HULSE UF REPRESENTATIVES

REGEAYER

Republic of the Philippine
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE!
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

REGISTRATION UNIT

House Bill No._ 2315 BILLS AND INDEX SERVICE

Introduced by REP. EVELINA G. ESCUDERO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The 1987 Constitution mandates the State “to protect and promote the right of all citizens to
quality education at all levels and to take appropriate steps to make education accessible to all.”
(Art XIV See 1).

Various international instruments. such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
International Covenant on Economie. Social and Cultural Rights, and the Convention on the Rights
of the Child, to which the Philippines is a signatory, have also declared education as a right and not

and accessible education

just a privilege. Hence. the country is duty-bound to provide free, quality

However, considering. the rising cost of education, especially college education, more and
more high school graduates find it impossible to enroll in college or drop out and fail to earn a
degree

Data fiom the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) showed that enrollees in higher
education institutions (HEIs) from 2001 to the present have reached 2.56 million, but the dropout
rate reached an alarming 83.7 percent. This means that the country is producing 2.13-million
college dropouts annually.

CHED records also showed that enrollment in higher education has not been encouraging as
it slowed down from 1999 to 2002, and then dropped gradually starting 2002 to 2003, with negative
0.8 percent growth in 2004-2005 for both public and private schools. Except for the big jump in
1998-1999, enrollment has been sliding down, thereafter. Moreover, higher education enrollment
even in state universities and colleges shows a decelerating trend, weakening to negative 1.2
percent growth in 2004-2005, despite the lower cost of public education. In the case of private
schools, the decline started as early as 2002

Based on the Commission's 2008 data, out of 100 Grade 1 pupils, only 66 finish Grade 6
and only 58 of them enroll in first year high school. Of the 58, only 43 finish high school
However, only 23 of the 43 who finished high school enroll in college and only 14 of the 23
eventually graduate from college.

Also disturbing is the National Statistics and Coordination Board (NSCB) data on the ratio
of graduates to enrollment for higher education, which stands at 16 to less than 18 percent from
1994 to 2005. In the past 10 years, the NSCB reported that the total number of college graduates


increased by an average of only 2.9 percent. The number of graduates also increased to only
481,862 in Academic Year 2009-2010 from 363,640 in AY 2000-2001

Considering that more than 26.5 percent or 3.8 million Filipino families are living below the
poverty line, as reported by the NSCB 2009 Poverty Statistics and released in February 2011,
access to tertiary education for bright and deserving children of these families would be almost
impossible, especially if they do not have the means to pay even for an entrance examination,
which is the initial step towards admission to a college degree program.

Thus, this bill aims to ensure that poor but deserving high school graduates are given equal
opportunities in applying for college admission to higher education institutions by removing the
first hindrance at the entry level, such as the prohibitive cost of entrance examinations.

In view of the foregoing reasons, immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought.

_beuckiel
EVELINA G, ESCUDERO

Representative
First District, Sorsogon


Republic of the Philippine
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVI

‘EENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No,_ 23.15

Introduced by REP. EVELINA G. ESCUDERO.

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR FREE COLLEGE
UNDERPRIVILEGED PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

EXAMINATIONS TO

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

ION 1. Short Title. This Act shall be known as the “Free College Entrance Exam

Declaration of Policy. It is hereby declared the policy of the State to expand and
further democratize access to quality education at the college level by instituting mechanisms that
protect the rights of underprivileged high school graduates

‘The exemption from the imposition of entrance examination fees is one such mechanism
that will ensure that underprivileged high school graduates are given adequate assistance and equal
opportunity to pursue their dreams of obtaining a college education.

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. For Purposes of this Act, the following terms shall me:

a) College Entrance Examinations ~ shall refer to examinations required by higher
education institutions on graduating high school students or high school graduates as
one of the criteria for determining admission to a four-year or five-year college degree
program in the said educational institutions;

b) Underprivileged Public High School Graduates — shall refer to public high school
students in a graduating class and whose parents live below the poverty line or belong to
the poorest of the poor as determined by the National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA) and who are the qualified beneficiaries of this Act;

©) Higher Education Institution (HEl)-sball refer to an educational institution that is
legally authorized to offer a program of education leading to the conferment of a
degree.

SEC. 4, Coverage. This Act shall apply to all public and private HEIs offering degree
programs, including local colleges and universities, and shall cover underprivileged public high


school students graduating and intending to apply for admission in any public or private HEI in the
country for a degree program.

SEC. 5. Qualification Requirements of Free College Entrance Examinations Beneficiary.
A student beneficiary eligible under this Act shall have the following entry requirements:

a) Must be a natural-born Filipino citizen;

b) Must be a graduating high school student or high school graduate from a public high
school and intends to enroll in any public or private HET; and

©) Must have parents or guardians living below the poverty line as determined by the
NEDA.

SEC. 6, Penalties. Any HEI official or employee and other concerned individuals found
guilty of violating the provisions of this Act shall suffer the penalty of prision correccionalor
imprisonment from six (6) months and one (1) day to six (6) years and a fine of Seven Hundred
Fifty Thousand Pesos (P750,000.00).

In addition, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) may impose disciplinary
sanetions against any HEI official or employee violating the provisions of this Act pursuant to
Section 13 of Republic Act No. 7722, otherwise known as the Higher Education Modernization Act
of 1994,

SEC.7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. The CHED, in coordination with the
Department of Education (DepED), Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges
(PASUC), the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA), and the
Association of Local Colleges and Universities (ALCU),shall issue the necessary rules and
regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

SEC. 8, Separability Clause. If any provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional or
invalid, the other sections or provisions not otherwise affected shall continue to be in full force and
effect,

SEC. 9. Repealing Clause. All laws, executive orders, decrees, instructions, rules and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with any provision of this Act are hereby amended, repealed
or modified accordingly.

SEC. 10. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication
in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,