THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
‘4x4 
!I% 26 n ! ‘22 
First Regular Session 
1 
S. B. No. 
1465 
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Introduced by Senator Manuel “Lito” M. Lapid 
PLANATORY NOTE 
The number of school facilities built has not met the yearly requirements caused 
by the steady increase in enrollment. As a result, there is the perennial problem of 
classroom shortage which contributes to the deteriorating quality of our education 
system. 
Today, the national classroom-student ratio for elementary and secondary public 
schools is a staggering 1:65, due largely to the free education program, which has not 
been met by a corresponding increase in the number of classrooms. With only Php2.5 
Billion allocated for school buildings in the 2003 GAA, the backlog of school rooms will 
increase to 30,100 classrooms by the end of 2008. To attain the ideal classroom- 
student ratio in the, next five (5) years, a total of 129,000 new classrooms have to be 
constructed excluding those that have to be rehabilitated. 
The bill seeks to create a comprehensive program which will address the 
problem of classroom shortage. A salient feature of this bill is the provision of build- 
operate-transfer, build-lease-transfer, build-transfer, rehabilitate-operate-transfer, and 
other contractual arrangements that will allow the use of both government and private 
funds to finance the construction of needed school buildings, and the creation of an 
inter-agency committee to formulate and ensure the effective implementation of the 
program by the Department of Education (DepEd). The program also provides for the 
integration of all ’ the necessary information for the effective monitoring and 
maintenance of exiking school buildings. 
It is hoped that with the passage of this bill, class sizes will be reduced to a 
manageable level for a more conducive learning environment and thus result in the 
improvement in the quality of our education. 
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For the abovementioned reasons, approval of this bill is 
MANUEL “LITO” M. L A P 6  
senatorlY 


THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
“04 >.rill- 26 i? 9 :7 1 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
E 
First Regular Session 
1 
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S E N A T E  
S. 6. No. 
1465 
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Introduced by Senator Manuel “Lito” M. Lapid 
AN ACT 
ESTABLISH IN G 
A 
PROGRAM 
FOR 
THE 
ACQUlSlTlON OF SCHOOL 
SITES AND 
THE 
CONSTRUCTION, 
MAINTENANCE, 
REHABILITATION, 
AND 
REPAIR OF SCHOOL 
BUILDINGS IN THE PUBLIC ELEMENTARY AND 
SECONDARY 
SCHOOLS 
NATIONWIDE, 
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR 
OTHER PURPOSE§ 
Be if enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of the 
Philippines in Congress Assembled: 
SECTION 1. 
Tif/e. - This Act shall be known as the “School Building 
Program Act of 2004”. 
SEC. 2. 
School Building Program Objectives. - There shall be established 
a comprehensive and continuing School Building Program, hereinafter referred to as 
the “Program”, which shall have the following objectives: 
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a. To provi e a system for an accurate inventory of all existing public primary 
and secondary school buildings, with proper indications as to their location, 
size, capacity, condition, and compliance with basic building safety 
requirements; 
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b 
elementary 
C. 
d. 
and secondary schools nationwide, with the aim of reducing 
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i. 


SEC. 3. 
Inter-Agency Committee, - To formulate and ensure the effective 
implementation of the program, there is hereby created an inter-agency committee to 
be headed by the Secretary of the Department of Education (DepEd) as Chairperson, 
and the respective Secretaries of the Department of Public Works and Highways 
(DPWH), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and the Department of the 
Interior and Local Government (DILG), as members. The committee shall within one 
(1) year from the approval of this Act, submit to the Committee on Education of both 
Houses of Congress and every year thereafter, the comprehensive school-building 
program herein established. 
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SEC. 4. 
ilmplementation of fhe Program. - Consistent with the provisions of 
Republic Act No. 7880, otherwise known as the "Fair and Equitable Access to 
Education Act", the Committee shall determine and supervise the acquisition andlor 
construction of priority school building projects to be implemented by the DepEd as 
provided in the Program. The DepEd is hereby authorized to enter into contracts with 
duly pre-qualified private contractors for the design and construction management, as 
well as the financing, construction, operation, maintenance of school buildings through 
the build operate and transfer, build and transfer, build-lease and transfer, rehabilitate- 
operate and transfer and other contractual arrangement schemes provided under R.A. 
No. 6957. 
SEC. 5. 
Release of Maintenance and Other Operating Expenditures. - For 
the purpose of ensuring compliance of such contractual arrangement as may 
hereinafter be entered, the appropriation of DepEd for the School Building Program 
and for Maintenance and other Operating Expenditures shall be directly released to 
DepEd according to the work and financial schedule stipulated in the program. 
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SEC. 6. 
Appropriation. - The amount necessary to attain the objectives of 
this Act shall be authorized to be appropriated out of the unallocated share of the 
national government in the income of the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation 
(PAGCOR), for a period of five (5) years. 
If the above amount is inadequate and insufficient, such amount as may be 
necessary to augment said annual appropriations shall be included in the General 
Appropriations Act. 
SEC. 7. 
Separability Clause. - 
If any provision in this Act is declared 
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other 
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provisions hereof. 
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Repealing Clause. 
- 
All laws, decrees, orders, rules and 
regulations and all ther issuances or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Act 
are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
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SEC. a. 
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SEC. 9. 
'Effectivify Clause. - This Act shall take effect upon its publication 
in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved,