Senate panel OKs bill regulating public solicitation

The Senate social justice, welfare, and rural development committee has approved a bill regulating public solicitations to protect the public from unscrupulous activities and ensure funds raised are properly utilized.

Under Senate Bill 2111, standards and guidelines are established to strengthen the system of granting permits or authorization to solicit funds or donations from the public.

The bill shall apply to all national government agencies, government-owned and -controlled corporations, state universities and colleges, public schools, local government units, civil society organizations including faith-based organizations, people’s organizations, non-government organizations, academe, associations and similar organizations operating in the Philippines, which are partly or fully financed with funds solicited from or contributed by the public or private sector for charitable or public welfare purposes.

Under the bill, these entities should apply for permit from the Department of Social Welfare and Development or duly authorized undersecretary for all public solicitations; regional DSWD director or representative for regional public solicitations; provincial governor through the provincial social welfare office chief for provincial solicitations; and city or municipal mayor through the city or municipal social welfare office chief for local and online public solicitations.

The bill states that all solicitation permits shall be valid only on approved date of coverage, which in no case shall exceed one year within the specified area and shall not extend outside the Philippines if the target beneficiaries and donors are Filipinos.

Any organization or agency with a good track record in conducting public solicitation, as determined by DSWD officials, may be granted a solicitation permit with a longer validity period that shall not exceed two years.

Exempted from application of solicitation permit are:

• organizations and agencies created by laws that specifically confer authority to solicit or conduct fund campaign,
• traditional caroling activities and performances during the holiday season,
• solicitations for religious purposes made within religious sanctuaries such as churches, mosques, and other structure regularly used for religious services or worship, and
• solicitations for personal purposes that are strictly confined to relatives within fourth degree of affinity or consanguinity and friends and associates

The bill states that DSWD may charge reasonable fees corresponding to the cost of preparing the permit  for national and regional solicitations.

It added not more than 30 percent of the total proceeds from the fund-raising activity shall be expended for administrative cost and the remaining fund shall be utilized entirely for projects or programs for the targeted beneficiaries.

It shall also be mandatory for funds collected from solicitations to be deposited in a banking institution regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in the name of the applicant individual, organization, or agency.

The individual, organization, or agency shall maintain a book of accounts for the monitoring and validation of the report. The turn over of the proceeds to the beneficiaries shall be witnessed by DSWD representatives.

Considered as prohibited acts under the bill are soliciting without permit, soliciting beyond the allowed area of coverage, using falsified or tampered permit, soliciting with expired permit, using the solicited funds for purposes other than indicated in the application form, exploiting the beneficiaries, failure to account for solicited funds, among others.

The penalty ranges from imprisonment of three to six months or a fine of not less than 10,000 but not more than 100,000.

If the offender is a foreigner, he or she shall be deported and barred from entering the country after serving the sentence. If the offender is a public officer, he or she shall suffer the penalty of temporary disqualification from public post.

Individuals, organizations, or agencies repeatedly violating the law will be permanently blacklisted from conducting any solicitation activity.

The bill also states that all solicited funds from unauthorized public solicitation shall be forfeited in favor of the government. —KBK, GMA News