Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ____ 
Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.,  
HON. MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE, HON. TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. 
HORIBATA AND HON. NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This measure seeks to amend Republic Act No. 8047, otherwise known as the "Book 
Publishing Industry Development Act." It mandates the scanning or conversion into e-books 
and other digital formats of content by publishers participating in the government's Public 
School Textbook Program.  
Textbooks in public elementary and high schools are limited in number, as a result, our 
students are forced to share or borrow from one another. This plight is more evident especially 
when there is a shift to distance learning. The sharing of materials among students still exist 
because of the shortage of printed modules.  
To address the gap, we can make use of digitization of textbooks into electronic books and 
other digital formats. Students are given access to the contents of a textbook in digital format 
without the need for sharing of resource materials.  
To protect the intellectual property of both authors and publishers of the textbook, the 
implementation of the scanning or conversion must comply with the provisions of Republic Act 
No. 8293, otherwise known as the "Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines." The e-books 
and digital format copies of the textbooks shall also be made available and accessible to all 
public school students as may be determined and prescribed by the DepEd. 
In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is most earnestly sought. 
LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR. 
 MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE 
TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. HORIBATA 
NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
August 16, 2022
2:32 pm
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. ____ 
Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.,  
HON. MIGUEL LUIS R. VILLAFUERTE, HON. TSUYOSHI ANTHONY G. 
HORIBATA AND HON. NICOLAS ENCISO VIII 
AN ACT AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8047, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE 
"BOOK PUBLISHING INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT ACT," PROVIDING FOR THE 
SCANNING AND CONVERSION OF PUBLIC SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS INTO E-
BOOKS AND OTHER DIGITAL FORMATS 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
congress assembled:  
Section 1. Section 11 of Republic Act No. 8047, otherwise known as the "Book 
Publishing Industry Development Act," is hereby amended to read as follows:  
"Sec. 11. Participation of Private Publishers In the Public School Textbook 
Program. — Guided by the minimum learning competencies for the 
elementary level, the desired learning competencies for the secondary 
level, and other specifications prepared by the [DECS] DEPARTMENT OF 
EDUCATION (DEPED), publishers shall develop and submit to the [DECS] 
DEPED those syllabi and/or prototypes and manuscripts or books intended 
for use in the public schools for testing, evaluation, selection and approval. 
Upon approval of the manuscripts or books, publishers shall produce and supply the 
textbooks as ordered by the [DECS] DEPED.  
PUBLISHERS PARTICIPATING IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL TEXTBOOK PROGRAM 
SHALL ALLOW THE SCANNING OR CONVERSION INTO E-BOOKS AND OTHER 
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DIGITAL FORMATS, IN PART OR IN FULL, OF THEIR APPROVED TEXTBOOKS, 
SUBJECT TO COMPLIANCE WITH REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8293, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE ''INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES. THE 
E-BOOKS AND DIGITAL FORMAT COPIES OF THE TEXTBOOKS SHALL BE 
MADE AVAILABLE AND ACCESSIBLE TO ALL PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS, IN 
A MANNER DEEMED APPROPRIATE AND REASONABLE BY THE DEPED."  
 
Sec. 2. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within sixty (60) days from the 
effectivity of this Act, the Department of Education (DepEd), in coordination with the 
National Book Development Board (NBDB), and other relevant government agencies 
and stakeholders, shall issue the necessary rules and regulations to implement the 
provisions of this Act.  
 
Sec. 3. Repealing Clause. — All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, 
proclamations, rules and regulations, or any part thereof, which are inconsistent with 
the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.  
 
Sec. 4. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part of this Act, or the application 
thereof to any person or circumstance, is held unconstitutional or invalid, the 
remainder of this Act shall not be affected thereby.  
 
Sec. 5. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days from its 
publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general 
circulation.  
 
Approved,