Republic of the Philippines RECEIVED
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES parplUL_0 9 2019
Queson City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No, 1779

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

It is the intention of this bill to ensure the safety and security in higher education
institutions and technical vocational institutions in the country through the
establishment of a Crime Prevention Committee (CPC). The CPC, as the bill
proposes, is mandated to formulate policies and programs against theft, robbery,
rape and other forms of violence within and outside campuses and school premises
and conduct seminars on crime and drug prevention and control. Further, the bill
Proposes to create a Crime Prevention Strategy that shall be produced by the CPC
and reviewed and approved by the Commission on Higher Education and the
Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to help prevent criminal
activities on- and off-campus.

The opening of classes in June 2017 brought about nearly 27 million students in both
public and private institutions'—the young generation who are set to become the
future of this country. However, with news of deaths of promising students due to
hazing incidences in recent years, from the De La Salle — College of St. Benilde” to
the University of Santo Tomas’, and recurring natural and man-made calamities, this
prompted the urgency for strengthened security in educational institutions. With
Security concerns looming over the nation—a possible threat of terrorism as well as
insurgency in the South*—law enforcement agencies are working double time to
fight unrest for everyone, young and old. Acting on the State’s mandate to protect
the youth, this bill hopes to be a solution to the trouble in the country’s school
‘system.

The approval of this bill is earnestly sought

LUIS RAYMUN F, VILLAFUERTE, JR.

{ http://www philstar-com/headlines/2017/06/04/1706537/securit
* https://www.rappler.com/nation/61910-st-benilde-student-dead-hazing-
* http://www. philstar.com/headlines/2017/09/26/174274 |/murder-hazing-raps-filed: vs-18-ust-hazing

* http://newsinfo.inquirer.nev’938349/marawi-siege-isnilon-hapilon-maute-terrorism-is-jihadist-islamic-state

school-opening



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Queson City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 1770

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

AN ACT
MANDATING HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS AND TECHNICAL-
VOCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS TO ENSURE THE SAFETY AND SECURITY OF
THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY FROM INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL THREATS,
THEREBY CREATING A CRIME PREVENTION COMMITTEE FOR THIS
PURPOSE

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as “The Campus Safety and
Security Act’

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policies. — It is the responsibility of the State under the
Constitution to promote and protect the physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual, and
Social well-being of the youth. The State shall ensure the safety and security of the
academic community, majority of whom are students, in all institutions of higher and
technical education in the country.

SECTION 3. Scope. ~ This Act shall apply to all higher education institutions (HEIs)
and Technical-Vocational Institutions (TVIs).

SECTION 4. Safety and Security Services. - All HEls and TVIs shall endeavor to
deliver adequate safety and security services to students, which include the provision


of safe and secure environment and the conduct of programs and activities that
promote safety and security from both intemal and external threats

For this purpose, the following shall be provided by HEIs and TVIs:

A. A safe, accessible and secure environment, buildings and facilities that shall
comply with government standards. Licensed and competent security
personnel shall ensure the safety and security of the students, faculty, non-
teaching personnel and other members of the academic community and their
belongings; and

B. An established mechanism for students to help in crime prevention, safety and
security of the concerned HEI and TVI.

SECTION 5. Creation of a Crime Prevention Committee. — A Crime Prevention
Committee (CPC) shall be established in every HEI and TVI to formulate policies and
strategies that shall help protect the academic community from both internal and
external threats to their safety and security, such as theft, robbery, rape, and other
forms of violence within and outside the area where the HEI or TVI is located. The

composition of the CPC shall be determined by the respective governing boards of the
HEls and TVIs.

SECTION 6. Duties and Responsibilities of the CPC. - The CPC shall have the
following duties and responsibilities:

A. To formulate, in consultation with the school head, the chief of police where the
college or university is located, the punong barangay, and other security
Specialists as they deem fit, a Crime Prevent Strategy. Such Crime Prevention
Strategy shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following

a. A statement of current campus policies regarding procedures and
facilities to be used by students and others to report criminal actions or
other emergencies occurring on campus and those concerning the
institution's response to such reports;

we


b.

A statement of current policies concerning security and access to
campus facilities, including campus residences, and security
considerations used in the maintenance of campus facilities;
A statement of current policies concerning campus law enforcement
including, but not limited to:
i, The enforcement authority of security personnel, including their
working relationship with national and local police agencies; and
ii. Policies which encourage accurate and prompt reporting of all
crimes to the campus police and the appropriate police agencies.
A description of the type and frequency of programs designed to inform
students and employees about campus security procedures and
practices and to encourage students and employees to be responsible
for their own security and the security of others;
A description of programs designed to inform students and employees
about the prevention of crimes;
A statement of policy concerning the monitoring and recording through
local police agencies of criminal activities committed by off-campus
student organizations which are recognized by the institution and which
count, among its members, the students attending the institution,

including those student organizations with off-campus housing facilities:
and

- Astatement of policy regarding the possession, use and sale of alcoholic

beverages and the enforcement of laws against underage drinking; a
statement of policy against the possession, use and sale of illegal drugs;
the enforcement of drug laws; and a description of any drug or alcohol
abuse education programs.

B. To formulate crime prevention programs for the implementation of the CPC;
C. To coordinate with college/school principals or deans, as the case may be, in

the maintenance of peace and order within the school/college/university
premises;

D. To recommend to the school/college/university the conduct of seminars or

training on crime and drug prevention and control in coordination with the
National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) regional office, local police station
or the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) ~ 911;


E. To conduct intensive information drive on the Crime Prevention Strategy which
includes semestral distribution of copies and orientation thereon; and

F. To submit to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) or to the Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), through their respective
regional offices, the composition of the CPC and the Crime Prevention Strategy,
as well as its program of activities and projects for the academic year two (2)
months after the closing of enrolment in the first semester and the
accomplishment report within two (2) months after finishing the second
semester or trimester of the academic year.

SECTION 7. Approval and Review of the Crime Prevention Strategy. — The Crime
Prevention Strategy, after approval of the Board of Trustees/Regents, shall be
submitted to the CHED or TESDA and shall be subject to its review. If found
unsatisfactory by the CHED or TESDA, taking into consideration the circumstances of
each college or university, it shall be returned to the Board for appropriate action:
Provided, That pending its review, the plan shall implemented by the college or
university concerned. The Crime Prevention Strategy shall be subject to review or
reassessment annually by the Board or as often as required by circumstances.

SECTION 8. Duties of the CHED Regional Offices and the TESDA Regional
Offices. - The CHED Regional Offices and the TESDA Regional Offices shall
coordinate, supervise and monitor the implementation of the Crime Prevention
Strategy, as approved, and projects of CPCs, jointly with the NAPOLCOM in the
region. The CHED and the TESDA shall consolidate regional report for submission to

the Office of the CHED Chairperson and the Office of the TESDA Director-General,
respectively.

SECTION 9. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days upon
the effectivity of this Act, the CHED and the TESDA, in coordination with the
Department of Education (DepEd), the Phil

pine Association of State Universities and
Colleges (PASUC), the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations
(COCOPEA), and the Association of Local Colleges and Universities (ALCU), shall
issue the necessary rules and regulation for the effective implementation of this Act.


In the rules and regulations to be implemented pursuant to this Act, the Chairperson
of the CHED and the Director-General of the TESDA shall jointly prescribe the
appropriate administrative sanctions on HEIs and TVis that fail to comply with the
requirements under this Act.

SECTION 10. Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act is held invalid or

unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other
provisions hereof.

SECTION 11. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees, executive orders and rules and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed or modified accordingly

SECTION 12. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
Publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,