The House committee on higher and technical education approved the creation of a technical working group (TWG), which will fine-tune House Bill 181, instituting free college education for indigent students.
The proposed “Free College Education for Indigent Students Act” declares that it is the constitutional policy of the State that indigent students should be given ample opportunity to pursue tertiary education. State colleges and universities, and private educational institutions should contribute to the instruction of indigent students.
Towards this end, schools covered by the Act are obliged to admit, free of tuition, indigent students/ beneficiaries the number of whom shall be at least 10 percent of the total paying freshman enrolees per semester for each tertiary school and for each course.
The 10 percent shall be based on the actual number of paying freshman students in the immediately preceding semester.
As defined in the bill, an indigent family is a family whose income does not exceed P15,000 per month. Family income refers to the combined gross income of the students’ parents. It does not include the income of the other members of the family.
An indigent family is a family whose income does not exceed P15,000 per month.
A family is not considered indigent if it owns real property or a vehicle. The real property does not include the parcels of land given by the State or any of its instrumentalities to informal settlers. The real property referred to under the Act refers to a property acquired through sale.
The admission to school shall be on a first-come first-serve basis. If there is no more slot in the school preferred by the beneficiary, he/she may still enrol in another school that still has remaining slots.
It shall be the obligation of the schools covered by the Act to admit or enrol qualified beneficiaries endorsed by the Regional Scholarship Board and extend these beneficiaries free of tuition.
To qualify for free college education, the student must: 1) be a graduate of senior high school immediately preceding the next school semester of the school he/she wishes to enrol; 2) come from an indigent family; 3) pass the usual qualifying examination for admission of the school; and 4) must be without any derogatory record, or must not be accused in, or adjudged by, a competent court, as having committed an offense or crime under Philippine laws.
The bill prohibits schools from discriminating against indigent beneficiaries. Those who discriminate shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment of six months and 11 days to two years, or payment of a fine of P200,000, or both.
The bill mandates the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to promulgate the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the effective implementation of the Act. The IRR shall be approved by the House of Representatives.
The bill is authored by Rep. Vincent Crisologo who said there is still a need to go further by instituting free tertiary or college education for indigent students.
“Up to now, those who have less in life have always been hoping for the day that they could send their children to college free of tuition,” said Crisologo.
Committee chairperson Rep. Ann Hofer requested the CHED, Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC), Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations of the Philippines (COCOPEA), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to submit their position paper to the TWG.