At a meeting of the House Committee on Appropriations, Assistant Majority Leader and Representative Brian Poe called for the immediate funding support for House Bill No. 1189, a bill that seeks to establish a dedicated Department of Water Resources as well as proposes a sweeping overhaul of the Philippines’ fragmented water governance system.
Speaking at Nograles Hall on Wednesday, Poe emphasized that while creating a new Department of Water Resources requires upfront investment, the cost of inaction is far greater.
‘More than 30 agencies currently handle water, sanitation, flood control, and regulation,’ he said. ‘The result is predictable: repeated water crises, poor coordination, and wasted public funds.’
HB 1189 seeks to consolidate these scattered mandates under a unified Department of Water Resources and establish an independent Water Regulatory Commission to oversee fair pricing, service standards, and consumer protection.
The measure also embeds climate resilience into national water planning, addressing recurring floods and droughts with science-based infrastructure and long-term strategy.
Rep. Poe argued that strategic, one-time investment would prevent decades of recurring emergency spending.
Rep. Poe highlighted the human cost of the current system: 31 percent of illnesses in the country are water-related, largely due to inadequate access to clean water and sanitation. ‘Every peso invested in water governance protects our families, our workers, and our economy,’ he said.
Acknowledging the bill’s fiscal implications, Poe argued that strategic, one-time investment would prevent decades of recurring emergency spending. ‘Let us invest once, wisely and strategically, rather than continue paying for inefficiency,’ he urged.
Multiple related bills filed by other lawmakers underscore growing consensus that the current system is broken beyond patchwork fixes. Poe’s proposal is among the most comprehensive, aligning water policy with public health, climate adaptation, and good governance.
The House Committee on Appropriations is expected to deliberate on HB 1189’s funding provisions in the coming weeks.