Bagong Henerasyon (BH) Party-list Representative Robert Nazal has announced plans to advocate for a larger 50 percent discount on pre-employment documents for indigent job applicants as legislative discussions transition to the House plenary.
The House Committee on Ways and Means recently approved House Bill (HB) No. 8413, a consolidated substitute measure merging 14 related proposals—including Nazal’s HB No. 2068 filed on July 17, 2025—which provides a 20 percent fee reduction.
However, Nazal argued that the proposed figure remains insufficient for vulnerable jobseekers.
”While we support HB 8413 in principle, we believe that a discount of more than 20 percent on pre-employment documents would be more meaningful and appreciated by jobseekers who are among the poorest of the poor,” Nazal said.
Addressing concerns over agency revenues, the lawmaker questioned the severity of the financial impact and questioned how many indigent jobseekers would ultimately benefit to make collection losses a major issue.
”Gaano ba karami ang mga indigent jobseekers na makikinabang dito sa panukalang ito para maging isyu ito sa ating pamahalaan sa usaping koleksyon o kita?” asked the lawmaker.
”Our purpose for pushing for this measure is to remove as many obstacles as possible that stand in the way of Filipinos who are looking to make a decent living in order to provide for their families,” he added.
The proposed 50 percent rate would specifically target families living below the poverty line, including members of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps). To measure the overall impact, the lawmaker requested comparative figures on government costs:
”How much exactly are we talking about as cost for the agencies concerned with the grant of a 50 percent discount? Conversely, how much will be saved if this is reduced to 20 percent?” Nazal said.
Additionally, Nazal expressed concern regarding the bill’s reliance on Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and Community-Based Monitoring System (CBMS) data for indigency certification, citing potential accessibility hurdles.
He plans to propose amendments allowing local social welfare offices or Public Employment Service Offices (PESO) to handle or issue provisional certifications when centralized database records are missing or outdated.
He also emphasized establishing streamlined, one-stop, or digital application channels to prevent jobseekers from incurring unnecessary travel costs.
”To require jobseekers to visit different government offices to apply for their pre-employment documents would entail yet another expense for them and for our target beneficiaries, this could end up discouraging them from pushing through with their efforts to find employment,” he noted.