Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

se pi no, 4855

HOUS!

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVES MARIA LOURDES ACOSTA-ALBA, KARLO ALEXEI
B, NOGRALES and MEL SENEN 8, SARMIENTO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to institutionalize alternative family care for children as an option other
than adoption and foster family care

Adoption normally provides the orphaned child with the best substitute for the family he
or she has lost, But only few of these children have the chance of being adopted. Many of them
fail to meet the requirements of prospective parents who have decided ideas regarding the origin,
appearance, intelligence or age of the child they wish to adopt. All too often there is some
obstacle to their adoption. Sometimes relatives make difficulties or even refuse to give their
consent.

Children who have no chance of being adopted would be best cared for in a foster home
which, after adoption, best fulfils the ideal of a family upbringing, This, however, is only true of
the good foster home. Children placed in less satisfactory foster families are exposed to new
dangers,

‘The proposed measnre seeks to fill gap in the existing welfare facilities by creating
foster homes of a new kind which could be adapted on a broader basis to each child’s needs. The
ill promotes child development within a cating family environment, In particular, this bill
strives to promote and protect the "caring" element of a family environment, so that each child
has a caring parent or alternative parental caregiver who cm guide and support the child's
development, It strives for siblings to be able to stay together, unless this is not in their best
interests. Within a caring family environment, the family creates a "home" where children enjoy
a real sense of seeurity and belonging,

‘The 2009 United Nations Guidelines for Altemative Care of Children, to which the
Philippines is a signatory thereof, enhances the implementation of the UN Convention of the
Rights of the Child to ensure that children do not find themselves in alternative care
unnecessarily, and where out-ofhome care is provided, it is delivered under appropriate
conditions responding to the child’s rights and best interests.



‘The bill seeks to combine all the advantages of the private foster family through an
Alternative Care Agency (ACA) with those of the best type of children’s home, while
eliminating the disadvantages stated above.

‘The ACA is basically very like an ordinary private foster family, It has, however, certain
advantages. It can be supervised and controlied in its work, and adults in-charge of the children
can be carefully selected and trained, It has the merit of existing solely in the interests of the
children committed to its care. It is exclusively concerned with meeting their needs and with
caring for their many and diverse problems.

Unlike adoption or foster care, alternative care of children does not totally cut off
children’s contact with their biological families. Except when the children's welfare will be
endangered, or they are abnsed by their own family members, altemative care of children allows
biological parents and families to participate in the rearing of the children given to the care of
ACAs, This ensures that the unity and strength of family units is preserved.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this measure is most eanggtly sought.

MARIA LOURDES AC KARLG ALEXEI B, NOGRALES
First District, Bukidnon First District, Davao City

MEL Ou ENTO

First District, Western Samar



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 4855

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVES MARIA LOURDES ACOSTA-ALBA, KARLO ALEXEI
B, NOGRALES and MEL SENEN S. SARMIENTO

AN ACT
RECOGNIZING AND STRENGTHENING ALTERNATIVE CARE OF CHILDRI
PROVIDING INCENTIVES TO AGENCIES PROVIDING THE SAME

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

Section 1. Short Title, - This Act shall be known as the “Alternative Care of Children
Act.”

Section 2. Declaration of Principlesand State Policies. ~The State shall defend the right
of children to assistance, including proper care and nutrition, and special protection from all
forms of neglect, abuse, cruelty, exploitation or other conditions prejudicial to their development.
It shall provide every child who is neglected, abused, surrendered, dependent, abandoned, under
sociocultural difficulties, with an alternative family that will provide love and care as well as
opportunities for growth and development.

Further, the State shall guarantee that all the rights of the child enumerated under Article
3 of Presidential Decree No. 603, otherwise known as “The Child and Youth Welfare Code”, as
amended, and the rights found under Article 20 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child shall be observed.

Finally, the State recognizes that aside from adoption and foster care, alternative child
care shall be established in compliance to UN Guidelines on Alternative Care for Children that
will promote the child’s growth and development, and at the same time provide the biological
family with the opportunity to continue its involvement in child rearing.

Towards this end, the State shall provide every child who is neglected, abused,
surrendered, dependent, abandoned, under socio-cultural difficulties, whose biological family
cannot provide basic necessities, or with special needs with alternative family care that will
provide love and care as well as opportunities for growth and development, without unduly
severing the bonds of the child and the biological family.


The State shall also protect the child’s right to health.

Section 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following terms are
defined

(a) Alternative Care of Children (ACC) refers to the provision of planned temporary
substitute parental care to a child by an Agency pursuant to Section 4 of this Act and as may be
defined by its implementing rules and regulations.

(b) Alternative Care Agency (ACA) - refers to a child-earing or child-placing institution
licensed and accredited by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to
provide altemative care in coordination with the host Local Government Unit pursuant to
Chapter IV Section 34 of RA 7160.

(e) Alternative Care License (license) refers to the document issued by the DSWD
authorizing an agency fo provide altemative care.

(@) Child refers to a person below eighteen (18) years of age, or one who is over eighteen
(18) but is unable to filly take cate of or protect oneself from abuse, neglect, cruelty,
exploitation or discrimination because of'a physical or mental disability or condition

(©) Family vefers to the parents or brothers and sisters, whether of the full or half blood,
of the child.

(£) Parent refers to the biological or adoptive parent or legal guardian of a child.
Section 4. Guiding Principles af ACC. ~ ACC shall be guided by the following:

(@) All decisions concerning alternative care should take full account of the desirability,
in principle, of maintaining the child as close as possible to his/her habitnal place of residence, in
order to facilitate contact and potential reintegration with his/her family and to minimized
disniption of his/her educational, cultural, and social life,

(6) Decisions regarding children in alternative care, including those in informal care,
should have due regard for the importance of ensuring children a family-based care, group foster
care and of meeting their basic need for safe and long-term relationships to their caregivers, with
permanency generally being a key goal

(©) Children must be treated with dignity and respect at all times and must benefit from
effective protection from abuse, neglect, and all forms of exploitation, whether on the part of
care providers, peers or third parties, in whatever care setting they may find themselves

(@) Siblings with existing bonds should in principle not be separated from placements in
altemative care unless there is @ clear risk of abuse or other justification in the best interest of the



child, In any ease, every effort should be made to enable siblings to grow together, maintain
contact with each other unless this is against their wishes or interests

(e) Provisions of alternative care should never be undertaken with a prime purpose of
furthering the political, religions, or economic goals of the providers

Such other principles in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the

Child.
Section 5, Purposes. - The purposes ofan ACA shall be as follow:

(a) To cooperate with public authorities in providing alternative care to abandoned,
dependent, and neglected children as defined in Presidential Decree No, 603 and Republic Act
No, 7610,

(b) To support efforts to keep children in, or return them to the care of their family or,
{hiling this, to find another appropriate and permanent eolution;

(c) To ensure that, while such permanent solutions are being sought or in cases where
they are not possible or are not in the best interest of the child, the most suitable forms of
alternative care are identified and provided under conditions that promote the child’s full and
harmonious development;

(d) To assist the Government to better implement their responsibilities and obligations in
these respects, bearing in mind the economic, social, and cultural conditions;

(e) To guide policies, decisions, and activities of all concemed with the sovial protection
and child welfare in bath the public and the private sectors, inchuding the civil society.

(fH Such other purposes to attain the guidelines and principles of the UN Convention on
the Rights of the Child and local statutes.

Section 6.Parental Authority of an ACA, — ACAs shall be in loco parentis, exercising
the rights, duties and liabilities of persons exercising substitute parental authorityover the
children under their foster care, as may be provided for by Executive Order No. 209, series of
1987 (“Family Code of the Philippines”), Provided, that ACAs shall only have the rights of a
person with special parental authority to discipline the children under their care and protection as
defined under Section 233 of the Family Code, insofar as it prohibits the infliction of corporal
punishment upon the child,

Section 7. Priviteges, - To allow it to fully realize its mandate, an accredited ACA shall:

(@) Enter into agreements with public authorities, and accept provisions for the cost of
any service of activity which may be entrusted to it, within the scope of its object and functions,
pursuant to such agreements,



(b) Own end hold real and personal properties and accept bequests, donations and
contributions of property of all classes,

(e) Any donation, contribution, bequest, and grant which may be made to the agency
shall be exempt from donor’s tax and the same shall be considered as allowable deduction from
the gross income of the donor, in accordance with the provisions of the National Intemal
Revenue Code, as amended, provided, that such agency are accredited NGO pursuant to
Executive Order No, 720, series of 2008;

Finally, the ageney shall be exempt from the payment of real property taxes on all real
properties owned by it

Section 8. Who May Be Placed Under AltemativeCare, ~ The following may be placed
in alternative care:

(a) Achild who is abandoned, surrendered, neglected, dependent or orphaned;

(b) A child who is a victim of sexual, physical, or any other form of abuse or
exploitation,

(c) A child with special needs,

(@) A child whose family members are temporarily or permanently unable or unwilling to
provide the child with adequate care;

(©) A child who needs long-term care and close family ties but who cannot be placed for
domestic adoption;

(f) A child who is under socially difficult circumstances such as, but not limited to, a
street child, a child in armed conflict or a victim of child labor or trafficking;

(@ A child who committed a minor offense but is released on recognizance, or who is in
custody supervision or whose case is dismissed; and

(@ A child who is in need of special protection us assessed by a social worker, an agency
or the DSWD,

Section 9. Role of the Department af Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).-(a)
Issuance of License. ~ The DSWD shall have the authority to accredit by iseuing an Alternative
Care license based on the application by the agency to include stipulation of its track record and
to determine the motivations, capacities and potentials of said agency. The license is renewable
every three (3) years unless earlier revoked by the DSWD.

(b) Periodic Review. ~The DSWD shall review its existing alternative care guidelines,
align ito the UN Guidelines anid domestic laws and conduct periodic review on it


Section 10, Role of Local Government Units (LGUs). ~ ‘The host LGU, pursuant to
Scetion 108 of Republic Act No. 7160 (“Local Government Code”), shall accredit alternative
care agencies that are duly recognized by the DSWDin their locality. shall put in place
monitoring mechanisms over these alternative care agencies

The LGU, through its Local Social Welfare and Development Office, shall include the
provisions of this Act in the development of its plans and strategies, and upon approval thereof
by the governor or mayor, ns the case may be, implement the same particularly those which have
to do with social welfare programs and projects which the governor or mayor is empowered to
implement and which the sanggunian is empowered to provide for under the Local Government
Code

Section 11. Seminars and Trainings. ~The DSWD, in coordination with the Department
of the Interior and Local Govemment (DILG), is hereby mandated to develop and provide
programs fo ensnre the awareness and responsiveness of local government officials in the
promotion and development of the alternative care system in every cily, municipality or
barangay.

Section 12, Unlavfuel Solicitation, - It shall be unlawful for any person to solicit, collect
or receive money, materials or property of any kind by falsely representing himself to be a
member, agent or representative of any alternative care agency:

Section 13. Penal Clause, Any person, whether natural or juridical, violating any
section of this Act shall, upon convietion therefore, be liable to a fine of not less than fifty
thousand pesos (P50,000,00) or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one (1) year, or both, at
the discretion of the court for each and every violation. In ease the violation i¢ committed by a
corporation or an association, the penalty ehall devolve upon the President, Director or any other
officer responsible for such violation,

Section 14. Alternative Care of Children (ACC) Committee. — There is hereby created
an Alternative Care of Children Committee, chaired by the DSWD Secretary, The secretaries, or
duly appointed representatives of the Department of Health, Department of Education,
Department of the Interior and Looal Government, Council for the Welfare of Children, and the
various local government leagues shall be members thereof.

Section 15.Duties of the ACC Committee.The ACC Committee shall primarily monitor
the implementation, review, and recommend changes in policies concerning alternative family
care and other matters related to the child’s welfare. it shall submit to the DSWD Secretary and
to Congress an annual report of the policies, programs and activities relative to the
implementation of this Act, and recommendations for remedial legislation to strengthen
alternative family care.

Section 16./mplementing Rules and Regulations. ~The DSWD, as lead agency, the
Department of Instice (DON), the Department of Health (DOH), the Bureau of Internal Revenue
(BIR), the Council on Welfare of Children (CWO), the DILG, with institutions presently
providing altemative family care, the Leagues Provinces, Cities, and Municipalities, and Liga ng



mga Barangay, and olher concemed government agencies, in consultation with agencies are
hereby mandated to prepare and draft the RR to operationalize the provisions of this Act within
ninety (90) days trom its effectivity.

Section 17. Suppletory Clause. — The provisions of Executive Onder No, 209, series of
1987, otherwise known as the Family Code of the Philippines and other applicable laws, slull
have suppletory application to this Act.

Section 18. Repealing Clause. ~ Any law, presidential decree, issuance, executive order,
letter of instruction, administrative order, rule and regulation contrary to or inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

Section 19. Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected hereby shall remain valid and subsisting,

Section 20. Eifectivity. — This Act shall take effet fifteen (15) days after its publication
in two (2) newspapers of general circulation or in the Official Gazette.

Approved,