EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session
S E N A T E  
S.B. N o ._____ ^5
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S  ■ • ' t i r p
“9 JUL-1 A 9 -42
Introduced bv SENATOR VICENTE C. SOTTO III
AN ACT
LOWERING THE MINIMUM AGE OF CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY 
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTIONS 6, 20, 20-A, 20-B AND 22 OF 
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9344, AS AMENDED, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS “THE 
JUVENILE JUSTICE AND WELFARE ACT OF 2 0 0 6 ”, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Lately, videos involving minors while committing crimes are going viral 
-  a 15-year-old beating to death with a piece of wood another minor; a group 
of “street children” caught dragging an old man out of a public utility 
jeepney to get his purse; and minors stealing jeepney driver’s income. 
Moreover, news headlines in the recent yeai's have the same tenor -  14-year- 
old boy beats older sister to death1; youngest surrenderer started drugs at 
82; drug war lists 20,584 kids as ‘users, pushers, runners’3. These current 
events put in the limelight the implementation and effectivity of Republic Act 
No. 9344, as amended, othemise known as “The Juvenile Justice and 
Welfare Act of 2006.”
In 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte calls on Congress to lower age of 
criminal liability “to ensure that the Filipino youth would accept 
responsibility for their actions and be subjected to government intervention
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programs.” 
This is consistent with President Duterte’s goal to curb 
criminality in the country.
According to the study conducted by the Child Rights International 
Network (CRIN)4 5, the average minimum age of criminal responsibility in the 
African region is 11, as well as in the Asian region; while for the American 
and European regions, it is 13. Furthermore, based on the same website, 
the minimum age of criminal liability is set at the federal and state level in 
the United States. At the state level, 33 states set no minimum age of 
criminal responsibility, theoretically allowing a child to be sentenced to 
criminal penalties at any age. Of the States that do set a minimum age of 
criminal responsibility. North Carolina has the lowest at seven years, while 
Wisconsin has the highest at ten years old.
Due to continuing challenge in the implementation of RA 9344, as 
amended, the aforesaid law must be further amended to lower the minimum 
age of criminal liability in order to adapt to the changing times. The State 
must ensure that those children in conflict with the law who are currently 
exempted from criminal liability who take advantage of the same must not 
be given the same privilege.
In view of the foregoing, the approval of this bill is highly 
recommended.
VICENTE C. SOTTO III
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EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session
S E N A T E  
S.B. N o ._____5-
C l'i  . .  c f  
- < r 
■ 
r, ■ >1
’9 
J'JL-1 
A9 :^2
Introduced by SENATOR VICENTE C. SOTTO III
AN ACT
LOWERING THE MINIMUM AGE OF CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY 
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTIONS 6, 20, 20-A, 20-B AND 22 OF 
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9344, AS AMENDED, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS “THE 
JUVENILE JUSTICE AND WELFARE ACT OF 2 0 0 6 ”, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Represent at ines of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
SECTION 1. Section 6 of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is 
hereby further amended to read as follows:
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“SEC. 6. Minimum Age of Criminal Respoi^sibility. - A CHILD 
BELOW EIGHTEEN (18) YEARS BUT ABOVE TWELVE (12) 
YEARS OF AGE AT THE TIME OF THE COMMISSION OF THE 
CRIME SHALL BE CRIMINALLY LIABLE AND BE SUBJECTED 
TO THE APPROPRIATE PROCEEDINGS IN ACCORDANCE WITH 
THIS ACT, UNLESS PROVEN THAT H E/SH E ACTED WITHOUT 
DISCERNMENT, IN WHICH CASE, SUCH CHILD SHALL BE 
EXEMPT 
FROM 
CRIMINAL 
LIABILITY 
AND 
SHALL 
BE 
SUBJECTED 
TO 
THE 
APPROPRIATE 
INTERVENTION 
PROGRAM.
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A CHILD IS DEEMED TO BE TWELVE (12) YEARS OF AGE ON 
THE DAY OF THE TWELFTH ANNIVERSARY OF H IS/H ER 
BIRTH DATE.
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The exemption from criminal liability herein established does not 
include exemption from civil liability, which shall be enforced in 
accordance with existing laws.”
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SECTION 2. Section 20 of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is
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hereby further amended to read as follows:
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“SEC. 20. Children Below the Age of Criminal Responsibility. - If it 
has been determined that the child talcen into custody is TWELVE


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( 12 ) years old or below, the authority which will have an initial 
contact with the child, in consultation with the local social welfare 
and development officer, has the duty to immediately release the 
child to the custody of his/her parents or guardian, or in the 
absence thereof, the child’s nearest relative. The child shall be 
subjected to a community-based intenention program supeiwised 
by the local social welfare and development officer, unless the best 
interest of the child requires the referral of the child to a youth 
care facility or ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ managed by LGUs or licensed 
and/or accredited NGOs monitored by the DSWD.
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"The local social welfare and development officer shall determine 
the appropriate programs for the child who has been released, in 
consultation with the child and the person having custody over the 
child. If the parents, guardians or nearest relatives cannot be 
located, or if they refuse to take custody, the child may be released 
to any of the following:
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"(a) A duly registered nongovernmental or religious organization;
"(b) A barangay official or a member of the Barangay Council for 
the Protection of Children (BCPC);
"(c) A local social welfare and development officer; or, when and 
where appropriate, the DSWD.
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"If the child has been found by the local social welfare and 
development officer to be dependent, abandoned, neglected or 
abused by his/her parents and the best interest of the child 
requires that he/she be placed in a youth care facility or ‘Bahay 
Pag-asa’, the child’s parents or guardians shall execute a written 
authorization for the voluntaiy commitment of the child: Provided, 
That if the child has no parents or guardians or if they refu.se or 
fail to execute the written authorization for voluntaiy commitment, 
the 
proper 
petition 
for 
involuntaiy 
commitment 
shall 
be 
immediately filed by the DSWD or the Local Social Welfare and 
Development Office (LSWDO) pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 
603, as amended, otherwise known as The Child and Youth 
Welfare Code’ and the Supreme Court rule on commitment of 
children: Provided, further. That the minimum age for children 
committed to a youth care facility or ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ shall be NINE 
(9) years old.”
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SECTION 3. Section 20-A of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is
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hereby further amended to read as follows:


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"SEC. 20-A. Serious Crimes Committed by Children Who Are Exempt 
From Criminal Responsibility. -  A child who is above NINE (9) years 
of age up to TWELVE (12) years of age and who commits parricide, 
murder, infanticide, kidnapping and serious illegal detention where 
the victim is killed or raped, roblieiy, with homicide or rape, 
destructive arson, rape, or carnapping where the driver or 
occupant is killed or raped or offenses under Republic Act No. 
9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) punishable 
by more than twelve (12) years of imprisonment, shall be deemed a 
neglected child under Presidential Decree No. 603, as amended, 
and shall be mandatorily placed in a special facility within the 
youth care faculty or ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ called the Intensive Juvenile 
Inten-ention and Support Center (IJISC).
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SECTION 4. Section 20-B of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is
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hereby further amended to read as follows:
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"SEC. 20-B. Repetition of Offenses. - A child who is above NINE (9) 
years of age up to TWELVE (12) years of age and who commits an 
offense for the second time or oftener: Provided, That (he child was 
previously subjected to a community-based inteiwention program, 
shall be deemed a neglected child under Presidential Decree No. 
603, as amended, and shall undergo an intensive inteiwention 
program supeiwised by the local social welfare and development 
officer: Provided, further. That, if the best interest of the child 
requires that he/she be placed in a youth care facility or ‘Bahay 
Pag-asa’, the child’s parents or guardians shall e.xecute a written 
authorization for the voluntaiy commitment of the child: Provided, 
fnally, That if the child has no parents or guardians or if they 
refuse or fail to e.xecute the written authorization for voluntary 
commitment, the proper petition for involuntary commitment shall 
be immediately filed by the DSWD or the LSWDO pursuant to 
Presidential Decree No. 603, as amended."
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SECTION 5. Section 22 of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is
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hereby further amended to read as follows:
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“SEC. 22. Duties During Initial Investigation. - The law enforcement 
officer shall, in his/her investigation, detennine where the case 
involving the child in conflict with the law should be referred.
x x x


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"The social worker shall conduct an initial assessment to 
determine the appropriate inteiwentions and whether the child 
acted with discernment, using the discernment assessment tools 
developed by the DSWD. The initial assessment shall be without 
prejudice to the preparation of a more comprehensive case study 
report. The local social worker shall do either of the following;
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"(a) Proceed in accordance with Section 20 if the child is NINE (9) 
years [or below or above fifteen (15)] [but below] UP TO TWELVE 
(12) years old [, who acted without discernment]; and
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"(b) If the child is above TWELVE (12) years old but below eighteen 
(18) and who acted with OR WITHOUT discernment, proceed to 
diversion under the following chapter."
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SECTION 6. Section 63 of Republic Act No. 9344, as amended, is
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hereby further amended to read as follows:
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"SEC. 63. Appropriations. -  The amount nceessaiy to cany out the 
provisions of this Act shall be charged against the current year’s 
appropriations of the JJWC under the budget of the Department of 
Justice. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the 
continued implementation of this Act shall be included in the 
budget of the DSWD under the annual General Appropriations 
Act: Prowded, That the amount of Four hundred million pesos 
(P400,000,000.00) shall be appropriated for the construction of 
‘Bahay Pag-asa’ rehabilitation centers in provinces or cities with 
high incidence of children in conflict with the law to be determined 
and identified by the DSWD and the JJWC on a priority 
basis: Provided, further, That the said mnount shall be [coursed 
through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)] 
GIVEN DIRECTLY TO THE LGU CONCERNED for its proper 
implementation.
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"The LGUs concerned shall make available, from its own resources 
or assets, their counterpart share equivalent to the national 
government 
contribution 
of TWENTY 
MILLION 
PESOS 
(P 
20,000,000.00) per rehabilitation center.
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"In addition, the Council may accept donations, grants and 
contributions from various sources, in cash or in kind, for 
purposes relevant to its functions, subject to the usual government 
accounting and auditing rules and regulations."


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SECTION 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. -  The Juvenile
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Justice and Welfare Council (JJWC) shall within sixty (60) days from the
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effectivity of this Act promulgate the necessary rules and 
regulations to
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effectively implement the provisions of this Act.
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SECTION 8. Separability Clause. -  If any portion or provision of this
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Act is declai’ed unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act not affected
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thereby shall remain in force and effect.
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SECTION 9. Repealing Clause. -  Any law, presidential decree or
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issuance, 
executive order, letter of instruction, 
rule 
or regulation
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inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed or modified
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accordingly.
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SECTION 10. Effectivity Clause. -  This Act shall take effect after
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fifteen (15) days from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette or a
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newspaper of general circulation.
Approved.