AN ACT TO MAXIMIZE THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENIOR …

Republic Act 7432

AN ACT TO MAXIMIZE THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENIOR CITIZENS TO NATION BUILDING, GRANT BENEFITS AND SPECIAL PRIVILEGES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representative of the Philippines

in

Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Declaration of Policies and Objectives ? Pursuant to Article XV, Section 4 of the Constitution, it is the duty of the family to take care of its elderly members while the State may design programs of social security for them. In addition to this, Section 10 in the Declaration of Principles and State Policies provides: "The State shall provide social justice in all phases of national development". Further, Article XIII, Section II provides: "The State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to health development which shall endeavor to make essential goods, health and other social services available to all the people at affordable cost. There shall be priority for the needs of the underprivileged, sick, elderly, disabled, women and children." Consonant with these constitutional principles the following are the declared policies of this Act:

a) a) To motivate and encourage the senior citizens to contribute to nation building;

b) b) To encourage their families and communities they live with to reaffirm the valued Filipino tradition of caring for the senior citizens.

In accordance with these policies, this act aims to:

1) 1) Establish mechanism whereby the contribution of the senior citizens are maximized;

2) 2) Adopt measures whereby our senior citizens are assisted and appreciated by the community as a whole;

3) 3) Establish a program beneficial to the senior citizens, their families and the rest of the community that they serve.

SECTION 2. Definition of Terms. ? As used in this Act, the term "senior citizen" shall mean any resident of the Philippines at least sixty (60) years old, including those who have retired from both government offices and private enterprises, and has an income of not more than Sixty thousand pesos (P60,000.00) per annum subject to review by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) every three (3) years.

The term "head of the family" shall mean any person so defined in the National Internal Revenue Code.

SECTION 3. Contribution to the Community. ? Any qualified senior citizens as determined by the Office for Senior Citizen Affairs (OSCA) may render his/her services to the community which shall consist of but not limited to any of the following:

a) Tutorial and/or consultancy services;

b) Actual teaching and demonstration of hobbies and income generating skills;

c) Lectures on specialized fields like agriculture, health, environmental protection and the like;

d) The transfer of new skills acquired by virtue of their training mentioned in Section 4, paragraph

e) Undertaking other appropriate services as determined by the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA) such as school traffic guide, tourist aid, pre-school assistant, etc.

In consideration of the services rendered by the qualified elderly, the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA) may award or grant benefits or privileges to the elderly, in addition to the other privileges provided for under Section 4 hereof.

SECTION 4. Privileges for the Senior Citizens. ? The senior citizens shall be entitled to the following:

a) a) The grant of twenty percent (20%) discount from all establishments relative to utilization of transportation services, hotels and similar lodging establishment,

restaurants and recreation centers and purchase of medicines anywhere in the country: Provided, That private establishments may claim the cost as tax credit;

b) b) A minimum of twenty percent (20%) discount on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema houses and concert halls, circuses, carnivals and other similar places of culture, leisure, and amusements;

c) c) Exemption from the payment of individual income taxes: Provided, That their annual taxable income does not exceed the poverty level as determined by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) for that year;

d) d) Exemption from training fees for socioeconomic programs undertaken by the OSCA as part of its work;

e) e) Free medical and dental services in government establishment anywhere in the country, subject to guidelines to be issued by the Department of Health, the Government Service Insurance System and the Social Security System;

f) f) To the extent practicable and feasible, the continuance of the same benefits and privileges given by the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Social Security System (SSS) and PAG-IBIG, as the case may be, as are enjoyed by those in actual service.

SECTION 5. Government Assistance. ? The Government shall provide the following assistance to those caring for and living with the senior citizen:

a) The senior citizen shall be treated as dependents provided for in the National Internal Revenue Code and as such, individual taxpayers caring for them, be they relatives or not shall be accorded the privileges granted by the Code insofar as having dependents are concerned.

b) Individuals or non-governmental institutions establishing homes, residential communities or retirement villages solely for the senior citizens shall be accorded the following:

1) Realty tax holiday for the first five (5) years starting from the first year of operations;

2) Priority in the building and/or maintenance of provincial or municipal roads leading to the aforesaid home, residential community or retirement village.

SECTION 6. Retirement Benefits. ? To the extent practicable and feasible retirement benefits from both the Government and the private sectors shall be upgraded to be at par with the current scale enjoyed by those in actual service.

SECTION 7. The Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA). ? There shall be established in the Office of the Mayor an OSCA to be headed by a Councilor who shall be designated by the Sangguniang Bayan and assisted by the Community Development Officer in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development. The functions of this office are:

a) a) To plan, implement and monitor yearly work programs in pursuance of the objectives of this Act;

b) b) To draw up a list of available and required services which can be provided by the senior citizens;

c) c) To maintain and regularly update on a quarterly basis the list of senior citizens and to issue nationally uniform individual identification cards which shall be valid anywhere in the country;

d) d) To serve as a general information and liaison center to serve the needs of the senior citizens.

SECTION 8. Municipal Responsibility. ? It shall be the responsibility of the municipality through the Mayor to ensure that the provisions of this Act are implemented to its fullest.

SECTION 9. Penalties. ? Violation of any provision of this Act for which no penalty is specifically provided under any other law, shall be punished by imprisonment not exceeding one (1) month or a fine not exceeding One thousand pesos (P1,000.00) or both.

SECTION 10. Implementing Rules and Regulations. ? The Secretary of Social Welfare and Development jointly with the Department of Finance, the Department of Tourism, the Department of Health, the Department of Transportation and Communications and the Department of Interior and Local Government shall issue the necessary rules and regulations to carry out the objectives of this Act.

SECTION 11. Appropriation. ? The necessary appropriation for the operation and maintenance of the OSCA shall be appropriated and approved by the local government units concerned. The National Government shall appropriate such amount as may be necessary to carry out the objectives of this Act.

SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. ? All provisions of laws, orders, and decrees, including rules and regulations inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed and/or modified accordingly.

SECTION 13. Separability Clause. ? If any part or provision of this Act shall be held to be unconstitutional or invalid, other provisions hereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SECTION 14. Effectivity. ? This Act shall take effect fifteen (15 days following its publication in one (1) national newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,

(SGD.) RAMON V. MITRA Speaker of the House of

Representatives

(SGD.) NEPTHALI A. GONZALES President of the Senate

This bill, which is a consolidation of Senate Bill Nos. 835, 1435 and House Bill No. 35335, was finally passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on February 7, 1992.

(SGD.) CAMILO L. SABIO Secretary General

House of Representatives

(SGD.) ANACLETO D. BADOY, JR. Secretary of the Senate

Approved: April 23, 1992

(SGD.) CORAZON C. AQUINO President of the Philippines

GUIDELINES ON THE ISSUANCE OF THE NATIONALLY UNIFORM IDs OF SENIOR CITIZENS AS PER R.A. 7432

The national I.D. of Senior Citizens as per provision of RA 7432 is to be provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for free. A senior citizen who has an income of P60,000.00 and below per annum shall be granted the benefits per Section 4 of RA 7432. The process of securing the ID is as follows:

1. 1. A Senior Citizen shall enlist at the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (OSCA) established at the Office of the Mayor in his/her city or municipality;

2. 2. The OSCA shall determine the eligibility of the senior citizen. All eligible senior citizens shall provide OSCA two (2) ID pictures taken within the year of enlisting at OSCA. One ID picture shall be attached to the OSCA registration form to be kept by the said office. The other picture shall be for the ID card;

3. 3. The OSCA shall prepare the list of Senior Citizens to be certified by the local office of the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the local Civil Registrar's office;

4. 4. Duplicate copy of the certified list of senior citizens shall be submitted by OSCA to the DSWD filed office;

5. 5. The Bureau of Disabled Persons Welfare, DSWD shall send to the 14 DSWD Field Offices number of IDs needed by the Elderly of the region;

6. 6. The DSWD Field Office shall release the IDs to the respective local OSCAs;

7. 7. The OSCA shall issue the ID cards duly signed by the municipal/city Mayor to the qualified senior citizens;

8. 8. The OSCA shall issue the nationally uniform ID card without cost to the Senior Citizen.

In case the ID is lost, it must be reported to the local OSCA. Replacement shall be issued upon request by OSCA with corresponding cost. The cost per ID shall be determined by DSWD. The payment shall remain at OSCA as part of its funds. No ID cards of senior citizens shall be issued directly by the DSWD Central Office or its field offices.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Resolution No. 1 (Series 1993)

Approving the Implementing Rules and Regulations of R.A. 7432 Maximizing the Contribution of Senior Citizens to Nation Building, Grant Benefits and Privileges

Whereas, the Philippine Constitution recognizes the duty of the family to take care of its elderly members with the state designing programs of social security for them, and the need for the state to promote social justice in all phases of national development, by making available essential social services to the priority groups such as the sick, elderly, disabled, women and children;

Whereas, RA 7432 has been enacted to motivate and encourage senior citizens to contribute to nation building and to mobilize their families and the communities they live with to reaffirm the valued Filipino tradition of caring for the senior citizen;

Whereas, the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP) 1993-1998 aims to pursue a better quality of life for all Filipinos particularly the disadvantaged sectors by providing focused basic services to allow them to manage and control their resources, as well as benefit from developmental interventions;

Whereas, the draft IR on R.A. 7432 was formulated by an Inter-agency Committee headed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and participated in by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Tourism (DOT), Transportation and Communications (DOTC), Health (DOH) and Finance (DOF), including the National Federation of Senior Citizens Association of the Philippines (NFSCAP).

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, AS IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED, by the Chairman and the members (of the NEDA, Board's Social Development Committee (SPC) Cabinet level, to approve the Implementing Rules and Regulations of R.A. 7432.

(Sgd.) Honorable Nieves R. Confesor Secretary, Department of Labor and Employment

Chairman, Social Development Committee

(Sgd.) Honorable Cielito F. Habito, Jr. Secretary for Socioeconomic Planning

Co-Chairman, Social Development Committee

(Sgd.) Hon. Corazon Alma G. De Leon Acting Secretary

Department of Social Welfare and Development

(Sgd.) Hon. Roberto S. Sebastian Secretary

Department of Agriculture

(Sgd.) Hon. Ernesto D. Garilao Secretary

Department of Agrarian Reform

(Sgd.) Hon. Juan M. Flavier Secretary

Department of Health

(Sgd.) Hon. Rafael M. Alunan, III Secretary

Department of Interior and Local Government

(Sgd.) Hon. Armand V. Fabella Secretary

Department of Education, Culture and Sports

(Sgd.) Hon. Edelmiro A. Amante, Sr. Secretary

Office of Executive Secretary

RULES AND REGULATIONS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RA 7432, THE ACT TO MAXIMIZE THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENIOR CITIZENS TO NATION BUILDING, GRANT BENEFITS AND SPECIAL PRIVILEGES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

RULE I

TITLE, PURPOSE AND CONSTRUCTION

Article 1. Title ? These Rules shall be known and cited as the Rules and Regulations implementing the Act to Maximize the Contribution of Senior Citizens to Nation Building, Grant Benefits and Special Privileges and for Other Purposes.

Article 2. Purpose ? These Rules are promulgated to prescribe the procedures and guidelines for the implementation of the Act to Maximize the Contribution of Senior Citizens to National Building, Grant Benefits and Special Privileges and for Other Purposes in order to facilitate the compliance therewith and to achieve the objectives thereof.

Article 3. Construction ? These Rules shall be construed and applied in accordance with and in furtherance of the policy and objectives of the law. In case of conflict and/or ambiguity, which may arise in the implementation of these rules, the concerned agencies shall issue the necessary clarification. In case of doubt, the same shall be construed liberally and in favor of the beneficiaries.

RULE II

DECLARATION OF POLICIES AND OBJECTIVES, SCOPE AND APPLICATION

Article 4. Declaration of Policies and Objectives ? Pursuant to Article XV, Section 4 of the Constitution it is the duty of the family to take care to its elderly members while the State may design programs of social security for them. In addition to this, Section 10 in the Declaration of Principles and State Policies provides: "The State shall provide social justice in all phases of national development." Further, Article XIII, Section II provides: "The State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to health development which shall endeavor to make essential goods, health, and other social services available to all the people at affordable cost. There shall be priority for the needs of the underprivileged, sick, elderly, disabled, women and children." Consonant to these constitutional principles, the following are the declared policies of this Act:

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