REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No. __________ 
Introduced by HONORABLE RAMON JOLO B. REVILLA III, 
HONORABLE LANI MERCADO-REVILLA, and 
 HONORABLE BRYAN B. REVILLA 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill seeks to institute a digitalized prison records system in the 
penological and correction system of our country. It shall mandate the Bureau of 
Corrections (BuCor) and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) to 
establish a Digital Prison Records System (DPRS) to store, manage, and share 
information related to persons deprived of liberty or PDLs and their respective cases, 
relevant court records, and other related matters. Moreover, the DPRS shall be 
accessible to law enforcement agencies and the courts through their duly authorized 
officers or agents, as well as to legal counsels of PDLs, for the general expediency 
and unclogging of court dockets in criminal cases. 
Our country has the eleventh highest prison population in the world.1 In 2015, 
the number of PDLs in the correction system was 94,691. It ballooned to 165,528 in 
1
United 
Nations 
Office 
on 
Drugs 
and 
Crime. 
Information 
retrieved 
from 
https://www.unodc.org/roseap/en/philippines/2023/12/jails-prisons-overcrowding/story.html. 
Dated 
7 
December 2023 
August 11, 2025
2:04 pm
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2021 with an almost 75% rise.2 Moreover, in an audit report by the BJMP in 2022, 
the prison facilities in our country had a staggering overcrowding rate by 367%.3 
Most of jail facilities or nearly 68% out of 478 jails in the country are considered as 
heavily congested with occupancy rates ranging from 101% to 2,739%.  
More than two thirds of PDLs are undergoing preventive detention wherein 
the cases are pending and no decision or conviction has yet been made in their cases. 
With the arduous and slow court procedures due to congested dockets in criminal 
cases, PDLs suffer lacking space to sleep, proper ventilation, and adequate access to 
health care. 
In adherence with the efforts being undertaken by the Judiciary and other 
government offices and instrumentalities for the modernization and digitalization of 
records in court matters, it is only apt to emphasize the use of modern technology to 
ensure transparency and accountability in the treatment of PDLs. 
In view of the foregoing the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought. 
     RAMON JOLO B. REVILLA III 
LANI MERCADO-REVILLA 
BRYAN B. REVILLA 
2 Ibid. 
3 Philippine Star Global. Philippine jails overcrowded by 367%. Information retrieved from 
https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/06/22/2275793/philippine-jails-overcrowded-367-coa. Dated 22 
June 2023 


REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No. __________ 
Introduced by HONORABLE RAMON JOLO B. REVILLA III, 
HONORABLE LANI MERCADO-REVILLA, and 
 HONORABLE BRYAN B. REVILLA 
AN ACT  
PROVIDING FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A DIGITAL PRISON 
RECORDS SYSTEM BY THE BUREAU OF CORRECTIONS AND THE 
BUREAU OF JAIL MANAGEMENT AND PENOLOGY, 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 “Digital Prison 
1 
Record System Act”. 
2 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is hereby the policy of the State to promote 
3 
efficiency, transparency, and accuracy in the administration of justice in harnessing 
4 
and utilizing information and communication technology. Towards this end, the 
5 
government shall aim to improve the management of information and records 
6 
concerning persons deprived of liberty. 
7 
SEC. 3. Establishment of the Digital Prison Records System. – The Bureau 
8 
of Corrections (BuCor) and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) 
9 
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shall establish a computerized system to be known as the “Digital Prison Records 
1 
System” herein referred to as “System” designed to store, manage, and share 
2 
information related to persons deprived of liberty, their cases, relevant court records 
3 
and other related matters. Pursuant thereof, the BuCor and the BJMP shall undertake 
4 
the digitalization and migration to the System of their paper-based documents and 
5 
records concerning Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDLs). 
6 
 
SEC. 4. Accessibility and Integration. – The System shall be accessible to 
7 
law enforcement agencies and the courts through their duly authorized officers and 
8 
agents and to the legal counsel of the PDLs, subject to the provisions of Republic 
9 
Act No. 10173, otherwise known as the “Data Privacy Act of 2012.” As far as 
10 
practicable, the System shall be integrated to the existing records management 
11 
system of law enforcement agencies as well as the courts upon the approval of the 
12 
Supreme Court (SC). 
13 
 
SEC. 5. Data Security and Privacy. – The System shall be kept secure and 
14 
free from interference and unauthorized access and for this purpose it shall be 
15 
equipped with security measures to protect the integrity and confidentiality of the 
16 
stored information and data. Further, That the personal and sensitive information 
17 
shall be processed and share in compliance with existing data protection laws and 
18 
regulations. 
19 
 
SEC. 6. Training and Capacity Building. – The BuCor and BJMP shall 
20 
conduct regular training programs to equip authorized personnel with the skills and 
21 
knowledge required for the efficient utilization of the System. 
22 
 
SEC. 7. Appropriations. – The amount necessary to cover the initial 
23 
implementation of this Act shall be charged against the current year’s appropriation 
24 
of the BuCor and the BJMP. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the 
25 


implementation of this Act shall be included in the General Appropriations Act 
1 
(GAA) of the year following its effectivity. 
2 
 
SEC. 8. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – The BuCor and BJMP, in 
3 
coordination with the Department of Information and Communications Technology 
4 
(DICT), National Privacy Commission (NPC), and other relevant agencies, shall 
5 
promulgate the necessary rules and regulations to properly and efficiently implement 
6 
this Act within ninety (90) days from its effectivity. 
7 
SEC. 9. Separability Clause. – If any provision or part of this Act is declared 
8 
invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining provisions or parts of this act shall remain 
9 
in full force and effect, and the application of such provision to other persons or 
10 
circumstances shall not be affected. 
11 
SEC. 10. Repealing Clause. – All laws, orders, issuances, rules, and 
12 
regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby 
13 
repealed, amended, or modified accordingly. 
14 
SEC. 11. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
15 
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.  
16 
 
Approved,