FIRST DISTRICT, Pampanga – Pampanga First District Representative Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr. has filed House Bill No. 4173 on August 28, 2025, which seeks to include undernourished public secondary school students in the coverage of the Department of Education’s school-based feeding programs under R.A. No. 11037, otherwise known as the “Masustansiyang Pagkain Para Sa Batang Pilipino Act.”
Under the current law, the school-based feeding program provides undernourished public school children from kindergarten to grade six with at least one fortified meal for a period of not less than 120 days in a year. Through HB No. 4173, the coverage of this program will be expanded to include grades seven to 12.
HB No. 4173 stipulates further that the cost per meal shall be at least P35 and may be adjusted periodically to account for inflation or for any nutritional adjustments as may be recommended by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). Ten percent of the total cost of meal for each school shall be allocated to cover overhead costs for the feeding program.
Likewise, HB No. 4173 stipulates that DepEd shall collaborate with parents of intended beneficiaries and affiliated parents’ organizations in the preparation and distribution of meals, and prioritize linkages with SMEs and community-based resources to supply the meals for the feeding program.
Earlier, Lazatin also filed HB No. 4174, which seeks to address the issue of malnutrition among families with young children through the provision of an additional amount of at least P300 per month on top of the usual Conditional Cash Transfer Grant under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
HB No. 4174 seeks to amend R.A. 11310, otherwise known as the “Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) Act,” to include an additional ‘First 1,000 Days’ (F1KD) Cash Grant per child aged zero to two years old at an amount no lower than P300 per month, for a maximum of three children for each qualified household beneficiary.
Under the current 4Ps Act, Conditional Transfer Beneficiaries receive the following: at least P300 per month for per child enrolled in day care and elementary programs for a maximum of 10 months per year; at least P700 per month per child enrolled in senior high school for a maximum of 10 months per year; and health and nutrition grant at least P750 per month for a maximum of 12 months per year – for a total of at least P1,750 per month. With HB No. 4174, this will increase to at least P2,050 per month.
