Senate ratifies student discount bill
Credit to Author: BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO| Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2019 16:15:16 +0000
THE Senate has adopted and ratified the bicameral conference committee reports on three measures principally sponsored or authored by Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino 4th — Senate Bill (SB) 1532 or the “Innovative Startup Act,” SB 1534 or “the Magna Carta for Scientists,” and SB 1597 or “the Student Fare Discount Act.”
The Senate also ratified the bicam report on disagreeing provisions of SB 1629 and House Bill 172 or the First Time Jobseekers Assistance Act.
Aquino pushed for the passage of SB 1532 as principal author and sponsor and of SB 1534 as principal sponsor.
The measures will be transmitted to Malacañang for President Rodrigo Duterte’s signature.
If enacted into law, SB 1532 will provide support to innovative and tech startups, which pertain to businesses that provide unique and relevant solutions to pressing problems, such as transportation, financing, agriculture and healthcare.
Under the measure, host agencies including the Department of Science and Technology (DoST), Department of Information Communications Technology (DICT) and Department of Trade and Industry ( DTI) would provide subsidies to innovative startups to help defray the cost of business registration and the use of space, facilities, equipment and other services for their operations. Start ups will also receive subsidies for travel related to their participation in local and international start up events and competitions.
In addition, the proposed law creates a Start Up Grant Fund administered by DoST, DICT, and DTI to provide grants-in-aid for research, training, expansion, or scaling up and a Start Up Venture Fund administered by DTI to fund match investments in start ups by investors.
SB 1534 seeks to remove limits on additional honoraria sourced from externally funded grants for science and technology (S&T) professions and foster ease in accessing benefits for S&T personnel in departments and agencies other than DoST.
“Malaking tulong ang dalawang panukalang ito upang lalo pang mapalakas ang sektor ng Science and Technology at para mabigyan ng tamang suporta ang entrepreneurs na may hatid na solusyon sa mga problema sa bansa” (The two measures would be of great help in giving entrepreneurs the necessary support in rendering solutions to the problems in the country),” Aquino said.
SB 1597 grants mandatory 20-percent fare discounts to students on all land, air and water transportation, even during weekends and holidays.
The proposed First Time Jobseekers Assistance Act, meanwhile, aims to assist fresh graduates searching for employment. If passed into law, it will benefit about 600,000 fresh graduates annually.
Sen. Joel Villanueva, chairman of the Senate committee on labor, employment and human resources development, sought its ratification on Wednesday night.
The bill aims to exempt fresh graduates from paying fees in securing pre-employment documents such as police clearance certificate, NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) clearance, barangay clearance, medical certificate, birth and/or marriage certificate, and Tax Identification Number.
With a reports from JAVIER JOE ISMAEL
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