Garcia v Executive Sec GR 101273

Facts:
In November 1990, President Corazon Aquino issued Executive
Order No. 438 which imposed, in addition to any other duties, taxes
and charges imposed by law on all articles imported into the
Philippines, an additional duty of 5% ad valorem tax. This additional
duty was imposed across the board on all imported articles,
including crude oil and other oil products imported into the
Philippines. In 1991, EO 443 increased the additional duty to 9%. In
the same year, EO 475 was passed reinstating the previous 5% duty
except that crude oil and other oil products continued to be taxed at
9%. Enrique Garcia, a representative from Bataan, avers that EO
475 and 478 are unconstitutional for they violate Section 24 of
Article VI of the Constitution which provides:
All appropriation, revenue or tariff bills, bills authorizing increase of
the public debt, bills of local application, and private bills shall
originate exclusively in the House of Representatives, but the
Senate may propose or concur with amendments.
He contends that since the Constitution vests the authority to enact
revenue bills in Congress, the President may not assume such power
by issuing Executive Orders Nos. 475 and 478 which are in the
nature of revenue-generating measures.
ISSUE: Whether or not EO 475 and 478 are constitutional.
HELD: Under Section 24, Article VI of the Constitution, the
enactment of appropriation, revenue and tariff bills, like all other
bills is, of course, within the province of the Legislative rather than
the Executive Department. It does not follow, however, that
therefore Executive Orders Nos. 475 and 478, assuming they may
be characterized as revenue measures, are prohibited to be
exercised by the President, that they must be enacted instead by
the Congress of the Philippines.
Section 28(2) of Article VI of the Constitution provides as follows:
(2) The Congress may, by law, authorize the President to fix within
specified limits, and subject to such limitations and restrictions as it
may impose, tariff rates, import and export quotas, tonnage and
wharfage dues, and other duties or imposts within the framework of
the national development program of the Government.
There is thus explicit constitutional permission to Congress to
authorize the President subject to such limitations and restrictions
as [Congress] may impose to fix within specific limits tariff
rates . . . and other duties or imposts . . . . In this case, it is the
Tariff and Customs Code which authorized the President ot issue the
said EOs.