SENATOR Paolo Benigno Aquino IV on Thursday said tuition and miscellaneous fees would no longer be collected in 112 state universities and colleges starting second semester of this school year.
Aquino said this was confirmed to him by the Commission on Higher Education.
This means those who would enrol during the second semester this academic year would no longer have to pay any tuition fees.
Republic Act 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act was supposed to be implemented starting school year 2018 to 2019.
There was no immediate comment from CHED.
Aquino said his staff would check whether SUCs would be complying with the law.
House appropriations committee chairman Karlo Nograles earlier said at least P40 billion would be alloted to fund RA 10931 next year.
The law provides free education to students in SUCs, local universities and colleges and Tesda-run vocational schools.
Aside from tuition fees, the government will shoulder miscellaneous and all other mandatory fees.
Scholarship grants meanwhile will be made available to students of both public and private college and universities.
