4 House bills, 5 Senate bills seek repeal, amendment of CPD law
There are now four bills in the House of Representatives seeking for the abolition of the highly-criticized Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Law or Republic Act No. 10912.
This, after Bagong Henerasyon Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy filed on Monday House Bill No. 8589 seeking to repeal the CPD law which was enacted on July 2016.
In a statement on Friday, the House Assistant Majority Leader said with the four House bills and three resolutions and the five Senate bills also about the CPD law, “there is now enough momentum in Congress to successfully abolish the CPD Law because of PRC’s (Professional Regulation Commission) incompetence.”
“It has been over two years since Republic Act 10912 became law, but the Professional Regulation Commission has failed to properly implement the law,” Herrera lamented.
She also criticized the PRC for its failure to pursue changes to improve the implementation of the law.
“It did not remedy the problem of access, affordability, and quality of the programs,” Herrera said in the explanatory note of HB 8589.
The lawmaker also said “real professional development was not reached and was watered down due to costs and inefficient service delivery. ”
“We cannot stand idly by. We shall push hard for CPD abolition. We shall also refer to the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission, the multitudes of complaints against the CPD system of the PRC,” she added.
The other bills which seek to amend or repeal the CPD law filed before the lower chamber are as follows:
- House Bill 7171 introduced by ACT Party-list Reps. Antonio Tinio and France Castro, Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate (Party-list, Bayan Muna), Gabriela Women’s Party-list Reps. Emmi de Jesus and Arlene Brosas, Rep. Ariel Casilao (Party-list, Anakpawis) and Rep. Sarah Jane Elago (Party-list, Kabataan) seeks to repeal the Continuing Professional Development Act of 2016;
- House Bill No. 6461 authored by AKO BICOL Reps. Rodel Batocabe, Alfredo Garbin, Jr. and Christopher Co seeks to exempt overseas Filipino workers from the continuing professional development requirements in the renewal of their license under the Professional Regulation Commission, amending for the purpose RA 10912; and
- House Bill 8296 authored by Rep. Maximo Rodriguez, Jr. (2nd District, Cagayan de Oro City) aims to amend some provisions of RA 10912 to make it easier for the workers and professionals affected to comply with the mandatory requirements of the CPD law.
All bills are currently pending before the House committee on higher and technical education.
There are also three House resolutions that seek an investigation into the implementation of the CPD law amid mounting complaints. These are House Resolution Nos. 1610, 2052 and 2076. HR 1610 is pending before the committee on higher and technical education since Sept. 11, while the other two are still pending before the rules panel.
Meanwhile, the proposed measures on the CPD law filed before the Senate are:
- Senate Bill No. (SBN)-2093: An Act Repealing Republic Act No. 10912, filed on Nov. 14, 2018 by Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri;
- SBN-2073: Repealing R.A. No. 10912 filed on Oct. 1, 2018 by Sen. Ralph Recto;
- SBN-2006: Enhancing the Continuing Professional Development of Filipino Workers and Professionals filed on Sept. 17, 2018 by Sen. Joel Villanueva;
- SBN-1853: Amending Sec.10 of R.A. No.10912 filed on June 20, 2018 by Sen. Leila De Lima; and
- SBN-1817: Amending R.A. No. 10912 filed on May 23, 2018 by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel.
All bills are pending at the Senate committee on civil service, government reorganization, and professional regulation.
READ: Senate body to probe holes in Continuing Professional Dev’t Act
CPD, under the law, “refers to the inculcation of advanced knowledge, skills and ethical values in a post-licensure specialization or in an inter- or multidisciplinary field of study, for assimilation into professional practice, self-directed research and/or lifelong learning.”
Article III Section 10 of the CPD law makes the CPD a mandatory requirement in the renewal of the Professional Identification Card (PIC) of all registered and licensed professionals under the regulation of the PRC.
Last year, at least 43,000 Filipino professionals have signed an online petition, seeking to review the requirements for license renewal under the CPD law. Some complained that the operational guidelines of the law were “unfair” and have burdened them with “costly and time-consuming seminars and trainings.” /muf
READ: Professionals sign petition questioning requirements for license renewal
