Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) Commissioner Senator Loren Legarda filed Senate Bill No. 2905 yesterday, December 17. The bill seeks to amend RA 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, to address the issues surrounding the implementation of the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) program.
Findings from EDCOM 2, showed a concerning shift in the allocation of TES grants from 2018 to 2022. Initially designed to prioritize students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, the actual distribution showed a significant tilt towards students from Private Non-State and Local Universities and Colleges (PNSLs), who have increasingly received a larger share of the subsidies.
This shift has been at the expense of students from the poorest households, including those enrolled in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and identified through the Listahanan 2.0 initiative. For instance, the proportion of TES grantees from these vulnerable groups plummeted from 74.24% in Academic Year 2018-2019 to just 30.74% in 2022-2023.
To ensure fairer access to higher education across various socioeconomic groups, the bill proposes several key amendments. It guarantees automatic eligibility for TES to students from 4Ps households, contingent on their completion of senior high school and acceptance into a CHED-recognized higher education institution. Moreover, the revised prioritization will ensure that remaining TES slots are allocated based on a more equitable system of ranking applicants by per capita household income. This is in light of data from the DSWD showing that from 2017 to 2018, for every 85 senior high school (SHS) students who were part of the 4Ps program, 1 received a TES (Tertiary Education Subsidy) grant. However, between 2020 and 2021, there was a significant decline in this figure. By 2021, only 1 in every 1,014 monitored 4Ps students received a TES grant.
“This is a critical reform to ensure that we fulfill the aims of the law to enable the poorest to proceed to college. In 2021 for example, data from DSWD shows that out of 501,704 SHS graduates coming from 4Ps families and thus potentially college students, only 495 received the Tertiary Education Subsidy,” said EDCOM Executive Director Karol Mark Yee.
The bill also regularizes the review and setting of appropriate subsidy amounts, enhancing monitoring and quality assurance measures, and establishing a regular review process to ensure that the program’s objectives are being met effectively.
“Education remains the most effective tool in breaking the cycle of poverty. By ensuring targeted assistance and enhancing student financing schemes, we place those most in need at the forefront of our relentless pursuit of universal and equitable access to education. In doing so, we not only empower individuals to realize their full potential but also drive forward the social and economic development of our nation,” said Senator Loren Legarda.
“The amendments proposed in this bill are crucial in fixing the imbalances we’ve observed in the distribution of educational subsidies. Our aim is to ensure that every student, regardless of their economic status, has a fair chance at achieving a quality education,” said EDCOM 2 Executive Director Karol Mark Yee.
