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295 PH H

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
ThirdRegular Session

House Bill No. 6392

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVEARTHUR C. YAP

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Artist is a descriptive term applied to a person who engages in an
activity deemed to be an art. An artist may also be defined unofficially as "a
person who expresses him- or herself - through a medium". The word is also
used in a qualitative sense of, a person creative in, innovative in, or adept at,
an artistic practice. Most often, the term describes those who create within a
context of the fine arts or ‘high culture’, activities such as drawing, painting,
sculpture, acting, dancing, writing, filmmaking,new media, photography,
and music - people who use imagination, talent, or skill to create works that
may be judged to have an aesthetic value.

Article XIV, Section 14 of the 1987 Constitution provides that, "the
State shall foster the preservation, enrichment, and dynamic evolution of a
Filipino national culture based on the principle of unity in diversity in a
climate of free artistic and intellectual expression." The State shall consider
these rights and principles in the formulation of national plans and policies
for the protection of the interest and welfare of Filipino artists.

Notwithstanding such constitutional mandate, our artists - whether
engaged in visual or performing arts - have not acquired a professional
working status and standardized benefits as those enjoyed by regular
workers. They are not afforded medical, disability, retirement, death
insurance and housing benefits despite their contributions to the country's
cultural development.

In 1980, the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) adopted the Recommendations concerning the
Status of Artists which aim to strengthen policies and measures concerning


the professional, social, and economic status of artists, thus enabling them to
work, create, and organize successfully in an enabling environment. In
furtherance thereof, the State is submitting this legislation in honor of the
countless recognitions and achievements of the Filipino Artists.

It is the duty of the State to enact and implement appropriate policies
for the welfare and protection of artists, including members of the

indigenous cultural communities.

For the foregoing reasons, the immediate passage of the bill is

earnestly urged. 4
ann r Cc. YAP

Representative


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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
Third Regular Session

House Bill No. 6392

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE ARTHUR C. YAP

AN ACT

PROVIDING FOR AN ARTISTS’ WELFARE

PROTECTION AND  INFORMATIONACT', AND

PROVIDING FUNDS FOR THE PURPOSE
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines
in Congress assembled:

ARTICLE I
PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Artists
Welfare Protection and Information Act of 2015."

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - The State shall protect and
promote the rights of an artist to be considered as a person actually engaged
in cultural work and to benefit from all legal, social and economic

advantages pertaining to the status of workers. Pursuant to this, the state

shall:


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(a) Improve the social security, labor, medical, and legal conditions of the
artist, whether employed or self-employed, taking into account their
contributions to cultural development, through a system of accreditation;

(b)Help create and sustain a culture encouraging freedom of artistic
expression and communication, and to facilitate the release of necessary
resources in developing the artists' creative talents;

(c) Recognize artists as professionals, granting them the corresponding rights
and privileges, to enable them to collectively defend their common
interests;

(d)Protect the artists’ sensibilities and material rights over their works or
performances, or any other use made of them to confirm their artistic
dignity and integrity

(e) Provide second/alternative career opportunities to artists who wish to
retire from their respective art;

(£) Develop means of providing welfare and legal information to artists;

(CTION 3. Coverage. - This Act applies to all accredited artists, as
defined herein, employed and working within the country and those outside
of the country who are covered by recruitment programs/contracts and
placement offices/agencies.
SECTION 4. Definition of Terms.— For purposes of this Act, the
following shall mean:
(a) Accreditation - the assessment of an artist or guild based on the
Accreditation Requirements as provided herein, for purposes of availing

the provisions and benefits provided in this Act.


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(b) Accredited Artist - refers to an artist who is a Filipino, at least 18 years of
age, in compliance with the requirements for Accreditation provided in
Section 7, or those members of existing arts guilds duly registered and
accredited as provided for by law.

(c) Artist — refers to any person who creates or gives creative expression to,
or recreates works of art, who considers his artistic creation to be an
essential part of his life, who contributes in this way to the development
of art and culture and who is or asks to be recognized as an artist,
whether or not he is bound by any relations of employment or
association. This includes Indigenous Artists and Cultural Performers.

(d) Collecting Agent/Foreign Collecting Agent - shall refer to any person,
natural or juridical, domestic or foreign including, for purposes of foreign
work, manning, placement, and recruitment agencies, who hire and use
the services of an artist. The collecting agent shall be responsible for the
remittance of contribution of the artist to the SSS/GSIS, PagIBIG, and
Philhealth. The contribution shall be automatically deducted from the
compensation paid to the artist.

(e) Cultural Performer - refers to an artist who practice culturally-accepted
art forms in their communities, such as composo, zarzuela, and other
forms of art not defined herein. It may also refer to an artist who,
although not a member of any Indigenous Cultural Community/
Indigenous Peoples (ICC/IP) group, has been consented by the latter to
use IP clothing and related paraphernalia, artifacts, other cultural symbols
and expressions, in accordance with the community standards and

attributed meanings.


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(f) Indigenous Peoples Artists - refers to artists who are members of
Indigenous Cultural Communities/ Indigenous Peoples groups who
themselves are certified by their respective community as bearers of oral
traditions, literature, designs, visual, performing arts and other cultural
expressions.

(g) Second /Alternative Career- is any career, as enumerated under
SECTION 16 of this Act, which an artist may engage into after leaving
their main career due to age, incapacity and other reasons, or any career
which an artist may engage into while still active in their major area of
specialization due to the latter's seasonal or contractual nature.

(h) Welfare Protection- shall refer to the government's duty of providing
rights and privileges to duly-accredited artists and ensuring the protection
of their works and talents to maintain a minimum standard of well-being,
specifically providing: PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG, SSS/GSIS, among other
benefits.

(i) Welfare Information- shall refer to the government's duty to provide
knowledge awareness and understanding to duly-accredited artists in
terms of legal, medical, proprietary, educational, and second
careers/alternative careers, among others.

ARTICLE I
RIGHTS ANDPRIVILEGES
SECTION 5. Benefits. - An accredited artist shall have the rights and
privileges to be provided with PhilHealth, SSS/GSIS, Home Development
Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG), and shall be entitled to all other social security

benefits as provided by the pertinent provisions of law.


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SECTION 6. Artist Education and Information. - An accredited
artist shall have the rights and privileges of free legal aid and information,
medical assistance, hospitalization, and options for Second/Alternative
Careers.

SECTION 7. Accreditation Requirements. - A guideline shall be
issued for the purpose of defining an Accredited Artist. The National
Commission on Culture and the Arts must issue the guidelines in
consultation with the relevant organizations engaged in Literary Arts, Dance,
Music, Theater, Film, Architecture, Visual and Design Arts, Arts
Management and Production Design, and all other equivalent art
forms/disciplines. The presumption shall always be resolved in favor of
accreditation.

SECTION 8. Application/Approval Procedure - Artists shall
submit the necessary documents to support their application for
Accreditation to the Local Arts Council, or to the Provincial, City, or
Municipal Tourism Office or to the duly recognized Arts Guild in which
they are members who shall determine the compliance requirements and
shall issue a certificate of accreditation based on the accepted/recognized
aesthetic sensibility of its artistic community; Provided, the Tourism Office
stated herein may require written recommendation from recognized artist in
the Local Government Unit prior to approval of accreditation; Provided
further, for Indigenous Artists, requirements shall be submitted to and
approved by the National Commission for Indigenous Peoples in their
Province. The NCCA, through the Artist's Welfare Office as stated in Article

V herein, may provide additional procedures/requirements that shall


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encourage meaningful accreditation of artists and ensure the aesthetic quality
and creativity of the various art forms.
ARTICLE II

SOCIAL SECURITY COVERAGE

SECTION 9. Social Security Benefits. - An Accredited Artist shall
be covered by the Social Security System (SSS), the Philippine Health
Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and the Home Development Mutual
Fund or Pag-IBIG, and shall be entitled to all the benefits including but not
limited to insurance, funeral, burial and financial assistance and scholarships
to children, in accordance with the pertinent provisions provided by law.
Payment of premiums or contributions shall be shouldered by the
employer/principal who shall act as the collecting agent for the artist.

SECTION 10. Payment of Premiums/Contributions - The payment
by the collecting agent, for and in behalf of the accredited artist, shall be
based on an annual amount to be determined by the respective agencies
stated herein.

SECTION 11. Multiple Payments/Contributions. - In case of
multiple payments/contributions exceeding the annual contribution as stated
herein, the excess shall be carried over to the succeeding year.

SECTION 12. Deficiency of Premium/Contribution Payments. - In
case of deficiency of payment, the accredited artist shall pay the
deficiency/difference as stated in the category/schedule of payments, to be

provided by the SSS/GSIS, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG, as the case may be.


Artists who do not have collecting agents, as provided under Art | SECTION
4 (d), shall comply with the provisions of voluntary contribution.

SECTION 13. Category/Schedule of Payment. - The SSS/GSIS,
PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG, and other agencies that shall provide benefits for the
artist, shall create a category/schedule of payment for accredited artists in
compliance with existing laws

SECTION 14. Artists Village. - In coordination with the National
Commission on Culture and the Arts, PAG-IBIG and other relevant
government offices, a housing community to be known as the Artists Village
shall be established. Suitable idle land shall be identified for the purpose.
The Artists Village shall be provided to the accredited artists. Existing
housing programs for the sectors shall be strengthened, improved and
developed using available funds.

ARTICLE IV
INFORMATION ASSISTANCE - COVERAGE AND PROCEDURE

SECTION 15. Legal Information/Assistance. - The accredited artist
shall be provided with free legal information through the National
Committee on Legal Aid (NCLA) of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines
(IBP) for the registration and protection of their intellectual property rights
over their literary, artistic works, performances and other works as defined
under RA 8293 or the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines, and
other pertinent laws. Accredited Artists as defined by this Act shall be
provided with free legal services in criminal, civil, labor, administrative and
other quasi-judicial cases by the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) pursuant to

the provisions of Republic Act No.9406.


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SECTION 16. Medical and Dental Assistance. - The accredited
artist shall be provided with free medical and dental assistance through the
Philippine Medical Association (PMA), Philippine Hospital Association
(PHA), and the Philippine Dental Association. An accredited artist, as
defined by this act, shall be provided with free medical and dental services
in all government hospitals, aside from the benefits that an accredited artist
may avail through the PhilHealth.

SECTION 17. Second/Alternative Careers. - An accredited artist
shall be provided with Second/Alternative Careers as enumerated, but not
limited to the following:

(a) Mentor to tutorial or remedial art classes integrated with the DepEd and
CHED curricula.

(b) Trainee in skills implementation program and ladderized education, as
provided byTESDA, in coordination with the NCCA,through the latter's
commission-based, community-based or enterprise-based programs,
whichever is applicable.

(c) The TESDA, in coordination with the POEA, shall devise systems
which will pavethe way for the accredited artists to obtain job
opportunities from foreign countries.

(d) The POEA and the DFA, in coordination with the NCCA, shall establish
mechanisms to ensure the welfare and employment, social security and
health benefits of accredited artists working in foreign countries.

SECTION 18. Arts Awareness in the Elementary and High School
Curricula. - Arts Appreciation and Awareness and Cultural Understanding

shall be part of the curricula in the elementary, high school and K-12


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Program. The accredited artists available in a community shall be seconded
and shall assist teachers in the school in the art classes and culture subjects.
ARTICLE V
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

SECTION 19. The Role of the National Commission for Culture
and the Arts (NCCA). - The NCCA, as the policy making agency for the
Artists Welfare Act, shall create an Artist'sWelfare Office which shall serve
as the oversight body in compliance with the provisions of this Act.

SECTION 20. Dispute Resolution. - In cases of disputes arising
from the certification/accreditation or disqualification of artists, the NCCA
through the Artist's Welfare Office, shall resolve such dispute.

SECTION 21. Payment of Taxes. - The Bureau of Internal Revenue
(BIR) shall provide assistance to artists covered by this Act in their
registration and payment of taxes. The BIR shall also ensure that artists will
be given authority to print official receipts pursuant to BIR rules and
regulations.

SECTION 22. Continuing Studies on Special Privileges for
Artists. - The NCCA in coordination with other government offices, arts
sector and academic institutions is mandated to conduct studies and
researches on the feasibility of granting discount privileges to artists in
particular those who are earning below the minimum wage law or those
artists whose employment opportunities are intermittent.

SECTION 23. Separability Clause - If any portion or provision of
this Act is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other provisions hereof

not affected thereby shall remain valid and effective.


SECTION 24. Repealing Clause.—All laws, presidential decrees,
executive orders, rules and regulations, or parts thereof inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act, are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION 25. Effectivity Clause. - The Act shall take effect fifteen
(15) days after its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in at least
two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved.