Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
Introduced by HON. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
AN ACT 
INSTITUTIONALIZING A SYSTEM OF FREE FORMAL EDUCATION FROM ELEMENTARY TO 
TERTIARY LEVELS FOR PRISONERS IN ALL PENAL INSTITUTIONS, PROVIDING FUNDS 
THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Article XIV, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution provides that “The State shall 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.” This constitutional to education, being a social equity tool, must be afforded to everyone, 
especially to the country’s most disadvantaged sectors. While the government has introduced measures 
such as ensuring equitable access to education, a lot of Filipinos still do not have access to formal education. 
Among these are the prison population.  
The UN Basic Principles for the Treatment of Prisoners, states that all prisoners shall have the right to 
education. Aside from being a fundamental human right, education for prisoners positively contributes to 
their social reintegration after release. Studies suggest that offenders who had access to education and 
vocational programs in penal institutions are more likely to find jobs after their release than those who did 
not1.  
Consistent with the concept of restorative justice which emphasizes the need to treat prisoners with respect 
and allow them to reintegrate into the larger community, this measure seeks to improve the access of 
prisoners to formal education. This measure seeks to establish complete educational programs in all penal 
institutions in the Philippines as only the National Bilibid Prison offers a complete educational program for 
prisoners at present.  
On behalf of the people of Parañaque City’s Second District, and for the common good of the Filipino 
people, the approval of the said measure is earnestly sought. 
REP. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
2nd District, Parañaque City 
1 Rangel Torrijo, H., & De Maeyer, M. (2019). Education in prison: A basic right and an essential tool. International 
Review of Education, 65(5), 671–685. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-019-09809-x 
September 6, 2022
9:40 am
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _______ 
Introduced by HON. GUS S. TAMBUNTING 
AN ACT 
INSTITUTIONALIZING A SYSTEM OF FREE FORMAL EDUCATION FROM ELEMENTARY TO 
TERTIARY LEVELS FOR PRISONERS IN ALL PENAL INSTITUTIONS, PROVIDING 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 “Prison Education Act.” 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is hereby declared that quality education is an inalienable right of all 
Filipinos and that it is the policy of the State to protect and promote the rights of all citizens to quality 
education at all levels. Therefore, the State shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible 
to all. 
Further, it is the policy of the State to promote the general welfare and safeguard the basic rights of every 
prisoner incarcerated in our penal institutions. It recognizes the responsibility of the State to put in place a 
truly reformative and rehabilitative prison system. 
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. – For purposes of this Act, the following terms are hereby defined: 
a)
Alternative Learning System (ALS) – refers to a program implemented by the Department of
Education (DepEd) that provides basic literacy and livelihood skills to inmates, among others,
without going through regular classes;
b)
Correctional facilities – include the country's prisons under the management and supervision of the
Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), jails [municipal, city, and district], and detention centers under the
management and supervision of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and
provincial and sub-provincial jails under the management and supervision of the provincial
governments;
c)
Inmates – refer to persons deprived of liberty as a result of a conviction for an offense. They shall
include detainees who are awaiting trial or who are undergoing trial, as well as those serving short
sentences but exclude detainees who are under investigation;
d)
Penal institutions – shall be used interchangeably with correctional facilities; and
e)
Prisoners – shall have the same meaning as inmates.
SEC. 4. Implementation of A System of Free Formal Education at All Levels in Penal 
Institutions. – The BuCor, the BJMP, and the provincial governments, in coordination with the DepEd and 
the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), shall establish and implement a system of free formal 
education from elementary to tertiary levels to be conducted on-site in all penal institutions throughout the 
country. 
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In the establishment and operation of such formal schooling, the safety and welfare of both the teachers 
and the inmates shall be paramount considerations. 
 
SEC. 5. Curriculum. – In the implementation of the school-in-prison program, the DepEd and the CHED 
shall follow the same curricula as prescribed in their regular academic programs.  
 
SEC. 6. Faculty. – All the teachers assigned or recruited under the program shall undergo special training 
in correctional education. They shall be entitled to reasonable traveling expenses, to and from the 
correctional facility, and hazard pay. 
 
The DepEd shall train qualified full-time teachers for the program, who preferably shall be residents of the 
barangay, municipality, city, or province where the correctional facility is located. 
 
The CHED shall establish linkages with the Local University or College (LUC) or State University or College 
(SUC) nearest to the correctional facility, which is willing to become an educational partner under the 
program, for purposes of recruiting qualified faculty members. 
 
In case of absence or shortage of professional teachers from the DepEd and/or the CHED, full-time 
employees of the Education Section of the BuCor and the BJMP, as applicable, may be recruited as faculty 
members under the program, subject to accreditation by the DepEd and the CHED. In no case, however, 
shall volunteers from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) or any other civic or private organization 
shall be recruited as teachers. 
 
SEC. 7. Inmate-Students. – All prisoners from the three (3) security groupings - minimum, medium, and 
maximum - as well as those awaiting trial, undergoing trial, or convicted with short sentences, shall be 
given access to education under the program. However, the concerned correctional facility shall adopt a 
rigid screening process that shall include a panel interview, to determine the desire to study and the current 
academic level of the applicants and to exclude probably unmotivated or disruptive students from the 
program. 
SEC. 8. Infrastructure and Facilities. – Subject to the availability of a parcel of land, there shall be 
constructed a building in all penal institutions shall house, among other facilities, classrooms, a computer 
room, an audio-visual room, and a library for the on-site implementation of the program. In the absence 
of an available lot, the visitors in I reception area, recreation area, prison chapel, and any other common 
area(s) shall be utilized for the implementation of the program. 
 
SEC. 9. Alternative Learning System (ALS), Vocational-Technical and/or Correspondence 
Courses. - The existing Alternative Learning System (ALS), vocational-technical, and/or correspondence 
courses, if any, in the various penal institutions of the country shall be continued and strengthened. 
 
SEC. 10. Credits or Allowance for Good Behavior. – Participation in the formal education system 
under this Act shall entitle the inmates to reasonable credits or allowance for good behavior.  
 
SEC. 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – Within one hundred and twenty (120) days from 
the effectivity of this Act, the BuCor, the BJMP, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government 
[on behalf of the provincial governments], together with the DepEd and the CHED, shall promulgate the 
Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). 
 
SEC. 12. Appropriations. – The amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act shall be included 
in the annual General Appropriations Act. 
 
SEC. 13. Separability Clause. – If any portion of this Act is declared unconstitutional, the same shall not 
affect the validity and effectivity of the other provisions not so affected. 
 


SEC. 14. Repealing Clause. – All laws, decrees, orders, issuances, rules, and regulations which are 
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.  
 
SEC. 15. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication either in the Official 
Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines. 
 
Approved,