The Philippine Business Regulations Information System (PBRIS) is targeted to be launched within the year, according to the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA).ARTA Undersecretary Ernesto Vinluan Perez in a webinar on Monday said ARTA with technical assistance from University of the Philippines Public Administration Research and Extension Services Foundation Inc. (UPPAF) Regulatory Support Program for National Development (Respond) is currently developing the PBRIS, a web-based platform providing accessible information on the Philippine Regulatory Management System and laws and regulations relevant to the public.Perez said ARTA is identifying the 27 participating priority agencies that provide basic frontline services to the people in terms of issuing business permits and licensing to applicants.'It [PBRIS] will enable agencies to upload structured existing regulations and upload and process structured proposed regulations and regulatory impact assessment,' said Perez.'It will also have the ability to tag and categorize regulations per sector, case-use and locality. It also allows public commenting on proposed and existing regulations subject to consultation through registered accounts,' he added.Perez said PBRIS will also notify users on proposed and existing regulations through registered accounts.'The objective really is to interconnect agencies and that regulations must be harmonized and aligned with other agencies and the public will have access to this system,' he said.ARTA Director General Jeremiah Belgica, meanwhile, assured that the government is doubling efforts to streamline government services.Belgica cited for instance their efforts in institutionalizing the regulatory management system.'The (Philippine) Regulatory Management System is the general idea and the goal that ARTA has been pushing for in order to institutionalize good practices and good policies and to capacitate government agencies to be able to self-assess themselves. The Philippines is graduating from a starter stage into an enabled stage by the end of the year,' said Belgica.Belgica earlier said the Philippines may graduate from the starter stage to the enabled level in the regulatory management system by the end of the year.He said this was due to the conduct of regulatory impact assessment (RIA) training with government agencies that he called the 'necessary tools and regulatory infrastructure' to improve the country's maturity level.RIA trainings are conducted for government agencies to assess themselves and their proposed regulations to streamline their systems, and ensure that government regulations are efficient and effective.This is usually done by countries that have achieved maturity in the four stages of the regulatory management system, Belgica said.
