REPUBLIC ACT NO. 1364 - AN
ACT TO REGULATE THE PRACTICE OF SANITARY ENGINEERING IN THE PHILIPPINES |
ARTICLE
I Title of Act and Definition of Terms Section 1. Title of Act. – This Act shall be known as the "Sanitary Engineering Law." Sec. 2. Definition of terms. – The practice of sanitary engineering within the meaning and intent of this Act shall embrace the following activities: (a) Sanitary surveys, reports, design, direction, management, consultation, and investigation of: (1) Water purification plants, water collection and distribution systems, reservoirs, drainage and sewer systems, sewage treatment plants, malaria control structures, sewage disposal tanks, and other structures for public health and welfare. (2) Projects relating to stream pollution, insect and vermin control or eradication, rural and camp sanitation, and milk and food sanitation.cralaw (3) Systems for the prevention of atmospheric pollution or the control of indoorr, especially ther or working spaces in industrial establishments (industrial hygiene engineering).cralaw (b) Professional research and laboratory work supporting the activities listed in subsection (a).cralaw (c) The term "sanitary engineer" as used in this Act shall mean a person duly registered with the Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers in the manner as hereinafter provided.cralaw ARTICLE II Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers Sec. 3. Composition of Board. – Within thirty days from the effectivity of this Act there shall be created a Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers hereinafter referred to as the Board, to be composed of a chairman and two members who shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines upon the recommendation of the Commissioner of Civil Service from among such persons of recognized standing in their profession as may be certified as having practised at least five years, and academically and morally fully qualified by their respective bona fide sanitary engineering associations. The members of the Board shall hold office for a term of three years after appointment or until their successors shall have been appointed and shall have duly qualified. The first members of the Board appointed under this Act shall hold office for the following terms: one member for one year; one member for two years; and one member for three years. Each member of the Board shall qualify by taking the proper oath of office before entering upon the performance of his duties. Any member of the Board may be removed by the President for neglect of duty, incompetence, malpractice, unprofessional, unethical, immoral, or dishonorable conduct, after having been given opportunity to defend himself in a proper administrative investigation: Provided, That during the process of investigation, the President shall have the power to suspend such member under investigation and shall appoint a temporary member in his place. Vacancies in the Board shall be filled for the unexpired term.cralaw Sec. 4. Powers and duties of the Board. – The
Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers is vested with authority,
conformable with the provisions of this Act, to administer oaths,
issue, suspend and revoke certificates of registration for the practice
of sanitary engineering, issue certificates of recognition to sanitary
engineers already practicing prior to the effectivity of this Act for
advanced studies, research and/or highly specialized training in any
branch of sanitary engineering, subject to the approval of the
President, to investigate such violations of this Act and the
regulations thereunder as may come to the knowledge of the Board and
for this purpose, issue subpoena duces tecum to secure appearance of
witnesses in connection with the charges presented to the Board, to
inspect, at least once a year, educational institutions offering
courses in sanitary engineering, to discharge such other powers and
duties as may affect ethical and technological standards of the
sanitary engineering profession in the Philippines. For the purpose of
this Act, the Secretary of Health, and/or his duly authorized
representatives in the provinces and chartered cities shall be ex
officio agents of the Board, and as such it shall be their duty to help
in the enforcement of the provisions of this Act.cralaw Sec. 5. Qualifications of Board members. – Each
member of the Board shall, at the time of his appointment: Sec. 6. Registration and examination fees. – The
Board of Examiners shall charge for each application for examination,
the sum of thirty-five pesos and for each certificate of registration,
ten pesos. Sec. 8. Executive Officer of the Board. – The Commissioner of Civil Service shall be the executive officer of the Board, and shall conduct the examinations given by the Board and shall designate any subordinate officer of the Bureau of Civil Service to act as secretary of the Board. All records and minutes of the Board, including all examination papers, shall be kept by the Bureau of Civil Service.cralaw Sec. 9. Annual report. – The Board shall submit an annual report to the President after the close of each fiscal year, giving a detailed account of its proceedings during the year and making such recommendations as may be deemed proper.cralaw Section 10. Roster of Sanitary Engineers. – A roster
showing names and place of business and permanent home addresses of all
professional sanitary engineers, shall be prepared by the Commissioner
of Civil Service during the month of July of every year, commencing one
year after the date this Act becomes effective. Copies of this roster
shall be mailed to each person so registered and placed on file with
the President; and copies thereof, shall be furnished to all Department
Heads, to the mayors of all chartered cities, to the Director of Public
Works, to the Collector of Customs, to such other bureaus, or
government agencies and provincial and municipal authorities as may be
deemed necessary, and to the public upon request. ARTICLE III Examination for Registration Section 11. Examination requirement. – All applicants for registration for the practice of sanitary engineering, shall be required to pass a technical examination as hereinafter provided.cralaw Section 12. Holding of examination. – Examination of candidates desiring to practice sanitary engineering in the Philippines shall be given in the City of Manila, beginning the last Monday of January and August of each year, provided that such days do not fall on official holidays, otherwise the examination shall be held on the days next following.cralaw Section 13. Subjects of examination. – Applicants for certificates of registration as sanitary engineers shall be examined in the following subjects: Mathematics, including algebra, plane and spherical trigonometry, analytics, descriptive and solid geometry, differential and integral calculus, rational and applied mechanics; hydraulics; topographic and hydrographic surveying; design and construction of wooden, masonry, reinforced concrete, and steel structures as flumes, water towers and drainage canals; hydrology; water and sewage analysis; microbiology and bacteriology; design and construction of sewers, storm drains, water purification plants, sewage treatment plants and plumbing: Provided, however, That duly registered civil engineers shall be exempted from taking examinations in the following subjects: (1) Mathematics, including algebra, plane and spherical trigonometry, differential and integral calculus, rational and applied mechanics; (2) hydraulics; (3) topographic and hydrographic surveying; and (4) design and construction of wooden, masonry, reinforced concrete and steel structures as flumes, water towers and drainage canals.cralaw Section 14. Report of ratings. – The Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineering shall, within one hundred and twenty days after the date of completion of the examination, report the rating obtained by each candidate to the Commissioner of Civil Service, who shall submit such ratings to the President.cralaw Section 15. Reexamination. – An applicant who for the
third time fails to pass the examination for the same grade shall not
be allowed to take another until at least one year has elapsed after
his last examination. Section 17. Qualifications for examination. – Any
person applying for admission to the sanitary engineering examination
as herein provided, shall, prior to the date of the examination,
establish to the satisfaction of the Board that he has the following
qualifications: Section 19. Seal and use of seal. – All registered sanitary engineers shall obtain a seal of such design as the Board shall authorize and direct: Provided, however, That the serial number of the certificate issued by the Board shall be included in the design of the seal. Plans and specifications prepared by, or under the direct supervision of a registered sanitary engineer shall be stamped with the seal during the life of the registrant's certificate, and it shall be unlawful for any one to stamp or seal any document with said seal after the certificate of the registrant named therein has expired or has been revoked, unless said certificate shall have been renewed or reissued.cralaw Sec. 20. Exemption from registration. –
Registration shall not be required of the following persons: Sec. 21. Refusal to issue certificate. – The Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers shall not issue a certificate to any person convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of any criminal offense involving moral turpitude, or to any person guilty of immoral or dishonorable conduct, or to any person of unsound mind. In the event of a refusal to issue a certificate to any person, the Board shall give to the applicant a written statement setting forth its reason for such action, which statement shall be incorporated in the records of the Board.cralaw Sec. 22. Re-issue and replacement of certificates.
– The Subject to the approval of the President, the Board shall have
the power after due notice and hearing, to suspend or revoke the
certificate of registration for any cause mentioned in the preceding
section. Sec. 24. Transitory provisions. – Within one year,
or as soon as this Act takes effect, any person desiring to practice
the profession of sanitary engineering shall be required only to obtain
a certificate of registration in the manner and under the conditions
herein provided: ARTICLE IV Enforcement of Act and Penal Provisions Sec. 25. Enforcement of the Act by officers of the law. – It shall be the duty of all duly constituted law officers of the national, provincial, city and municipal governments or any political subdivision thereof, to enforce the provisions of this Act and to prosecute any person violating the same. Sec. 26. Registration required. – Unless exempted from registration, no person shall practice or offer to practice sanitary engineering in the Philippines without having obtained the proper certificate of registration from the Board of Examiners for Sanitary Engineers.cralaw Sec. 27. Penal provisions. – Any person who shall
practice or offer to practice sanitary engineering in the Philippines
without being registered in accordance with the provisions of this Act,
or any person presenting or attempting to use as his own the
certificate of registration of a registered sanitary engineer, or any
person who shall give any false or forged evidence of any kind to the
Board, or any person who shall impersonate any registrant sanitary
engineer of different name, or any person who shall attempt to use a
revoked or suspended certificate of registration, or any person who
shall use in connection with his name, or otherwise assume, use, or
advertise any title or description tending to convey the impression
that he is a sanitary engineer, without holding a valid certificate of
registration, or any person who shall violate any of the provisions of
this Act, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall, upon conviction,
be sentenced to a fine of not less than five hundred pesos nor more
than two thousand pesos, or to suffer imprisonment for a period of not
less than six months nor more than one year, or both, in the discretion
of the court.cralaw ARTICLE V Miscellaneous Provisions Sec. 28. Field of action authorized for Sanitary Engineering; prohibitions. – It shall be unlawful for any person, unless exempted from registration under section twenty of this Act: (a) To be in responsible charge of the preparation of plans, designs, investigations, valuations, technical reports, specifications or estimates, or to be in performance of other sanitary engineering service, either for himself or for others, unless he holds a valid certificate of registration as sanitary engineer.cralaw (b) To be in responsible charge of the construction, erection, installation or alteration, or of the performance of sanitary engineering service in connection with the manufacture, sale, supply or distribution of any sanitary engineering works, projects or plant (as cited in article one, section two of this Act), either for himself or for others, unless he holds a valid certificate of registration as sanitary engineer.cralaw Sec. 29. Preparation of plans and supervision of
construction by registered sanitary engineers required. – It shall be
unlawful for any person or firm to order or otherwise cause the
construction, erection, installation or alteration of any sanitary
engineering equipment, machinery or process for any sanitary
engineering work, project or plant, the cost of which exceeds five
thousand pesos, unless the designs, plans, layouts, and/or
specifications have been prepared under the responsible charge of,
signed and sealed by a registered sanitary engineer, and unless the
construction, erection, installation, and/or alteration thereof are
executed under the responsible charge and direct supervision of a
registered sanitary engineer. Sec. 31. Collection of professional fees. – It shall be unlawful for any unregistered person to collect a fee for services rendered except as an employee collecting a fee as representative of a registered sanitary engineer.cralaw Sec. 32. Reciprocity requirements. – No person
who is not a citizen of the Philippines at the time he applies to take
the examination shall be allowed to take it unless he can prove in the
manner provided by the Rules of Court that, by specific provision of
law, the country of which he is a citizen, subject, or national either
admits citizens of the Philippines to the practice of the same
profession without restriction or allows them to practice it after an
examination on terms of strict and absolute equality with citizens,
subjects, or nationals of the country concerned, including the
unconditional recognition of degrees issued by institutions of learning
duly recognized for the purpose by the Government of the Philippines:
Provided, That if he is not a citizen of the Philippines after December
eight, nineteen hundred and forty-one, his active practice in that
profession, either in the Philippines or in the state or country where
he was practicing his profession, shall not have been interrupted for a
period of two years or more prior to July four, nineteen hundred and
forty-six, and that the country or state from which he comes allows the
citizens of the Philippines by specific provisions of law, to practice
the same profession without restrictions or on terms of strict and
absolute equality with citizens, subjects or nationals of the country
or state concerned. Sec. 34. Construction of Act. – If any part or section of this Act shall be declared unconstitutional, such declaration shall not invalidate the other provisions hereof.cralaw Sec. 35. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect
upon its approval.cralaw Approved: June 18, 1955 |