RIZAL LAW

Bill- is a measure which if passed through the legislative process becomes a law.
Unexpurgated- basically untouched in the case of the novel of Rizal, unexpurgated versions were those
that were not changed or censored to remove parts that might offend people.
Bicameral involves the 2 chambers of Congress: The Senate and the House of Representatives.
LOWER HOUSE- is composed of the House of Representatives (congressman) they directly represent the
people.
UPPER HOUSE- is composed of the House of the Senate.
Republic Act 1425- known as Rizal law, the teaching of Jose Rizal’s life works and writings with an
emphasis on his famous novels is mandatory. The law was passed in 1956 after many debates and
contestation. 
1956- The date when it passed as a law.
Author- is the one who wrote the bill and drafted it.
Sponsor- Introduces and gets the support of the members of the House of Representatives.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

Anyone can file a bill.

Petition paper- has a name and signatories.
Petition for support- it can come from the representative of the party list and will be sponsored by a
congressman or senator. They will represent them or their proposal as a BILL.
BILL COMES IN:
STEP 1 Bill is filed in the Senate Office of the Secretary. It is given a number and calendared for first
reading.
STEP 2 First Reading. The bill’s title, number, and the author(s) are read on the floor. Afterward, it is
referred to the appropriate committee.
STEP 3 Committee Hearings. The bill is discussed within the committee and a period of consultations is
held. The committee can approve (approve without revisions, approve with amendments, or recommend
substitution or consolidation with similar bills) or reject. After the committee submits the committee report,
the bill is calendared from the second reading.
STEP 4 Second Reading. The bill is read and discussed on the floor. The author delivers a sponsorship
speech. The other members of the Senate may engage in discussions regarding the bill and a period of
debates will be pursued. Amendments may be suggested to the bill.
STEP 5 Voting on Second Reading. The senators vote on whether to approve or reject the bill. If approved,
the bill is calendared for the third reading.
STEP 6 Voting on Third Reading. Copies of the final versions of the bill are distributed to the members of
the Senate who will vote for its approval or rejection.
STEP 7 Consolidation of Version from the House. The similar steps above are followed by the House of
Representatives in coming up with the approved bill. If there are differences between the Senate and
House versions, a bicameral conference committee is called to reconcile the two. After this, both chambers
approve the consolidated version.
STEP 8 Transmittal of the Final Version to Malacañan. The bill is then submitted to the President for
signing. The President can either sign the bill into law or veto it and return it to Congress.

RIZAL BILL TO A LAW

Author: Sen. Claro M. Recto

Sen, Jose P. Laurel was the chairman of the Senate and Committee on Education.
Sponsor: Sen. Jose P. Laurel Sr.
Opponents: Catholic church
Signed by: Pres. Ramon Magsaysay on June 12, 1956
RIZAL BILL – Senate Bill no. 438
April 3, 1956 – Senate Bill No. 438 was filed by Jose P. Laurel
April 17, 1956 – Senate Committee on Education Chair Jose P. Laurel sponsored the bill and began
delivering speeches for the proposed legislation.
April 19, 1956- House Bill No. 5561, an identical version of Senate Bill No. 438 was filed by Representative
Jacobo Gonzales.
April 23, 1956 – Debates started, FRANCISCO SOC RODRIGO is one of the opposition members.
Debates on this bill occurred in the House of Representatives.
May 2, 1956, the House Committee on Education approved the bill without amendment.
May 9, 1956 – The debates commenced. A major point of the debate was whether the compulsory reading
of the texts Noli me Tangere and El Filibusterismo appropriated in the bill was constitutional.
To move the procedure to the next step, Sen. Jose P. Laurel proposed an amendment, in particular, he
removed the compulsory reading of Rizal’s novels and proposed that Rizal’s other novels be included in
the subject. He is firm in his stand that the unexpurgated versions be read.
May 14, 1956 – Similar amendments were adopted to the house version. The amended version of the bill
was also scrutinized but was also palatable (acceptable) to the members of Congress.
May 17, 1956 – They asked the Bureau of Printing to use the templates for the Senate version in printing
the House version. The Senate and House versions of the bill were approved.
June 12, 1956 – The bill was transmitted to Malacañan and was approved by Pres. Ramon Magsaysay and
the bill became “ The Republic Act 1425.”