Two measures seeking to adjust the allowances of all faculty and non-teaching personnel in the public school system, ensuring these can be adjusted to inflation and protected from budget discretion, have been filed in the Senate.

Sen. Joel Villanueva said the passage of Senate Bill Nos. 1605 and 1606 would be useful for teachers and school administrative staff across all public schools especially during the ongoing oil crisis. 

“These allowances are not just financial assistance but are part of a broader effort to affirm the State's constitutional mandate to prioritize education, not just through facilities or access, but also by recognizing and supporting the people who drive its delivery,” said Villanueva, Commissioner of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM2).

“Benefit amounts are adjusted every three years to account for inflation, meaning the allowances will not lose purchasing power over time,” the senator pointed out.

Under SBN 1606, all faculty and staff in the public basic education system, including those in the Alternative Learning System (ALS), are provided a combined quarterly benefit of ₱5,000, or a total of ₱20,000 annually.

This includes ₱3,000 for grocery and transportation allowances and ₱2,000 for medical expenses per quarter.

While Villanueva credited the Department of Education (DepEd) for the existing quarterly medical allowance under DepEd Department Order No. 16, s. 2025, he said only a law can protect it from being cut in a lean budget year.

"The DepEd, through the leadership of Secretary Sonny Angara, has been advocating tirelessly for basic education personnel, working with what’s available. Through this measure, it will strengthen and extend the reforms that have already been initiated," he stressed.

SBN 1605, meanwhile, provides the same combined quarterly benefit of ₱5,000, or a total of ₱20,000 annually, for all teaching personnel in state universities and colleges (SUCs), as well as state-run technical-vocational (tech-voc) institutions.

Both measures mandate that the additional allowances are exempt from taxation unless the amounts exceed the threshold as determined in the National Internal Revenue Code, the lawmaker explained.

“While other laws and issuances rightly focus on learners, (these bills are) a deliberate act of solidarity with our educators and school personnel-the very people who make learning possible,” Villanueva said.