ARTA orders gov’t agencies, offices, GOCCS to designate an anti-red tape committee

The Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) issued a memorandum circular directing all government agencies and offices to designate a Committee on Anti-Red Tape (CART).

The ARTA’s Memorandum Circular No. 2020-07 covers all government agencies including state universities, local government units, government-owned or -controlled corporations, and other government instrumentalities in the Philippines and abroad providing services covering business and non-business related transactions.

“The designated committee shall be tasked to ensure that the agency will comply with the provisions of Republic Act 11032, its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), and with the subsequent issuances by ARTA,” the anti-red tape body said.

The ARTA said the creation of a CART is mandated under Section 1 of the RA 11032’s implementing rules and regulations, which states that each agency shall designate a unit to perform streamlining and reengineering of systems and procedures.

“Among others, the CART shall conduct compliance cost analysis, time and motion studies, evaluation and improvement of all the agency’s systems and procedures in order to reduce  bureaucratic red tape and processing time,” the anti-red tape body said.

“The CART will also be responsible for periodically reviewing the agency’s Citizen’s Charter and ensuring that the agency strictly complies with the  3-7-20 prescribed processing time for transactions and the zero contact policy,” it added.

The CART shall also establish and manage a public assistance complaints desk to  effectively receive complaints, comments, and suggestions, and monitor client satisfaction via  various feedback mechanisms.

“It must ensure that all complaints forwarded by the Presidential  Complaints Center, Civil Service Commission’s Contact Center ng Bayan, and ARTA’s Complaints and Action Center are acknowledged, responded to and/or acted upon within the  designated period,” the ARTA said.

The CART shall be “an inter-office task force that will require no separate budget or creation of  new plantilla positions to facilitate its creation by the agency head,” according to the memorandum circular.

The committee will be comprised of a chairperson, a vice chairperson, and at least five other members.

The head of the agency or any official he/she designates (who must at least be the third highest ranking official in the agency) shall serve as the CART’s  chairperson.

The agencies may also designate a sub-CART in their respective regional/field offices, attached  agencies or bureaus, according to the ARTA.

Agencies’ existing units designated to ensure their compliance with the  Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 as amended by the Ease of Doing Business Law should be reorganized as the CART, whereas LGUs with Regulatory Reform Teams created under DILG ARTA Joint Memorandum Circular 2019-01 shall be recognized as the CART’s equivalent and  as such perform its functions.—AOL, GMA News