Philippines RA 7832: Pilferage of Electricity & Power Transmission Lines PDF

LESSON 2: RA 7832 – AN ACT PENALIZING THE PILFERAGE OF SEC. 3. Theft of Electric Power Transmission Lines and Materials. - ELECTRICITY AND THEFT OF ELECTRIC POWER (a) It is hereby declared unlawful for any reason to:...

LESSON 2: RA 7832 – AN ACT PENALIZING THE PILFERAGE OF SEC. 3. Theft of Electric Power Transmission Lines and Materials. - ELECTRICITY AND THEFT OF ELECTRIC POWER (a) It is hereby declared unlawful for any reason to: TRANSMISSION LINES/MATERIALS, RATIONALIZING SYSTEM LOSSES BY PHASING OUT PILFERAGE (1) Cut, saw, slice, separate, split, severe, smelt, or remove any electric power transmission LOSSES AS A COMPONENT THEREOF AND FOR line/material or meter from a tower, pole, any other installation or place of installation or OTHER PURPOSES any other place or site where it may be rightfully or lawfully stored, deposited, kept, stocked, inventoried, situated or located, without the consent of the owner, whether or not Unit 1: RA 7832 the act is done for profit or gain; REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7832 AN ACT PENALIZING THE PILFERAGE OF ELECTRICITY AND (2) Take, carry away or remove or transfer, with or without the use of a motor vehicle or THEFT OF ELECTRIC POWER TRANSMISSION LINES/MATERIALS, RATIONALIZING other means of conveyance, any electric power transmission line/ material or meter from a SYSTEM LOSSES BY PHASING OUT PILFERAGE LOSSES AS A COMPONENT THEREOF tower, pole, any other installation or place of installation, or any place or site where it may AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES be rightfully or lawfully stored, deposited, kept, stocked, inventoried, situated or located, without the consent of the owner, whether or not the act is done for profit or gain; Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled: (3) Store, possess or otherwise keep in his premises, custody or control, any electrical SECTION 1. Short Title. - This act shall be referred to as the “Anti-electricity and Electric power transmission line/material or meter without the consent of the owner, whether or Transmission Lines/Materials Pilferage Act of 1994” not the act is done for profit or gain; and SEC. 2. Illegal Use of Electricity. - It is hereby declared unlawful for any person, whether (4) Load, carry, ship or move from one place to another, whether by land, air or sea any natural or juridical, public or private, to: electrical power transmission line/material, whether or not the act is done for profit or gain, without first securing a clearance/permit for the said purpose from its owner or the a) Tap, make or cause to be made any connection with overhead lines, service drops, or National Power Corporation other electric service wires, without previous authority or consent of the private electric (NPC) or its regional office concerned, as the case may be. utility or rural electric cooperative concerned; (b) For purposes of this section, “electrical power transmission line/material” refers to b) Tap, make or cause to be made any connection to the existing electric service facilities of electric power transmission steel towers, woodpoles, cables, wires, insulators, line any duly registered consumer without the latter’s or the electric utility’s consent or hardwares, electrical conductors and other related items with a minimum voltage of sixty- authority; nine kilovolts (69 kv), such as the following: c) Tamper, install or use a tampered electrical meter, jumper, current reversing transformer, (1) Steel transmission line towers made of galvanized steel angular members and plates or shorting or shunting wire, loop connection or any other device which interferes with the creosoted and/or tannelized woodpoles/concrete poles and designed to carry and support proper or accurate registry or metering of electric current or otherwise results in its the conductors; diversion in a manner whereby electricity is stolen or wasted; (2) Aluminum conductor steel reinforced (ACSR) in excess of one hundred (100) MCM; d) Damage or destroy an electric meter, equipment, wire or conduit or allow any of them to be so (3) Overhead ground wires made of 7 strands of galvanized steel wires, 3.08 millimeters in damaged or destroyed as to interfere with the proper or accurate metering of electric diameter and designed to protect the electrical conductors from lightning strikes; current; and e) Knowingly use or receive the direct benefit of electric service obtained through any of (4) Insulators made of porcelain or glass shell and designed to insulate the electrical the acts conductors from steel towers or woodpoles; and mentioned in subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) above (5) Various transmission line hardwares and materials made of aluminum alloy or malleable or employee for not reporting the presence of any of the circumstances enumerated in steel and designed to interconnect the towers, conductors, ground wires, and insulators subparagraphs (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), or (vii) hereof: Provided, however, That the mentioned in subparagraphs (1), (2), (3) and (4) above for the safe and reliable operation of discovery of any of the fore-going circumstances, in order to constitute prima facie the transmission lines. evidence, must be personally witnessed and attested to by an officer of the law or a duly authorized representative of the Energy Regulatory Board (ERB). SEC. 4. Prima Facie Evidence. - (a) The presence of any of the following circumstances shall constitute prima facie evidence of illegal use of electricity, as defined in this Act, by the (b) The possession, control or custody of electric power transmission line/ material by any person benefited thereby, and shall be the basis for: person, natural or juridical, not engaged in the transformation, transmission or distribution of electric power, or in the manufacture of such electric power transmission line/material (1) the immediate disconnection by the electric utility to such person after due notice, shall be prima facie evidence that such line/martial is the fruit of the offense defined in Section 3 hereof and therefore such line/material may be confiscated from the person in (2) the holding of preliminary investigation by the prosecutor and the subsequent filing in possession, control or custody thereof. court of the pertinent information, and SEC. 5. Incentives. - An incentive scheme by way of a monetary reward in the minimum (3) the lifting of any temporary restraining order or injunction which may have been issued amount of Five thousand Pesos (P5,000) shall be given to any person who shall report to against a private electric utility or rural electric cooperative: the NPC or police authorities any act which may constitute a violation of Section 3 hereof. The department of Energy (DOE), in consultation with the NPC, shall issue the necessary (i) The presence of the bored hole on the glass cover of the electric meter, or at the back or guidelines for the proper implementation of this incentive scheme with in thirty (30) days any other part of said meter, from the effectivity of this Act. (ii) The presence inside the electric meter of salt, sugar and other elements that could result SEC. 6. Disconnection of Electric Service. - The private electric utility or rural electric in the inaccurate registration of the meter’s internal parts to prevent its accurate cooperative concerned shall have the right and authority to disconnect immediately the registration of consumption of electricity; electric service after serving the written notice or warning to the effect, without the need of a court or administrative order, and deny restoration of the same, when the owner of the (iii) The existence of any wiring connection which affects the normal operation or house or establishment concerned or someone acting in his behalf shall have been caught registration of the electric meter; en flagrante delicto doing any of the acts enumerated in section 4 (a) hereof, or when any of the circumstances so enumerated shall have been discovered for the second time: (iv) The presence of a tampered, broken, or fake seal on the meter, or mutilated, altered, or Provided, That in the second case, a written notice or warning shall have been issued upon tampered meter recording chart or graph or computerized chart, graph or log. the first discovery: Provided, further, That the electric service shall not be immediately disconnected or shall nor be immediately restored upon the deposit of the amount (v) The presence in any part of a building or its premises which is subject to the control of representing the differential billing by the person denied the service, with the private the consumer or on the electric meter, of a current reversing transformer, jumper, shorting electric utility or the rural cooperative concerned or with the competent court as the case and/or shunting wire, and/or loop connection or any other similar device; may be: Provided, furthermore, That if the court finds that illegal use of electricity has not been committed by the same person, the amount deposited shall be credited against (vi) The mutilation, alteration, reconnection, disconnection, bypassing or tampering of future billings, with legal interest thereon chargeable against the private utility or rural instruments, transformers, and accessories; electric cooperative, and the utility or cooperative shall be made to immediately pay such person double the value of the payment or deposit with legal interest, which amount shall (vii) The destruction of, or attempt to destroy, any integral accessory of the metering device likewise be creditable against immediate future billings, without prejudice to any criminal, box which encases an electric meter, or its metering accessories; and civil or administrative action that such person may be entitled to file under existing laws, rules and regulations : Provided, finally, That if the court finds the same person guilty of (viii) The acceptance of money and/or other valuable consideration by any officer or such illegal use of electricity, he shall, upon final judgment, be made to pay the electric employee of the electric utility concerned or the making of such an offer to any such officer utility or the rural electric cooperative concerned double the value of the estimated c) Provision common to violations of Section 2 and Section 3 hereof-If the offense is electricity illegally used which is referred to in this section as differential committed by, or in connivance with, an officer or employee of the power company, private billing. electric utility or rural electric cooperative concerned, such officer or employee shall, upon conviction, be punished with a penalty one (1) degree higher than the penalty provided For purposes of this Act, “differential billing” shall refer to the amount to be charged to the herein, and forthwith be dismissed and perpetually disqualified from employment in any person concerned for the unbilled electricity illegally consumed by him as determined public or private utility or service company and from holding any public office. through the use of methodologies which utilize, among other, as basis for determining the amount of monthly electric consumption in kilowatt-hours to be billed either : If, in committing any of the acts enumerated in Section 4 hereof, any of the other acts enumerated is also committed, then the penalty next higher in degree as provided herein (a) the highest recorded monthly consumption within the five-year billing period preceding shall be imposed. the time of the discovery, If the offense is committed by, or in connivance with an officer or employee of an electric (b) the estimated monthly consumption as per the report of load inspection conducted utility concerned, such officer or employee shall, upon conviction, be punished with a during the time of the discovery, penalty of one (1) degree higher than the penalty provided herein, and forthwith be dismissed and perpetually disqualified from employment in any public or private utility or (c) the higher consumption between the average consumption before or after the highest service company. Likewise the electric utility concerned which shall have knowingly drastic drop in consumption within the five-year billing period preceding the discovery, permitted or having knowledge of its commission shall have failed to prevent the same, or was otherwise guilty of negligence in connection with the commission thereof, shall be (d) the highest recorded monthly consumption within four (4) months after the time of made to pay a fine not exceeding triple the amount of the “differential billing” subject to discovery, or the discretion of the courts. (e) the result of the ERB test during the time of discovery and, as basis for determining the If the violation is committed by a partnership, firm, corporation, association, or any other period to be recovered by the differential billing, either: legal entity, including a government-owned or controlled corporation, the penalty shall be imposed on the president, manager, and each of the officers thereof who shall have (1) the time when the electric service of the person concerned recorded an abrupt or knowingly permitted, failed to prevent or was otherwise responsible for the commission of abnormal drop in consumption, or the offense. (2) when there was change in his service connection such as a change in his service SEC. 8. Authority to Impose Violation of Contract Surcharges. - A private electric utility or connection such as a change of meter, change of seal or reconnection, or in the absence rural electric cooperative may impose surcharges, in addition to the value of electricity thereof, a maximum of sixty (60) billing months, up to the time of discovery: Provided, pilfered, on the bills of any consumer apprehended for tampering with his electric however, That such period shall, in no case, be less than one (1)year preceding the date of meter/metering facility installed on his premises, as well as other violations of contract like discovery of the illegal use of electricity. direct connection, use of jumper, and other means of illicit usage of electricity found installed in the premises of the consumer. The surcharge for the violation of contract shall SEC. 7. Penalties. - (a) Violation of Section 2 - The penalty of prision mayor or a fine be collected from and paid by the consumer concerned as follows: ranging from Ten thousand pesos (P10,000) to Twenty thousand pesos (P20,000) or both, at the discretion of the court, shall be imposed on any person found guilty of violating Section (a) First apprehension - Twenty-five percent (25%) of the current bill as surcharge; 2 hereof. b) violation of Section 3 - The penalty of reclusion temporal or a fine ranging from (b) Second apprehension - Fifty percent (50%) of the current bill as surcharge; and Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) to One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000) or both, at the (c) Third and subsequent apprehensions - One hundred percent (100%) of the current bill as discretion of the court, shall be imposed on any person found guilty of violating Section 3 surcharge. hereof. The private electric utility or rural electric cooperative is authorized to discontinue the Provided, That the ERB is hereby authorized to determine at the end of the fourth year electric service in case the consumer is in arrears in the payment of the above imposed following the effectivity of this Act, and as often as necessary taking into the account the surcharges. viability of private electric utilities and the interest of the consumers, whether the caps herein or therefor established shall be reduced further which shall, in no case, be lower The term “apprehension” as used herein shall be understood to mean the discovery of the than nine percent (9%) and according accordingly fix the date of the effectivity of the new presence of any of circumstances enumerated in Section 4 hereof in the establishment or caps: Provided, further, That in the calculation of the system loss, power sold by the NPC or outfit of the consumer concerned. any other entity that supplies power directly to a consumer and not through the distribution system of the private electric utility shall not be counted even if the billing for SEC. 9. Restriction on the Issuance of Restraining Orders or Writs of Injunction - No writ the said power used is through the private electric utility. of injunction or restraining order shall be issued by any court against any private electric utility or rural electric cooperative exercising the right and authority to disconnect electric The term “power sold by NPC or any other entity that supplies power directly to a service as provided in this Act, unless there is a prima facie evidence that the disconnection consumer” as used in the preceding paragraph shall for purposes of this section be deemed was made with evident bad faith or grave abuse of authority. to be sale directly to the consumer if : (1) the point of metering by the NPC or any other utility is less than one thousand (1,000) meters from the consumer, or (2) the consumer’s If, notwithstanding the provisions, a court issues an injunction or restraining order, such electric consumption is three (3%) or more of the total load consumption of all the injunction or restraining order shall be effective only upon the filing of a bond with the customers of the utility, or (3) there is no other consumer connected to the distribution line court which shall be in the form of cash or cashier’s check equivalent to the “differential of the utility which connects to the NPC or any other utility point of metering to the billing”, penalties and other charges, or to the total value of the subject matter of the action: consumer meter. Provided, however, That such injunction or restraining order shall automatically be refused or, if granted, shall be dissolved upon filing by the public utility of a counterbond similar in (b) For rural electric cooperatives: form and amount as the above required: Provided, finally, That whenever such injunction is granted, the court issuing it shall, within ten (10) days from its issuance, submit a report to (i) Twenty-two percent (22%) at the end of the first year following the effectivity of this Act; the Supreme Court setting forth in detail the grounds or reasons for its order. (ii) Twenty percent (20%) at the end of the second year following the effectivity of this Act; SEC. 10. Rationalization of System Losses by Phasing out Pilferage Losses as a Component Thereof. – There is hereby established a cap on the recoverable rate of system (iii) Eighteen percent (18%) at the end of the third year following the effectivity of this Act; losses as follows: (a) For private electric utilities; (iv) Sixteen percent (16%) at the end of the fourth year following the effectivity of this Act; and (i) Fourteen and a half percent (14 1/2%) at the end of the first year following the effectivity of this Act; and (v) Fourteen percent (14%) at the end of the fifth year following the effectivity of this Act. (ii) Thirteen and one-fourth percent (13 1/4%) at the end of the second year following the Provided, that the ERB is hereby authorized to determine at the end of the fifth year effectivity of this Act; following the effectivity of this Act, and as often as is necessary, taking into account the viability of rural electric cooperatives and the interest of the consumers, whether the caps (iii) Eleven and three-fourth percent (11 3/4%) at the end of the third year following the herein or theretofore established shall be reduced further which shall in no case, be lower effectivity of this Act; than nine percent (9%) and accordingly fix the date of the effectivity of the new caps. (iv) Nine and a half percent (9 1/2%) at the end of the fourth year following the effectivity Provided, finally, That in any case nothing in this Act shall impair the authority of the ERB of this Act. to reduce or phase out technical or design losses as a component of system losses. SEC.11. Area of Coverage. - The caps provided in Section 10 of this Act shall apply only SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - The provisions in Presidential Decree No. 401, as amended to area of coverage of private electric utilities and the rural electric cooperatives as of the by Batas Pambansa Blg. 876, penalizing the unauthorized installation of electrical date of the effectivity of this Act. The permissible levels of recovery for system losses in connections, tampering and or/or knowing use of tampered electrical meters or other areas of coverage that may be added on by either a private electric utility or a rural devices, and the theft of electricity are hereby expressly repealed. All other laws, cooperative shall be determined by the ERB. ordinances, rules, regulations, and other issuances or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Act, are hereby repealed or modified accordingly SEC. 12. Recovery of Pilferage Losses. - Any private electric utility or rural electric cooperative which recovers any amount of pilferage losses, shall, within thirty (30) days SEC. 17. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect thirty (30) days after its publication from said recovery, report in writing and under oath to the ERB: in the Official Gazette or in any two (2) national newspapers of general circulation (a) the fact of recovery, SECTION 1. Short Title. (b) the date thereof, SEC. 2. Illegal Use of Electricity (c) the name of the consumer concerned, (d) the amount recovered, SEC. 3. Theft of Electric Power Transmission Lines and Materials. (e) he amount of pilferage loss claimed, SEC. 4. Prima Facie Evidence. (f) the explanation for the failure to recover the whole amount claimed, and (g) such other particulars as may be required by ERB. If there is a case pending in court for SEC. 5. Incentives. the recovery of a pilferage loss, no private electric utility or rural electric cooperative shall SEC. 6. Disconnection of Electric Service. accept payment from the consumer unless so provided in a compromise agreement duly executed by the parties and approved by the Court. SEC. 7. Penalties. SEC. 8. Authority to Impose Violation of Contract Surcharges. SEC. 13. Information Dissemination. - The private electric utilities, the rural electric cooperatives, the NPC, and the National Electrification Administration (NEA) shall, in SEC. 9. Restriction on the Issuance of Restraining Orders or Writs of Injunction cooperation with each other, undertake a vigorous campaign to inform their consumers of SEC. 10. Rationalization of System Losses by Phasing out Pilferage Losses as a the provisions of this Act especially sections 2,3,4,5,6,7 and 8 hereof, within sixty (60) days from the effectivity of this Act and at least once a year thereafter, and to incorporate a Component Thereof faithful condensation of said provisions in the contracts with new consumers. SEC.11. Area of Coverage. Sec. 14. Rules and Regulations. - The ERB shall, within thirty (30) working days after the SEC. 12. Recovery of Pilferage Losses. conduct of due hearings which must commence within thirty (30) working days upon the SEC. 13. Information Dissemination effectivity of this Act, issue the rules and regulations as may be necessary to ensure the efficient and effective implementation of the provisions of this Act, to include but not Sec. 14. Rules and Regulations. limited to, the development of methodologies for computing the amount of electricity SEC. 15. Separability Clause. illegally used and the amount of payment deposit contemplated in Section 7 hereof, as a result of the presence of the prima facie evidence discovered. The ERB shall, within the SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. same period, also issue rules and regulations on the submission of the reports required SEC. 17. Effectivity Clause. under Section 12 hereof and the procedure for the distribution to or crediting of consumers for recovered pilferage losses. SEC. 15. Separability Clause. - Any portion or provision of this Act which may be declared unconstitutional or invalid shall not have the effect of nullifying other portions or provisions hereof.