Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 7104)
The short title is the "Commission on the Filipino Language Act."
The government policy is to ensure and promote the evolution, development, and further enrichment of Filipino as the national language of the Philippines, on the basis of existing Philippine and other languages.
Filipino refers to the national language of the Philippines.
Philippine languages refer to the indigenous languages of the Philippines, including the national language and the regional and local languages.
The Commission is composed of eleven (11) commissioners representing major Philippine languages, Northern and Southern Cultural Communities, and other ethnolinguistic regions. At least four commissioners must represent various disciplines.
The President appoints the commissioners with the consent of the Commission on Appointments from nominees submitted by ethnolinguistic regions. A commissioner must be a natural-born Filipino citizen, at least thirty years old, morally upright, and an expert in linguistics, culture, and language relevant to their region and discipline.
The Chairman and the two full-time commissioners serve for a term of seven (7) years.
The Commission is tasked to formulate policies for Filipino and Philippine languages development, promulgate rules, undertake research, set linguistic standards, encourage original works, maintain translation divisions, call for government and private cooperation, conduct hearings, and report annually to the President and Congress.
The Commission's publications such as dictionaries, vocabularies, grammars, pamphlets, and similar printed matter shall enjoy free use of the mails without postage.
All personnel, records, assets, and intellectual outputs of the Institute of Philippine Languages are transferred to the Commission. The Institute is abolished upon the Commission's organization, with the transfer to ensure minimal disruption and preservation of employee rights.