1 
Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 703 
Introduced by REP. JAVIER MIGUEL “JAVI” L. BENITEZ 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Arts and design are powerful media to promote and preserve our rich cultural 
heritage, and cultivate national pride. Recognizing this, the framers of the 1987 
Constitution made arts and cultural promotion a pillar of state policy. (Sec. 17, 
Art. II)  
The Constitution calls on the State to harness our creative spirit, and intellectual 
and artistic traditions to catalyze economic development. The United Nations 
Conference on Trade and Development calls this process building a “creative 
economy”.  
One way to harness our cultural capital to foster a dynamic and competitive 
Philippine creative economy is through education.  
This bill is a step towards this direction. This bill seeks to establish a school that 
will nurture the talent of the youth of Negros Occidental in the arts and design. 
The fertile volcanic soils of Negros Occidental are not only producing the 
country’s sweetest export but also the country’s best artists and artisans. Many 
Negrenses have gained prominence in different art forms, such as mezzo-
soprano Conchita Gaston, National Artist for Architecture Leandro Locsin, 
writer Doreen Gamboa Fernandez, and filmmakers Peque Gallaga and Erik 
Matti.  
Artist collectives and trade associations have also put Negros Occidental in the 
map through high-turnout exhibits and fairs showcasing the creativity and 
craftsmanship of Negrenses. The VIVA ExCon, a biennal arts festival, has been 
drawing artists all over the Visayas for 30 years now, providing a venue for art 
criticism and artist collaboration. The Negros Trade Fair, on the other hand, 
July 1, 2025
8:04 am


2 
organized by the Association of Negros Producers, has been shining a spotlight 
on Negros culinary delights, and fashion and furniture. 
A high school for the arts and design in Negros Occidental will buoy the 
Negrense creative spirit and ensure continuity of its artistic traditions. And 
there is no better place to host the school than Silay City, called the Paris of 
Negros for its beautifully preserved heritage houses that take tourists in a time 
travel back to the gilded age of sugar barons. 
In view of the foregoing, the enactment of this measure is earnestly sought. 
JAVIER MIGUEL L. BENITEZ 


3 
Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 703
Introduced by REP. JAVIER MIGUEL “JAVI” L. BENITEZ 
AN ACT ESTABLISHING THE NEGROS OCCIDENTAL HIGH SCHOOL 
FOR THE ARTS AND DESIGN AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS 
THEREFOR 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. There is hereby established a high school for the arts and 
design to be known as the Negros Occidental High School for the Arts and 
Design, hereinafter referred to as “School”. It shall be located in the City of Silay 
and provide quality education and skills development for talented individuals 
in the Province of Negros Occidental, and promote and preserve local cultural 
heritage. 
The School shall be under the administrative supervision of the Department of 
Education.  
SEC. 2. Curriculum. The Board of Trustees shall formulate, subject to the 
standards prescribed by Republic Act No. 10533, a special secondary education 
curriculum for the School to develop essential learning competencies and 
cultivate excellence of students within a multi-disciplinary perspective in the 
following creative forms: 
a) Music (Voice and Instrument)
b) Dance


 
4 
c) Theater arts 
d) Visual arts, photography and graphic design 
e) Fashion and interior design 
f) Creative writing (English and Filipino) 
g) Audio-visual content development 
h) Animation and game development 
 
The School shall utilize different delivery modes to facilitate learning and take 
advantage of existing and emerging digital technologies to develop 
competencies, and enable and enhance the production of creative content of 
students.  
 
SEC. 3. Admission. The Board of Trustees shall determine the 
requirements for admission to the School, graduation and grant of honors. 
 
The School shall take affirmative action to ensure equitable access of 
underprivileged students, such as indigenous peoples, persons with 
disabilities, and poor and deserving students, to the programs of the School.  
 
No student shall be denied admission to the School by reason solely of age, 
gender, nationality, religious belief, economic status, ethnicity, physical 
disability, or political opinion. 
 
SEC. 4. Board of Trustees. The governance of the School is vested in the 
Board of Trustees, hereinafter referred to as the “Board”, composed of the 
following: 
 
a) the Regional Director of the DepEd Western Visayas Regional Office, 
as Chairperson; 
 
b) A permanent representative of the NCCA, who shall be no lower than 
a Division Head; 
 
c) the Governor of the Province of Negros Occidental; 
 
d) the Representative of the Third Legislative District of Negros 
Occidental; 
 
e) the Director of the School; 
 
f) a representative of the School’s faculty and non-teaching personnel, to 
serve for two (2) years, selected in accordance with the rules set by all 
teaching and non-teaching personnel, regardless of status of 
employment; 
 


 
5 
g) six (6) members who distinguished themselves in music, dance, visual 
arts, design and animation, creative writing, and theater and film, to 
serve for two (2) years, subject to reappointment;  
 
The Regional Director of DepEd shall appoint the six (6) members representing 
creative industries from a list of nominees submitted by any person or 
association of good standing in the community.  
 
SEC. 5. Powers and Functions of the Board. The Board shall have the 
following powers and functions: 
 
a) formulate, in consultation with stakeholders and within six (6) months 
since the approval of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of this 
Act, a five-year Development Plan that lays down specific targets and 
interventions to achieve and maintain a high quality of education, and 
contribute to community development through research and extension 
programs; 
 
b) determine the criteria for the selection and admission of students, which 
shall include a written examination and/or a talent determination test; 
 
c) approve the graduation of students and grant of honors, as 
recommended by the Executive Committee; 
 
d) formulate the rules on student discipline, in consultation with the 
faculty, parents and students; 
 
e) draw up a position classification and compensation plan for its faculty 
and staff, and appoint faculty members and other officials and 
employees, subject to the standards, guidelines and rules set by the 
Department of Education, Civil Service Commission and Department of 
Budget and Management; 
 
f) approve the grant of fellowships, scholarships, stipends and other 
allowances to deserving faculty and students, based on merit and/or 
financial capacity; 
 
g) prescribe rules for its own government and the discipline of the faculty 
and other personnel and to enact for the government of the national 
university such general policies, rules and regulations, not contrary to 
law, as are consistent with its purpose; 
 
h) authorize the construction, maintenance or rehabilitation of its 
buildings, equipment and other facilities, acquisition of real property 
and procurement of supplies, materials and equipment when necessary; 


 
6 
 
i) establish linkages and partnerships with local government units, 
government agencies and institutions, private and public, local and 
foreign, in the furtherance of the purposes and objectives of the School; 
 
j) solicit, negotiate with and receive in trust from private local and foreign 
sources legacies, gifts, donations, grants, endowments, contributions or 
other transfers of ownership and/or possession of real and personal 
property of all kinds and to administer and dispose the same when 
necessary for the benefit of the School, subject to the instructions, terms 
and conditions of the donor, if any, and in compliance with relevant 
accounting and auditing rules and regulations; and, 
 
k) exercise the general powers set out in the Corporation Code. 
 
SEC. 6. Director. The School shall be headed by a Director who shall be 
appointed by the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees from a list of nominees 
submitted by any person or association of good standing in the community. 
The Chairperson of the Board shall appoint a Director within ninety (90) days 
since the approval of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of this Act.  
 
The Director shall serve for a term of five (5) years, subject to reappointment. 
The Director shall coordinate the implementation of School policies and 
programs with the assistance of such other officials appointed by the Board 
upon his/her recommendation. The functions, powers and duties of the 
Director, in addition to those specifically provided for in this Act, shall be those 
usually pertaining to the office of the principal of any high school in the 
Philippine education system. 
  
SEC. 7. Faculty. The faculty of the School shall exercise academic 
freedom. In no case shall gender, ethnicity, religious belief and political opinion 
be a matter of inquiry in the appointment of faculty members; Provided, That, 
the hiring, promotion, renewal or removal of faculty shall be subject to 
standards and guidelines set by the Board. 
 
SEC. 8. Executive Committee. There shall be an Executive Committee 
consisting of the Director, the heads of departments and other School officials 
as may be determined by the Director. The Committee shall screen and select 
the students to be admitted to the School, subject to the criteria approved by 
the Board. The Committee shall implement and execute the policies laid down 
by the Board and exercise such other functions, powers and duties as the Board 
may prescribe. 
 
SEC. 9. Organizational Structure. The Department of Budget and 
Management shall, within six (6) months since the the approval of the 


 
7 
Implementing Rules and Regulations of this Act, determine the organizational 
structure and create plantilla positions, upon recommendation of the Board, to 
ensure the efficiency and quality of the delivery of services of the School. 
 
SEC. 10. Funding. The initial funding for the operations of the School shall 
be charged against the current appropriations of DepEd. Thereafter, the 
amount needed for the implementation of this Act shall be included in the 
annual General Appropriations Act.  
 
SEC. 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. The Department of 
Education, in coordination with the National Commission for Culture and the 
Arts, local authorities and other stakeholders, shall issue the implementing 
rules and regulations within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act. 
 
SEC. 12. Separability Clause. If any provision of this Act is held invalid 
or unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the 
other provisions hereof. 
 
SEC. 13. Repealing Clause. All other laws, decrees, executive orders and 
rules and regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act 
are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
 
SEC. 14. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation. 
 
Approved,