QuestionsQuestions (EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 613)
To transfer the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) from the Ministry of Energy to the Office of the President, to ensure closer supervision and objectivity in nuclear power regulation and licensing.
Initially, Presidential Decree No. 1206 transferred PAEC to the Ministry of Energy. EO 613 reverses this because both PAEC (licensing/regulation) and the National Power Corporation (operator of the Bataan nuclear power plant) were under the Ministry, creating a potential conflict affecting objectivity and effectiveness of regulation.
PAEC is placed under the supervision and control of the Office of the President.
The transfer includes applicable funds and appropriations, records, equipment, property, facilities, and personnel.
It seeks to prevent lack of objectivity by separating the licensing/regulatory function (PAEC) from the power-plant operating function (NPC) to enable effective and unbiased oversight.
PAEC is responsible for promulgating and implementing standards and guidelines for safeguarding public health and safety in the operation and use of atomic energy facilities, materials, and processes.
Any regulatory functions which the Ministry of Energy exercises in the area of safeguarding public health and safety in atomic energy operations are transferred to PAEC.
Section 3 provides that all laws, decrees, other issuances, and rules and regulations inconsistent with EO 613 are repealed or modified accordingly.
It takes effect immediately (Section 4).
They are described as highly strategic and critical, requiring closer and more effective supervision by placing PAEC directly under the Office of the President.
The PAEC (licensing and regulation of atomic energy) and the National Power Corporation (operator of the Bataan nuclear power plant).
A perceived or actual conflict of interest that can undermine objectivity and effectiveness in licensing and regulatory decisions.
It is an Executive Order issued by the President; it is characterized as an organizational improvement authorized by Presidential Decree No. 1416 and supported by the President’s constitutional powers.
It operates as a supremacy/restraint clause: any inconsistent prior issuances are automatically repealed or adjusted to the extent of inconsistency once EO 613 takes effect.
It should be exercised by the PAEC, since EO 613 transfers any such regulatory functions to the PAEC.