be part of the the landowner's retained retained a rea as d etermin etermined ed b y the Secretary or his authorized authorized representati representative; ve;
Who can order the cancellation of a registered EP/CLOA? EP/CLOA? The Provincial o r Regional Adjudicator which which has jurisdiction over the prop erty may orde r the the c ancellation of a reg istered EP/CLOA EP/CLOA in accordance wit with h the the D ARAB Rules Rules a nd Regulations. Aside from cance llation, the PARAD/RARAD may dec ide to include other sa nctions for vio lations o f agraria n laws s uch as forfeitu forfeiture re of a mortiza tion, eje ctment of ARB, ARB, reallocation of the land to qualified b eneficiary eneficiary,, pe rpetual disqualification disqualification to bec ome a n ARB. ARB. What will happen to a tenant who became a beneficiary under PD 27 but but whose EP is now being cancelled on the ground that the area awarded is part of the landowner's retained area? area ? The farmer will revert to to b eing an a gricult gricultural ural lessee . He/she, however, will will have securit security y o f tenure tenure and ca nnot be ejec ted from the the land. Amortization Amortization pa yments will be credited as lease rentals and excess payments shall be reimbursed. Who has the authority to correct an error in the CLOA such as t he omission of the name of the s pouse, typing error in the name of the beneficiary or in the technical description of the property ? It is still the PARAD or the RARAD having jurisdiction over the property who can order the correction of the title. CHAPTER 11 PAYMENT PA YMENT BY BENEFIC IARIES 11.1 PAYMENT UNDER RA 6657 Must the l andow andowner ner first agree to the land valuation before the beneficiaries can receive t he land ? No. Learning Learning from the lesso ns in the previo us ag rarian reform programs the CARP now sepa rates acq uisit uisition ion from distribution. distribution. These are now tw two o sepa rate transactions. transactions. The former is a transaction between the government and the landowner, while the latter is a transaction between the government and the agrarian reform beneficiaries. The landowner may still be contesting the land valuation but title to the land may already be transferred first to the Republic of the Philippines then to the beneficiaries. Will the beneficiaries have to pay the government the same amount that government paid to the landowner ?
Under AO No. 06- 93 Under AO 93,, lands a warded pursuant to to EO 229, 229, RA 6657 and 6657 and lands acquired under EO 407 shall be rep aid b y the ARBs ARBs to Land Bank in 30 annual amortiza amortiza tion tions s at six percent (6%) (6%) interest per annum based o n the the co st of the the land and pe rmanent improvements. These are the regular annual amortizations.. amortizations However,, to make pa yments affordable, However affordable, amortization shall be reduced to: *
2.5% of AGP for the first thr three ee yea rs;
*
5.0% of AGP on the fourt fourth h and fif fifth th yea r; and to
* 10.0% 10.0 % of AGP from from the the sixth to the thirt thirtieth ieth yea r if this amortiz ation ceiling is lower than than the the regula regula r amortization. Simulation: Annual Gros s Prod uction (AGP) estab lished during durin g land valuation AO (AO- 06-92 06-92): ):
P15,000.00
Cost of Awarded land cove red by VOS/CA:
P22,706. P22,7 06.38 38
Capital Reco very Factor of 6% for 30 yea rs:
0.07265 0.07 265
Annual Regula r Amortiz Amortiz ation: P 22,706.38 22,706.38 x 0.07265 0.07265 =
P1,849.57 P1,849. 57
Annual Amortization Ceiling : 1st - 3rd Year
:
P15,000 x .025
=
P375.00 P375. 00
4th - 5th Year
:
P15,000 x .050
=
P750.00
6th - 30th Year
:
P15,000 x .100
=
P1,500.00
Compare annual regular amortization (P1,849) with the schedule of amortization ceiling shown earlier. Since the ceiling is lower than the annual regular amortization, the ARB will pay ba sed only on the ceiling. The difference difference represe nts the the gov ernment ernment's 's subsid y. What is the "assistance" to farmers? farmers? Assis tance to farme rs refers to: a. the th e difference difference between the the regular annual amortization (based on the amount paid or approve d for payment to to the the landowner) and the the affordable affordable amount during during the the first five years after the award of the land to the ARBs; and b. the difference be tween the the regular amortiza tion and ten percent (10%) (10%) of the AGP during the the 6th 6th to to the the 30th 30th yea r wheneve r such 10% of AGP is lower than than the the regular amortization. After mak ing pa yments for 30 yea rs, the be neficiary s tops p aying . The d ifference b etween what the Go vernment pa id to the la ndowner a nd what it was ab le to c ollec t from After from the ARB is the Go vernment subs idy or the as sistance to farmers. It may be noted that aside from the difference in the total amounts, there is also a huge difference in the present value of the total amount including market rate of interest that the Government will pay the landowner and what it will receive from the ARB annually for 30 years. Will the average gross production have to be computed annually ? No. In In the the case of already prod uctive lands, the the AGP shall be co mput mputed ed o nce, during the the valuation process, ba sed o n the the pe so va lue of the the annual yield/produce p er hectare of the the la nd awarded to farmerfarmer- beneficiaries as established jo int intly ly by th the e D AR and the LBP which is reflected reflected in the the va luat luation ion portion of the Claims Valuation Valuation and Process ing Form. If only for this this reason, it is imperative to involve th the e BARC and the beneficiaries as e arly as p ossible to inform inform them them abo ut the the data g athered on the AGP AGP of the land and get their comments and reactions. How about about in newly cultivated lands? lands ? In the the ca se of newly cultivated cultivated lands without established established AGP, the terms terms o f repayment shall b e a s follows: 1.
For lands planted planted to either either perennial or short term (seasonal) crop s, the the initial initial annual annual repayments by the the ARBs ARBs shall be equivalent to to 2.5% 2.5% based on the cost of the the
Imputed AGP shall be determin Imputed determined ed using industry industry d ata ob tained from gove rnm rnment/pri ent/private vate e nt ntities ities in the barangay. In the the abse nce thereof, AGP for the the mun municipality icipality,, p rovince or region in that that order, shall be co nsidered. 2. For idle and abando ned lands, initial initial annual annual repayments shall shall be equivalent to 2.5 2.5% % based on the the cost of th the e land until until such time time that that th the e AGP has been established/determined. In both cases, the a verage of the the first three three (3) yea rs production shall be th the e b asis in establishing the the p ermanent AGP AGP.. The first three three (3) yea rs amortization and a ll subseq uent amortizations shall be adjusted and b ased on the the pe rmanent AGP established. What if the ARB later on increases his or her production production? ? The co mput mputed ed annual payments will will not change. The be nefi nefits ts of increased prod ucti uction on should all go to the the b eneficiary's pocke t as his or her incentive.
What if a t yphoon or other natural calamity reduces the beneficiary's production? production? The LBP shall formulate guidelines to as sist ARBs ARBs affected by natu natural ral calamity or force majeure which may include, among o th thers, ers, suspe nsion of pa yment, deferment of payment or restructurin restructuring g o f account. What if the courts grant the landowner a higher valuation? valuation ? Under AO No. 06- 92 Under AO 92,, this this will hardly have a n effect effect on the amount to to be paid b y the beneficiaries in view of the the a ssistance to farmers. The go vernment vernment's 's s ubsidy will increase but the the ARBs' amortization will not change. When will the ARB start paying the amortization? amortization? The ARB shall start paying one year a ft fter er the land has been awarded to him/her, him/her, i.e., i.e., the the d ate of registration of the CLOA. What happens happens if t he ARB defaults in his or her payments? payments ? Although the land ha s b een titled in the na me o f the the b eneficia ry, the Land Bank has a lien by way o f mortgage on the land . This mortga ge may b e forec lose d b y the LBP if the ARB doe s not pa y a total of three annual a mortiza tions, ex cep t where the cause of such failure to p ay is brought ab out by na tural cala mity or force majeure. Should LBP foreclose foreclose on any awarded land, it shall advise DAR of such proceed ings and the DAR shall subseq uent uently ly award the land to other qualified qualified beneficiaries. A beneficiary whose land has be en foreclosed shall thereafter thereafter be permanentl permanently y d isqualified from being a recipient of land under CARP. 11.2 PAYMENT IN OLT LANDS Will beneficiaries of OLT lands pay under the s ame amortization scheme? scheme? No. Payment by OLT beneficiaries is go verned by Section 6 of EO 228. 228. This section provides that th the e be neficiar neficiaries ies shall p ay for the total total cos t of the the land including six pe rcent (6%) interest interest per a nnu nnum m with with a two pe rcent (2%) (2%) interest rebate for prompt payments. Payment shall be ma de by the farmer-be neficiar neficiary y o r his heirs to the Land Bank o ver a period o f 20 years in 20 equal annual amortiza amortiza tion tions, s, where: Annual Amortization = La nd Value x 0.08 0.087185 7185 * *
Capital Recov ery Factor at 6% per annum for 20 yea rs
How about about in lands already valued and financed by LBP for which beneficiaries have s tarted amortizing? Under Under PD 27 , the period of repayment is 15 years. years . LBP shall extend the period of payment to twenty twenty ye ars. How will the grant of increment of six percent (6%) yearly interest compounde compounded d annually on OLT lands affect the amortization payment by OL OLT T beneficiaries? beneficiaries? Although this grant effectively raise s co mpensa tion to owners o f OLT lands , ag rarian reform b eneficia ries will no t be a ffected. They shall c ontinue to amortiz e the la nd on the basis o f the the original land value. PD 27 provides provides that lease rental payments made by the farmer-beneficiary farmer-beneficiary to the landowner landowner after 21 October 1972 shall be c onsidered as advance payment for the land. What documents are required to serve as evidence of payment ? Alleg ations o f leas e rental p ayme nt on the sole bas is of a ff ffidav idav its ("pagpapatotoo" ("pagpapatotoo" )) e xecuted by th the e farmer-be neficiar neficiaries ies c oncerned shall not be suff sufficient. icient.DAR DAR Memorandum Circular No. 11, Series of 1994 provide 1994 provide s that such affidavits affidavits must be supp orted by additional evide nce. The Memo Cir Circular cular states that that the FB's affidavit must must be confir confirmed med b y the th e lando wner and that there there should b e o th ther er corroborative evidence to substantiate substantiate the allegation that payment of lease rent rental al had been paid to the the la ndowner (e.g., (e.g., affidavit affidavit of BARC members/farmers). What are the procedures procedures for determining sufficiency of lease rental payments as advance amortization and consequently, the issuance of c ertificate of full payment t o the farmerbeneficiary ? 1.
MARO shall serve a cop y of the FB's affidavit to the lando wner thr through ough either:
*
personal delivery
*
regis tered mail with return card
In either either case, th there ere should b e proo f of service. 2. Simultaneous to the deli very of the affidavit to to the the landowner, the MARO shall also po st the affidavit for for fifteen fifteen (15) day s in the bara ngay hall, and other consp icuous places where the the prop erty is situated. situated. 3. MARO shall verify from from the the records whether whether or not lease lease rentals paid by the FB are sufficient sufficient to cover the the land value. The MARO shall likewise validate the the veracity of the th e lando wner's objection if any and submit a report and reco mmendation to to the PARO within within ten-d ten-d ays fr from om the date service is completed. 4. PARO issue s Certificate Certificate of Full Payme nt if it is found found that that rentals rentals paid sufficiently cov er the the cost of the land and furnishes furnishes photoco pies to landowner and FB not later than ten (10) days from receipt of the MARO's report. 5. Lando wner may file an appe al to the Regio nal Director within within ten (10) day s from from receipt of the photoc op y. In tur turn, n, the the RD dec ides within ten (10) day s from from receipt of the appe al. The RD's dec ision is final final in so far as the DAR is concerned. 6.
The ROD registers the the Emancip Emancip ation Patent (EP) on the the basis of the PARO's Certificates Certificates of Full Payme nt and the the RD's Order (in cas e of ap pea l).
11.3 PAYMENT UNDER VLT/DPS Is t here also a ceiling on payments under VLT/DPS VLT/DPS? ? Yes, in effect effect there is a ceiling since th the e law p rovides th that at although the the terms and co nditi nditions ons of the VLT/DPS shall be mut mutually ually agree d upon by the lando wner and the ARB, ARB, these should not be less favorable to the ARB than those that would prevail if it were the government acquiring the land from the landowner and selling it to the beneficiary.
Yes. The VLT/DPS VLT/DPS ag reement shall contain sanctions sanctions for non-compliance by e ith ither er party and such shall be duly recorded and its implementation implementation monitored monitored b y the DAR. Should the beneficiary, for reason other than those brought about by force majeure or fortuitous events default in his/her obligations for three (3) consecutive installments to pay the th e land a mort mortiza iza tion tion,, he/she shall b e replac ed a s be neficiar neficiary y and be p ermanent ermanently ly disqualified from being a beneficiary under CARP CARP. DAR shall cancel the CLOA whi which ch had been iss ued a nd transfer transfer the land to e ith ither: er: a.
Qualified heir of th the e beneficiary who shall assume th the e balance of th the e value of th the e land; or
b. In th the e abse nce of a qualified qualified heir, heir, a new qualified qualified beneficiary who, who, as a condition for for such transf transfer, er, is is willing willing to to abide b y the the terms of the existing existing VLT/DPS VLT/DPS agreement and who will pay for the entire value of the land. What will happen to the payments made by the previous beneficiary who has defaulted ? In case of (b) a bove, th the e landowner shall refund refund the previous b eneficiary in one lump sum or on installment installment basis for the amounts amounts alread y pa id and for the the improvements made b y the latter, latter, less the computed lease rent rental al for the the duration of the the previous b eneficiary's use of the land and o th ther er charges provided by la w. 11.4 PAYMENT IN LAHAR AFFECTED AREAS Are the farmer-beneficiaries farmer-beneficiaries in lands lands affected by t he Mt. Pinatubo eruptions eruptions required to continue continue paying their amortization amortization? ? The Joint J oint DAR-LBP Administrative Order No. 03, Series of 1994 provides th the e po licy guidelines and p rocedures to be followed under this situation situation.. Payment of amortization shall be deferred if subject landholding falls under Category I — a ctually affected affected a reas (see Page 78 ) until until such time that the the land become s productive again, without prejudice to the farmer's voluntary payment of amortization. The farmer, however, should first notify the Land Bank in writing of his/her intention of deferring deferrin g pa yment and this this must be a pproved by Land Bank. If the landholding falls either under Category II — not yet affected or Category III — lands covered by ashfall, the farmer shall continue to pay the amortization. Will payment also be deferred if the land is under Category Category I but ac quisition was through voluntary land transfer or direct direct payment s cheme? Yes, but instead of notifying the Land Bank, the farmer-beneficiary concerned shall notify the landowner in writing with the assistance of DAR of his/her intention to defer payment. CHAPTER 12 SUPPORT SERVICES 12.1 SUPPORT SERVICES TO LANDOWNERS What support services shall be provided to the affected landowners landowners? The support services provided to landowners are: a.
investment information, financial and counse ling ass istance;
b.
facilities, facilit ies, programs and arrangements for exchange and marketin marketing g of LBP bonds; and
c.
other services intended intended to assist landowners in in productively productively utilizing utilizing the the proceeds of the the sales of th the e land for for rural rural indust industrialization. rialization.
What specific inv estment incentives are offered to landowners landowners? ? If they they invest in rural industries, industries, they will be e nt ntitled itled to incentives incentives granted to a registered enterprise engag ed in a p ioneer or p referr referred ed area of investment as provided for in the the Omnibus Investment Code of 1987, 1987, or to other incentives which may be provided by PARC, LBP, or other government financial institution. If the the landowners invest the procee ds in a Board o f Investment Investment (BOI) (BOI) registered c ompany o r in any a gri-business or ag ri-industr ri-industrial ial enterprise in the region, the LBP shall redeem the LBP bonds up to thirty percent (30%) of their face value. ( Section 38, RA 6657 )
What specific ac tion has been done by DAR to facilitate ass istance to landowners? landowners? Special O rder No. 172, 172, Series of 1993 mandated mandated the creation of a Landowner's Des k in eve ry DAR provincial office. This desk will be handled by o ne full-time full-time staff with with the the po sition of at least a Supervising Agrarian Agrarian Reform Program Program (SUARPO). (SUARPO). This LO's Desk shall handle exc lusively and specifically landowners' problems, issues and concerns. The LO's Desk Off Officer icer shall have th the e following responsibilities: 1. Answer landowners' queries and receive complaints complaints and other concerns brought by the the landowners to the attention of DAR; 2. Refer these concerns to app ropriate DAR units or to the LBP-La nd Valuation Office, or other gove rnm rnment ent agencies for resolution; resolution; 3.
Monitor the action taken on the referrals; and
4.
Assis t lando wners in clos e coordination with with LBP LBP,, with inves tment requireme nts, esp ecia lly in recyc ling land transfer transfer pay ments bac k to the countryside .
12.2
SUPPORT SERVICES TO AGRARIAN REFORM BENEFICIARIES
What are the support services provided to the agrarian reform reform beneficiaries? beneficiaries? Appro priate s uppo rt service s sho uld be prov ided to the ARBs. These s ervic es inc lude:
a.
land survey s and tit titling; ling;
b.
liberalized term terms s on credit facilit facilities ies and production loans;
c.
education and extension services,
d.
institutional institu tional de velo pment;
e. marketing marketin g and management assistance and support to coop eratives and farm farmers ers organiza tions; and f.
infrastructures
CHAPTER 13 AGRICULTURAL LEASEHOLD
What are the laws governing leasehold relationship between landowners and lessees? lessees? Various laws have b een pas sed g overning leasehold tenancy. A review Various review of such laws would would revea l a progress ion from from one of elec tion and limited limited operation to one of compulsion and comprehensive application.
a. RA 1199 — 1199 — ( An An Act to Govern the Relations Between Landhold Landholders ers and Tenants Tenants of Agricultural lands lands.) (Leasehold and Share Tenancy) 30 August 1954. Under this law, the tenant was given the right to choose a leasehold tenancy arrangement. arrangement. b. RA 3844 — 3844 — An An Act k nown as Agricultural Agricultural Land Reform Reform Code Instituting Land Reform Reform in the Philippines, Philippines, including the Abolition of Tenancy and the Channeling of Capital Into Industry , 08 August 1963. This law declared agricult agricultural ural share tenancy tenancy to be co nt ntrary rary to public policy and was, th thereby, ereby, abolished . c. RA 6389 — 6389 — An An Act Amending RA 3844, 3844, otherwise Known as the Agricultural Land Reform Code, and for Other Purposes, Purposes, 10 September 1971. This provided for the automatic conversion of agricultural share tenancy to agricultural leasehold but with Section 35 of RA 3844 retained. 3844 retained. This sec tion allowed the exemption of certain landholdings from leasehold — fishponds, salt beds and lands principally pla nt nted ed to citrus, citr us, coco nut nut,, ca cao, coffee and o th ther er similar permanent trees. trees. d. RA 6657 (Section 6657 (Section 12) mandated the DAR to de term termine ine and fix immediately the the lea se rentals in accordance with Section 34 of RA 3844, 3844 , but expressly repe aled Se ction 35 35 of RA 3844. 3844 . This, therefore, therefore, abolished th the e ex emptions and made all tenanted tenanted a gricult gricultural ural lands subject to leasehold. What are the significant implications of t hese changes in the laws? laws? The sig nif nificant icant implications implications are as follows: a.
abolition of share tenancy tenancy and conversion to to agricultural agricultural leasehold now covers all agricult agricultural ural lands with without out excep tion;
b.
leasehold is no longer just an option, it exists by operation of th the e law; law; and
c.
leasehold can be a preliminary step to land ownership.
All share crop tenants were therefore, automatica lly co nverted into agricultural le sse es a s of 15 June 1988 whether or not a le ase hold a gree ment has b een e xec uted. WHAT ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER COVERS LEASEHOLD IMPLEMENTATION ? IMPLEMENTATION ? DAR Administrative Order No. 05, Series of 1993 , "Rules " Rules and Procedures Governing Agricultural Leasehold and the Determination of Lease Rental for Tenanted Lands ". This AO supersede s the following following AOs: AO No. 04, Serie s of 1989, 1989, "Rules " Rules and Procedures Governing Agricultural Leasehold and the Determination of Lease Rental for Tenanted Lands "; AO No. 09, Serie s of 1991, 1991, "Rules " Rules and Procedures on Leasehold Operations in Tenanted Coconut Lands; Lands; and AO No. 04, Serie s of 1992, 1992, "Rules " Rules and Procedures on Leasehold Operations on Tenanted Sugarcane Lands" Lands" Why is there a need to institute leasehold in the retained areas of landowners landowners? ? The DAR s hould institu institute te lease hold to protect and improve the tenurial tenurial and economic stat status us of tenant-tillers tenant-tillers in agricultural agricultural lands within the the retained areas and in a reas not yet covered. Leasehold would improve the hold of the tenant tenant on the the land bec ause the lessee shall have physical p osses sion and enjoyment, as well as manage ment of th the e land. Furthermore, Furt hermore, with the the fixing of the the leas e rental, the lessee wo uld get more for his or her lab or and other inputs. ASHICc 13.2 TENANCY RELATIONSHIP What are the conditions set for a tenancy relationship to exist ? All the following c onditions must be p rese nt for for tenancy relationship to exis t: a.
That the parties are the landho lde r and the tenant;
b.
That the subje ct is agric ultur ultural al land;
c.
That there there is conse nt by the the landowner for tenant to work on the land, given either orally or in writ writing, ing, expres sly or implie dly;
d.
That th the e purpose is agricult agricultural ural production;
e.
That there is pe rsonal cultivation cultivation or with the help of the immedia te farm househo ld; and
f.
That th there ere is is compensation in terms of payment of a fixed fixed amount in money and/or produce
What is meant by personal cultiv ation ation? ? There is personal cultivation if the tenant cultivates the land himself/herself or with the aid of the immediate farm household. Immediate farm household refers to the members of the th e family of the lesse e a nd other persons who are de pendent upon him/her for support and who usually help him/her in the activities. activities. Why should there be leasehold even in coconut lands or other permanent permanent crops when there is practically no " cultivation" inv olved ? Cultivat Cul tivation ion has b een d efined in sepa rate court rulings rulings as: "not limited to the plowing and harrowing harrowing of the land, but also husbandin husbanding g of the groun ground d to f orwar orward d the products of the earth by gener general al industry, the tak ing care of the land and fruits growing growin g thereon, fencing of certain areas, and the clearing thereof thereof by gathering dried leaves and cuffing of grasses. In coconut lands, c ultivation includes the c learing of the landholding, landho lding, the gather of coc onuts, their piling, husk ing and handling, as well as the processing thereof into c opra, although at times with the aid of hired laborers" laborers" (Coconut Cooperative Marketing Association, Inc. vs. Court of Appeals, Nos. L-4681-83, August 19, 1988, 164 SCRA 568; Wenceslao Hernandez vs. Hon. Intermediate Appellate Court et al, G .R. No. 74323, Septembe r 21, 1990, 189 SCRA 758). Clearly,, there is cult Clearly cultivation ivation involved in coco nut lands. Does a tenancy relationship exist in cases where squatters squatters are allowed by the landowner landowner to cultivate the land for free? No, agricultural agricultural tenancy doe s not exist in this case since there is no expresse d o r implied a greement to undertake undertake th the e cultivation of the the land belonging to th the e landholde r. No agreement exists in terms of share in harves t or payme nt in a fixed amount. ItIt is, however po ssible for the the pa rt rties ies to s ubsequently enter into into a leasehold relationsh relationship. ip. When shall a tenancy relationship cease to exis t ? The a gricult gricultural ural leasehold relation is extinguished extinguished by any of the following: following: a.
aba ndonment of the landho lding without the knowled ge of the agric ultur ultural al less or;
c.
abse nce of an heir heir to to succeed the the lessee in th the e event of his/her death or permanent incapacity. (RA 3844, 3844, as amended, Sec. 7 and 8 )
The leas ehold relation is likewise extinguished extinguished when the the lesse e's d isposse ssion of the the land is a ut uthorized horized b y the DAR Adjudication Board or by the proper court in a judgment that th at is final and e xecutory xecutory,, for violations of the lease hold ag reement or pertinent provisions o f agrarian laws on le asehold. On what grounds grounds may a t enant-le enant-lessee ssee be disposs essed of his/ her tillage? An agric ultur ultural al le sse e ma y be disp oss ess ed of his/her tillag e o n the following gro unds: a. He/she failed failed to substantially substantially comply with with the the terms terms and conditions conditions of th the e leasehold contract or with with laws governing lease lease hold relations, relations, unless unless the failu failure re is caused by a fortuitous event or force majeure; b. He/she planted crops or used the the land for for a purpose purpose other th than an what had been previously agreed upon. AO AO No. 05- 93 93,, however, now allows the the less ee to intercrop or plant secondary crops aft after er the the rental has been fixed, provide d he/she shoulders the expe nses; c. He/she failed failed to adopt proven farm farm practices practices necessa ry to to conserve the land, improve its its fertil fertility ity,, and increase increase its productivity productivity (wit (with h due consideration consideration of his/her financial fin ancial ca pacity and th the e cred it facilities facilities availab le to him/her); d.
His/her fault or negligence resulted resulted in the the substantial substantial damage , destruction, destruction, or unreasonable unreasonable de terior terioration ation of the the land or any permanent improvement th thereon; ereon;
e. or
He/she does not pay the the lease rental when when it falls due except when when such non-p non-p ayment is due due to crop failure failure to to the the extent of 75 75 percent as a result of a fortuit fortuitous ous event;
f.
He/she employe d a sublessee . (Section 36, RA 3844, 3844, as amended )
The dispossession shall be by a final and executory judgment. What if a les see employed hired labor but religiously pays the lease rental to t he landowner landowner ? The less ee c an only emplo y hired labo r if he/she is temporarily incapacitated and has no immediate family household who will do the cultivation. cultivation. Is t he agricultural leasehold relation relation extinguished by the death or permanent permanent incapacity of any of the parties? parties? No. In In case th the e tenant-lessee dies o r is permanently incapacitated, the the lea sehold relation shall continue continue be tw tween een the agricultural agricultural lessor a nd the member of the the less ee's immediate farm household who can p ersonally cultivate the the land. Such pe rson shall be chosen by th the e les sor within within one month from from such de ath or permanent incapacity from among the following: a.
the th e surviving spouse;
b.
the th e eldest direct desce ndant by consanguinit consanguinity; y; or
c.
the th e next eldest desce ndent or desce ndants in th the e order of th their eir age.
If the the de ath or personal incap acity of the lessee occurs during the agricultural agricultural year, the choice b y the lesso r shall be done at the the e nd of that agricultural agricultural year. IfIf the the les sor fails to exercise his choice within within the the presc ribed p eriod, the abo ve mentioned order o f priority priority shall be followed. In In case of death or permanent incapacity of the the less or, the the leasehold relation shall shall bind his/her legal heirs. What is the effect of transfer of legal ownership of the land ? Leasehold is not extinguished with the transfer of legal ownership of the land from one landowner to another. Section 10 of RA 3844, 3844 , as ame nded, provid es that the the purchaser or transferee shall be subrogated to the rights and substituted to the obligations of the agricultural lessor. 13.3 RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES RESPONSIBILITIES OF LESSEE What are the rights rights of the lessee? lessee? a.
To have posse ssion and peac eful enjoyment of th the e land;
b.
To manage and work work on th the e land in a manner and method method of culti cultivation vation and harvest whi which ch conform conform to to proven farm farm practices; practices;
c.
To mechanize all or any phase of his farm work;
d.
To deal with with millers and processors and attend attend to th the e issuance of quedans and warehouse warehouse receipts of th the e produce due him/h him/her; er;
e.
To continue continue in th the e exclusive possessio n and enjoyment of any homelot homelot the lessee may have occupied upon th the e effectivit effectivity y of RA 3844; 3844 ;
f. To be indemnified indemnified for th the e costs and expenses incurred incurred in the the cultivation cultivation and for other expe nses incidental incidental to th the e improvement of the the crop in case the lessee surrenders, surr enders, ab andons or is ejected from the landholding; g.
To have th the e right of pre- emption and redemption; and
h.
To be paid distur disturbance bance compensation in case the the conversion of th the e farmholding farmholding has been approved.
What are the duties and responsibilities responsibilities of the lessee? lessee? The lessee shall at all times perform the following pursuant to Section 26 of RA 3844, 3844 , as amended:
a. Cultivat Cul tivate e and take care of th the e farm, farm, growing crops, and other improvements on th the e land and perform all the work therein therein in acco rdance with proven farm practices; b. Inform Inf orm the less or within a reas onab le time of any trespa ss committed by third pers ons on the farm, without prejudice to his/her direct action against the trespasser; c. Take reasonable care of th the e work work animals animals and farm farm implement implements s delivered to him/h him/her er by the the lessor and see to it that they are not used for purposes other than those intended, or used by another without the knowledge a nd consent of the the lessor;
If any of such work animals or farm implements implements ge t lost or damage d due to the the less ee's negligence, he/she shall p ay the less or the equivalent value o f the the work a nimals or farm implements implements at the time of the loss or damage; d. Keep the the farm farm and growing growing crops attended attended to during th the e work season. In case of unjust unjustified ified abandonment or neglect of his/her his/her farm, farm, any or all of th the e expe cted produce may, upon order of the appropriate bo dy o r court, court, be forf forfeited eited in favor of the lessor to the extent of the the damag e ca used thereby; and e.
To pay the the lease rental rental to th the e lessor when it falls due.
Under RA 3844, 3844 , as a mended, the lessee has also the responsibility to notify notify the the lessor at least three three da ys be fore the the date of harvesting, or whenever whenever app licable, the date of threshing. th reshing. As de cided in a Supreme Court ruli ruling, ng, however, this this is no longer required from the lessee .
No. Since RA 6657 only 6657 only spe aks o f the the three three (3) hectare limit with with respe respe ct to the the a ward that that may be given to the ARB, ARB, this this ceiling d oes not apply under the leasehold system. The tenant, however, however, must render personal c ult ultivation ivation on the entire entire a rea lea sed. Can a lessee be a tenant in a separate landholding ? Section 27 of RA 3844 includes 3844 includes as one of the prohibited acts of an ag ricult ricultural ural lessee, enteri entering ng into into a contract to to work ad ditional landholdings belonging to a diff different erent agricultural agricult ural lessor to a cquire and personally cult cultivate ivate an e conomic family siz e farm without without the the knowledge and co nsent of the the lesso r with with whom he/she had fir first st entered into into leasehold, if the first landholding is of sufficient size to make him/her and the members of the immediate farm household fully occupied in its cultivation. Based on this this provisio n, it is still still poss ible for a less ee to b e a tenant in another another landholding. The prohibition applies if the land presently cultivated cultivated is already of sufficient sufficient size to fully fully occ upy the lesse e o r his/her immediate household in the cultivation. cultivation. Even Even if the size is alread y sufficient, sufficient, cultivation cultivation of other landholdings is still poss ible if there is consent of the original lessor. What is meant by "economic family size" farm? farm?
RA 3844 has 3844 has d efined economic family siz e farm as a n area o f farm farm land that permits permits efficient efficient use of labor and cap ital resources of the the farm family and will produce an income s uf ufficient ficient to provide a mode st standard of living to mee t a farm family's need for food, clothing, shelter and education with possible allowance for payment of yearly installment installments s on the land, and reasonab le reserves to a bsorb ye arly fluctuations in income. Is the les see compelled to pay additional rent for the secondary crops raised by his /her after the execution of the contract ? No, after the the rental has be en fixed, such rental shall se rve as payment for the the use of the land. The lessee may dive rsif rsify y and/or plant seconda ry crops without without paying additional rent, rent, provided th that at all expenses are shouldered by him/her. What are the specific rights of the lessees in sugarcane lands which should be part of the leasehold agreement ? The lesse es in sugar cane lands shall have rights which which can be exe rcised by th them em personally o r through through a duly registered coop erative or farmers' farmers' ass ociation of which which they they are members. These are to: 1.
enter into a contract with the suga r central or millers for for the the milling of suga r cane grown on the the leas ed prope rty;
2.
be issued a warehouse warehouse receipt (quedan) or molasses storage certificat certificate e by the the sugar sugar central central for for the the manuf manufactur actured ed sugar, molasses and other other by-prod ucts.
3.
have free free access to the sugar central's central's factory, factory, facilit facilities ies and laboratory laboratory for for purpose purpose s of checking and/or verifyin verifying g records and procedures;
4.
be furnished furnished a weekly weekly statement of cane and sugar account showing, among other th things, ings, the the tonnage tonnage of the the delivered cane and analysis of the the crusher crusher juice; juice;
5.
be given thirt thirty y (30) (30) days notice notice in wri writin ting g before the the sugar and other other by products products are sold through through public auction; auction; and
6.
be provided wit with h th the e standard tonn tonnage age allocation by th the e miller/su miller/sugar gar central.
What if the sugar central/miller refuses to recognize the rights of the lessee? lessee? In cases of such refusal by the sugar/miller, then the lessee with the assistance of DAR and/or the cooperative of which he/she is a member of, should file a petition with the DARAB. What if the land under lease is subject of an approved approved land use conversion applications? applications? The lessee may be dispossessed of his/her tillage if such land is subject of an approved land use conversion application, provided the lessee is given a disturbance compensation equivalent to five (5) times times the averag e of the gross harvests on his/her land during during the last five (5) preceding c alendar ye ars, and s uch other other benefits he/she is entitled entit led to as provided for by law. 13.4 RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF LESSOR What are the rights rights of the lessor ? Section 29 of RA 3844 provides 3844 provides that it shall be the right of the lessor to: a.
Inspect In spect and obse rve the the extent extent of compliance with with th the e terms terms and conditions of th the e leasehold contract; contract;
b.
Propose a change in in th the e use of th the e landholding to other agricult agricultural ural purposes, or in in th the e kind of crops planted;
c. Require the the lessee, taking into into consideration consideration his/her his/her financial financial capacity and the the credit facilit facilities ies available to him/her him/her,, to to adop t proven farm practices necessary to the the conservation of the land, improvement of the fertility and increase in productivity; and d.
Mortgage Mort gage expec ted rent rentals. als.
What are the duties and responsibilities responsibilities of a lessor ? The less or shall, at all times, keep th the e ag ricul ricultur tural al lesse e in pe aceful posse ssion and c ult ultivation ivation of his/her his/her landholding. In In addition, he/she shall kee p intact useful useful improvements existing on the landholding at the start of the the leas ehold relationship such as irr irrigation igation and d rainage sy stems and ma rketin rketing g a llotment llotments, s, which in the the c ase of sugar quotas s hall refer both to domestic and expo rt quotas, quotas, p rovisions of ex istin isting g laws to the contrary contrary notwithstandin notwithstanding. g. What are the prohibition on the lessor ?
a. To dispos sess the the lessee of his/her landholding excep t upon auth authorization orization by the the Cour Courtt under Section 36, RA 3844; 3844 ; b. To require require the the lessee to to assume, directly directly or indirect indirectly, ly, th the e payment of th the e taxes taxes or part th thereof ereof levied by the gov ernment on the landholding; c. To require require the the lessee lessee to assume, directly or indirectly indirectly any rent rent or obligation of th the e lessor to to a third third party; d. To dea l with millers or proc ess ors without writt written en authoriza tion of the less ee in cas es where where the crop has to be sold in proces sed form before pay ment of th the e lease rent rental; al; e. To disc ourage , direc tly or indirectly, the formation, maintenance or growth of unions or organiza tions of lessee lessee s in his/her landholding; landholding; f. For coconut lands, indiscrimin indiscriminate ate cutt cutting ing of coconut tr trees ees will will be deemed a prima facie evidence to dispos sess th the e tenant of his/her landholding unless there is written written consent of the the le ssee and there is
which shall be fu which furnish rnished ed to affected affected tenant tenants s or lessee s, or a reso lut lution ion from the the Municipal Boa rd allowing the cutting cutting for valid rea sons. ( AO-05, AO-05, Series Series of 1993 and 1993 and AO AO 16, Series of 1989) 1989) Is indisc riminate cutting of coconut trees prohib prohibited ited only in tenanted coconut lands? lands? No, even in lands cult cultivated ivated by farm farmworkers. workers. Should the landowner landowner execute two (2) separate leasehold contracts with the same les see, one for the principal crop and the other for the s econdary crop? No. As a g eneral rule, the the landowner and le ssee shall only exe cute one contract for for their leasehold relation. The execution of two two co nt ntracts racts is no longer nece ssary since th the e lease rent rental al shall co ver the whole farmholding farmholding cultivated cultivated by th the e les see. Hence, sec ondary crop s shall form part of the the lease hold contract. There are, however, certain certain qualifications: qualifications: the the seco ndary crop must have have already been p lant lanted ed as o f 15 June June 1988 and and the area covered is more than half a hectare. What if there are two or more tenants? tenants ? If th there ere are tw two o or more tenant tenants s on the same lot, each producing a diff different erent crop, they may de cide to have a joint leasehold agreements, whichever whichever is feasible. What are the liabilities of a lessor if he/she ejects his /her tenant-lessee without without the court's authorization? authorization? A lesso r shall b e lia ble for: a.
fine or impriso nment;
b.
damage s suff suffered ered by the the agricult agricultural ural lessee in addition to th the e fine fine or imprisonment for unaut unauthorized horized disposs ession;
c.
payment of att attorney's orney's fees incur incurred red by th the e lessee ; and
d.
the reinstatement of the less ee.
Can the lessor order the lessee to change crops? crops? No. Section 29 of RA 3844 provide 3844 provide s that the the lesso r may propo se a change in the use of the landholding to other agricultural agricultural purposes, o r in the the kind of crops to be p lanted. The change, however, shall be ag reed upon b y bo th the the landowner and the lessee . In In case of disagreeme nt nt,, the matter matter shall be settl settled ed b y the Provincial Agrarian Agrarian Reform Adjudic ator (PARAD) or in his/ her ab sence , the Regio nal Agrarian Re form Adjudicator (RARAD) acc ording to the bes t interes interes t of the parties c once rned. 13.5 LEASE RENTAL How much lease rental should the lessees pay ? The lea se rental to be p aid by all agricultural agricultural lessee s shall not be more than the the equivalent of twenty-five twenty-five percent (25%) (25%) of the averag e normal harvest during the the three (3) agricultural agricult ural years immedia tely preced ing the following following dates: *
10 Sep tember 1971 — the date of effectivity of RA 6389 for 6389 for tenanted tenanted rice and corn lands;
*
date the the tenant tenant opted to enter int into o leasehold agreement or as of 15 June 1988 1988,, whichever whichever is is sooner, for tenant tenanted ed sugar lands; or
* date of lease lease hold agreement by the the parties parties concerned or 15 June 1988 1988,, whichever whichever is sooner, sooner, for for all other other agricultu agricultural ral lands after after deducting the the amount used for seed s and the cost of harvesting, threshing, threshing, loading, hauling and proce ssing whichever is app licable. For example, in coconut, the deductible items would depend on the final product. If the final product is green nuts, then there is no cost of processing included. If the final product is copra, th then en the deductible items would include cost of harvesting, loading and haulin hauling, g, and th the e co st of husking, husking, splitting, splitting, sco oping and drying. Can fertilizer be included in the list of allowable deductions for any particular crop? crop? No, only those e numerat numerated ed under Section 34 of RA 3844 as 3844 as cited abo ve c an be included as a d eductible item. However, However, DAR shall study study the effect of the the use of fertilizer fertilizer a nd other related related expe nses a s a cost of prod ucti uction on and its impact on the rental structu structure. re. This shall be taken into into a ccount in the the p eriodic revie w and ad just justment ment of the the rental structure. How do you compute for the lease rental of newly cultivated land ? In the case of newly cultivated land or land cultivated for a period less than three years the initial rental shall be based on the harvest of the first agricultural year, if such harvest is normal, or o n the average harvest during during the prece ding ag ricult ricultural ural years. If there there had been no normal harvest, then the the estimated normal harvest when the the land was actually cult cultivated ivated shall be used. cCAaHD Once the three three normal harvest have been e stablished, the final final rental shall be b ased on the average normal harvest of these these three preced ing agricultural agricultural years. Why is t he lessor given only 25% while the less ee retains 75% of the net produce from the land ? These percentages were provided for under RA 3844 on 3844 on the premise that the lessee largely contributes to the production of crops or fruits; while the lessor's only contribution is the land.
What is the normal harvest ? The normal harvest is th the e usual o r regular produce obtained from the land when it is not affected affected b y any fortuit fort uitous ous eve nt or force majeure such as typhoon, flood, drought, earthquake, volca nic eruption, eruption, and th the e like. What is an agricultural year ? This is th the e p eriod o f time time required for raising raising a particular agricultural agricultural product, including including land preparation, sowing, planting planting and harvest of crops, and whenever ap plicable, threshing of said crops. In case of crops yielding more than one harvest from one planting planting (e.g., sugar cane), th the e ag ricult ricultural ural year shall be the period from the preparation of the land to the first harvest and thereafter from harvest to harvest. For sugar cane, ratooning (from (from thrash thrash burning to harvesting) harvesting) shall likewise b e co nsidered a s one agricultural year. An agricultural year, therefore, may be shorter or longer than a calendar year. ( AO AO 05-93). 05-93). If there is already an existing leasehold agreement, is t here a need to negotiate another one one? No, the the ex istin isting g leas ehold a greement will will be respected provided th that at the the ag reed le ase rent rental al do es not exce ed the maximum rental rental allowed by law. Furt Furthermore, hermore, this this agreement shall be subject to the the pe riodic review of the MARO for purposes purposes of determining determining compliance. Can the landowner demand for an increase in the agreed or fixed rental on the ground that there is an increase in yield or production ? The landowner can o nly demand for an increase in the the fixed o r agreed lease rent rental al if he/she introduced introduced c apital improvements on the farm. farm. In In such a ca se, the rental shall be increased proportionately to the the resulting increase in prod ucti uction on due to said improvements. The cost of ca pital improvement, including including the interest thereon, thereon, will be d etermin etermined, ed, and the number of yea rs shall be fixed within within which the the increase in rental rental shall b e p aid. What is c apital improvement ?
lease rental shall be increase d propo rt rtionately ionately.. What will happen happen if there is a decrease in production as a result of large scale replanting in coconut lands? lands? Can the lease rental be reduced ? Yes, if the the lessor initiates initiates large scale replantin replanting g and th the e normal coco nut production is affected, affected, a new lease rental may b e co mputed proportionate proportionate to the decrea se in production. What happens happens to the lease rental should the tenant-lessee s uffer crop failure due to a fortuitous event or force majeure? The les see may d efer payment of the lease rent rental al due for the the a gricult gricultural ural year a ff ffected ected b y a fort fortuit uitous ous ev ent or force majeure causing crop failure to the extent of 75 percent. percent. The leas e rental shall be paid on a stagge red bas is subject to the the ag reement of both both parties. Normally, such rental is paid in installments every harvest time beginning the next agricultural year and to continue until the lessee is fully paid. 13.6 FIXING THE LEASE RENT RENTAL AL What is the role of the MARO in the implementation of agricultural leasehold ? With the assistance of the Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee (BARC) and the POs/NGOs present in the area, the MARO shall: 1.
Identify all landho ldings still still under share tenancy and list the lando wner and share- tenants thereon;
2.
Toge ther with the PARO, undertake mass ive information diss emination on leas ehold ;
3.
Prioritize Priorit ize areas for leasehold implementation implementation taking int into o account presence of strong peop le's organizations and/or volunt voluntary ary application by any lessor or lessee ;
4. Require submission by parties parties concerned of documents on production data, normal normal harvest, and cost of deductible items items during during the the three three immediately immediately preceding agricultural agricult ural years. If th these ese are not availab le, ga th ther er production data release d by th the e prop er gove rnmen rnmentt agency; 5. Conduct medi ation conference (with (with the ass istance of the Barang ay Council, if there is no BARC) betwee n the lando wner and the the lesse e for for the the purpose of fixing the lease rental.
If any party fails to attend attend the conference desp ite notice, notice, mail notice at the last known address o f the the parties and p ost two two succes sive notices a t seven da ys ap art at the the municipal, mun icipal, ba rangay halls and the place where the the land is loca ted. The MARO MARO shall proce ed with the the computation computation of the the leas e rental. The se cond notice should be p osted at least ten days p rior to to the scheduled conference; 6. In case of disagreement, accomplish the the prescribed leasehold form in five copies in th the e language or dialect known to th the e lessees , explain the the contents contents and have it signed o r thumb thumb marked b y the parties or duly authorized rep resentat resentative ive be fore two two witnesse witnesse s; 7. Regis ter the Leas ehold Agreeme nt with the Municipal Trea surer and furn furnish ish each party a copy of the regis tered agree ment. The PARO, PARO, on the other hand, will have the leasehold agreement annotated at the back of the Transfer Certificate of Title on file with the Register of Deeds. What if there is no agreement reached during the mediation conference? conference ? If no agree ment is reached de spite the mediation conferences, conferences, the MARO shall fix the the provisio nal lease rent rental al and prepare the Lease hold Doc ument umentation ation Folder. Copies o f the th e O rder for Provisional Lease Rent Rental al shall b e s ent to to the landowner, lessee and the PARO. The Leasehold Documentat Documentation ion Folder shall th then en be tr transmitt ansmitted ed to the PARAD. PARAD. The PARAD shall review the provisional lease rent rental al within within 30 days fr from om the receipt of the do cument cumentation ation folder and issue th the e o rder of leas e rental. Pending the review of the provisional le ase rent rental, al, the PARAD PARAD upon motion of the the landowner shall orde r the lessee to dep osit the the p rovisional lea se rental with the the nearest LBP Office in a trust account in the name of the landowner, if the payment is in cash, or in a designated bonded warehouse if the payment is in kind and give a written notice to the MARO and the landowner. What if either or both the parties concerned disagree with the order of lease rental made by the PARAD? PARAD? Any pa rty who disa gree s with the Order o f Lease Rental issue d b y the PARAD may bring the ma tt tter er to the DARAB within 15 days from rece ipt thereof. Otherwise, the Ord er shall beco me final and exec ut utory. ory. 3.7
OTHER RELATED LAWS AND ISSUANCES
1. Presidential Decree (PD) No. 152, 152, promulgated on 31 March 1973, prohibited the employment or use of share-tenants in complying with the requirements of the law regarding entry, entry, occ upation, improvement and cultivation cultivation of public la nds. 2.
PD No. 583, 583, promulgated on 10 November 1974, prescribed penalty for the unlawful ejectment, exclusion, removal or ouster of tenant farmers from their landholdings.
3. PD No. 816 promulgated 816 promulgated on 21 October 1975, 1975, penalize d any a gricult gricultural ural lessee o f rice rice and c orn lands under PD 27 who 27 who de liberately refuses or co nt ntinues inues to refuse to pay rentals rentals or a mort mortization ization pay ments when when they are due a nd remain unpaid within within a period of two two ye ars. 4. PD No. 1425, 1425, promulgated o n 10 June 1978, 1978, strengthened strengthened the prohibition against the the p ractice of share tenancy a nd provide d p enalties thereof. thereof. Under Under this Decree , any tenant who who refuses to enter into into leasehold contr contract act may be prosecuted before the Court of Agrarian Agrarian Relations. 5.
PD No. 1040 promulgated 1040 promulgated on 21 Octobe r 1976, 1976, prohibited and pe nalized th the e co nt ntractin racting g o f share-tenants share-tenants in all ag ricul ricultur tural al lands covered by PD 27. 27.
CHAPTER 14 PRODUCTION AND PRO FIT SHARING 14.1 COVERAGE What is production and profit sharing ? This is a mandate under Section 16 of EO 229 and 229 and Sections 13 and 32 of RA 6657 which 6657 which requires requires individuals o r entities entities owning or ope rati rating ng under lease or management contract, agricultural lands to execute production and profit sharing plan with their farmworkers or farmworkers' organization, pending final distribution of the land or implementation of the stock distribution scheme.
What are the existing A dministrative Orders governing production production and profit s haring ? a. Administrative O rder No. 08, Serie s o f 1988 1988, "Guideline " Guidelines s and Procedures Implementing Production and Profit Sharing Under RA 6657 " b. Administrative O rder No. 09, Serie s o f 1988 1988, "Guideline " Guidelines s and Procedures Implementing Production Sharing Under EO 229" 229" It will will be obse rved that EO 229 mandated 229 mandated only production sharing while RA 6657 included profit sharing on top of the production sharing. Who are required to execute production and profit sharing plan? plan? The following employers are required to execute Production and Profit Sharing Plan with their farmworkers if
a. Any enterpr enterprise ise owning owning or operating agricult agricultural ural lands under lease, management contract contract,, production venture or other similar arrangement; b.
Multinational Corpora tions enga ged in ag ricultur ricultural al activities ; and
c. Commercial farm farms s devoted to aquacultur aquaculture e including including salt beds , fishponds fishponds and prawn ponds, fruit fruit farm farms, s, orchards, vegetable and cut cut flower farm farms, s, and cacao, coffee coffee and rubber plantat plantation. ion. Why are these employers required to execute produ production ction and profit sharing plan with t heir farmworkers farmworkers? Section 2 of RA 6657 de 6657 de clared that agrarian reform program is founded on the right of the the farmers and regular farmworkers, who who a re landless , to own directly or c ollectively the lands they till, or in the case of other farmworkers, to receive a just share of the fruits thereof. This mandated production and profit sharing plan is in pursuit of this avowed principle of agrarian reform. While awaiting for final land or stock distribution until the end of the deferment period in the case of commercial farms, or full control control of the land in the the c ase of lease back arrangements, farmworkers farmworkers can realiz e a n improvement in their their farm income. Who are the employees covered ? All farmworkers o f cove red e mploy ers, re gard less of duration, who a re dire ctly working on the land of the corp oration o r other entities, whether clas sified as re gular, sea sona l, technical or other farmworkers are covered in the mandated Production and Profit Sharing Plan. They should not, however, own more than three (3) hectares of agricultural land. 14.2 DAR's AUTHORITY What is the power given to the DAR in the implementation of production and profit sharing plan under the CARP ?
The DAR through its its Sec retary or authorized authorized representati representatives ves has the following following p owers: 1. To order and administer compliance with with th the e Production Sharin Sharing g provisions of EO 229 and 229 and Production/Profit Sharing provisions of RA 6657; 2.
To require covered employers to to submit report on th the e distribut distributed ed production/profit production/profit shares;
3.
To compel th the e production of book s and documents of cove red employers;
4. To compel answers to questions needing clarificat clarifications ions to shed light light on problems encountered encountered in the implementation; 5.
To issue subpoena; and
6.
To enforce its writ writs s through sheriffs or other duly dep utized officers. officers.
14.3 MAIN FEATURES What are the main features of the mandated plan ? EO 229 Under EO 229 and 229 and its implementing implementing guideline, AO guideline, AO No. 09, Se ries o f 1988 1988, covered employers who realize a gross sales in excess of five million pesos per annum, shall prepare and e xecute a Production Sharing Sharing Plan whereby a t least 2.5 percent of the the gross sales fr from om the production/cultivation production/cultivation of the the a gricult gricultural ural lands are distribu distributed ted as compensation to their farmworkers farmworkers over and a bove th the e co mpensation they they currently currently receive . The employ ers are not, however, compelled to pay mo re than one hundred hundred percent of the regular annual compensation of the farmworkers. Regular annual annual compe nsation includes includes all ca sh remunerations remunerations or earnings earnings regularly paid to an employee by an emp loyer for services rendered within a yea r, such as salaries, wages , 13th 13th month month pay, bonus, allowances, co mmissions and paid leaves, and other income of similar similar nature, nature, whether whether mandated by law or provid ed b y collective bargaining agree ment or established compa ny practices, but excludes payment arising from the the Production and Profit Profit Sharing Sharing provide d under EO 229 and 229 and RA 6657. 6657 . The Plan should cover the period from 29 August 1987 (date of effectivity of EO 229) 229) and 14 June 1988 (date prior to the effectivity of RA 6657). 6657 ). Fifty percent (50%) of the Production Share should have been paid not later than 12 February 1989 and the balance on or before 2 April 1989. RA 6657 They a re required to pay th the e following Production Production and Profit Shares Shares to be given ove r and ab ove th the e co mpensation currently currently received b y their farmworkers, farmworkers, which which shall be distributed distri buted base d on the following following sc hedules: Amount of Production Share Share: Three percent (3.0%) of Annual Gross Sales from 15 June 1988, until final land or corporate stock transfer to the farmworker-beneficiaries is effected, provided that the employer is not obliga ted to pa y more th than an one hun hundred dred p ercent (100%) (100%) of the regular annual compensation of the farmworker-b farmworker-b eneficiaries. * Fifty Fift y percent (50%) of the estimated Production Share (bas ed on unaudited financia financia l statements) shall be distributed within within sixty (60) (60) da ys at the end of the acc ounting year, with with the balance (based on audited financial statement) statement) p ayab le not more than sixty (60) days th thereafter ereafter.. Amount of Profit Share: Share: Ten Percent (10%) of net profit after tax, provided that in cases where the retention right is allowed, the amount to be distributed shall be reduced by an amount equivalent to the th e p roportion of the the retained a rea to the total land area . * Fifty Fift y (50%) (50%) of estimated Profit Share (based on unaudited financial financial statements) shall be distributed within within 90 day s at the end of the acc ounting yea r, with the bala nce base d o n audited financial statements statements paya ble not more th than an 60 days th thereafter ereafter.. For lands to be tu turned rned over to the farmworker-b farmworker-b eneficiaries, a transitory transitory period whose length shall be de term termined ined by DAR, shall be e stablished. During During this period, farmworkers farm workers will be trained trained to manag e the enterprise. The managerial and s upervisory group in pla ce d urin uring g this transitory transitory period shall rece ive at leas t one percent (1%) of the the gross sa les of the entity entity ba sed on the agreement concluded b y the farmworker-be farmworker-be neficiar neficiaries ies a nd this this group, s ubject to the the ap proval o f DAR. What is the effect on existing production/profit sharing granted by employer prior to the promulgation of EO 229 and 229 and RA 6657 ? It shall be c redited as compliance wit with h the mandated production and p rofi rofitt sharing plan. Provided, however, that that where the benefit under the the e xistin xisting g Prod ucti uction on and Profi Profitt Sharing Sharin g Plan is less than the the ap plicable amount required required in Administrative in Administrative O rder Nos . 08 and 08 and 09, Series of 1988, 1988, the employer shall p ay the difference. difference. What is the DAR's policy on undistributed and unclaimed production production and profit sharing ? All undistributed o r unclaimed Produc tion and Pro fit Shares Shares shall b e d ep osited by the e mploy er with the the nea rest Land Ba nk of the Philipp ines b ranch in the name of the Secretary of Agrarian Reform Reform for payment to the the workers to whom they they are due. The e mployer shall immediately report such dep osits to the nearest DAR Office and se nds notices to the farmworker-be farmworker-be neficiar neficiaries. ies. If the the money remains undistribut undistributed ed or unclaimed after two two y ears from the date o f depos it, the the same shall be considered forf forfeited eited and shall be turned over to the Agrarian Reform Fund pursuant to Administrative to Administrative O rder, No. 08, Series of 1988. 1988.
All co vere d e mploy ers a re req uired to s ubmit a rep ort on the Prod uction and Profit Shares dis tributed, including the spe cial p ayro lls, unde r oath sig ned by the e mploy er or his duly authorized representati representative, ve, not later than than 30 da ys aft after er co mpletion of the distribution distribution of the workers' shares. 14.4 ROLE OF THE MARO Can the MARO compel covered employers to execute production and profit sharing plan? plan? Yes, as long as they realize g ross sales in excess of five five million pesos and a net profit aft after er the tax. tax. In case a covered employer who was granted a deferment refuse to execute a production and profit sharing plan, what sanction can the MARO enforce? A report should immedia tely b e sub mitted by the MARO to the PARO. Non-c omplia nce with the provis ions o n prod uction and profit sharing is a vio lation co vere d b y the provisions on Prohibited Acts and Omissions, and Penalti Penalties es (Sections ( Sections 73 and 74 of RA 6657 , respectively ). ). Violation of the provisions on production and profit sharing is punishable by imprisonment of not less than one month to not more than three years or a fine of not less than one thousand pesos (P1,000.00) and not more than fifteen thousand pesos (P15,000.00), or both, at the discretion of the court. The MARO may also initiate initiate the cancellation of the the Orde r of Deferment issued b y the DAR Regional Director and subject his land to co mpulsory acquisition. What should the MARO do in c ase of dis putes arising from production and profit sharing ? The MARO, together with the BARC should mediate and conciliate. They should convince both parties to settle the dispute voluntarily. In case there is no success in settling the dispute, this shall be forwarded to the PARO and if still unsolved, it shall be submitted to the PARAD for adjudication. CHAPTER 15 COMMERCIAL FARM DEFERMENT 15.1
MEANING OF COMMERCIAL FARMS AND COMMERCIAL FARM DEFERMENT
What are commercial farms? farms?
Commercial farms farms are private agricultural agricultural lands ove r five five hectares in size devoted to commercial aqua culture cult ure — including including salt bed s, fishponds and p rawn ponds — fruit fruit farms, farms, orchards, veg etable and cut flower flow er farms, and caca o, co ff ffee, ee, a nd rubber plantations. plantations. It should be noted that the definition is limited to these commodities produced. Thus, other farms although commercial in nature nature a re not cove red b y the definition. definition. Further, Section 11, RA 6657 actually 6657 actually includes in the list lands lands d evoted to commercial livestock, p oultr oultry y and swine raising. The Supreme Court decision in Luz Farms vs. the Secretary of Agrarian Reform (128 SCRA 568),, however, has removed these farms from the coverage of CARP. 568) What is c ommercial farm deferment? Section 11, RA 6657 as 6657 as implemented by AO by AO 16- 88 88 p p rovides th that at the acq uisit uisition ion and distribut distribution ion of q ualif ualified ied commercial farms shall be deferred for ten (10) years from 15 June 1988. In case of new farms, the ten year de ferm ferment ent period shall be gin from from the first first year of commercial p roduction and operation, as determined determin ed b y DAR. 15.2 RATIONALE FOR DEFERMENT Why is c overage of these farms deferred ? The CARP provides for the deferment of the coverage of the farms mentioned earlier, to allow them to recover their investments and insulate them from possible disruptions in operations and productivit productivity y d urin uring g la nd ac quisiti quisition on and distribut distribution. ion. The co mmercial farm deferment provision of RA 6657, 6657 , which runs counter to the general rule of immediate land transfer, particularly of large estates, reflects the numerous compromises that had to be forged by the legislators in the crafting of the law. 15.3 REQUIREMENTS Is t he deferment automatic ? No. The farm should should alread y be planted to commercial crops or devo ted to commercial farming farming op erations before 15 June 1988. 1988. ItIt should likewise be a pplied for deferment with the DAR, which shall approve the application based on whether or not the farm meets the requirements enumerated in Annex A of AO 16- 88 88.. These crit criteria eria are on the density of planting (number of plants or trees per hectare) and infrastructure and facilities of the farm. When is the deadline for filing of applications for commercial farm defermen deferment t ? The ex tended de adline for applying d eferment was 02 May 1989. 1989. Deadline for app lication was was o riginally set on 20 March 1989 1989 but was was e xtended. A total total o f 4,620 commercia l farms ap plie d a s of Nov embe r 30, 1994. The app lications of 1,546 farms have bee n app rove d, c ove ring 54,837 hectares. T he rest a re still be ing evaluated evaluat ed and processed. 15.4 DEFERMENT PERIOD When is the s tart of t he ten-year deferment deferment period ? For farms farms alread y in commercial p roduction as of 15 June 1988, 1988, the the deferment period be gan as of that that date. For farms already established before 15 June 1988 but were not yet in commercial production as of that date, the deferment starts from the first year of commercial production and ope rati rations, ons, or at the the end o f the the gestation period provide d in AO in AO 16- 88 88 base base d on the crop planted or co mmodity produced. This is to give the landowner the the chance to recover and profit from his or her investments. How about for farms with one crop of varying ages? ages?
For farms farms divided int into o two or more area pla nt nted ed to a c rop, the deferment period o f each area has to be determined, determin ed, following the same rules ab ove. Thus, de ferm ferment ent of those those a reas which were already in commercial production as of the effectivity of RA 6657 began 6657 began as of 15 June 1988. Deferment of those areas not yet in commercial prod ucti uction on as of 15 June 1988 1988 beg an or will beg in at the the e nd of the gestation period of the crop. On the other hand, for farms with commercial crops intercropped with other commercial crops, the start of the deferment is based on the status of the main crop. What is the gestation period ? The ge stati station on period is the period b eginning from from the time time the crop or co mmodity is first first planted or raised until the the time the crop b ears fruit or the the produce are harvested. The end of the ge stati station on pe riod is
The g estation periods listed in Annex Annex A of AO 16- 88 88 were were recommended by th the e D epartment of Agricult Agriculture. ure. 15.5 DAR's ROLE DURING DEFERMENT PERIOD Is a f arm granted deferment deferment completely out of CARP coverage for ten years? years ? No, for two basic reasons: First, the deferment may be lifted and the farm subjected to immediate redistribution of the DAR determines that the purposes for which the deferment is granted granted no longer e xist. The reason for de fermen fermentt must be continuously continuously pres ent for for the farm to to b e c ontin ontinuously uously deferred. Thus, a deferred veg etable farm may be compulsorily acquired if the the landowner decide s to devo te the the area to sugar cane production, instead. instead. The other reason is th that at a farm granted granted c ommercial farm deferment is required to pa y prod ucti uction on and p rofi rofitt shares (PPS), if it realize s gross sales exce eding five million pesos. This is to allow the farmworkers to receive a just share of the fruits of the farm during the deferment. The production and profit shares shall be paid upon the start of the deferment period. What shall the DAR do during the deferment period ? period ? Aside from monitoring the farm as to comp liance with the the CFD a nd PPS re gulations, the DAR shall undertake the neces sary steps towards the a cquisition a nd dis tribut tribution ion o f the property. These include valuation of the land, and, more importantly, facilitating the organization of the farmers by partner NGOs/POs in the area. Organizing the farmers during the deferment period will smoothen the transfer of land ownership and prevent disruption of operation. May a landowner with an approved commercial farm deferment application change his or her commercial crop? crop? EDCTIa Yes, provided th the e total deferment period reckoned fr from om the date of first approva l is not extended. What happens happens if a farm which has been granted granted commercial farm deferment suffers from a calamity or force majeure? majeure? If t he crops were destroyed, will the farm be immediately covered under compulsory acquisition? acquisition? In cases where the crop planted o r commodity raised in the the area is des tr troyed oyed by force maje ure and the farm owner owner wants to to replenish the crop o r commodity, the the DAR may continue contin ue to g rant the the de ferm ferment ent provided th the e following conditions are present: a.
The landowner can immediately resume commercial operations;
b.
The employment of th the e workers or beneficiaries is not aff affected; ected; and
c.
The ten-year deferment period is not extended.
Who will monitor compliance by landown landowner er with the rules and regulations on c ommercial farm deferment ? The DAR Reg ional Office shall maintain records of the landowner's op erations to monitor monitor compliance wit with h the rules rules a nd regulations on de fermen ferment. t. ItIt is also th the e Regio nal Director who signs the Order of Deferment. For these purposes , the landowner shall make available to DAR the farm's farm's p remises for ocular inspe ction, the the pe rsonnel for interview interview and the reco rds for exa minat mination ion during normal business hours. CHAPTER 16 LAND USE CONVERSION 16.1 DEFINITION WHAT IS LAND USE CONVERSION ?
Conversion the the a ct of changing the current current use of a piece of land into some other use. Specifically for the th e DAR, land use co nversion refers to the the change fr from om ag ricult ricultural ural to non-ag ricult ricultural ural land use (residential, (resident ial, commercial, indust industrial, rial, etc.). From From a more technical perspe ctive, conversion is defined as the act of authorizing the change of the current use of a piece of land into some other use. 16.2 DAR's STAND ON CONVERSION Is the DAR against land use c onversion onversion? ? No. The DAR recognize s that land use conversion is nece ssary, even inevitable in the country's country's march to progress. Many ag ricult ricultural ural lands will have to be given up in favor of industrial industrial estates, commercial centers, residential subdivisions, etc. Moreover, CARP is not the only p rogram of G overnment. Other Other importantt programs o n tourism, importan tourism, housing, and industrialization, among others, are being p ursu ursued ed and these all require land. What the DAR is against is indiscriminate and wasteful land use conversion. What the th e DAR wants is to d irect land use co nversion such that the the productive a gricult gricultural ural lands are preserved for agriculture agriculture and th the e o th ther er prog rams are implement implemented ed in the marginal ag ricul ricultu tural ral area s. It should be noted that agriculture can be carried out only in certain types of land. Thus, prime agricultural lands should rightfully be considered a finite natural resource, further depletion of which would threaten threaten national national food securit security. y. In In contrast, contrast, housing and indust industrialization, rialization, for example, require land merely for space and may th therefore erefore be implemented implement ed in lands marginal for agriculture. agriculture. When conversion of a gricult gricultural ural lands c oincides wit with h the obje ctives of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law to promote social just justice, ice, industrialization, and the o ptimu ptimum m use of land as a nati national onal resource for public welfare, welfare, it shall be pursued in a spe edy a nd judicial manner. manner. 16.3 DAR's LEGAL MANDATE What is the DAR's legal mandate in land use conversion? conversion? Executive Execut ive O rder No. 129-A, 129-A, Section 4 mandates the DAR to " approve or disapprove the c onversion, restructuring or readjustment of agricultural lands into non-agricultural uses". Section 5 of the same EO authorizes the DAR to " have exclusiv e authority to approve or disapprove disapprove conversion of agricultural land for residential, residential, commercial, industrial, and other land uses as may be provided for by law ". Section 65 of RA 6657 likewise 6657 likewise empo wers the the DAR to authorize under certain conditions, the the reclassification or conversion and the dispo sition of lands awarded to ag rarian reform beneficiaries. Finally, Section 4 of Memorandum Circular No. 54, Series of 1993 of 1993 of the Office of the President, provides that " action on application for land use conversion on individual landholdings landho ldings shall remain as the responsibility of the DAR, which shall utiliz e as its primary reference, reference, documents on the comprehensive land use plans and accompanying ordinances ordina nces pass ed upon and approved approved by t he local government units c oncerned oncerned,, together with the National Land Use Policy, pursuant toRA to RA No. 6657 and and EO-129-A EO-129-A." ." What is the Depar Department tment of J ustice Opinion No. 44 and 44 and how does this affect DAR's authority to approve or disapprove disapprove conversions? conversions? Under the Department of Justice Opinion No. 44, Series of 1990 , a parcel o f land is considered non-ag ricult ricultural ural — and, therefore, therefore, be yond the cove rage o f CARP CARP — if it has been cla ssified as residential, commercial, or industrial industrial in the the City or Municipality Municipality Land Use Plan or Z oning Ordinance app roved b y the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) before 15 June 1988, the date of effectivity of CARL CARL.. Under this this Op inion, a pa rcel of land which is planted to coc onut cannot be cove red b y CARP if it has has b een reclas sified into the the town's industrial industrial z one p rior to 15 June 1988. 1988.
No. All lands falling under this category, i.e., i.e., those lands already classified as commercial, industrial industrial or res idential before 15 June 1988 no longer need any co nversion clearance. What the the landowner or his d uly authorized authorized representati representative ve needs is an exemption clearance fr from om the DAR. Application for such clearance should be filed with with the Regional Office of the the DAR where the land is loca ted. (The procedures a nd requirements requirements are detailed in AO in AO No. 06, Serie s of 1994). 1994). What policy guidelines govern land use c onversion onversion? ? To ope rati rationalize onalize th the e provisio ns of various laws, the Depa rt rtment ment of Agrarian Reform Reform has issued several p olicy guidelines to regulate land use co nversion. The latest, Administrative Order No. No. 12, Series of 1994, 1994, "Consolidated " Consolidated and Revised Rules and Procedures Governing Conversion of Agricultural Lands to Non-Ag Non-Agricultural ricultural Uses", now consolidates a nd revises all existing implementing implementing guidelines issued by the DAR, taking into into co nsideration other other Presidential Issuances Issuances and national policies related to land use conversion. Thus, AO No. 12- 94 repeals Thus, AO repeals AO AO Nos . 8 and 8 and 15 15,, Series of 1990 and 1988, General Order No. 01, Series of 1989, AO Nos . 15, 15, 16 16,, and 18, Series of 1989, 1989, AO No. 07, Serie s of 1992 and 1992 and amends AO amends AO Nos . 1 and 1 and 2, Series of 1990. 1990 . The p rovisions of this latest Administ Administrative rative Order, shall however, be a pplicable only to all application filed on or after its its d ate of effectivity effectivity on 10 November 1994. All other applications filed previous to this this AO shall be gove rned by the pe rt rtinent inent administr administrative ative orders o r issuances in force at the time time of the filing filing of the the ap plications, and shall be processed accordingly. On the other other hand, conve rsion for selected Regional Agro-Industrial Agro-Industrial Centers, Centers, Tourism Develop ment Area and sites for socialize d housing shall be process ed under Jo int NEDA-DAR Memorandum Circular No. 01, Series of 1993 issued pursuant to Executive Order No. 124, Series of 1993 of 1993 of the Office of the President. 16.4 DAR's ROLE IN CONVERSION Operationally, Opera tionally, what is t he DAR's role in land use c onversion onversion? ?
Aside from being the final app roving authority, the the DAR b asic ally p erforms the following functions: a.
Evaluate Evaluat e th the e documents submitt submitted ed for completeness and veracity;
b.
Determines Determin es whet whether her or not th the e subject land is covered by CAR CARP; P;
c. Determines Determin es whether whether or not th the e application should be approved bas ed on th the e criteria criteria set for land use use conversion; d. Ensures En sures that th the e potential potential agrarian reform beneficiaries are consulted consulted on th the e proposed land use use conversion and a re properly g iven their disturbance disturbance compe nsation and other benefits; benefits; e.
Monitors Monit ors approve d applica tion for compliance wit with h th the e requirement requirements; s;
f. Together wit with h th the e DOJ, monitor monitors s illegal conversions and recommends and fil files es criminal criminal cases against landowners and developers who undertake illegal conversions. 16.5
MECHANICS OF LAND USE CONVERSION: APPLICATION, APPROVAL, MONITORING
Who may apply for land use conversion? conversion? The following following may a pply for conversion: a.
Owners of private agricultu agricultural ral lands or other persons duly duly auth authorized orized by th the e landowner; landowner;
b. Farmer beneficiarie s of the Agraria n Reform Progra m after the lap se of five (5) (5) years from from award, reck reck oned from the date of regis tration of their landho ldings , and who have fully paid their obligations and are qualified, or persons duly authorized by th them. em. c.
Gove rnmen rnmentt agencies , includin including g gove rnmen rnment-owned t-owned or contr controlled olled corporations.
When may an application for conversion be granted ? Conversion may be allowed under the following situation: situation: 1. If at the the time time of th the e application, the the lands are reclassified reclassified as commercial, industrial industrial and residential in in the the new or revised town town plans promulgated promulgated by the the Local Government Unit (LGU) and approved by the HLRB or by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) after 15 June 1988, in accordance with Section 20 of RA 7160 (The 7160 (The New Government Code), as implemented by Malacañang Memorandum Circular No. 54, 54, Executive Order No. 72, Series of 1993. 1993 . 2.
If at the time of the app lication, the the land still falls within the ag ricultur ricultural al zone s but:
a.
the th e land has ceased to be economically feasible and sound for for agricultural agricultural purposes, as certified certified by the Regional Director of the the Department of Agricult Agriculture ure (DA); (DA); or
b. the th e locality has become highly urbanized and the the land will have a greater economic value for for residential, residential, commercial or industr industrial ial purpose purpose s, as certified certified by th the e local government unit. 3. If th the e city/municipalit city/municipality y does not have a comprehensive development plan and zoning ordinance duly duly approved by HLRB/SP HLRB/SP but th the e dominant use of th the e area surrounding surr ounding the land subject of the ap plication for conversion is no longer ag ricult ricultural, ural, or if the the p ropose d land use is similar to; or compatible with the the do minant use of the surrounding surr ounding areas a s de term termined ined by th the e DAR. In all cases, c onversion shall be allowed only if the DENR DENR issues a certif certification ication that that the the co nversion is eco logically s ound. May conversion be granted for lands covered by a notice of acquisition acquisition? ? No. No No ap plication for for conversion shall be g iven due course if the the subject land has b een cove red by a ny of the the following: following: a.
Notice of Acquis ition under comp ulsory acq uisition or voluntary offer to sell;
b.
Application for stock distri distribution bution duly received by DAR; or
c.
Perfected Perfect ed VL VLT/DPS T/DPS agreement between th the e landowner and th the e beneficiaries.
What other lands are non-negotiable for conversion? conversion? Pursuant to Administrative to Administrative O rder No. 20, Se ries o f 1992 1992 (Interim Guidelines on Agricultural Land Use Conversion and Memo Circular No. 54, Series of 1993 both 1993 both of the Office of the th e Preside nt nt,, the following following a re non-neg otiable for conversion. 1.
All irr irrigated igated lands where water is availab le to to support support rice and other other crop production. production.
2. All irrigated lands where where water is not not ava ilab le for for rice and other crop produc tion but within area s programmed for irrigation facility facility rehabilitation by the the Department of Agriculture (DA) a nd the National Irrigation Administration (NIA). 3.
All irrigable irrigable lands already cov ered by irrigation irrigation projects wit with h firm firm fu funding nding commitments commitments at the the time time of th the e application for for land use use conversion or reclassification. reclassification.
May conversion be granted for lands with qualified beneficiaries? beneficiaries?
the th e av erage of the the annual gross value of the harvest on their their actual landholdings during the the last five (5) preced ing calendar ye ars. In addition to to e nsuri nsuring ng that the the ARBs are prope rly paid the disturbance disturbance compensation, the DAR shall ex ert all efforts efforts to see to it that that free free homelots and a ssured emp loyment for displaced beneficiaries are provided by the applicant/developer. Are farmworkers farmworkers also entitled to disturbance compensation? compensation? Yes. The DAR rules in AO in AO 01- 90 90 that that payment of disturbance disturbance compensation is not limited to tenant who who will be displace d b ut also includes farmworkers.
What shall the DAR do in case the ARBs are asking for a disturbance compensation above the level prescribed by law ? The DAR's p rincipal responsibility in such case is to e xplain the provisions of the law to the the farmers. The DAR may try to pe rsuade the pa rt rties, ies, p articu articularly larly the landowner, landowner, to a compromise but any increase beyo nd the legal requirement is is a t the the d iscretion of the the la ndowner ndowner.. May conversion be granted for any proposed project project ? No. To prevent circumvention circumvention of cov erage under the the CARP, CARP, conve rsion shall be granted only upon evidence th that at the the projec t to to be established therein is viable and be nefi neficial cial to the community community affected. How fast should the project be implemented ? Again to prev ent circumvention o f CARP CARP, the land dev elop ment phase of the proje ct should b e c omple ted within wit hin one yea r from the the issuance of the Order of Conversion where the area is five hectares o r less. Should the the area e xceed five hectares, an additional year shall be allowed for every five hectares or a fraction fr action thereof thereof but in no cas e shall th the e co mpletion of develo pment extend bey ond five ye ars from the the issuance of the Order of Conversion. Thus, a twelve twelve (12) hectare area may be develo ped wit within hin three three years, but a 50-hectare landholding should be develo ped wit within hin five five (5) years. May the DAR cancel or withdraw its approval for land use conversion? conversion? Yes. The DAR may cancel or withdraw withdraw authorization authorization for land use conversion, ba sed on the following following grounds: a.
Misrepresentation Misrepresentat ion or concealment of material fact facts s in th the e application, e.g. capa city of th the e develop er to to undertake undertake the the project; project;
b.
Failure Failur e to to implement and complete th the e land develo pment of th the e area with within in th the e specified time; time; and
c.
Any other viola tion of the rules and regulations which which are material to the grant of the conv ersio n orde r.
What will happen to the lands cov ered by disapproved petitions for c onversion or cancelled or withdrawn conversion order ? Lands covered by a petition for conversion which had been disapproved or those covered by a conversion order which had been cancelled or withdrawn shall be placed under CARP CARP compulsory co verage , in accorda nce with the the schedule o f implementation implementation prescribed in Sec tion 7 of RA 6657 and 6657 and b e distributed distributed to all qualified beneficiaries. Where should the application for conversion be filed and what are the procedures to be followed ? Under the new guidelines, while forms can be obtained from any of the field offices, filing should be done at the Regional Office with the DAR Regional Center for Land Use Policy, Planning and Implementation (RCLUPPI). The application should contain the documentary requirements enumerated in Section 7 of AO- 12, Series of 1994. 1994. Application with wit h incomplete do cument cuments s will not be acted upo n and the ap plicant will be informed acco rdingly rdingly.. There are also new proc edures to be followed which which clearly dis tin tinguish guish the the role of various offices. offices. 1.
The Regional Center for Land Use Policy, Planning and Implementation (RCLUPPI) :
*
receives the the application and reviews reviews the the required documents for completeness and compliance with with all th the e requisites; requisites;
*
sends Notice Notice of Land Use Conversion to th the e DAR Muni Municipal cipal Office Office (DARM (DARMO) O) for for posting;
*
conducts field investigati investigation on and dialogues wit with h aff affected ected parties parties and validates inform information ation in th the e documents; documents;
*
prepares fin findings dings and recommendations;
* prepares land use conversion folder for for every application att attaching aching all th the e required required documents submitt submitted ed by the the applicant and endorse it to th the e Center Center for for Land Land Use Policy, Planning and Implementation (CLUPPI) through the Regional Director, except:
applications for conversion involving five (5) hectares or less of land that are are within within the the non- agricultu agricultural ral zo ne per Land Use Plan app roved by the HLRB/Sangguniang HLRB/Sangguniang Bayan which shall be submitted to the Regional Director. Subsequent applications by th the e sa me landowners or his representative, however, on a p ortion of the the same shall be forw forwarded arded to CLUPPI CLUPPI for for resolution. 2.
DAR Regional Director
*
Approves or disapproves applications covering lands with within in th the e non-a non-a gricult gricultural ural zo nes with with areas of five (5) hectares or less less on an aggreg ate or project basis;
*
Forwards applications already acted upon to th the e RCL RCLUPPI UPPI for proper dispos iti ition; on;
*
Submits Submit s monthly monthly report on approved or disapproved app lications, includin including g pending applica tions to th the e CLUPPI CLUPPI,, copy furn furnished ished the the DARPO DARPO and DARMO.
3.
Center for Land Use Policy, Planning and Implementation (CLUPPI)
*
reviews and evaluates all land use conversion folders received from from RCL RCLUPPI UPPI;;
* whenever necessa ry, conducts field investigati investigation on on th the e area and holds dialogues with with gove rnmen rnmentt off officials icials and enti entities, ties, accredited NGOs and aff affected ected farmers farmers and and farmworkers with the assistance of the MARO; * for lands fift fifty y (50) (50) hectares hectares or less, prepares the draft order recommending approva l or denial and forwards forwards the the same to to the the Undersecretary Undersecretary for for Policy and Planning Planning who shall act on it within 45 working days from the date of receipt of folder from the RCLUPPI; * for areas above 50 hectares, prepares prepares fact sheet and accomplishes the the findings findings and and recommendations and forwards forwards th these ese to th the e PARC PARC Land Use Use Technical Committee (PLUTC) for further review within ten (10) days from receipt of the folder from RCLUPPI; *
submits quarterly repo rt on the status of all applica tions to the Secre tary, through the Underse cretary for for PPO, cop y furnished furnished the the PARC Secre tariat.
4.
Undersecretary Under secretary for P olicies and Planning :
* reviews and approves or disapproves app lication for conversion of lands not excee ding fift fifty y (50) (50) hectares hectares with within in five (5) (5) working working days from from receipt receipt of th the e folder fr from om CLUPPI;
5.
PARC Land Use Technical Committee (PLUTC): (PLUTC) :
* reviews completeness and consistency of all folders folders received from from CLUP CLUPPI, PI, requires submission submission of additional documents documents or inf information ormation and conducts conducts field field investigation investigati on (if necessa ry); *
recommends approval or disapproval of applica tions for conversion of lands above fifty fifty (50 (50)) hectares hectares and forwards forwards th the e same to to the the Secretary Secretary for for his his consideration. consideration.
6.
DAR Secretary :
*
approv es or disapp roves land use conversion applica tions involving abov e 50 50 hectares wit within hin five (5) working days from from receipt receipt of folder; and
*
forwards the signe d orde r to CLUPPI CLUPPI..
What is the recourse of an applicant or any aggrieved party party who does not agree with the Regional Director's Director's decision? decision? A motion for reconsi dera tion of the dec ision o f the the Reg ional Director c an b e filed within fift fifteen een (15) d ays from receip t of the order o r dec ision.
DCIEac DCIE ac
Running Run ning of the the period is suspende d once th the e motion is filed. IfIf the the motion is denied, th the e ag grieved party can still make an a ppea l to the the DAR Secretary. An app eal to the Secre tary shall be made in the form of a memo randum and upon p ayme nt of P500.00 P500.00 as a ppe al fee . On the other hand, appeal from the decision of the Undersecretary shall be made to the Secretary, and from the Secretary to the Office of the President or the Court of Appe als, as the cas e ma y be . The mo de of ap pea l/motion for rec onsid erations, and the a ppe al fee , from the Underse cretary to the O ff ffice ice o f the the Se cretary s hall be the same as that of the Regional Director to the Office of the Secretary. Are there mechanisms mechanisms inst alled to ensure that that the terms and conditions of the approved conversion are are complied with? with? Yes, there there will be monit monitoring oring of compliance. T he RCLUPPI RCLUPPI shall monitor monitor compliance by th the e a pplicant/develop er bas ed on the terms and co nditi nditions ons stipulated under AO under AO No. 12-94,, including the 12-94 the required p osting of the the a pproved order in a c onspicuous plac e of the project area. The AO p rovides th that at failure failure to post such notice in the project area shall be a g round for the the susp ension of the deve lopment of the area a nd for poss ible ca ncellation of the the co nversion order. The RCLUPPI RCLUPPI shall shall submit monthly monthly reports to the Undersecretary for Policy and Planning through the CLUPPI of all land use conversion transactions, copy furnished the DARPO and the DARMO. In turn, the CLUPPI shall evaluate the reports submitted by the RCLUPPI and render quarterly reports on the status of all land use conversion to the Secretary, copy furnished the PARC Secretariat. 16.6 LGU's AUTHORITY TO RECLASSIFY Does RA 7160 , otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991 give the cities and municipalities the authority to convert agricultural lands to non-agricultural non-agricultural uses? uses? No, what the Code provides is the authority of cities and municipalities to reclassify lands into uses within their jurisdiction subject to certain limitations and conditions. How does does reclass ification differ from land use conversion? conversion? Reclassification is the act of specifying how agricultural lands shall be utilized for for non-agricultural non-agricultural uses such as residential, industri industrial, al, commercial, a s embo died in the the land use plan. It also includes the reversion of non- agricultu agricultural ral lands to agricultural agricultural use. On the other hand, land use conversion is t he actual change of agricultural land to non-agricultural uses.. uses Although recla ssifica tion and c onve rsion a re simila r in that they they b oth determine whether a parc el o f land sho uld be used for agric ultur ultural al o r other purpo ses , they are different in approa ch — reclassification is do ne through through the town planning planning proce ss taking into acc ount the the need s of the inhabitants inhabitants for spa ce for housing, industrial, industrial, co mmercial and o th ther er non-ag ricult ricultural ural uses, while co nversion goe s through the the D AR's ev aluation process whi which ch takes int into o account the the tenant tenants s a nd farmworkers, farmworkers, if a ny, on the landholding, the ascertainment of disturbance disturbance compe nsation, and on who will pay said distur disturbance bance compensation. Furth Furthermore, ermore, although land reclassification can be indicative of which agricultural agricult ural areas ca n be c onverted to non-ag ricult ricultural ural uses, it does not involve an actual change in land use. What agencies agencies are involv ed in land reclassification? reclassification? Land reclassification is a po wer exercised by municipal or city go vernment vernments s through through the town town planning process, subject to review and ap proval b y the Provincial Sanggunian through the Provincial Land Use Council (PLUC). DAR's participation is in the issuance of a certification that lands for reclassification are either not distributed, not covered by a Notice of Coverage, or not voluntarily offered for coverage under CARP. What does the Local Government Code provide with respect to land reclassific ation ation? ? Section 20 of RA 7160 and 7160 and Malacañang Memo Circular No. 54 dated 08 June 1993 presc 1993 presc ribing the the g uidelines gov ernin erning g Se ction 20, 20, state that a city or municipality may, through th rough an ordinance p assed by th the e Sangg unian after after conducting public hearings, a uth uthorize orize th the e recla ssificati ssification on of ag ricult ricultural ural lands and provide for the the manner of their utilization ut ilization or disp osition in the the following case : a.
when the land ceases to to be economically feasible and sound for for agricultu agriculture re as certifi certified ed by the the DA; or
b.
where th the e land shall have substantially substantially greater economic value for residential, commercial, or indust industrial rial purposes.
The reclas sificat sification ion shall be based on the following following percentage o f the the total agricultural agricultural land area a t the the time of the the ap proval o f the the Code : o
for highly urbanized and independent component cities
o
for comp onent cities and first to third clas s municipalities
o
for fourth to sixth clas s municipalities
15% 10% 5%
In addition, addition, the following following types o f agricultural agricultural lands shall not be co vered b y the said rec lassification lassification:: a.
agric ultur ultural al lands distributed to agra rian reform bene ficiaries subject to Section 65 of RA 6657;
b.
agricultural agricult ural lands already already issued a notice of coverag e or volunt voluntarily arily off offered ered for for coverag e under under CAR CARP; P;
c.
agricultural agricult ural lands identif identified ied under Malacañang Malacañang AO AO No. 20- 92 92 and and MC 54 as 54 as non-negotiable for conversion:
1.
All irr irrigated igated lands where water is availab le to to support support rice and other other crop production; production;
2. All irrigated lands where where water is not not ava ilab le for for rice and other crop produc tion but within area s programmed for irrigation facility facility rehabilitation by the the Department of Agriculture (DA) a nd the National Irrigation Administration (NIA). 3.
All irrigable irrigable lands already cov ered by irrigation irrigation projects wit with h firm firm fu funding nding commitments commitments at the the time time of th the e application for for land use use conversion or reclassification. reclassification.
Is the percentage ceiling on the land area which the LGUs can reclassify absolute absolute? ? No, the President may, when when public int interest erest so requires and upon recommendation of the National Economic Economic and Deve lopment Auth Authority ority (NEDA) (NEDA) authorize authorize a c ity or municipality mun icipality to reclassify lands in exc ess o f the the limits limits as cited abo ve. What are the requirements requirements and procedures for reclassif ication ication? ? a. The city city or mun municipal icipal develop ment council shall recommend to to the the Sangguniang Sangguniang Panglunsod Panglunsod or Sangguniang Bayan, as the the case may be, the the reclassification reclassification of agricultural lands within its jurisdiction.
1. Certification Certif ication from from DA indica ting the total area of exis ting ag ricultur ricultural al lands in the city or municipality, that that such lands are not clas sified as non-neg otiable for conve rsion or reclassification; and that the the land has cease d to be economically feas ible and sound for agricultural agricultural purposes. 2.
Certification Certif ication from from DAR indica ting that such lands are not distributed, or not cov ered by a notice notice of cov erag e or not voluntarily offered offered for cov erag e unde unde r CARP.
c.
The applic ation shall be submitted to the HLRB which upon rece rece ipt shall conduct initial revie w to de termine if:
1.
the th e city city or mun municipality icipality has an existing comprehensive land use plan reviewed and approv ed in accorda nce with withExecutive Executive Order No. 72 (1993); (1993); and
2.
the th e proposed reclassification reclassification complies with with th the e limit limitations ations prescribed under Section 1 of Memo Circular No. 54. 54.
d.
The Sanggunian shall conduct public hearings for th the e purpose.
e. Upon receipt receipt of the required certifi certification cation from from the the government agencies , the the Sanggunian Sanggunian concerned may now enact an ordinance authorizing authorizing the the reclassification reclassification of agricultural agricult ural lands a nd provid ing for the manner of their utilization utilization or dispos iti ition. on. After the enactment of the ordinance ordinance reclassifying the land, does this mean the agricultural land can now now be converted for non-agr non-agricultural icultural uses? No. Approval of app lications for land use co nversions remains the responsibility of DAR. Hence, individual landholders o f the the a ff ffected ected a reas s hould still file file an application for conversion. DAR shall utili utilize ze as its primary reference reference in deciding o n the the app lication, the the comprehensive land use plans, and the ordinance pas sed upo n and app roved b y the Sanggunian, together with the National Land Use Policy. CHAPTER 17 LAND LAN D TRANSACTION 17.1
LAWS AND ISSUANCES GOVERNING AGRICULTURAL LAND TRANSACTIONS
What are the laws governing land transaction? transaction? 17.1.1
RA 6657 contains 6657 contains several s pecific provisions o n land transactions. transactions. They are th the e following:
a. Section 6 provide provide s that upon upon effectivity effectivity of the law, law, any sa le, dispo sition, lease, manage ment contract contract or transfer transfer of possess ion of private lands ex ecuted by th the e original landowner in violation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL) (CARL) shall b e null and void .
However, those transactions executed prior to the enactment of the law shall be valid if registered with the Register of Deeds within a period of three (3) months after the effectivity of the law, or on 13 September 1988; b. Section 70 allows allows the sale or dispo sition of agricultu agricultural ral lands retained by a lando wner provided that the the total landholding, including including the land being a cquired by th the e buyer/transferee buyer/tr ansferee shall not exc eed th the e landholding ceiling of five (5) hectares, s ubject, however, to to the right of pre-emption and/or redemption of redemption of tenant/lessee under Sections 11 and 12 of RA 3844, 3844 , as amended
c. Section 73 prohibits 73 prohibits the the sa les, transfer, transfer, conveyance or change o f the the nature nature of lands outside of urban centers and city limits either in whole or in part after the effectivity of RA 6657; 6657 ;
The same section also prohibits the the sale , transfer transfer or conveyance b y a b eneficiary of the the right to use or any other usufruct usufructuary uary right over the land he/she a cquired by virt virtue ue of be ing a beneficiary, in order to circumvent the provisions of CARL CARL;; d. Section 27 of of RA 6657 fur 6657 furth ther er provide s that the the lands a cquired by beneficiaries may not be sold, transferr tr ansferred ed or convey ed excep t through through hereditary succession o r to the government or to other qualified qualified beneficiaries for a p eriod o f ten years. Provided, howeve r, that the the children or the spo use of the transferor shall have a right to repurchase the land from the government or LBP within a period of two (2) years; and e. Presidential Decree No. 27 originally 27 originally prohibited the transfer of title to land acquired pursuant to this th is Decree excep t by hereditary succession o r to the the go vernment in accordance wit with h the the provis ions of PD 27, 27, the Code of Agrarian Agrarian Reform and other existing laws and regulations.
However, Section 6 of Executive Order No. 228 now 228 now allows the transfer transfer of ownership of lands acquired b y farmer-be neficiar neficiaries ies a ft fter er full payment of amortiza amortiza tion. What are the relevant AOs on land transaction? transaction? a. Administrative O rder No. 01, Serie s o f 1989 1989 entitled "Rules " Rules and Procedures Governing Land Transactions" Transactions" provide d the implementing implementing guidelines for RA 6657's 6657 's provisions on land transaction. b.
Administrative O rder No. 04, Serie s o f 1994 1994 entitled "Guideline " Guidelines s on t he Development Development of Agro-T Agro-Tourism ourism Areas in A ccordance with the Tourism Master Plan". Plan".
Under this this new AO, DAR allows in meritorious meritorious case s, the lease or joint venture venture arrangement of lands a cquired by agrarian reform beneficiaries under CARP for for agro- tour tourism ism deve lopment purposes. This is in line with with the general ob jective of ag rarian reform reform in terms of upliftin uplifting g the quality of life of the ARBs. ARBs. Guidelines and safeguards should, however, be adhered to strictly. strictly. 17.2
LAND TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING AGRO-TOURISM DEVELOPMENT
What are the conditions which must be present to allow lease or joint venture arrangements arrangements for agro-tourism development development involving lands distributed under CARP ? The following conditions must be prese nt nt:: 1. The area has been identif identified ied by government as priority priority develop ment area under th the e Medium Term Philippine Develo pment Plan, or certifi certified ed by the the Department of Tourism as a priorit priority y a rea for tourism developme nt nt;; 2. The domina nt use of the area should still be agricultural such that that the area to be deve lope d for tourism shall be less than 50% of the total area subje ct to CARP. Irrigated Ir rigated or irrigable lands are fu furt rther her ineligible for these purposes ; 3.
The agricultural area of the proje ct shall be continuously maintained by the ARBs who shall supply the the tourism tourism project with agric ultur ultural al products;
4.
The ARBs or their their direct desce ndants shall be given preference preference in employment in th the e tourism tourism project;
5.
All improvements improvements related to to tourism tourism shall accrue to th the e ARBs ARBs or th their eir association at th the e expiry of th the e lease period;
6.
Profit-sharing Profi t-sharing and other benefit benefits s may be negotiated negotiated by DAR in behalf of th the e ARBs, depe nding on th the e exigencies of the the situation situation;;
7. The lease ag reement shall specify the the time time frame frame for for developme nt of the the subject property but not to exceed five (5) (5) years reckoned from th the e date of approva l of th the e lease or joint venture venture ag reement;
pursuant to Section 27 of RA 6657. 6657 . AO (AO 04, Series of 1994). 1994). What kind of arrangements arrangements can be entered into by the ARBs if the above conditions are fulfilled ? 1.
Direct lease to th the e investor/develope r under RA 7652; 7652 ;
2.
Lease to a responsible government entit entity, y, who in tu turn rn may sublease the the property to th the e investor/develo investor/develo per;
3.
Leas e back to to the former lando wner, who in tur turn n will dev elop the area for tourism purpo ses ; or
4.
Joint ventu venture re agreement whereby ARB's lease lease rights shall be exchanged for shares of stocks, provided the ARBs shall organize into into a farmers farmers cooperative.
17.3
LAND TRANSACTIONS AFTER 15 JUNE 1988
A vendee bought bought a parcel of agricultural land land consisting of fift y (50) hectares prior to 15 June June 1988. However, However, the deed deed of sale was not registered within within the three-month three-month period period as provided for in Section 6 of RA 6657 . The v endee now wants wants to have the transaction registered and is willing to have the land c overed by CARP. CARP. Should the ROD register the transaction? transaction ? Yes, the transaction transaction should be registered eve n if beyond th the e p rescribed period. Anyway, Anyway, the vendee is willing to have it co vered under CARP CARP. To disallow reg istr istration ation and rescind the contract will result in a legal nightmare to the prejudice of the vendee/transferee. DAR can give clearance for the registration. ( DOJ Opinion No. 41, Series of 1992 ). Can agricultural lands be mortgaged to guarantee any loan obligation secured to develop or to improve such lands ? Yes, there there are lands that may be the subject of mortgage mortgage , lien or encumbrance. These are the following: following: EAI EAISDH SDH a.
Lands not not yet acquired acquired by DAR in accorda nce with with th the e schedule of acquisition ment mentioned ioned in Section 7 of RA 6657. 6657 .
b.
Those lands lands chosen by th the e landowners as th their eir retent retention ion areas; and
c.
Lands already awarded/alloc ated to th the e agrarian reform beneficiaries.
Can banks and other financial institutions acquire title to agricultural lands subject of a mortgage right or interest interest ? Banks and other financial financial institu institutions tions allowed by law to hold mortgage right or security security interest in agricultural agricultural lands may acquire title title to those mort mortgage gage d p roperties, regardless of areas, s ubject to existing existing laws o n compulsory transfer transfer of foreclosed assets a nd acquisition as presc ribed under Section 16 of RA 6657. 6657 . Can government government financing instit utions and government-owned government-owned or controlled corporations corporations s ell or dispose t heir lands which are suitable for agriculture directly to private individuals? No. Executive Order No. 360, Series of 1989 enjoins 1989 enjoins them to grant the DAR the right of first refusal in the sale or disposition of their lands which are suitable for agriculture. This was furth further er amende d b y EO 407 which 407 which mandates all government instrumentalities to surrender to the DAR all landholdings suitable for agriculture including agriculture including all pertinent documents in their their custody. In In certain instances, instances, th they ey ma y av ail of the VLT mode of transferr transferring ing ownership of agricultural agricultural lands to qualifi qualified ed beneficiaries subject to the review and approva l of DAR. 17.4
RIGHT OF PRE-EMPTION
What is the right of pre-emption? pre-emption? Under Section 11 of RA 3844, 3844 , in case th the e landowner/lessor de cides to sell his tenanted/lea tenanted/lea sed land, he/she must first first offer offer to sell the landholding to the tenant tenant or lessee thereof th ereof who has the preferential preferential right to buy the same under reasonable term terms s and conditions imposed th therein. erein. If the land has two or more agricultural tenants or less ees in the s ame landholding, landholding, how will they exercise their right of pre-e pre-emption mption? ? Section 11 of RA 3844 provid 3844 provid es that if there there are tw two o o r more ag ricult ricultural ural tenants tenants or lesse es, e ach shall b e e nt ntitl itled ed to said preferent preferential ial right only to the extent of the the area actually cultivated by him/her. What is the prescribed period imposed by law in the exercise of t he right of pre-emption pre-emption? ? The right of pre-emp tion may be e xercised wit within hin one hundred hundred e ighty (180) (180) days fr from om notice in writing, writing, which shall shall be served by the owner to all tenants tenants or les sees aff affected. ected. 17.5
RIGHT OF REDEMPTION
What is the right of redemption? redemption? Under Section 12 of RA 3844, 3844 , in case the landholding is sold to a third person without the knowledge of the tenant or agricultural lessee, the latter shall have the right to repurchase said landholding at a reasonable price and consideration. If there are two or more tenants or agricultural lessees in the same landholding, how will they exercis e their right of redemption? redemption? If there there are tw two o o r more tenants or agricultural agricultural lesse es in the sa me landholding, e ach shall b e e nt ntitled itled to said right of redemp redemp tion only to the the e xtent of the the area actually cultivated by him/her. What is the prescriptive period imposed by law in order to avail of t he right of redemption redemption? The right of redemption may be a vailed of within within one hundred hundred e ighty (180) (180) days fr from om notice in writing writing which shall shall be served by the buyer o n all tenants/lessee tenants/lessee s affected and the th e DAR upo n the registration registration of the the s ale, a nd shall have priorit priority y o ver any other right of legal redemption. 17.6
VALID TRANSACTIONS
What are the valid transactions under the CARP ? The following transactions transactions are valid: a.
Those executed by th the e original original landowner landowner in favor of a qualified qualified beneficiary fr from om among th those ose certified certified by DAR;
b.
Thos e in favor of the gov ernment, DAR or the LBP;
c. Those covering lands retain retained ed by th the e landowner under Section 6 of RA 6657, 6657 , ex ecuted in favor of the transferee transferee whose tot total al landholdings inclusive of the land to be acquired d o not exce ed five hectares, s ubject, however, however, to the right of pre- emption and/or redemption of tenant/lessee tenant/lessee under Sections 11 11 and 12 of RA 3844, 3844 , as amended; d.
Those exe cuted by ARBs covering lands acquired under any agrarian law in favor of th the e government, DAR, LBP LBP or other qualified beneficiaries beneficiaries certified certified by DAR; and
e.
Thos e executed after ten (10) yea rs from from the the issuance and registration of the Emancipation Patent (EP) or Certificate Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA). (CLOA).
17.7
INVALID TRANSACTIONS
What are the invalid transactions under CARP ? The following transactions transactions are not valid: a. Sale, disposition, lease, management contract contract or tr transfer ansfer of possession of private private lands executed by the the original landowner landowner prior to 15 15 June June 1988, 1988, whi which ch are not not registered on or before 13 September 1988, or those executed after 15 June 1988 covering an area in excess of the five (5) hectare retention limit in violation of RA 6657; 6657 ; b.
Those covering lands acquired by th the e beneficiary under RA 6657 and 6657 and executed within ten (10) years from the issuance and registration of the Emancipation Patent (EP)
c.
Those executed in favor of a person or persons not qualified to acquire land under Section 22 of RA 6657; 6657 ;
d. Sale, transfer transfer,, conveyance o r change of natu nature re of land land outside of urban centers centers and city limit limits s either in whole whole or in part after after 15 15 June June 1988, 1988, except as provided for under the the rules o n land co nversion; and e. Sales, transfer transfer or conveyance by an ARB ARB of the the right to use use or any other usuf usufruct ructuary uary right right over the land land he acquired by virtue virtue of being a beneficiary in in order to to circumvent the law. What are the transactions that may be registered with the Register of Deeds without clearance from the DAR ? The following are the transactions that can be registered without clearance from the DAR: a.
Deed of extra-judicial partiti partition on of th the e property property of a deceased who died before 15 June 198 1988; 8;
b.
Deed of partit partition ion of property owned in common by co-o wners prior to 15 June 198 1988; 8;
c.
Subdiv ision of tit title le with without out change of ownership; and
d.
Deed of Real Est Estate ate Mort Mortgage gage executed by th the e original landowner or beneficiary.
CHAPTER 18 PUBLIC LANDS 18.1
PUBLIC ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE LANDS
How are public public alienable and disposable lands to be distributed ? In general, all alienab le and disposa ble p ublic lands suit suitable able to agriculture agriculture shall b e d istr istributed ibuted by th the e D EN ENR R to qualified citizens o f the the Philippines. Agrarian Agrarian reform beneficiaries may b e co nsidered by th the e DENR provided that they they are certif certified ied b y DAR and D EN ENR R as still qualified qualified to a cquire public lands pursuant to the the Joint DAR-DENR Administrative O rder No. 07, Se ries o f 1991 1991. Areas subje ct to ad verse claims by p erso ns other than the ap plica nt-tillers c annot be distributed until such claims are s ettled. Who are the qualified applicants? applicants ? The following are generally q ualif ualified ied to ap ply for patents to to p ublic lands which are suitable to agricultural agricultural purposes and who satisfy additional existing requirements requirements as prescribed b y the Public Land Law (CA (CA 141, 141 , as amended): 1.
a Filipin Filipino o citizen;
2.
occ upant- tiller of the land;
3.
does not own own other other landholdings, the the aggregate area of whi which ch does not excee d the the limits limits allowed for th the e particular particular type type of public land application;
4.
is not an illega l entrant/occupa nt
What are the procedures procedures followed in the distribution of public A & D lands to qualified applicants? applicants? 1. Filing of public land applic ation shall be done at the Community Environment and Natural Natural Reso urces Office Office (CENR (CENRO) O) having jurisdic jurisdic tion ove r the subje ct land. (Note: only lands covered by approved surveys may be the subject of a public land application). application). 2. Processing of the the application, including including verificat verification ion of qualifi qualifications cations and compliance with with all the the requirements requirements of residence, cultivation, cultivation, payment of required required fees, etc., etc., are done at the CENRO and the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) levels. 3. Signing of the land patent by the PENR PENRO O (up to five five hectares for homes tead and free patents), and by the Regio nal Environment Environment Director (RE (RED) D) (up to ten ten hectares) and by the DENR Secretary, if in excess of ten hectares. 18.2
INTEGRATED SOCIAL FORESTRY PROGRAM
Are forest lands suitable for agro-forestry agro-forestry also covered by CARP ? Yes, but only under the non-land transfer component of CARP called the "Integrated " Integrated Social Forestry Program (ISFP)". (ISFP)". Forest lands lands suitable for agro- forest forestry ry may be allocated to forest occupants under the principle of stewardship. They cannot be distributed for titling to agrarian reform beneficiaries in order to protect the forest.
ISFP involves the issuance of long-term tenurial agreements through Certificates of Stewardship Contracts or Community Forest Stewardship Agreements effective for twenty (25) years renewable for another 25 25 years a nd the provision of technical, social, material and o th ther er support services to individual forest occupants and forest communities. With these support services, the DENR hopes to reforest denuded lands to improve the socio-economic conditions of the occupants. What is the maximum land siz e which can be availed of by qualified applicants applicants under ISFP ? Seven (7) hectares shall be th the e maximum siz e of land that can be availed of under ISFP ISFP.. 18.3
SETTLEMENT AREAS
Do the guidelines guidelines for public A & D lands suitable to agriculture apply to DAR sett lement areas? areas? No. All DAR Settlement Settlement Projects covered by a Preside nt ntial ial Proclamation issued before the effectivity effectivity of RA 6657 are 6657 are deemed to have been classified as alienable and disposable under the powers of the Chief Chi ef Executive Executive to clas sify lands of the public domain and by v irt irtue ue of the expressed provisions in the proclamation authorizing authorizing the DAR to dispos e of the lands d escribed in such proclamation. What rules govern the manner manner and mode of disposition and titling of lots in the DAR settlement projects? projects ? a.
Administrative O rder No. 09, Serie s o f 1989 1989 entitled "Rules " Rules and Procedures Governing Titling and Distribution of Lots in DAR Settlement Projects"; Projects"; and
b. Administrative O rder No. 01, Serie s o f 1992 1992 entitled "Revised " Revised Rules and Procedures Governing the Disposition of Homelots and Other Lots in Barangay Sites and Residential, Commercial Commercial and Industrial Lots in Town Sites Within DAR Settlement Projects and Similar Other Areas Under DAR Jurisdiction". Jurisdiction". How much should the ARBs pay for lands dist ributed in DAR settlement areas areas? None. All lots (agricultural or non-agricultural) shall be distributed free of cost. No survey fees or other costs relative to the distribution of the land shall be charged to the beneficiary. What are the functions of the MARO under these procedures ? 1.
Conduct a physic al inventory and perform the following:
a.
Review and evaluate the the list of allocatees and conduct lot verificat verification ion to to determine wheth whether er the the ARB ARB allocatees still still occupy and till th the e lots covered by the Certifi Certificates cates
b.
Require the occ upant/tiller to acc omplis h the Farmer Beneficia ry App lication Form (SP Form No. 01);
2.
Evaluate Evaluat e application form forms s and recommend appropriate action. Recommendation shall be based on th the e following following guides:
For applicant with Certificate of Allocation (CA): a.
If app licant is living and is the actual cultivator/oc cupa nts: Issue CLOA
b.
If dece ased but th the e heirs are actual cult cultivators/occupants: ivators/occupants: Issue CLOA to qualified heirs
c.
If not an actual cultivator: Cancel CA and Issue CLOA to qualified beneficiary
d.
If occ upying the wrong lot: Issue CLOA for lot ac tually occupied and cancel CA for t he corresponding corresponding lot
e.
If abs entee CA holde r: Consider land covered by CA abandoned and apply apply procedures for c ancellation of allocation
If applicant has no CA but is a qualified actual occupant/transferee: Issue CLOA for not more than three hectares of his/her own choice and preference. Area in excess shall be distributed with preference to his/ her qualified children. children. 3. Consolid ate SP Form No. No. 1 and prepa re Summary Summary FB Data Sheet (SP Form No. No. 02) for those applic ants reco reco mmende d for for issuance of CLOA. This shall constitute constitute the Land Distribution Folder. 4.
Endorse the LDF to PARO for revie w and CLOA prep aration.
5.
Prepare a summary summary list of vacant and unallocated lots lots and and lots wit with h certif certificates icates of allocation recommended recommended for cancellation.
What are the grounds grounds f or cancellation of allocation? allocation? 1.
Abse nce of the settler/allo catee from the settlement for more than than six (6) months without writt written en permissio n of the DAR;
2.
Trans fer of rights by transferor transferor with without out writ written ten conse nt and approv al of the DAR Regio nal Director concerned ;
3.
Voluntary Volunt ary renunciation or waiver of rights in writ writing; ing;
4.
Failure to to cultivate cultivate the lot for a period of more than than six (6) consecutive months from the date of allo cation of said lot; and
5.
Death of settl settler/allocatee er/allocatee if he/she has no qualifi qualified ed heir. heir.
What is the award ceiling for qualified beneficiaries beneficiaries? ? The award c eiling shall not be more than three three hectares. However, qualified qualified b eneficiaries who have occ upied and cult cultivated ivated the land and established their vested rights prior to 15 June June 1988, in accordance with the the Public Land Law and o th ther er existing laws, shall be awarded the lega l limits limits allowed by s aid laws. Who are the qualified beneficiaries? beneficiaries? 1.
landless;
2.
Filipino citize n;
3.
Actual occupa nt/t nt/tiller iller who who is at lea st 18 yea rs of age or head of the family at the time of filing of ap plica tion; and
4.
Has th the e willin willingness, gness, ability ability and aptitu aptitude de to to cultivat cultivate e and make the the land productive.
Preferential Prefer ential assistance shall be given to: 1.
Qualified women members of th the e agricult agricultural ural labor force;
2.
War veterans and veterans of milit military ary campaign;
3.
Retirees of AFP and INP;
4.
Returnees/surrend eree s; and
5.
Graduates of agricult agricultural ural school
What other types of lots can be distributed in the settlement areas? areas ?
Homelot refers to to a parcel o f land which which is intended for farm residence residence in a baranga y site. Residential Lot refers t
parcel o f land which which is intended for residence in a town sit
Town Site Lot refers to a parcel of land in the town site of a settlement which is intended either for residential, commercial, or industrial use. Industrial Lot refers to to a parcel o f land in the the town site site intended as a site for process ing of products and for other industrial industrial purposes. Who are qualified applicants applicants f or these lands? lands? 1.
Filipino citize n;
2.
At lea st 15 yea rs of age or head head of the family at the time of filing of ap plica tion; and
3.
Applicant or his/her his/her spouse is not not th the e owner-a owner-a wardee or allocatee of another homelot, residential, commercial or indust industrial rial lot.
What is the award ceiling for such ty pes of lands within sett lement areas? areas? A qualified a pplic ant is entitled to a cquire only o ne home lot or o ne resid ential/co mmercia l or industrial lo t with with an are a not mo re than one thousand (1,000) sq uare me ters. However,, an awardee or allocatee of a homelot or reside nt However ntial ial lot may still be a llowed to acq uire one commercial or industrial lot following following the the prov isions of AO of AO No. 01, Serie s of 1992. 1992. What are the modes modes of disposition of homelots and other types of lots lots? ? 1. Homelots and residential, commercial and industri industrial al lots shall be dispose d of by direct direct sale to to qualified qualified actual occupants. If th the e occupant is not qualifi qualified, ed, the lot lot may may be s old to the qualified members of the family. family. IfIf there there is none, then the the lot shall be considered vacant and shall b e d isposed of. 2.
Vacant homelots in barangay sites shall be disposed of th through rough public raff raffle le to to qualified qualified applicants.
3. Vacant residential, commercial and industri industrial al lots shall be disposed o f th through rough public public bidding, to the the highest highest qualified qualified bidde r. However, no bid should be less than than the the appraise d value o f the the lot. 4. Lots allotted allotted to or intended intended for public use, whether whether within within bara ngay sites or town sites shall be turn turned ed ove r by the DAR to to the the particular go vernment entity or agency concerned. 5.
An allocatee occupying the the lot allocated or awarded to to him/her him/her before the the eff effectivit ectivity y of said AO 01- 92 92 shall shall be issued a CLOA upon upon pa yment of the the cost of the land.
6. An allocatee or awardee occupying a different different lot allocated or awarded to him/her him/her before effectivit effectivity y of th the e above mentioned AO shall be awarded the the correct lot and and issued a CLOA upon full payment the lot. 7.
Awards/allocations of abse nt ntee ee beneficiaries beneficiaries shall be cancelled and th the e lot shall be awarded and tit titled led to to the the actual occupants.
How much is the cost of these lots ? For homelots, the cost should not be less than three three peso s (P3.00) (P3.00) pe r square meter; for residential, residential, ten pes os (P10) pe r square meter; and fifteen fifteen p esos (P15 (P15)) for industrial industrial and commercial lots allocated or awarded prior to AO to AO No. 01- 92 92..
18.4 PUBLIC AGRICULTURAL LANDS TURNED OVER BY THE NATIONAL LIVELIHOOD AND SUPPORT FUND What rules govern public agricultural lands turned over by the National Livelihood and Support Fund (NSLF) to the Department of Agrarian Reform for distribution under CARP ? CARP ? These are governed by Memorandum Circular No. 07, Series of 1993 entitled 1993 entitled "Implementing " Implementing Guidelines on the Distribution and Titling of t he Public Agricultural Lands Turned Over by the National Livelihood and Support Fund to the Department of Agrarian Reform for Distribution Under the CARP Pursuant to EO 407, Series of 1990, as Amended by EO 448, Series of 1991 and as Clarified under Memorandum Order No. 107 of the President of the Philippines dated 23 March 1993" 1993" Under MO 107, 107, the DAR and th the e DENR were directed to jointly determine which which areas were classified a s alienable a nd dispo sable agricult agricultural ural lands previous to the effectivity effectivity of Proclamation No. 2282 for 2282 for dispos iti ition on by the DAR through through the the issuance of CLOAs to qualified qualified be neficiar neficiaries. ies. DaScHC Who are the qualified be neficiar neficiaries? ies? 1. In general, the the farmerfarmer- til tiller ler or actual actual occupant shall shall be given preference in th the e distribution distribution of th the e lands occupied b y him/her him/her provided that th the e area will not not exceed three hectares per farmer-b eneficiary eneficiary.. Areas Areas in e xcess, if any, may be distribut distributed ed to the qualified qualified children or relatives of the ARB designated by him/h him/her. er. 2. Farmers organiza tion may also be issued issued collective CLOAs, CLOAs, the the total total hectarage covered, however, however, shall shall not not excee d the the number number of co- owners or members members of th the e farmers farm ers organiz ation multiplied multiplied by three, exce pt in meritorious meritorious case s ap proved by the PARC. PARC. 3. Cultural Cultu ral communities communities or indige nous tribal tribal groups loca ted within within the A & D areas with with no advers e claims shall be issued co llective CLOA in the name of the community or the tribe tribe c oncerned, represented b y the acknowledge d lead er. In case the total total hectarage will exce ed the three three hec tare award ceiling per memb er, the the app roval of the PARC PAR C shall be secured. What portions shall not be c overed ? 1.
Lands wit with h adve rse claims unt untilil th the e adve rse claims are resolved administrati administratively vely or judicially.
2.
Parcels or lots lots already titled, titled, excep t when th their eir area exceed s the the five five hectare retent retention ion limit, limit, in which case they shall be cove red following following the the schedule of priorit priorities. ies.
3. Parcels or lots lots covered by public land applica tion tions s filed filed with with the the DENR DENR or the the DA. The applicant concerned shall be allowed to pursue pursue the the application with with th the e DENR. DENR. Appli cants who wish to instea d a cquire their lots through CARP may be allowe d to d o so prov ided that they they p rese nt proof that they have alrea dy re ques ted the DENR to cance l or reject their applications and th that at they they posse ss a ll the qualifications qualifications of an ARB. 4. Lands which which have have bee n proclaimed as reservations in favor favor of other other government agencies or instrument instrumentalities. alities. Porti Portions ons which which are not not being used used for the the purpose of th the e reservation or not needed b y the agency or instrument instrumentality ality concerned may be a cquired under sepa rate negotiations negotiations initiated initiated by th the e DAR. 5. Poblacions, town sites, barangay sites, sites, and similar similar sites sites actually used for residential or non-a non-a gricult gricultural ural purposes. Their tit titling ling shall be pursued pursued under other gove rnm rnment ent programs under the responsibility of other gove rnmen rnmentt agencies. 6.
All lands util utilized ized as government sites in addition to th those ose lands specified specified in Section 10 of RA 6657 (on 6657 (on exemptions).
7. Lands intended intended for for or devo ted to to public use use such as highways, highways, roads, railroads, foreshores, foreshores, public right right of way and other other similar uses, as well as lands under under bodies of water water such as rivers, creeks, la kes, b ays, natural springs, irrigation irrigation canals, rese rvoirs, and similar areas under water. water. 8. Lands where where th the e actual actual occupant or claimant claimant may already already be entitled entitled to a free free patent under RA 6940 (continuous 6940 (continuous occupation and cultivation by himself or through his predecessors-in-interest for at least thirty (30) years prior to 16 April 1990, among other requirements). The claimant may be allowed to perfect his/her rights through the DENR. However,, oc cupants or claimants who prefer to beco me ARBs instead However instead shall be included in the CARP if qualified. qualified.
shall be referred to the DENR for possible inclusion in the ISFP program. Will these lands be paid for by the beneficiaries? beneficiaries? No, exce pt for the the p ayment of the the p roportionat roportionate e c adastral survey costs as determin determined ed by th the e DENR. IfIf such survey cos t is not paid by the ARB at the the time of the CLOA issuance, this shall be a nnot nnotated ated as a lien on the title. title. 18.5 LANDS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN COVERED BY CANCELLED OR EXPIRED PASTURE PASTURE LEASE AGREEMENTS (PLAs) AND TIMBER LICENSE AGREEMENTS (TLAs) PER EO 407 What rules govern the CARP coverage of lands of the public domain covered by expired PLAs and TLAs? TLAs? Joint DAR-DENR Administrative Order No. 02, Series of 1992 provided the rules and procedures on the disposition of lands of the public domain covered by cancelled or expired Pastur Pasture e Lease Ag reements (PLAs) (PLAs) a nd Timber License Agreements (TLAs), following the the provisio ns of Executive Order No. 407 dated 14 June 1990. 1990.
Are these lands acquired by by the DAR ? No, under the the Jo int Administ Administrative rative Order, the the role of the DAR in lands cov ered b y exp ired or ca ncelled PLAs and TLAs is to screen and identify the ARBs. It is the DENR which, in coordination with DAR, distributes the land under the ISF program. How will these lands be allocated t o ARBs? ARBs? These shall be distri distributed buted by th the e DENR in collaboration with with the DAR, either individually individually o r collectively to ARBs who are duly v erified a nd sc reene d b y the DAR. What are the procedures procedures in the distribution of lands cov ered by the expired and cancelled PLAs and TLAs? What are the roles of the DAR and DENR ? 1. DENR DEN R Secretary identif identifies ies and declares that that certain expired/ca ncelled leases are availab le for CARP. 2. DAR verifi verifies es if th the e actual actual occupantsoccupants- culti cultivators vators wit within hin th the e subject area have been registered as prospec tive and qualified be nefi neficiaries ciaries pursuant to to DAR Administrative Order No. 10, Series of 1989 . If not, it conducts an inventory of the occupants/cultivators. 3. If th there ere are registered prospective and qualified qualified beneficiaries, the the DAR reviews the the register register and in coordination with with DEN DENR, R, verifies verifies who who among them them are actual actual occupants and priorit prioritize ize s the alloca tion giving preference to ac tu tual al oc cupants/cult cupants/cultivators; ivators; 4.
The DEN DENR R conducts a survey of th the e parcels allocated to applicant/beneficiaries;
5. The app licant, assisted by DAR files the the applica tion for Certif Certificate icate of Stewardship (CS) in the pres cribe d form, form, toge toge ther with the certification of the Municipal Agrarian Reform Officer (MARO) at the DENR/CENRO Office concerned where the area applied for is located; and 6.
The CENR CENRO O issue s Certificate of Stewardship (CS) (CS) for area s up to three (3) hectares .
Are lands under under cancelled or expired PLAs PLAs and TLAs subjected to titl ing under under CARP ? No, public lands classified as forest lands are inalienable and a re distributed distributed only for stewardship and not for titling titling through through the DENR-Forest DENR-Forest Manage ment Sector (FMS). (FMS). What proof of award to agrarian agrarian reform beneficiaries will be iss ued under expired and cancelled PLAs and TLAs covered by the public domain? The DENR issues the Certificate of Stewardship Contract (CSC) after a Stewardship Agreement is signed between the beneficiary and the DENR. Can ARBs acquire title to lands under cancelled or expired PLAs and TLAs? TLAs? No. Under Under the law, law, these types o f lands are inalienable or non-registrable a nd therefore therefore ca nnot be titled titled to the agrarian reform beneficiaries. beneficiaries. They are however, covered by a long term twenty-five twenty-five (25) year lease contr contract act which is renewable for another 25 years. Can the DENR through through the Forest Management Sector (FMS) refuse to allocate portions of c ancelled or expired PLAs and TLAs which are unoccupied and uncultivated to DAR's selected ARBs? ARBs? Yes. The DENR, DENR, through through the FMS may refuse to a llocate, be cause RA 6657, 6657 , Section 7, provides th that at only pastures and a gricult gricultural ural leases already cult cultivated ivated and planted to crops s hall be covered . This is c onsistent with with the the inalienable nature of forest lands. Can occupant-cultivators within expired or cancelled PLAs and TLAs that are under the ISF program who are are not registered as potential ARBs be displaced, ejected or removed ? No. Under Under the law, actual occupant-tillers are g iven preferential preferential rights in the the d istr istributi ibution on of lands of the public do main. They shall not be displace d o r removed fr from om the land they th ey till as long as th they ey are directly working and making their land productive. Qualified Qualified occupant-cultivators of public lands, th though ough unregistered, shall be given p riorit riority y in the distribution thereof. In case c onflict arises between the rules rules of DAR and the DENR on the allocation and disposition of ISF lands, which rules will be followed ? The DENR Forest Management Bureau Bureau rules will be followed. However, However, DAR's rules on the sc reening and se lection of ARBs ARBs shall b e followed. 18.6
LANDS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN COVERED BY CANCELLED OR EXPIRED FISHPOND LEASE AGREEMENTS (FLAs) PER EO 407
What rules govern the allocation of c ancelled or expired Fishpond Lease Agreement Agreement (FLAs)? (FLAs)?
What are the main roles of t he DAR and DA in the allocation of cancelled or expired FLAs? FLAs ? The DAR is responsible for the the scree ning and identification identification of the ARBs. ARBs. The DA ve rif rifies ies a nd identifies identifies through th rough BFAR, BFAR, fishpond fishpond area s cov ered b y FLAs which are already expired or subject to cancellation. The DA also subsequently process es the app lications of ARBs identified identified by the DAR and iss ues the fishpond lease agreements. What is the order of priority in the determination of ARBs on lands covered by c ancelled or expired FLAs? FLAs? The ARBs are chos en acc ording to the following following o rder of priority specified in Se ction 22 of RA 6657: 6657 : 1.
agricultural agricult ural lessee s and share- tenant tenants; s;
2.
regula r farmworkers;
3.
seaso nal farmw farmworkers; orkers;
4.
other farmworkers;
5.
actual till
occupant of public lands;
6.
collective or coop erative of the abov e beneficiaries; and
7.
others direc tly working on the land.
Why is t he allocation of cancelled or expired FLAs being done by DA-BFAR DA-BFAR and not by DAR ? Section 3 of EO 407 spe 407 spe cifically provided th that at the DA and the DENR, DENR, in coo rdinati rdination on with the the DAR shall redistribute redistribute a nd award fishponds, pasture lands a nd other lands o f the the public doma in suitable suitable for ag ricult riculture, ure, subject of cancelled o r amended lease agreements, to qualified agrarian reform beneficiaries beneficiaries ide nt ntifi ified ed b y the DAR pursuant to Sections 18 and 22 of RA 6657. 6657 . Are lands under under expired or cancelled FLAs FLAs subjected to titl ing under under CARP ? Public lands suitable to agriculture are not subject to titling after 9 November 1972 per Sections 23 and 24 of PD No. 704 because 704 because they are disposable only through lease by the DA-BFAR after that date. CHAPTER 19 LANDED ESTATES What are landed estates? estates ? Landed Estates Estates a re former haciendas or landholdings of private individuals or corpo ration rations s which have bee n acquired by th the e Go vernment under under different different laws, for for redistribution redistri bution and resale to dese rving tenants tenants and landless farmer farmers. s.
What improvements have been made in the procedures for distribution and/or titling of lots, i n agricultural landed estates? estates? Administrative O rder No. 03, Se ries o f 1990 1990, entitled "Revised " Revised Rules and Procedures Governing Distribution and/or Titling of Lots in Landed Estates Administered by DAR " was issued to revise the tedious process which whi ch has resulted in unnecessa ry dela y in the distribution distribution and tit titling ling of landed estates to qualified beneficiaries. Under this this AO, a CLOA shall immediately be issued to the qualified be neficiar neficiary, y, including those those wit with h Deed s of Sale still pending with with the the DAR, provid ed that all outstanding outstanding acco unt unts s of an awardee shall be annotated at the back of the CLOA and duly registered with the ROD. Outstanding ac count Outstanding counts s include amortization payments for the land, farm implements implements a nd machineries, if these th ese a re not covered b y sep arate contracts, contracts, other loan assistance and accrued interests on overdue amortization payments and unpaid rentals from 01 January 1988. What are the terms of payment for the account balances annotated at the back of the CLOA? CLOA? Beneficiaries/alloca tees whose amortization payme nt Beneficiaries/alloca nts s and unpaid rent rentals als do not exceed one thousand peso s (P1,000) (P1,000) have three (3) years start starting ing from the the registration registration of titles tit les to pa y their balances. Those whose obligations exceed one thousand pesos (P1,000) have five (5) years to pay such obligations. What will happen happen if the beneficiaries/allocatees fail t o pay such balances balances? ? Failure to pay the obligations annotated at the back of the CLOA shall lead to the forfeiture of the lots in favor of the government for distribution to other qualified beneficiaries/allocatees. What are the functions of the MARO under these revised procedures? procedures? 1.
Conduct a physic al inventory and perform the following:
a. Identify Ident ify areas with with approved, incomplete, erroneous and wit without hout subdivision surveys. Recommend to to the the PARO, PARO, the the completion/correction completion/correction of subdivision surveys with within in a period not to to exc eed one yea r from from the issuance of AO of AO No. 03, Serie s of 1990 (date 1990 (date of effectivity 22 June 1990); b. Review and and evaluate the the list of allocatees/a wardees and conduct lot verificat verification ion to to determine determine whether whether said awardees/a llocatees are still still occupying and tilling tilling th the e lots. Prepare a master list of occupants/claimants occupants/claimants with with corresponding lot numbers, to be p osted simultaneously for a period o f 15 days at the barangay hall, MARO Office Office and th the e Municipal Mun icipal Buildin Building; g; c. Assist all actual occupants/till occupants/tillers ers who who have not been issued either an Order of Award (OA), (OA), Deed o f Sale or Certif Certificate icate of Land Transfer Transfer (CL (CLT) in accomplishing the the FB Appli cation Fo rm; d.
Undertake Undert ake the the computati computation on of all th the e obligations obligations to be paid by the the beneficiary beneficiary..
2.
Evaluate Evaluat e Application Forms and recommend recommend appropriate action. Recommendation shall be based on th the e following following guide:
For applicant with OA/CLT: a.
If app licant is living and is the actual cultivator/oc cupa nt: Issue CLOA; CLOA;
b.
If dece ased but th the e heirs are actual cult cultivators/occupants: ivators/occupants: Issue CLOA to t he estate of the deceased or to one of the qualified heirs upon the agreement agreement of the others; others;
c.
If not actual cultivator/o cultivator/o ccupa nt and employs tenants prior to to full full pay ment of the cos t of the land: Cancel OA/CLT OA/CLT and iss ue CLOA to qualified actual cultiv ator/occupant ;
d.
If perma nently incap acitated : Issue CLOA provided that cultivator/occ upant has immediate members members of the farm household who who could assis t him in farming ;
e.
If app licant mortgag ed or sold his/her right and left the area : Cancel OA/CLT OA/CLT and iss ue CLOA to qualified actual occ upant/tiller ;
f.
If occ upying the wrong lot: Issue CLOA for lot ac tually occupied and cancel OA/CLT ;
g.
If abs entee OA/CLT holde r: Cancel OA/CLT OA/CLT and iss ue CLOA to qualified actual occ upant/tiller .
If actual occupant has no OA/CLT: a.
and has no other supp orting doc uments: Issue CLOA provided occupant is qualified and there is no adverse c laimant to the subject lot ;
b. with transfer doc ument (waiver of rights of prev ious awarde e): Issue CLOA if with DAR approval; approval; and if without DAR approval, still, issue CLOA provided occupant is qualified and there is no adverse c laimant ; 3.
Prepare Land Land Distribut Distribution ion Folder for for Landed Estates Estates for applica nt nts s recommended recommended for issuance of CLOA.
4.
Endorse En dorse the the LDF LDF to PAR PARO O for for review and approval as a basis for for CLOA preparation.
5.
Prepare a list of vacant and unawarded unawarded lots lots and lots lots wit with h awards recommended recommended for cancellation.
6. Post the the list of vacant and unallocated lots and and lots with with awards recommended for cancellation for 15 15 days at the the MARO MARO office office and other conspicuous places within within th the e landed estate.
7.
Identify and prioritize the the list of farmer- bene ficiaries in clos e coo rdination with the BARC for cons idera tion in the distribution of ava ilab le lots.
8.
Prepare sepa rate Land Distri Distribution bution Folders for new beneficiaries; and
9.
Endorse LDF to PARO for revie w and conso lidation.
What are the grounds for cancellation of orders of award ? 1.
Abse nce of the awarde e from from the lande d estate for more than than six (6) (6) months months with without out doing any effort effort to make the land productive ;
2.
Willful transfer of rights and is no longe r occ upying the lot;
3.
Voluntary Volunt ary renunciation or waiver of rights in writ writing; ing; IHcTDA
4.
Failure to to cultivate cultivate the the lot for a period of six (6) (6) consecutive months from the date subjec t lot was awarded ; and
5.
Dea th of awarde e if he/she has no qualified heir. ( A.O. A.O. No. 3, Series of 1990 )
What is the award ceiling for qualified beneficiaries beneficiaries? ? The award c eiling shall not be more than three three hectares. However, qualified qualified b eneficiaries who have occ upied and cult cultivated ivated the land and established their vested rights prior to 15 June June 1988 in accordance with then then existing laws shall be a warded the legal limit limits s allowed by sa id laws. In the the cas e o f homelots, the the a ward ceiling shall b e 1,000 square meters. Who are the qualified beneficiaries? beneficiaries? 1.
Landless;
2.
Filipino citize n;
3.
Actual occupa nt/t nt/tiller iller who who is at lea st 15 yea rs of age or head of the family at the time of filing of ap plica nt; and
4.
Has th the e willin willingness, gness, ability ability and aptitu aptitude de to to cultivat cultivate e and make the the land productive.
CHAPTER 20 BARANGAY AGRARIAN REFORM COMMITT EE (BARC) 20.1
LAWS AND ISSUANCES ON BARC
What is BARC ?
BARC or Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee is a CARP implementing unit at the barangay level. Its organiza tion was was first mandated mandated b y Executive Order No. 229 in 1987 and 1987 and in 1988 by RA 6657. 6657 . Through the organization of the BARCs, the implementation of the CARP will become truly community base d where peop le at all levels p articipat articipate e in decisio n making because th they ey are in a b ett etter er position to know and understand the realities in the community. What are the laws governing the organization of BARC ? Section 19 of EO 229 which 229 which enumerated the composition and functions of the BARC; and Sections 46 and 47 of RA 6657 which further defined BARC functions in addition to those provided in EO 229.. 229 What guidelines provide the procedures for the formation, organization and strengthening strengthening of the BARCs? BARCs? Administrative O rder No. 14, Se ries o f 1990 1990 entitled, "Revised " Revised Implementing Guidelines in t he Formation, Organization and Operation of the Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee ". This Administrative Administrative Order ame nded AO 05- 89 89 to to provid e d etailed se t of implementing implementing rules for the formation, formation, organiza tion tion,, and operationalization of the BARC. 20.2
FUNCTIONS OF THE BARC
What are the functions of the BARC ? The BARC is intended to facilitate facilitate the land tr transfer ansfer program in the community. community. ItIt also p rovides a co nvenient forum forum for resolving agrarian issues, and a llows the local farmer organiza tions the the opp ortu ortunit nity y to propo se p olicies a nd coo rdinat rdinate e the efficient efficient delivery of support services. Under EO 229, 229, the BARC is tasked to perform the following functions: 1.
Participate Parti cipate and give support to th the e implementat implementation ion of programs on agrarian reform reform;;
2.
Media te, conc iliate or arbitrate agra rian conflicts and issues that are brought to it for reso lution; and
3.
Perform such other functions functions that that the Presid ential Agraria n Reform Council (PARC), (PARC), its its Exec Exec utive Committee, Committee, or the DAR Secretary may deleg ate from from time time to time.
In addition, RA 6657 further 6657 further delineated these functions as: 1.
Assis t in the identification of qualified beneficiaries and lando wners within the ba rangay ;
2.
Attest to the acc uracy of the initial parc ellary mapping of the bene ficiary's tillage tillage ,
3.
Assis t in the initial determination of the value of the land;
4.
Coordinate th the e delivery of support services to beneficiaries;
5.
Assis t qualified bene ficiaries in obtaining cred it from lending institu institutions; tions;
6.
Assis t the DAR repre sentative in the prep aration of perio dic reports on CARP imple mentation for submiss ion to the DAR.
20.3 BARC COMPOSITION Who compose the BARC ? AO No. 14- 90 90 revised revised th the e co mposition of the the BARC, following following the rule of propo rt rtionate ionate sectoral represe nt ntation ation base d o n the the la nd-to- th thee- till tiller er principle. Hence, sectors a re defined on the basis of one's a ccess or lack of acce ss to the land. The BARC BARC is now composed of 13 members members who are represe nt ntatives atives of sectors and organiz ations, as well as government agencies. Membership is divided int into o two groups: seven regular voting members and six ex -o ff fficio icio non-vo tin ting g members.
1.
farmer and farmworker bene ficiaries
2.
non- bene ficiary farmers and farmworkers
3.
agricultural agricult ural coop eratives and other farmer organiza tions
4.
lando wners
(4) (1) (1) (1)
It should should be noted that the the voting members are all residents of the barangay. This reside ncy requirement ensures ensures that agrarian reform implementation implementation will indeed indeed be communit community y based. Regular activities of the BARC can be better ensured when majority of its members are residents of the community. Ex-Officio Non-Voting Members Members: 5.
municipal muni cipal or provincial base d non-go vernment organiza tions (1)
6.
barangay council
7.
Land Bank of the Philippine s
8.
Dep artment of Agriculture — official ass igned in the area
9.
Dep artment of Environment and Natural Resource s —
official off icial assigned in th the e area 10.
(1) (1) (1)
(1)
DAR — Agraria n Reform Progra m Technolo gist
assigned in th the e area
(1)
What is meant by "proportion "proportionate" ate" sec toral representation representation and why should this principle be followed in the composition of the BARC ? Proportionate sec toral representation Proportionate representation means b igger s ectors shall have bigge r representation. representation. This ensures de mocratic participation participation of the intended be nefi neficiaries ciaries o f the the CARP and wider p arti articipation cipation of farmers in planning, organization and management of agrarian reform activities. activities. Who comprise the farmer and farmworker beneficiaries beneficiaries s ector ? This sector is compo sed o f the the following: following: landless workers; share tenants; agricultural agricult ural lessee s, including ISF beneficiaries; and amortizing owners. Who compose the non-b non-beneficiary eneficiary farmer and farmworkers s ector ? The non- beneficiary farmers and farmworkers farmworkers se ctor is compo sed of the the s mall owner-cultivators owner-cultivators who own and till not not more than five (5) hectares of ag ricult ricultural ural lands, either by personal cultivation or with the help of the immediate household. Since membership in the BARC is based on sectoral representation, i.e., land t enure classification, what sector s hall be represented by a farmer leader who is a leaseholder and farmworker farmwor ker at t he same time, or a farmer-beneficiary farmer-beneficiary who is also a member of a farmer organization organization? ? A farmer farmer with mixed tenure shall re pres ent a se ctor where he/ she p rimarily d erive s his/he r regula r income. T his co nside ration is b ase d o n the exp erienc e that one c annot compel a ny individual or a group into action if he/th he/they ey are not directly affected affected by th the e issues o r problems be ing raised. 20.4 BARC OFFICERS Who are the BARC officers and how are they elected ? There a re three three elected p ositions in the the BARC. These a re the Chairperson, Chairperson, Vice Chair Chairperson, person, a nd an Assistant Secretary Secretary (The BARC Secretary Secretary is automat automatically ically the DAR ARPT). These th three ree o ff fficers icers are elected by the se ctoral representatives representatives — the regular voting members. Hence, all BARC officers officers a re residents of the baranga y. The thirteen-member thirteen-member BARC shall form different different committ committees ees base d on nee d and priorit priority y activities. They shall selec t the the committee committee heads d eemed as a ppropriate.
Can a barangay barangay chairperson be an officer of the BARC even if he is not a beneficiary of the CARP ? Yes. A barangay chairperson may be elected as reg ular officer officer (with (with voting power) of the the BARC if he/she represents any o f the the four sectors co mposing the BARC (e.g., (e.g., ARBs, ARBs, non-ARBs, farmer organiz ation or coop erative, or landowners), provided, however that that he is not appointed ex- off officio icio member represe nt nting ing the th e ba rangay co uncil. What is the length of tenure of BARC member official ? The e lected BARC representatives representatives will serve a maximum of two two (2) ye ars while the BARC officers officers will serve a t the the p leasure of the committee. committee. When can a BARC member/official be terminated ? A BARC member may be remove d b y a simple majority v ote o r upon s erving a maximum p eriod of two years. Who replaces a terminated BARC member ? A BARC member who is unable to comp lete his/he r term of office for so me rea sons is rep lace d b y a n alternate memb er who will se rve the rema ining tenure of the orig inal member. 20.5 FORMATION OF BARC Should BARCs be organized in all the barangays nationwide? nationwide ? No. They should be organize d where they are need ed. The MARO/ARPT together with with partner POs/NGOs should jointly identify identify and prioritize prioritize where BARCs BARCs should be organized and/or strengthened.
1.
High farmers disc ontent and de sire for ag rarian reform;
2.
Wide hectarage covered by CAR CARP; P;
3.
Large number of actual and potential bene ficiaries ; and
4.
Willingness of the ARBs in the community to orga nize /strengthen the BARC.
These criteria are very similar to the criteria set for ARC selection. Given the ARC development thrust of the Department, priority should therefore be given to ARC areas. When should BARCs be organized ? BARCs are organize d or should be reo rganized if the BARCs the community community is fully aware of and feels th the e need for it. it. BARCs BARCs are formed out of the the pe ople's willi willingness ngness to ad dress agrarian reform issues and problems. Its formation cannot be forced, otherwise, the spirit of volunteerism will not be present. If its formation is forced, the people will perceive it as a burden and members will expect DAR to financially financially suppo rt them them as c ompensation for their their work. Should a BARC be organized even if there are no farmer organizations, assoc iations or cooperatives in the barangay barangay ? Initial efforts of DAR and partner NGOs should be focused on encouraging the organization of ARBs instead of the formation of a BARC. What are the processes processes involved in the organization of the BARC ?
There are four stages stages in the the orga nization of the the BARC. These are: 1. Pre-Organization Pre-Org anization Stage Stage.. This is the process by which the the MARO prep ares the sectors conce rned in the organization of BARC. He/she performs the following functions: a.
coordinates wit with h th the e FOs and/or NGOs;
b.
briefs th the e FOs and/or NGOs about BARC BARC;;
c.
ide ntif ntifies ies the area s where the BARC will be organiz ed in coo rdination with the FOs/NG Os; and
d.
identifies identif ies together together wit with h th the e FO/NGO th the e respe respe ctive responsibilities of each sector. sector.
In areas where there there is no existing FO/NGO, the MARO takes a mo re active role in the formation formation of base groups. 2. BARC Organization. Organization. When When the sectors are fu fully lly aware o f the the nee d to o rganize BARC BARC,, the MARO, together with with the FOs and/o r NGOs, c onvene the represe nt ntatives atives of the sectors concerned to discuss with them the CARL, the functions of the BARC, the schedule of the first meeting and the schedule of election of officers. After discussing the intent of the committee, the election of the BARC officers and the planning workshop are conducted. 3.
BARC Operation and Management . After After the the BARC is formally organize d, the committee committee prepares plans a nd mechanisms for the performance of its duties.
4. Alliance Building . The BARC coordinates with other entities within and outside the community for its identified needs. Simultaneously, it establishes a network to sustain itself as a people's organization. 20.6 MEDIATION AND CONCILIATION Is BARC a quasi-judicial body ? No, the the BARC is only mandated to med iate and co nciliat nciliate e ag rarian disputes at the the ba rangay leve l. Mediation and conciliation refers refers to the the proce ss whereby the contending parties are pe rsuaded b y the BARC to to se tt ttle le their disputes disputes a micably. The BARC does not render a d ecision. (See pag e 48) What does settlement of disputes at the lowest possible level mean? mean? The cap ability of the the BARC and the community community must must be harnessed to reso lve loca l agrarian conflicts conflicts at the the ba rangay level a nd avoid as much as po ssible pa ssing this this responsibility to outside entities entities o r to higher levels. This will promote the sp eedy and co st-free ad mini ministrat stration ion of justice; alleviate the congestion of court and DARAB do ckets, and d evelop a s ense of commitment among landowner and farm farmer-b er-b eneficiaries to comp ly with their their agreements, thus ensuring ensuring the s uccessful implementation implementation of CARP. CARP. As the first structure for conflict management, at what levels will agrarian agrarian disputes be resolved ? Agraria n conflicts se tt ttlement lement co uld b e d one a t the the follo wing lev els: 1.
BARC chairperson or his/her duly auth authorized orized representati representative; ve;
2.
BARC pa nel; and
3.
BARC en banc .
Who decides on the mechanism to be followed in the settlement of disputes ? CSEHcT The BARC Chairman Chairman after evaluating evaluating the cas e may decide at which level settlement will will be init initiated. iated. Who shall compose the panel of mediators/conciliators/arbitrator mediators/conciliators/arbitrators s? The pa nel shall be comp osed of three three (3) BARC members des ignated by the BARC Chairperson. Chairperson. Who selects the members of the panel of mediators/conciliators/arbitrators? mediators/conciliators/arbitrators? Members of the pa nel of mediators/conciliators/arbitrators mediators/conciliators/arbitrators are de signated by th the e BARC chairperson upon reco mmendation of other members. What happens happens if a member of the panel fails to attend the mediation/conciliation conference? conference? The prese nce of two two members in any p anel constitut constitutes es a q uorum to to do business. The chairperson may also replace any member who is abse nt or incapac incapac itat itated. ed. What are the procedures procedures to be followed in the settlement of disputes by the BARC ? Administrative O rder No. 08, Se ries o f 1994 1994 sp elled out the the proce dures for the settlement settlement of agrarian disputes. 1. A writ written ten or verbal compla int shall be lodge d with with the BARC. Writ Written ten comp laints shall be in Media tion and Conciliation M/C Form 1 while verb al compla int shall be reduced in writing by the BARC Chairperson or Secretary. 2.
The BARC Chairperso n interviews the comp lainant rega rding vital information.
3.
The BARC BARC Chair Chairperson person issues a Notice Notice of Meeting to both th the e complainant and defendant. defendant.
4. The BARC en banc, panel or th the e Chairperson Chairperson then then endeavors to have the the contending contending parties parties agree to an amicable settlement. settlement. All agreements agreements are writt written en down and signed by th the e contending parties. How long will the BARC resolve disputes lodged with them? them?
The BARC shall endea vor to media te, conciliate and sett settle le a grarian disputes lodg ed before it within within thir thirty ty (30) (30) d ays fr from om the time it takes cog nizance of the dispute. What will happen happen if the BARC fails to resolve agrarian disputes within thirty days? days ? If the BARC fails to settle the dispute within thirty days, it shall issue a certification that the dispute has not been settled, together with a copy of the proceedings and furnish a copy to the the c oncerned pa rt rties ies within within seve n (7) days aft after er the expiration of the 30 day period. This certif certification ication must be attested attested by th the e BARC Chairperson Chairperson a nd endorse d b y the MARO to the PARAD or to the PARO for appropriate action. Is t he MARO allowed to resolve disputes or problems problems presented before him/her without the presence of the BARC chairman and members members? Yes. The MARO can immedia tely resolve disputes or p roblems p resented be fore him/her him/her eve n in the the a bsence of the BARC Chairperson Chairperson and its membe rs. Alt Although hough the the BARC would be the ideal forum for the resolution of disputes and problems, this must not limit or prevent the MARO from performing his/her duties. Delays in the resolution of cases may result in further complications. Does the BARC have any jurisdiction over criminal offenses under underRA RA 6657 ? No. Only the the Sp ecial Agrarian Court (a (a b ranch of the the Regio nal Trial Court) has the original and exclusive juri jurisdiction sdiction of all criminal offenses offenses under RA 6657 (including 6657 (including petitions for determination of just compensation for landowners). CHAPTER 21 DAR ADJUDICATION BOARD 21.1 DARAB JURISDICTION What is the jurisdiction of the DARAB? DARAB? The DARAB has p rimary and exclusive jur jurisdiction, isdiction, both original and appe llate, to determine determine a nd adjudicate a ll agrarian disputes involving the implementation implementation of the the CARP under RA 6657, 6657 , EO Nos. 228, 228, 229 229,, and 129-A 129-A,, RA 3844 as 3844 as amended by RA 6389, 6389 , PD 27 and 27 and other agrarian laws and their implementing implementing rules a nd regulations. Specifically, such jurisdiction jurisdiction shall include but not limited limited to case s involving th the e following:
1. Cases involving involving the the right rights s and obligations of persons engaged in th the e management, management, cult cultivation ivation and use o f all agricultural agricultural lands cove red by th the e CARP and other agrarian laws; 2. Cases involving involving the the valuation of land and preliminary preliminary determinat determination ion and payment of just compensation, fixing fixing a nd collection of lease rent rentals, als, disturbance compe nsation, amortization amortization pay ment ments s and similar disputes concerning the functions of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP); 3. Cases involving involving the the annulm annulment ent or cancellation of lease contracts contracts or deed s of sale or th their eir amendments involving lands under the ad minist ministration ration and dispo sition of the the DAR o r LBP; 4. Cases arising arising from, from, or connected connected with with membership or representati representation on in compac t farm farms, s, farmers' farmers' cooperatives and other registered farmers' associations or organizations, related to lands covered by the CARP and other agrarian laws; 5. Cases involving th the e sale, alienation, mort mortgage gage , foreclosure, pre- emption and redemption of agricultural agricult ural lands under the cove rage o f the the CARP or other agrarian laws; 6. Case s involv ing the issua nce, correction and cancella tion of Certif Certificates icates of Lando wnership Award (CLOAs) (CLOAs) and Emancipa tion Patents (EPs) which are registered with with the Land Re gistration Authority; Authority; 7. Case s prev iously falling under the origina l and exclusiv e jurisdiction of the defunct Court of Agraria n Relations unde unde r Section 12 of Presidential Decree No. 946 946, except sub-paragraph (2) thereof and Presidential Decree No. 815 815; and 8.
Such other agrarian cases , disputes, disputes, matters matters or concerns referred referred to it by the the DAR Secretary Secretary..
However, matters involving strictly However, strictly the the a dminist dministrati rative ve implement implementation ation of the the CARP and a grarian laws and regulation regulations, s, shall b e the ex clusive preroga tive of and c ogniza ble by the DAR Secretary. Is the rule that t he DARAB cannot take cognizance of any agrar agrarian ian dispute unless there is a certification of the BA RC where where the land is located that t he dispute has not been successfully settled absolute? absolute? No. Rule III of the DARAB Revised Rules of Procedure allows the DARAB to take cognizance of an agrarian dispute even without the BARC certification if: 1.
The dispute does not not fall under any of th the e excep tion tions s enumerat enumerated; ed;
2. The required certificat certification ion cannot be complied with for valid reasons like the the non-existence or non-organiza tion of the the BARC BARC or th the e impossibility of convening it. it. The PARO PAR O s hall conduct mediation and co nciliat nciliation ion procee dings and issue a certif certification ication to that that effect; effect; 3. It involves resolving and disposing of preliminary preliminary incidents incidents related to to the the case, such as motion motion for for the the issuance of stat status us quo orders, temporary temporary restraining restraining orders, preliminary preliminar y inju injuncti nctions ons and such similar motions nece ssitati ssitating ng immediate action. However, the lack of the required certification However, certification cannot be mad e a ground for the the d ismissal of the action. Every Every o pportuni pportunity ty will be give n the the c omplainant to to s ecure the certification. What are the exceptions referred to in No. 1 above? above? BARC certification shall not be required in the following cases: 1.
Where the issue involv involv es the valua tion of land to determine just just comp ensa tion for its acq uisition;
2. Where one party is a public or private private corporation, partnersh partnership, ip, association or juri juridical dical person, or a public officer officer or employee and the the dispute relates to to the the performance of his official functions; 3.
Where the matter at issue involves merely the adminis trative imple mentation of agra rian reform law, rule, guide line, or pol icy; and
4.
Such other cases where the the Secretary of Agrarian Reform Reform may determine determine that that the the matter matter at issue is beyond the pale of mediation, conciliation conciliation or compromise.
Footnotes 1.
CARP CAR P scop e is presently being validated.
ScaEIT
