The 13th Congress of the Philippines (

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

: ''Ikalabintatlong Kongreso ng Pilipinas''), composed of the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines with the House of Representatives a ...

and

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, met from July 26, 2004, until June 8, 2007, during the fourth, fifth, and sixth years of

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's presidency The presidency of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, also known as the Arroyo administration, spanned nine years from January 20, 2001, to June 30, 2010. She served the remainder of her predecessor Joseph Estrada's term after he was deposed, and she ...

. The convening of the 13th

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

followed the 2004 national elections, which replaced half of the Senate membership and the entire membership of the House of Representatives.

Events

Charter Change

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

, in her several State of the Nation Addresses has repeatedly called on

to pave the way for the amending of the

1987 Constitution The Constitution of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas'' or ''Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas'', Spanish: ''Constitución de la República de Filipinas'') is the constitution or the supreme law of the Republic of the Philippin ...

to provide for a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...

–

parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

–

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

form of government. On December 8, 2006, the administration-dominated

, bypassing the Senate, passed in haste '' House Resolution 1450'', which called on Congress to convene into a

Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...

(ConAss) to propose amendments to the Constitution. The House move however, was faced with stiff opposition from the outmaneuvered members of the

opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

and all but 1 member of the Senate, which was later bolstered by support from several sectors of the

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, which threatened to hold nationwide protest rallies to denounce the House move. Succumbing to the mounting opposition and the apparent withdrawal of support of the

, House Speaker Jose De Venecia later on scrapped the entire resolution and called instead for a constitutional convention, challenging the Senate to concur it in 72 hours. But this too was rejected by the Senate, which preferred to hold a constitutional convention after the

2007 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2007. * Electoral calendar 2007 * Elections in 2007 * 2007 United Nations Security Council election Africa * 52nd National Conference of the African National Congress * 2007 Algerian legislative el ...

. Efforts to amend the constitution during the 13th Congress were eventually shelved.

Sessions

*First Regular Session: July 26, 2004 – June 7, 2005 **''First Special Session'': January 5 – February 10, 2005 **''Second Special Session'': March 1 – April 1, 2005 *Second Regular Session: July 25, 2005 – June 5, 2006 *Third Regular Session: July 24, 2006 – June 8, 2007 **''Third Special Session'': February 19 – 20, 2007 **''Special Centennial Session'': June 7, 2007

Legislation

Laws passed by the 13th Congress: 149 (

Republic Act This article contains a partial list of Philippine laws. Sources of Philippine laws ;Notes : *Customs may be considered as supplementary source of law, however, customs which are contrary to law, public order or public policy shall not be ...

No. 9333 to 9495), as of September 7, 2007

Major legislation

Republic Act No. 9334
— ''Increase of Excise Tax on Alcohol and Tobacco Products''
Republic Act No. 9335
— ''Attrition Act of 2005''
Republic Act No. 9337
— ''Expanded Value-Added Tax Law''
Republic Act No. 9341
— ''Rent Control Act of 2005''
Republic Act No. 9343
— ''Special Purpose Vehicle Act of 2002 Amendments''
Republic Act No. 9344
— ''Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006''
Republic Act No. 9346
— '' Death Penalty Abolition''
Republic Act No. 9347
— ''Rationalizing the Composition and Functions of the National Labor Relations Commission''
Republic Act No. 9359
— ''Appropriation of a Standby Fund for the

Guimaras Guimaras , officially the Province of Guimaras ( hil, Kapuoran sang Guimaras; tl, Lalawigan ng Guimaras), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Jordan while its largest local government ...

Oil Spill Clean Up,

Mayon Volcano Mayon ( bcl, Bulkan Mayon; tl, Bulkang Mayon, ), also known as Mount Mayon and Mayon Volcano ( es, Monte Mayón, Volcán Mayón), is an active stratovolcano in the province of Albay in Bicol, Philippines. A popular tourist spot, it is ren ...

Relief Operations, OFW Repatriation''
Republic Act No. 9367
— ''Biofuels Act of 2006''
Republic Act No. 9369
— ''Amending the Election Modernization Act''
Republic Act No. 9372
— '' Human Security Act of 2007''
Republic Act No. 9379
— ''Handline Fishing Law''
Republic Act No. 9396
— ''Redefining the term "Veteran"''
Republic Act No. 9399
— ''One-Time Amnesty for Businesses in the Special Economic Zones and Freeports''
Republic Act No. 9400
— ''Amending the Bases Conversion and Development Act of 1992''
Republic Act No. 9406
—''Reorganization and Strengthening of the Public Attorney's Office''
Republic Act No. 9416
— ''Unlawful Cheating in the Civil Service Commission Examinations''
Republic Act No. 9417
— ''Strengthening the Office of the Solicitor General''
Republic Act No. 9418
—''Institutionalizing Strategy for Rural Development''
Republic Act No. 9422
— ''Amending the Migration Workers and Overseas Act of 1995''
Republic Act No. 9433
— ''Magna Carta for Public Social Workers''

Leadership

Senate

*President of the Senate :: Franklin M. Drilon (

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

) ::

Manuel Villar Manuel "Manny" Bamba Villar Jr. (; born December 13, 1949) is a Filipino billionaire businessman and former politician. He previously served as senator from 2001 to 2013 and as the President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2006 to 2008. ...

( Nacionalista), ''elected on July 24, 2006'' *Senate President Pro-Tempore :: Juan M. Flavier ( Lakas-CMD) *Majority Floor Leader :: Francis N. Pangilinan (

) *Minority Floor Leader :: Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. (

PDP–Laban Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (), abbreviated as PDP–Laban, is a democratic socialist political party in the Philippines founded in 1982. It was part of the country's ruling party alliance from 1986 to 1992 under the administrat ...

)

House of Representatives

*Speaker of the House of Representatives :: Jose C. de Venecia, Jr. ( Lakas-CMD, 4th District Pangasinan) *Deputy Speakers :''Luzon'': ::Emilio R. Espinosa ( NPC, 2nd District Masbate) :''Visayas'': ::Raul V. del Mar ( Lakas-CMD, 1st District Cebu City) :''Mindanao'': ::Abdulgani A. Salapuddin ( Lakas-CMD, Lone District Basilan) :''Central Luzon'': ::

Benigno S. Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...

(

, 2nd District Tarlac) ::Eric D. Singson (

, 2nd District Ilocos Sur), ''elected February 21, 2006.''Singson is new Deputy Speaker
. Accessed on March 22, 2007. *Majority Floor Leader :: Prospero C. Nograles ( Lakas-CMD, 1st District Davao City) *Minority Floor Leader :: Francis Joseph G. Escudero ( NPC, 1st District Sorsogon)

Members

Composition

Senate

House of Representatives

The term of office of the current members of the House of Representatives is from June 30, 2004, to June 30, 2007.

District representatives

Events

Charter Change

Sessions

Legislation

Major legislation

Leadership

Senate

House of Representatives

Members

Composition

Senate

House of Representatives

District representatives

Party-list representatives

Notes

References

External links

Further reading

See also