Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. _______________
Introduced by ANG PROBINSYANO
Party-List Representative Alfred Delos Santos
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Under Article II, Section 18 of the 1987 Constitution, “[t]he State affirms
labor as a primary social economic force,” thus vowing to “protect the rights of
workers and promote their welfare.” In connection, under Article XIII, Section 3(2),
it is declared that workers “shall be entitled to…humane conditions of work…and a
living wage.”
Considering these provisions, the State’s duty to public-school teachers is
unmistakable: subsidizing their expenses on teaching materials, by providing them
with an adequate allowance for such purchases.
Teachers currently rely on what has long been known as the ‘chalk
allowance.’
The
Department
of Education’s (DepEd)
Order No. 10, s. 2020
discusses this thusly:1
I.
PURPOSE
1. In the constant effort to capacitate and empower the teachers, the
Department
of
Education
(DepEd)
is
continuously expanding their
welfare and benefits through the grant of Cash Allowance to Teachers,
formerly known as the Chalk Allowance. This allowance is intended to
augment
the
expenses
incurred/spent
by
teachers
in
the
actual
performance of their teaching responsibilities.
2. The actual amount of the allowance to be given shall be governed by the
provision indicated in the approved general appropriations act (GAA) of
the current year.
a. For Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, Special Provision No. 10 of the Republic
Act (RA) No. 11645. the GAA for FY 2020. or An Act Appropriating
Funds for the Operation of the Government of the Republic of the
Philippines
from January One to December Thirty-One, Two
Thousand
and Twenty, and for Other Purposes, stated that
the Cash Allowance to Teachers shall be used for the payment
of
Three
Thousand
Five
Hundred
Pesos
(P3,500.00)
per
1 Mark Anthony Llego, “DepEd Guidelines on the Grant of Cash Allowance to Teachers,” TeacherPH, June 8, 2020,
available at https://www.teacherph.com/deped-guidelines-cash-allowance-teachers/.
September 19, 2022
4:24 pm
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classroom teacher for every school year for the purchase of
teaching supplies and materials.
b. For succeeding years, the amount shall depend on the approved
allocation to be indicated in the GAA.
II.
SCOPE OF THE POLICY
1. The Cash Allowance shall be granted to all permanent and
provisional teachers, including Alternative Learning System (ALS)
Mobile Teachers and District ALS Coordinators (DALSCs), in
all public
elementary,
junior,
and
senior
high
schools,
and
community learning centers, who are in sendee1 in DepEd for the
current school year and assigned with at least one teaching load.
Teachers who are in service in DepEd as of the official first day of
the school up to 30 calendar days after the start of the school
year shall be entitled to the full amount of the Cash Allowance.
Teachers whose assumption to duty is beyond 30 days after the
official first day of school shall be entitled to the Cash Allowance
on a pro-rata basis.
2. Public School Teachers are defined in RA No. 4670 or the Magna
Carta for Public School Teachers, as All persons engaged in
classroom teaching, in any level of instruction, on a full-time
basis, including guidance counselors, school librarians, industrial
arts or vocational instructors, and all other persons performing
supervisory
and/or
administrative
functions
in
all
schools,
colleges, and universities operated by the government or its
political subdivisions; but this shall not include school nurses,
school physicians, school dentists, and other school employees.
(emphasis in the original)
But given the new expenses that come with our shift to blended learning,
Php3,500.00 is hardly enough to cover our teachers’ needs, especially if they are
footing the monthly bill for their house’s internet connection.
Congress must correct this situation with this Bill, which shall establish the
Teaching Supplies Fund (TSF). The ‘chalk allowance,’ combined with the TSF, shall
enable teachers to acquire classroom supplies and instructional materials without
using their personal funds.
Moreover, this Bill contains a clause for periodic review of the TSF allocation.
Under this provision, the Secretary of Education will be empowered to increase the
amount that is released to each covered teacher, in response to changes in the
prices of classroom supplies and instructional materials.
It is for the foregoing premises that the approval of this Bill is earnestly
sought.
ALFRED C. DELOS SANTOS
Representative, Ang Probinsyano Party-List


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. _______________
Introduced by ANG PROBINSYANO
Party-List Representative Alfred Delos Santos
AN ACT
ESTABLISHING THE TEACHING SUPPLIES FUND FOR ALL PUBLIC SCHOOLS
IN THE COUNTRY, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “Teaching Supplies
Fund Act.”
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is a declared policy of the State to
protect and promote the right of the people to quality education. To this end, the
State shall appropriate the necessary funds for the provision of classroom supplies
and instructional materials in every classroom of all public schools in the country.
SECTION 3. Teaching Supplies Fund (TSF). – A Teaching Supplies Fund
(TSF) is hereby established to ensure the continued funding and provision of
teaching supplies and instructional materials each school year in every classroom
of all public schools in the country.
This fund shall be used exclusively for the purchase or payment of chalks,
erasers, papers, pens, forms, production, or reproduction of handouts and study
guides, and other classroom supplies and instructional materials.
SECTION 4. Monthly Allocation for Classroom Supplies. – Each school year,
the amount of Three Thousand Pesos (PHP 3,000.00) per month for every
classroom in all public schools in the country shall be allocated for the purchase
and provision of all the necessary classroom supplies and instructional materials.
SECTION 5. Periodic Review for Increases. – The Secretary of Education is
hereby mandated to conduct a periodic review of the TSF allocation considering the
current prices of classroom supplies and instructional materials. If the increase is
warranted, the Secretary shall make the necessary recommendation.
SECTION 6. Liquidation Reports. - As a precondition for the release of the
succeeding month’s TSF, the school, through a designated officer, shall submit an
itemized report of how the previous month’s fund was spent. Such a report must
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show to the satisfaction of the implementing agencies that the TSF allocation was
spent in its entirety for its intended purpose.
SECTION
7.
Role
of
the
Department
of
Education
Schools
Division
Superintendent. – To guarantee efficient operations and quality in the delivery of
basic education, the Schools Division Superintendent (SDS) shall ensure the proper
purchase and prompt provision of necessary classroom supplies and instructional
materials to be used by learners and teachers in every classroom of all public
schools under his/her supervision.
Failure of the SDS to ensure the proper purchase and prompt provision of
the necessary supplies and instructional materials in every classroom of all public
schools shall be a ground for disciplinary action.
SECTION 8. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – Within thirty (30) days
from
the
effectivity
of
this
Act,
the
Department
of
Education
(DepEd), in
coordination with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department
of Finance (DoF), and other concerned government agencies, shall formulate the
necessary rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this Act.
The implementing rules and regulations shall be published in the Official
Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation.
SECTION 9. Appropriations. – The amount necessary to cover the initial
implementation
of
this
Act
shall
be
charged
against
the
current
year’s
appropriations of the DepEd. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the
effective and continuous implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual
General Appropriations Act.
SECTION 10. Separability Clause. – If any provision or part of this Act is
held invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining provisions or parts unaffected shall
remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 11. Repealing Clause. – All laws, executive orders, presidential
decrees or issuances, letters of instruction, administrative orders, rules, and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby
repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
SECTION 12. Effectivity Clause. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved,