Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 3971

Introduced by: REPRESENTATIVE ERIC L. OLIVAREZ

EXPLANATORY NOTE

For the past years, the Department of Education (DepEd) has been
concentrating mainly on the needs of public schools. Although problems in the

public educational institution are enormous and deserving of much attention,
the DepEd should not lose sight of the whole picture. Private Education also has
its own problems, wants, and areas for improvement which have to be addressed
and resolved as well. Yet, it cannot be denied that only limited time and efforts
are given to private schools.

To illustrate, DepEd assigns only one supervisor in charge of one division
which houses many private schools. It is noteworthy that despite Metro Manila
having close to 2,000 private schools, since there are only 16 divisions therein;
accordingly, there are only 16 supervisors which oversee all these private
schools.

Clearly, there is a shortage of supervisors for private schools; and usually,
the same supervisors are also tasked to attend to other assignments such as
scouting, nutrition, teaching, and lastly, the organization and management of
the private schools.

Considering the dilemma faced by the private schools, it is about time that
a bureau is created that will exclusively cater to the needs of private education
specifically in the private elementary and high school levels.

Through the creation of the Bureau of Private Schools, all matters
concerning private education in private elementary and high schools shall all be
directed to a centralized department. All concerns, problems, transactions, and
activities relating to private schools will now be heard and catered to immediately

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by the said Bureau. By doing this, the DepEd’s load of work will definitely be
lessened and unclogged. On the other hand, meeting the concerns of the private
elementary and high schools will be fast tracked.

Clearly, the creation of the Bureau of Private Schools promises whether
efficiency and output. Moreover, it also ensures that all problem coming from
public or private schools, will be attended to extensively.

This bill has been previously approved on Third Reading by the 19% Congress
and recognizing the wisdom and noble intents of the colleagues in the last Congress, it
is for this reason that the approval of this Bill is hereby being sought.

owe.
ERIC L. OLIVAREZ


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 3971

Introduced by: REPRESENTATIVE ERIC L. OLIVAREZ

AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE PRIVATE BASIC EDUCATION VOUCHER
PROGRAM, PROVIDING FOR THE CREATION OF THE BUREAU OF PRIVATE
EDUCATION, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, REPEALING FOR
THE PURPOSE SECTIONS 2, 3, 4(2), 4(3), 5, 6, 7, 12, 14, AND 15 OF
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8545, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “EXPANDED
GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE TO STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN PRIVATE
EDUCATION ACT”, WHICH AMENDED REPUBLIC ACT NO. 6728,
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE TO STUDENTS
AND TEACHERS IN PRIVATE EDUCATION ACT”

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 “Private Basic
Education Vouchers Assistance Act”.

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. ~ It is the declared policy of the State to
protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and
shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. As part of
its mandate, it is the State’s policy to establish and maintain a system of
scholarship grants, subsidies, and other incentives which shall be available to
deserving students, as determined by the guidelines, in both public and private
schools, especially to the underprivileged. Likewise, the State recognizes the
complementary roles of public and private educational institutions in the
educational system and the invaluable contribution that the private schools have
made and will make to education.


The State shall provide the mechanisms to augment the resources and
enhance the quality of private basic education, specifically promoting the
complementary roles of public and private schools and thus recognize the
government’s priority of providing basic elementary and secondary education to
all Filipino students.

SEC. 3. Coverage. - This Act shall cover all private basic education
institutions that receive government assistance in the form of vouchers for
qualified students, teachers and schools. This covers all the years of basic
education. The programs of assistance for students under this Act shall be
extended only to citizens of the Philippines.

SEC. 4. Criteria for Voucher Assistance. — The programs for voucher
assistance shall be based on a set of criteria which include among others, the
following:

(a) Criteria for Students. - The voucher assistance will be provided to
students from middle-income families, as determined by the Philippine Statistics
Authority (PSA), who attended public schools identified by the Department of
Education as congested or those living in areas with congested public schools or
without a nearby public school who wish to enroll in private basic education
schools.

Students who are most vulnerable and underprivileged shall receive a
higher voucher amount as determined by the Basic Education Assistance
Council (BEAC).

(b) Criteria for Schools. - The participating private basic education schools
shall receive assistance based on Quality Assurance under Section 6 of this Act,
and the geographic spread and size of student enrollment, as likewise
determined by the BEAC, except schools with gaps in resources and facilities
which are located in geographically isolated and disadvantaged and contflict-
affected areas, or GIDCA schools. Private schools shall undergo the process of
recognition and periodic assessment to be able to participate in the programs for
voucher assistance.

SEC. 5. Empowering Student Choice. — The Department of Education
(DepEd) shall create a system that allows students and parents to select their
preferred schools from a registry of participating recognized schools, subject to
availability of slots.

‘The registry of participating recognized private basic educational
institutions shall include their schools’ information, such as location, number of
available slots, number of students per classroom and level, extra-curricular
programs, current tuition fees, and top-up required in cases where the voucher
amount is less than the tuition fee, among others.


SEC. 6. Quality Assurance. - The DepEd shall establish, operate and
maintain a system and mechanism for monitoring program outcomes to ensure
accountability of participating recognized private basic educational institutions.
This covers the following areas:

(a) Improved Student Performance - Appropriate performance indicators
to determine the extent and outcome of the government assistance and subsidies
(GAS) programs including youth literacy rates, national and international
assessment scores, among others. For this purpose, the National Achievement
Tests and all national assessment examinations generally given by the DepEd
shall be administered to all eligible students in all participating private basic
education institutions;

(b) Improved Student Outcomes ~ Tracer system to collect and evaluate
the career and employment path of its graduates;

(c) School Performance ~ School performance data indicating the mean,
median and mode of the scores of the students in the national examinations,
and such other measures of quality education delivery; and

(d) Priority Subsidy for Underprivileged Students — Distribution of the GAS
programs while ensuring that funding is equitably allocated following the order
of priority groups.

SEC. 7. Other Forms of Assistance. - The following shall consist of
assistance to private basic education institutions and teachers participating in
the voucher program under this Act:

‘The forms of assistance granted to teachers in the participating recognized
private basic education schools include:

(a) In-service training fund for teachers in private basic education schools;

(b) Scholarships for qualified private basic education teachers enrolled in
quality graduate programs; and

(c) Participation in government-funded in-service training for basic
education teachers.

‘The DepEd may establish a program of assistance for the development of
qualified recognized private basic education schools to cover the following areas
of school operation:

(a) Institutional Development;

(b) Organizational Development;


(c) Human Resource Development;
(d) Curriculum and Instructional Development;
(c) Research and Planning; and

(f Facilities and School Improvement.

Consistent with Section 10 of Republic Act No. 10533, or the “Enhanced
Basic Education Act of 2013”, the DepEd, in consultation with the Department
of Budget and Management (DBM), may develop other forms of financial
arrangements and engage the services of private basic education schools based
on the complementary roles of public and private institutions in the educational
system.

SEC. 8. Basic Education Voucher Program. — Under the basic education
voucher program, kindergarten, elementary, and secondary students enrolled in
recognized private basic education schools charging school fees shall be provided
by the government with vouchers in such amount as may be determined by the
DepEd: Provided, That the amount shall not be less than the amount currently
provided by the DepEd: Provided, That the government shall disburse payment
of the vouchers to the schools concerned within sixty (60) days from the
submission of complete documents to the DepEd.

‘The budget for the basic education voucher program shall be equitably
allocated and distributed among all regions including the Bangsamoro
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) based on official data
sources including, but not limited to, congestion data and open seats, giving
priority to underprivileged students.

Pursuant to Section 2{V), Article V of the Bangsamoro Organic Law, the
Bangsamoro Government shall exercise its authority over education for the areas
under the BARMM and will directly implement the same program to be charged
against their block grant. The DepEd shall provide technical assistance in the
implementation of the GAS programs, when necessary.

Schools participating in the basic education voucher program may
increase tuition on the condition that seventy percent (70%) of the amount of the
tuition increases shall go to the payment of salaries, wages, allowances, and
other statutory benefits of teaching and non-teaching personnel, except
administrators who are principal stockholders of the school, and may be used to
cover salary increase as provided for in the collective bargaining agreements
existing or in force at the time when this Act is approved and made effective. At
least twenty percent (20%) of the tuition increases shall go to the improvement
or modernization of buildings, equipment, libraries, laboratories, gymnasia and
similar facilities and to the payment of other costs of operation. For this purpose,


schools shall maintain a separate record of accounts for all assistance received
from the government, any tuition increase, and the detailed disposition and use
thereof, which record shall be made available for periodic inspection as may be
determined by the DepEd.

SEC. 9. In-Service Training Fund or Inset Fund. — For the purpose of
improving the quality of teaching in private basic education, there is hereby
established in the DepEd an Inset Fund to provide for training programs for the
upgrading of knowledge and teaching competencies in critical subject areas and
for the modernization of teaching techniques and strategies, including training
on the use of computers and of other multi-media educational technologies to
assist instruction: Provided, That the amount of Inset Fund available to private
basic education shall not exceed that available to public basic education as per
capita basis: Provided, further, That the training programs shall be approved by
the DepEd.

SEC. 10. Teachers’ Salary Subsidy Fund. - A Teachers’ Salary Subsidy
Fund is hereby established in the DepEd to grant government subsidy to
teachers in recognized private basic education schools participating in the
programs of assistance under in this Act: Provided, That the government shall
provide the teachers with salary subsidy, to be determined by the DepEd:
Provided, further, That the government shall disburse payment within sixty (60)
days after the close of the school year upon submission of complete documents,
including but not limited to qualification and actual teaching service, to the
DepEd: Provided, furthermore, That the present allocation out of increases from
tuition and other income shall be maintained: Provided, finally, That the
teacher's salary subsidy received by the teacher shall form part of the exclusions
from taxable gross income in accordance with Section 32(B)(7)(e) of the National
Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.

SEC. 11. Creation of the Bureau of Private Education. — The Bureau
of Private Education (BPE) under the DepEd shall be created to serve as the focal
office for the administration, supervision, and regulation of all matters relating
to private basic education institutions, including government assistance and
subsidies. It shall be headed by a Bureau Director.

It shall have the following powers and functions:

(a) Monitor and assess the implementation of the private basic education
institutions of the policies, plans, and programs established by the DepEd
as recommended by BPE;

(b) Set and enforce minimum standards for programs and institutions of
learning, subject to public hearing;

(c) Ensure that the activities, efforts, and performance of private basic
education institutions shall meet the high standards of excellence and
accountability;


(d) Administer and implement the policies and programs related to the
assistance and subsidies given by the government to students, teachers,
and schools in private education;

(e) Establish and support partnerships with individual private education
institutions to respond effectively to the pressing needs of students and
teachers, and to provide learning solutions to underserved communities;

() Monitor and ensure compliance of private basic education institutions to
the promulgated rules and regulations of the DepEd in all matters
concerning private schools, including tuition fee increases; and

(g) Such other powers and functions as may be necessary for the effective and
efficient implementation of this Act.

SEC. 12. Program Administration and Implementation. ~The BEAC shall
be responsible for policy guidance and direction, monitoring and evaluation of
new and existing programs while the Government Assistance and Subsidies
Service (GASS) under the BPE shall be responsible for the day-to-day
administration and implementation on the programs of assistance to private
basic education.

‘The BEAC shall be composed of the Secretary of the DepEd, as Chairperson,
and the Secretary of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA)
and the Secretary of the DBM, as members.

The alternate representative of the Chairperson shall possess the rank of an
Undersecretary while the alternate representatives of the members shall possess
the rank of not less than an Assistant Secretary in order to secure a quorum.

The BEAC shall meet, from time to time, as the need arises, to assess the
effectivity of the programs under this Act and to propose to Congress other forms
of assistance to participating students and schools.

‘The GASS shall serve as the permanent secretariat for the implementation of
the GAS programs under this Act.

‘The DepEd may engage the services of a third party co-implementor of the
GAS programs under this Act.

SEC. 13. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the initial
implementation of this Act shall be charged against the current year’s
appropriation of the DepEd. Thereafter, such amount shall be included in the
annual Genera Appropriations Act.

SEC. 14. Penalties. — In case of violation of this Act by a private school, the
DepEd may bar, after due process, such school from participating in or
benefiting from the programs of this Act, and from other programs of the DepEd,


without prejudice to administrative and criminal charges that may be filed
against the school or its responsible officers under existing laws.

SEC. 15. Transitory Provision. — Subject to the availability of funds, the
implementation of the provisions stipulated in this Act for the kindergarten and
elementary levels shall gradually commence in school year 2026-2027, as may
be determined by the DepEd.

SEC. 16. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days
from the approval of this Act, the DepEd shall, in consultation with the NEDA,
the DBM, and other concerned stakeholders from the national associations of
private basic education institutions, promulgate the rules and regulations
implementing the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 17. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid
or unconstitutional, the other provisions not so declared shall remain in full force
and effect.

SEC. 18. Repealing Clause. - Sections 2, 3, 4(2), 4(3), 5, 6, 7, 12, 14, and
15 of Republic Act No. 8545, or the “Expanded Government Assistance to
Students and Teachers in Private Education Act”, which amended Republic Act
No. 6728, or the “Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private
Education Act”, are hereby repealed. All other laws, decrees, orders and rules
and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are
hereby repealed or amended accordingly.

SEC. 19. Effectivity. - Notwithstanding the non-issuance of the
implementing rules and regulations, this Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general
circulation.

Approved,