Title
National Printing Office's printing jurisdiction
Law
Memorandum Circular No. 180
Decision Date
Aug 13, 2009
The Philippine law "Affirming the Printing Jurisdiction of the National Printing Office" mandates that the NPO has exclusive jurisdiction over the printing of accountable forms and election materials, while allowing government agencies to source printing services outside the NPO for certain official forms, subject to guidelines and approval from the NPO.

Law Summary

Exclusive Jurisdiction Over Printing of Accountable Forms with Money Value and Specialized Accountable Forms

  • NPO holds exclusive jurisdiction over printing forms with monetary value and specialized forms requested by government agencies.
  • All printing requisitions must be submitted to the NPO for fulfillment.
  • If the NPO cannot complete a printing job within 30 days considering the agency's target time, it must conduct a public bidding among NPO-accredited private security printers.
  • Printing under these conditions remains under strict NPO supervision, in the presence of COA and requisitioning agency representatives.
  • NPO is the sole distributor of printed forms and compensates private printers.
  • All printing materials (flats, cuts, types) are returned to the requisitioning agency after completion.

Printing of Official Ballots and Other Accountable Election Forms

  • Printing of official ballots and other election paraphernalia is exclusively reserved for the NPO and/or the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
  • The Commission on Elections provides the necessary security measures for these printing jobs.
  • If the NPO cannot meet the printing requirements, it must certify this promptly, allowing the Commission to hire private printers under legal provisions.

Printing of Other Standard and Accountable Forms

  • Government agencies and instrumentalities may source printing services outside the NPO for forms other than those covered by Sections 2 and 3.
  • Conditions for private printing include superior quality, lower cost, and flexibility in meeting target completion times compared to NPO.
  • Agencies must follow guidelines and safeguards issued by the Director General of the Philippine Information Agency.
  • Prior written waiver from the NPO is mandatory before contracting private printers; the NPO is required to issue waivers promptly when warranted.

Exclusive Printing Jurisdiction Over Public Documents

  • The NPO retains exclusive rights over printing public documents such as Official Gazette, General Appropriations Act, Philippine Reports, and PIA development information materials.

Acceptance of Other Government Printing Jobs

  • NPO may accept other government printing jobs, including publications, but these are not exclusive to it.

Repeal of Inconsistent Issuances

  • All previous executive issuances, orders, rules, and regulations inconsistent with this Circular are revoked, amended, or modified accordingly.

Effectivity

  • The Circular takes effect upon publication in a newspaper of general circulation.

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