Sen. Revilla files bill subsidizing tertiary education in private HEIs

To provide greater coverage of the government's Tertiary Education Subsidy, Senator Revilla filed Senate Bill No. 29 that seeks to amend Republic Act No. 10931 or the "Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act".

The bill aims to expand the coverage of the Tertiary Education Subsidy as provided in the original law by introducing a voucher system that will allow indigent and academically competent students to enroll and study in private higher educational institutions (HEIs) and technical-vocational institutions. Similar to the voucher system the Department of Education is already implementing, financial assistance in the form of vouchers will be provided to qualified tertiary students. The subsidy will not be given to the learner in cash, and instead, will be paid directly to the private HEIs.

The bill aims to have a "proportional budgetary allocation" in order to increase the access of Filipino students to tertiary education and promote the complementarity between public and private higher education institutions and technical-vocational education institutions.

When enacted, the measure will help achieve and operationalize a provision in the updated Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022 which encourages the United Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST) Board to "implement a voucher system and improve the loan system to give students a choice in school (whether public or private) and educational tracks (whether technical-vocational education track or higher education) prior to the enrollment period".

The bill likewise provides that all beneficiaries of the Tertiary Education Subsidy shall continue to receive such benefits until they complete their higher education degree program or post-secondary technical-vocation course as long as they do not fail in any subject enrolled in and comply with the residency requirements.

Sen. Revilla vowed to push for the passage of the measure to help more families send their children to college or in technical-vocational training courses. "We should fast-track the passage of this bill with the noble intention of ensuring that the youth, especially those belonging to the poor, will have more doors of opportunities opening for them through quality education", he said.