Free college bill seeks to benefit families with income of 50,000/mo.

The chairperson of the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education wants to provide free college education for students coming from families with gross monthly income of 50,000 and below in state universities and colleges.

Pasig City Rep. Roman Romulo has filed House Bill ( HB) 6386 mandating the national government to subsidize the tuition, miscellaneous, and other school fees of qualified poor student beneficiaries.

“Granting that the Constitution mandates that basic education be free for all, there has been a clamor for our public higher educational institutions ( HEIs) to offer tertiary education that is also free for all. However, given current profile of students enrolled in different state universities and colleges, it appears that not all students enrolled come from the poorest of the poor to whom the State is bound to provide access to education,” he said.

“For the State to subsidize the education of all, including those who have the means to pay for tertiary education will result in social equality thereby widening even more the gap between the rich and the poor,” he said.

HB 6386, the proposed Free College Education Act, tasks the Commission on Higher Education ( CHED) to determine the qualified beneficiaries through the Office of the Student Services ( OSS) and ensure the full payment of tuition, miscellaneous, and other school fees of qualified student beneficiaries.

The measure provides an initial allocation of 15 billion which shall be sourced from the Social Fund of the Office of the President to implement the provisions of the proposed Act.

“With a tight budget to pay for rent, food, utilities, allowance, and transportation, truly it is about time for the State to give back and help them in ensuring that their children be able to obtain the graduate degree that they need for purposes of employment and financial security for their respective families,” Romulo said in pushing for the passage of his measure.