Senators must act with haste in approving their version of the proposed Private Basic Education Voucher Program, which will benefit students from poor and middle-income families.

Thus, said Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre, who noted that the House of Representatives had already passed on third and final reading the proposed program as embodied in House Bill (HB) No.4744.

“I appeal to our counterparts in the Senate to give priority to this measure so that more of our deserving children from financially-distressed families can enroll in private schools through a government-funded voucher program,” Acidre said in a statement Thursday, Jan. 15.

Former House Speaker Leyte 1st district Rep. Martin Romualdez introduced HB No.4744 in the current 20th Congress. His co-authors of the measure include former Majority Leader Ilocos Norte 1st district Rep. Sandro Marcos and Pasig City lone district Rep. Roman Romulo, chairman the House Committee on Basic Education.

The measure--tagged by Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) as a priority bill of the Marcos administration--was promptly sent to the Senate for its own consideration and approval after the House approved it in October 2025.

Most of these priority measures were passed by the House of Representatives during Romualdez’s time as Speaker.

According to Acidre, education will empower the students to get themselves and their families out of poverty, and to help others and their communities.

HB No. 4744 expands financial aid to poor but deserving students under Republic Act (RA) No. 6728, or Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education Act, by establishing a private education voucher program, which shall cover all years of basic education, from kindergarten to high school.

The measure provides that voucher assistance may be given to students belonging to “middle-income families and below, as determined by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), who attended public schools identified by the Department of Education (DepEd) as congested or those living in areas with congested schools or without a nearby public school who wish to enroll in private basic education schools".

Students from “most vulnerable” and “underprivileged” families may receive a higher amount of aid. These two terms are to be defined by the DepEd in its implementing rules and regulations.

The DepEd shall also choose participating schools based on criteria set in the proposed law.

Students and parents may be given the privilege of selecting their preferred schools from a list the DepEd shall provide, subject to availability of slots.

The DepEd is mandated to reimburse participating schools within 60 days from submission of complete supporting documents.

The bill likewise provides assistance to teachers in participating schools such as training, scholarships, research grants, and professional development programs.

It gives DepEd the option to propose a government-funded salary subsidy for teachers in participating schools.

The bill also seeks the creation of the Bureau of Private Education under DepEd to handle all programs, matters and issues relating to basic education.