BAGUIO CITY – The City Council aims to institutionalize the conduct of paperless sessions.
In a proposed ordinance authored by all the aldermen, they noted that test runs done in previous meetings proved that by going paperless, the office saved 336 reams of paper in one year which was normally used for photocopying the agenda, minutes of meetings, endorsements and supporting documents.
This translates to monetary savings of P65,280 excluding the costs of toners for printers and photocopiers.
According to the councilors, paperless sessions make the office client-friendly because of the reduction in the expenses of clients who transact business with the office.
“They are no longer required to submit 16 copies of each page of the documents for all the Sangguniang Panlungsod members,” they noted.
Paperless sessions also make the City Council adhere to the tenets of an environment-friendly office.
All of the councilors signed the proposed ordinance save for Councilor Elmer Datuin who maintained that the use of paper is necessary in some instances thus the ban must not be made total.
In the proposed ordinance, those who will not comply will be subjected to administrative disciplinary action.
Action on the proposal was deferred during the special session last May 25.
By: Aileen P. Refuerzo
