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

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

175

House Bill No.

Introduced by Representative MARLESA “DOC MARLY” HOFER-HASIM

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Death, while an inevitable part of life, remains a profound source of emotional and
financial burden especially for poor Filipino families. The costs associated with laying a loved one
to rest often force grieving families to incur debts or resort to undignified means of burial. This
proposed measure secks to alleviate such burdens by institutionalizing the provision of free funeral
services to poor families

Under this Act, accredited funeral establishments across the country shall provide free
funeral services to poor families. This may include embalming, a standard casket, funeral chapel
use, and transportation to the burial site

This bill recognizes that access to decent and respectful funeral services is not a privilege,
but a matter of social justice. In upholding the dignity of every Filipino, even in death, the State
fulfills its constitutional mandate to promote social welfare and protect the underprivileged from
undue hardship.

This bill was passed in third reading in the Senate in the 19th Congress by Senator Imee
Marcos.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought.

n
MARLESA “DOC MARLY” HOFER-HASIM
Representative, 2 District of Zamboanga Sibugay


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Quezon City, Metro Manila

TWENTIETH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

175

House Ne

Introduced by Representative MARLESA “DOC MARLY” HOFER-HASIM.

AN ACT
GRANTING FREE FUNERAL SERVICES TO POOR FAMILIES, APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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 “Free Funeral Services Act”.

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to promote a just and
dynamic social order that ensures the prosperity and independence of the nation and frees the
people from poverty through policies that provide adequate social services and promote full
employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all. To this end, the
State shall give free funeral services to poor families who cannot afford a proper burial for their
deceased.


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SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act

(a)Funeral Establishment refers to a licensed business that provides funeral services, such
as funeral parlors, funeral chapels, and any similar place used in the preparation,
transportation, storage, and care of the body of a deceased person for burial or cremation,

(b)Indigent Funeral Package refers to the preparation of funeral documents, embalming,
interment or burial services, transport, cremation, and inurnment services, including the
provision of a casket, um, or venue, as the case may be, offered by funeral establishments;
and

(c)Poor refers to those families whose income falls below the poverty threshold as defined
by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and/or who cannot sustain
or provide their minimum basic needs of food, health, education, housing, or other essential
amenities of life as defined under Republic Act No. 8425, otherwise known as the “Social

Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act”.

SECTION 4. Coverage. — Free funeral services shall be provided to families who are in
crisis situations, as determined by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD),
including but not limited to indigent families, or those affected by calamities, disasters, or other

emergency circumstances that prevent them from affording dignified funeral services.

SECTION 5. Free Funeral Services for Poor Families. — Free funeral services shall be
provided to poor families per death of a family member by accredited funeral establishments
anywhere in the country: Provided, That every funeral establishment shall have a uniform indigent
funeral package, regardless of such establishment's type or location available to all poor families,
as determined by and in coordination with the DSWD.

SECTION 6. Requirements for Availing the Indigent Funeral Package - The bereaved
family or representative must present the following to avail the indigent funeral package:

(a) Valid identification card of the claimant or beneficiary;

(b) Death certificate issued by the hospital or city/municipal health office, or certification
from the tribal chieftain;

(c)Funeral contract signed by the representative of the deceased’s family, the funeral
establishment, and an authorized DSWD personnel; and

(d)Social case study prepared by any registered social worker.


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SECTION 7. Lead Agency.— The DSWD shall be the lead agency in the implementation
of this Act and shall engage the services of funeral establishments in the country. ‘The Department
of Trade and Industry (DTI) shall monitor and regulate the current market prices of funeral

services, including the price of caskets and urns, to prevent undue or excessive price increases.

SECTION 8. Payment of Indigent Funeral Package. - Funeral establishments granting
free services to poor beneficiaries shall be paid the cost of the services by any regional office of
the DSWD upon the approval of the Regional Director. The payment will be based on the
stipulations of the signed contract between the representative of the deceased’ family, the funeral
establishment, and the authorized DSWD personnel.

SECTION. 9. Prohibited Acts.
The following acts shall be prohibited under this Act:

(a) Refusal to Provide Services. — Refusal or unjustified failure of any accredited
funeral establishment to provide the indigent funeral package to qualified beneficiaries, as
determined by and in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD), without valid cause;

(b) Overpricing and Unauthorized Charges. — Charging of any form of fee,
surcharge, or hidden cost to beneficiaries or their families in connection with the indigent
funeral package, or imposing prices inconsistent with the uniform indigent funeral package
or those regulated by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI);

(c) Non-compliance with Contractual Obli s. — Failure of any funeral
establishment to deliver the agreed-upon services as stipulated in the funeral contract
signed by the family representative, the funeral establishment, and the authorized DSWD

personnel;

(d) Collusion or Fraudulent Schemes. ~ Participation in any form of collusion,
fraud, or scheme between funeral establishments, claimants, or DSWD personnel to exploit
or abuse the provisions of this Act;

(e) Obstruction of Implementation. ~ Any act that obstructs, delays, or interferes
with the lawful implementation of this Act by the DSWD or its accredited funeral
establishment partners.

(£) Misrepresentation. ~ Falsification or misrepresentation by any person or party
of eligibility or requirements in order to avail of the benefits provided under this Act;

SECTION 10. Penalties. - Any violation of Section 9(a-e) of this Act shall be penalized
with a fine not exceeding Two hundred thousand pesos (P200,000,00) and a suspension of license
to operate for a period not exceeding six (6) months. Repeated violations after the suspension of


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its license to operate is lifted, shall be penalized with a fine not exceeding Four hundred thousand
pesos (P400,000,00) and revocation of such license to operate.

Any individual or establishment found to have fraudulently availed or facilitated the
availment of free funeral services under Section 9(f) of this Act through false representation,
document falsification, or collusion shall be penalized with imprisonment of not less than six (6)

months and a fine not exceeding Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00).

SECTION 11. Appropriations. — The amount necessary for the initial implementation of
this Act shall be charged against the current year’s appropriations for the Assistance to Individuals
in Crisis Situations (AICS) Program and other similar programs of the DSWD. Thereafter, such
amount needed for the continued implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual

General Appropriations Act

SECTION 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations, ~- The DSWD shall promulgate the
implementing rules and regulations within sixty (60) days from the effectivity of this Act.

SECTION 13. . Separability Clause. — If any portion or provision of this Act is declared
void or unconstitutional, the remaining portions or provisions hereof shall not be affected by such

declaration.

SECTION 14. . Repealing Clause. — Any provision of law or regulations inconsistent

herewith is hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly.

SECTION 15. . Effectivity — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication

in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,