Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 529)
The official title of the law is the "Civil Engineering Law," also known as Republic Act No. 544, enacted on June 17, 1950.
The practice of civil engineering includes consultation, design, preparation of plans, specifications, estimates, erection, installation, and supervision of construction of various structures such as streets, bridges, highways, railroads, buildings, irrigation works, flood protection, and other similar works requiring civil engineering knowledge.
The Board shall be composed of a chairman and two members appointed by the Secretary of Public Works and Communications, serving for three years or until successors are appointed and qualified.
Members must be Filipino citizens and residents, at least 30 years old, of good moral character, graduates of civil engineering from recognized institutions, registered civil engineers with at least ten years of practice, not faculty or financially interested in civil engineering schools at the time of appointment.
Subjects include mathematics (algebra, trigonometry, calculus), rational and applied mechanics, hydraulics, surveying (highway, railroad, topographic, hydrographic), design and construction of highways, railroads, buildings, bridges, ports, sanitation, water supply, irrigation, and drainage works.
Exemptions include officers and enlisted men of the US and Philippine Armed Forces performing civil engineering services, consultants called by the government for specific projects, and certain persons making plans or supervising small-scale or farm buildings within specific limitations, among others.
Persons practicing civil engineering without registration may be sentenced to a fine of not less than 500 pesos but not more than 2,000 pesos, or imprisonment from six months to one year, or both, upon conviction.
Registered civil engineers must obtain and use a seal authorized by the Board to authenticate plans and specifications they prepare or supervise. Use of the seal after certificate expiration or revocation is unlawful.
The Board can issue, suspend, revoke certificates; investigate violations; issue subpoenas; inspect educational institutions and engineering works; adopt a code of ethics; and with approval, implement rules and regulations to maintain ethical and technological standards.