Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House BiLL.No. 644

Introduced by: REP. TOBIAS “TOBY” M. TIANGCO
EXPLANATORY NOTE

Section 5, Paragraph 5 of Article XIV of the 1987 Constitution mandates the State
to give the highest budgetary priority to education and to ensure that the teaching
profession attracts and retains its rightful share of the best available talents through
adequate compensation and improved incentives for professional growth In addition, the
Magna Carta for Public School Teachers, enacted in 1966 as Republic Act No. 4670, has
long served as the comerstone for protecting the rights and welfare of public school
teachers in the Philippines. However, after more than five decades, the law no longer
adequately addresses the realities faced by teachers today. Public school teachers
continue to grapple with low salaries, excessive workloads, non-teaching assignments,
and limited health securities.

This bill seeks to modemize the Magna Carta by upgrading teachers’ salaries and
allowances, reducing teaching loads, prohibiting non-teaching assignments, and
strengthening job security. It also proposes improved medical benefits, and upholds
gender equality and non-discrimination in the profession.

Further, this bill aims to create a more supportive, fair, and enabling environment
for public school teachers, thereby strengthening the foundation for quality education in
the Philippines.

In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is garnestly sought

TOBIAS “TOBY” M. TIANGCO
Representative
Lone District, Navotas City


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House BILL No. 644

Introduced by: REP. TOBIAS “TOBY” M. TIANGCO

AN ACT
FURTHER PROMOTING THE WELFARE OF PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS BY
AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 4670, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “MAGNA
CARTA FOR PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS”, AND PROVIDING APPROPRIATIONS
FOR ITS IMPLEMENTATION

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Section 5 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Section 5. Tenure of Office. Stability on employment and security of tenure shall
be assured the teachers as provided under existing laws.

Subject to the provisions of Section three hereof, teachers appointed on a
provisional status for lack of necessary civil service eligibility shall be extended
permanent appointment for the position he is holding after having rendered at least
{ten} THREE years of continuous, efficient and faithful service in such position

‘NO TEACHER HOLDING A PERMANENT POSITION SHALL BE
TERMINATED EXCEPT FOR JUST CAUSE AND AFTER BEING ACCORDED
DUE PROCESS. A TEACHER WHO IS DISMISSED FROM SERVICE BUT
LATER FOUND AS UNJUSTLY DISMISSED SHALL ENTITLED TO
REINSTATEMENT AND BACKWAGES.’

SEC. 2. Section 10 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby amended to read as follows:

SEC 10. [Ne] NON-Discrimination CLAUSE. [Fhere—shall—be—ne
4 a

OF

professionat-consideration.} NO PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER SHALL BE
SUBJECTED TO DISCRIMINATION IN RECRUITMENT, APPOINTMENT,


PROMOTION, TRAINING, COMPENSATION, OR ANY OTHER CONDITION
OF EMPLOYMENT ON THE BASIS OF SEX, GENDER IDENTITY, SEXUAL
ORIENTATION, CIVIL STATUS, AGE, RELIGION, ETHNICITY, POLITICAL
BELIEF, DISABILITY, OR ANY OTHER STATUS UNRELATED TO THE
INHERENT REQUIREMENTS OF THE POSITION.

SEC. 3. Section 13 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Section 13. Teaching Hours. Any teacher engaged in actual classroom instruction
shall not be required to render more than six hours of actual classroom teaching a
day, which shall be so scheduled as to give him time for the preparation and
correction of exercises and other work incidental to his normal teaching
duties: Provided, however, That where the exigencies of the service so require,
any teacher may be required to render more than six hours but not exceeding eight
hours of actual classroom teaching a day upon payment of additional
compensation at the same rate as his regular remuneration plus at least twenty-
five per cent of his basic pay.

NO PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER SHALL BE REQUIRED TO CONDUCT
OR ATTEND REGULAR CLASSES ON SATURDAYS AND SUNDAYS,
EXCEPT IN CASES OF NATIONAL EMERGENCY OR AS OTHERWISE
PROVIDED BY LAW. ANY MAKE-UP CLASSES OR SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
SCHEDULED ON WEEKENDS MUST BE VOLUNTARY AND SUBJECT
TO ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION AS PRESCRIBED BY EXISTING
REGULATIONS.

SEC.4. A new section designated as Section 16 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby
inserted to read as follows:

SECTION 16. PROHIBITION AGAINST ASSIGNMENT OF NON-
TEACHING DUTIES—TEACHERS SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED OR
ASSIGNED TO PERFORM TASKS OR RESPONSIBILITIES THAT ARE
NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO THEIR TEACHING FUNCTIONS, EXCEPT
AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED BY LAW. TO UPHOLD THIS POLICY, THE
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (DEPED) SHALL ENSURE THE
PROMPT AND FULL STAFFING OF ALL NON-TEACHING POSITIONS. IN
COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF BUDGET AND
MANAGEMENT (DBM), DEPED SHALL WORK TOWARDS ACHIEVING
AND MAINTAINING THE IDEAL RATIO OF TEACHING TO NON-
TEACHING PERSONNEL, IN ACCORDANCE WITH ESTABLISHED
NATIONAL STAFFING STANDARDS.

SEC. 5. Section 21 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Section [24] 22. Deductions [AND OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES] Prohibited. No
person shall make any deduction whatsoever from the salaries of teachers except


under specific authority of law authorizing such deductions: Provided, however,
That upon written authority executed by the teacher concerned, (1) lawful dues
and fees owing to the Philippine Public School Teachers Association, and (2)
premiums properly due on insurance policies, shall be considered deductible.

‘NO TEACHER SHALL BE REQUIRED TO PAY OUT OF THEIR
PERSONAL FINANCES FOR MATERIALS, FACILITIES, SERVICES, OR
ANY OTHER OBJECTS OR ACTIVITIES NECESSARY AND RELATED TO
THE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTIES.”

SEC. 6. Section 22 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Section [22] 23. [Medical_Examination—and_Treatmenl]. COMPREHENSIVE ANNUAL
MEDICAL EXAMINATION AND HEALTH SERVICES- Compulsory medical examination
shall be provided free of charge for all teachers before they take up teaching, and shall
be repeated not less than once a year during the teacher's professional life. Where
medical examination show that medical treatment and/or hospitalization is necessary,
same shall be provided free by the government entity paying the salary of the teachers

“THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, IN COORDINATION WITH THE
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, SHALL ENSURE THE AVAILABILITY OF ON-
SITE, MOBILE, OR ACCREDITED HEALTH FACILITIES TO PROVIDE THESE
SERVICES.”

In regions where there is scarcity of medical facilities, teachers may obtain elsewhere the
necessary medical care with the right to be reimbursed for their traveling expenses by the
government entity concerned in the first paragraph of this Section

“THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SHALL SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT
TO CONGRESS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION AND OUTCOMES OF THIS
PROGRAM AND ESTABLISH A FEEDBACK MECHANISM TO ADDRESS
CONCERNS FROM TEACHERS.”

SEC. 7. A new Article designated as Article VII of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby
inserted to read as follows:

ARTICLE Vil: DIGITAL COMPETENCE AND TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION

SEC. 8. Anew section designated as Section 31 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby
inserted to read as follows:

SECTION 31. DIGITAL LITERACY TRAINING—THE STATE SHALL ENSURE
THAT PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS ARE EQUIPPED WITH THE NECESSARY
DIGITAL COMPETENCIES TO DELIVER EDUCATION THROUGH ONLINE,
BLENDED, AND TECHNOLOGY-ASSISTED PLATFORMS. TRAINING SHALL
INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, THE USE OF VIDEO CONFERENCING


TOOLS (E.G., ZOOM), LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS, CONTENT
CREATION, AND DIGITAL ASSESSMENT TOOLS.

SEC.9. A new section designated as Section 32 of Republic Act No. 4670 is hereby
inserted to read as follows:

SECTION 32. SUPPORT AND ACCESS—PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS
SHALL BE PROVIDED WITH SUFFICIENT ACCESS TO TRAINING
PROGRAMS, RELIABLE INTERNET CONNECTIVITY, AND THE NECESSARY
HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE TO EFFECTIVELY IMPLEMENT DIGITAL
LEARNING STRATEGIES. SUCH TRAINING SHALL BE COMPULSORY AND
REGULARLY UPDATED TO REFLECT EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES AND
PEDAGOGICAL INNOVATIONS.

SEC. 10. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Department of Education
(DepEd) shall in coordination with Department of Budget and Management (DBM),
promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the proper implementation of this Act
not later than ninety (90) days from its effectivity and every year thereafter, submit to the
President and the Congress of the Philippines a report detailing compliance with the
provisions of this Act.

SEC. 11. Separability Clause. — If any provision or part of this Act is declared
unconstitutional, the remaining parts or provisions not affected shall remain in full force
and effect.

SEC. 12. Repealing Clause. — All laws, executive orders, issuances, rules and
regulations, inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 13. Effectivity. — This shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the
Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,