Exterior design studies for SMC's proposed New Manila International Airport project in Bulakan, Bulacan. Photo courtesy of San Miguel Corp.

MANILA -- The Philippine Senate has approved on third and final reading a bill creating the Bulacan Special Economic Zone (BuZ) and Freeport.

The project will host the new international airport being built by San Miguel Corporation as part of efforts to decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Metro Manila.

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In 2022, Marcos vetoed a similar bill citing substantial fiscal risks to the country.

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In a statement, Senator Grace Poe, the bill's author, said the bill has been vastly improved, adheres to the constitutional provisions on land conversion, balances economic growth with environmental protection, and warrants greater local government unit (LGU) representation at its helm.

The bill said the BuZ will be a decentralized, self-reliant and self-sustaining aviation hub, and an "industrial, commercial, trading, agro-industrial, tourism, retirement, banking, financial and investment center."

Businesses setting up shop in the ecozone will be given incentives, including fiscal incentives and the grant of special visas, subject to relevant labor and immigration laws, rules and regulations.

A corporation to be known as the Bulacan Special Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (BEZA) shall manage and operate the BuZ. The corporation will be under the Office of the President.

Members of the BEZA Board would also include representatives of the Bulacan provincial government and local government, as well as a representative from the private sector and another to represent the workers in the ecozone. 

The BEZA shall have an authorized capital stock of P2 billion, the majority shares of which shall be subscribed and paid for by the national government and the local government units embracing the ecozone.

As for revenues, the BEZA and affected LGUs shall be entitled to a share in the special corporate income tax under from all registered business enterprises within the ecozone.  

The corporate income tax collected shall be divided as follows:  40 percent to the national government, 20 percent to BEZA for infrastructure development, and 40 percent to the concerned LGUs.

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