Librarianship Practice Law Philippines

Policy, objectives, and definitional anchors

The State recognizes librarianship as an essential profession for developing the intellectual capacity of the citizenry and treats library service as a regular component for national development (Section 2).
The State shall promote professional growth and well-being through honest, effective and credible licensure examination and regulatory measures (Section 2).
The Act governs national examination for licensure, registration of librarians, issuance of a Certificate of Registration and Professional Identification Card, supervision and regulation of practice, integration of librarians under one national organization, and development of professional competence (Section 3).
A “Librarian” is an individual holding a Certificate of Registration and Professional Identification Card issued by the Professional Regulatory Board for Librarians and the Professional Regulation Commission in accordance with the Act (Section 4).
The “Commission” refers to the Professional Regulation Commission, and the “Board” refers to the Professional Regulatory Board for Librarians (Section 4).

Scope of librarianship practice functions

Librarianship covers performance of functions that include selection and acquisition of multi-media information sources responsive to clientele needs (Section 5).
Librarianship includes cataloguing and classification into organized collections and creation of local databases for speedy access, retrieval, or delivery of information (Section 5).
Librarianship includes development of computer-assisted/computer-backed information systems enabling on-line and network services (Section 5).
Librarianship includes establishing library systems and procedures; dissemination of information; rendering information, reference and research assistance; archiving; and education of users (Section 5).
Librarianship includes teaching, lecturing, and reviewing library, archives, and information science subjects, including subjects given in the licensure examination (Section 5).
Librarianship includes technical services involving abstracting, indexing, cataloguing, and classifying, and preparation of bibliographies, subject authority lists, thesauri, and union catalogues/lists (Section 5).
Librarianship includes preparation, evaluation, or appraisal of plans, programs, and/or projects for establishing, organizing, developing, and growing libraries or information centers, including determination of library requirements for space, buildings, structures, or facilities (Section 5).
Librarianship includes professional consultancy services or advice on any aspect of librarianship (Section 5).
Librarianship includes organization, conservation, preservation, and restoration of historical and cultural documents and other intellectual properties (Section 5).

Professional Board creation and governance

A Professional Regulatory Board for Librarians is created under the administrative supervision and control of the Professional Regulation Commission (Section 6).
The Board consists of a Chairperson and two (2) members appointed by the President from among recommendees and nominees submitted through the accredited, integrated national professional organization and the Commission (Section 6).
The new Board must be constituted within three (3) months from the effectivity of the Act (Section 6).
Board members must be natural-born citizens and residents of the Philippines, possess good reputation and moral character, and be librarians as defined by the Act (Section 7).
Board members must have at least ten (10) years active practice of librarianship, including five (5) years in a managerial position (Section 7).
Board members must not be faculty in any institution conferring academic degree on librarianship or offering review classes for librarian licensure, must not have direct or indirect pecuniary interest in such institutions, and must not be incumbent officers of the accredited, integrated national professional organization of librarians (Section 7).
The Board exercises executive, administrative, rule making, and quasi-judicial powers (Section 8).

Board powers, records, term, and oversight

The Board promulgates and administers rules and regulations needed to carry out the Act (Section 8).
The Board administers oaths in connection with the administration of the Act (Section 8).
The Board adopts an official seal (Section 8).
The Board issues, suspends, or revokes Certificates and professional identification cards and grants or cancels temporary/special permits (Section 8).
The Board investigates conditions affecting practice and adopts measures to enhance and maintain high ethical, moral, and professional standards (Section 8).
The Board sets policies and standards for all types of libraries, librarians, and the practice of librarianship (Section 8).
The Board coordinates with CHED to ensure institutions offering library, archives, and information science education comply with prescribed curriculum, faculty, and facilities standards (Section 8).
The Board adopts a Code of Ethics and a Code of Technical Standards, hears and decides administrative cases for violations of the Act, implementing rules, and codes, and may issue subpoena ad testificandum and subpoena duces tecum (Section 8).
The Board prescribes Continuing Professional Education (CPE) guidelines in coordination with the accredited and integrated association for professional librarians (Section 8).
The Board prepares, adopts, issues, or amends licensure examination syllabi or terms of specification consistent with CHED policies and standards (Section 8).
The Board decisions, resolutions, or orders in administrative cases are subject to Commission review only if appealed, while Board policies/resolutions/rules/regulations are subject to Commission review and approval (Section 8).

Board composition term and removal rules

The Chairperson and members serve three (3) years until successors are appointed and qualified (Section 9).
The first Board after approval of the Act holds staggered terms: the Chairperson for three (3) years, one member for two (2) years, and the other member for one (1) year (Section 9).
Reappointment is allowed for another term of three (3) years, but the total whole term cannot exceed six (6) years (Section 9).
Interim vacancies are filled only for the unexpired portion of the term (Section 9).
Board members take the proper oath of office (Section 9).
The Chairperson and members receive compensation and allowances comparable to those of existing regulatory boards under the Commission as provided in the General Appropriations Act (Section 10).
The President may remove or suspend Board members on Commission recommendation after proper administrative investigation, on grounds including neglect of duty, incompetence, unprofessional/unethical/immoral/dishonorable conduct, violation of the Act and codes, or irregularities in examination such as manipulation, rigging, disclosure of secrets or information on examination questions prior to the exam, tampering of grades/final judgment, or a criminal offense involving moral turpitude (Section 11).

Executive officer, secretariat, annual reporting

The Chairperson of the Commission is the Executive Officer of the Board and conducts the licensure examination for librarians (Section 12).
The Commission designates the Secretary of the Board and provides the Secretariat and support services for implementation (Section 12).
The Commission keeps all Board records, including examination papers, minutes of deliberations, and records of administrative proceedings and investigations, in the direct custody of the Secretary (Section 12).
The Board submits to the Commission after each calendar year an annual report of accomplishments, including a detailed account of operations and recommendations on issues affecting the profession (Section 13).

Licensure examination and registration mechanics

Applicants for registration must undergo a written licensure examination, unless specifically allowed under Section 19 (Section 14).
Examinations are administered by the Board in places and dates designated by the Commission, subject to Commission requirements (Section 14).
Applicants must have good health and good moral character, and must be graduates of a Bachelor’s degree in Library Science and Information Science at the time of filing (Section 15).
Master’s degree holders in Library and Information Science are allowed to qualify for application to the licensure examinations (Section 15).
Within five (5) years from the Act’s effectivity, holders of specified degrees are allowed to qualify for the licensure examination: Bachelor of Science in Education or Elementary Education; or Bachelor of Arts with a major or specialization in Library Science; Master of Arts in Library Science or Library and Information Science; or any masteral degree with concentration in Library Science (Section 15).
The licensure examination covers: selection and acquisition of multi-media sources of information; cataloguing and classification; indexing and abstracting; reference, bibliography and information services; organization/management/development/maintenance of multi-media based library or information service, laws, trends and practices affecting the profession; and information technology (Section 16).
The Board may modify or add to the listed examination subjects based on needs and demands of the profession (Section 16).
Passing requires a weighted general average of seventy-five percent (75%) with no grade lower than fifty percent (50%) in any subject (Section 17).
The Board reports examination results and examinee ratings to the Commission within ten (10) days after the examination (Section 18).

Special registration without examination

Registration without examination is available upon application and payment of required fees to applicants who, on the Act’s effectivity date of Republic Act No. 6966, are practicing librarians meeting specified educational and experience criteria (Section 19).
Qualified practicing librarians include: those who completed at least a bachelor’s degree and are a librarian or supervising librarian eligible (Section 19).
Qualified practicing librarians include: those who completed at least a bachelor’s degree, eighteen (18) units in Library Science, five (5) years experience in librarianship, and a first grade eligible or its equivalent (Section 19).
Qualified practicing librarians include: those who completed a masteral degree in Library Science or Library and Information Science, and a first grade eligible or its equivalent (Section 19).
Qualified practicing librarians include: those who completed at least a bachelor’s degree, eighteen (18) units in Library Science, and seven (7) years experience in librarianship (Section 19).
Those who qualify under this special registration have three (3) years from the Act’s effectivity to apply for registration (Section 19).

Issuance of certificates, IDs, oath, and refusal

The Commission issues a Certificate of Registration and Professional Identification Card to: (a) persons who pass the licensure examination and (b) persons registered without examination under the Act, and it enters their names in the Roster of Philippine Librarians (Section 20).
The Certificate of Registration bears the signatures of the Chairperson of the Commission and the Chairperson and members of the Board, stamped with the official seals of both the Board and the Commission stating entitlement to practice and privileges (Section 20).
The Certificate remains effective until suspended or revoked under the Act (Section 20).
The Professional Identification Card includes the registrant’s name and signature, registration number, date of issuance, and expiry date, and is signed by the Chairperson of the Commission after payment of the prescribed fee (Section 20).
Successful examinees and qualified applicants for registration without examination must take an oath of profession before authorized Commission officers, Board members, or any government official authorized to administer oaths before practicing librarianship in the Philippines (Section 21).
The Board must refuse to register a successful examinee or applicant for registration without examination if the person was convicted of a criminal offense involving moral turpitude, found guilty of immoral and dishonorable conduct after Board investigation, or declared of unsound mind (Section 22).
The refusal reason must be set forth in writing (Section 22).

Suspension, revocation, cancellation, and appeals

The Board may revoke or suspend a librarian’s Certificate of Registration or cancel a temporary/special permit only after due notice and hearing (Section 23).
Grounds include the grounds in Section 22 and additional grounds including unprofessional or dishonorable conduct; malpractice; incompetence; serious ignorance or negligence in practice; fraud; deceit or falsification in obtaining certificates/IDs/permits; abetment of illegal practice by allowing illegal use of one’s certificate/ID/permit; practicing during the period of suspension; or any violation of the Act, its Implementing Rules and Regulations, the Code of Ethics, the Code of Technical Standards, or Board policies (Section 23).
A respondent may appeal the Board’s decision, order, or resolution to the Commission within fifteen (15) days from receipt of the decision/order/resolution (Section 23).

Reissuance and roster requirements

After two (2) years from the date of revocation, the Board may reissue a Certificate upon proper application (Section 24).
A lost, destroyed, or mutilated Certificate, Professional Identification Card, or temporary/special permit may be reissued upon payment of the required fee prescribed by the Commission (Section 24).
The Board maintains an up-to-date, complete and properly organized Roster, coordinated with the accredited and integrated national organization of librarians, including those issued Certificates under Republic Act No. 6966 and those qualifying under the Act (Section 25).
The Roster must include an alphabetical list by surname with addresses and license numbers, a numerically arranged list by license numbers, and other lists the Board deems necessary (Section 25).
Copies of the Roster are provided to the National Library, the Civil Service Commission, and the accredited national organization of librarians and are kept as permanent records (Section 25).

Practice rules, foreign reciprocity, and employment

A person without a valid Certificate of Registration and Professional Identification Card or a temporary/special permit must not practice or offer to practice librarianship in the Philippines or assume positions involving functions of a librarian under Section 5 (Section 26).
A librarian’s Certificate of Registration, Professional Identification Card, and Professional Tax Receipt number must be reflected in any document issued or signed in connection with practice of the profession (Section 27).
A librarian from another country is admitted for licensure examination, issued certificates/ID, and entitled to rights and privileges under the Act if the country/state permits Filipino librarians to practice on an equal basis and the requirements for Certificate of Registration are substantially the same, and the law grants reciprocal privileges to Filipinos (Section 28).
All practicing librarians registered at the time the Act takes effect are automatically registered (Section 29).
All registered librarians are integrated under a single organization recognized and accredited by the Board and approved by the Commission (Section 30).
A duly registered and licensed librarian automatically becomes a member of the integrated and accredited professional organization upon payment of required fees and dues (Section 30).
Membership in the integrated and accredited professional organization is not a bar to membership in any other association of librarians (Section 30).
Only qualified and licensed librarians may be employed as librarians in all government libraries (Section 31).
Local government units must comply with the government-library employment requirement within three (3) years from approval of the Act (Section 31).

Penal provisions and funding implementation

Any person who practices or offers to practice any function of a librarian under Section 5 without the required registration/certificate/ID/temporary license/permit, or who violates the Act or its Implementing Rules and Regulations, is penalized upon conviction by a fine of not less than PHP 30,000.00 nor more than PHP 100,000.00, or imprisonment of not less than one (1) month nor more than three (3) years, at the discretion of the court (Section 32).
The Chairperson of the Professional Regulation Commission must immediately include implementation of the Act in the Commission program, with funding included in the annual General Appropriations Act (Section 33).

Transitory, implementing rules, separability, repeal, effectivity

The present Board continues to function until the new Board is constituted under the Act (Section 34).
The Board, subject to Commission approval, must promulgate rules and regulations and the Code of Ethics and the Code of Technical Standards for Librarians, which take effect fifteen (15) days following publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation (Section 35).
If any clause, provision, paragraph, or part is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the judgment does not affect other parts, and the invalidity is confined to the part directly involved (Section 36).
Republic Act No. 6966 is repealed, and all other inconsistent laws, decrees, orders, rules, regulations, ordinances, or parts are repealed or amended accordingly (Section 37).
The Act takes effect fifteen (15) days after publication in the Official Gazette or a national newspaper of general circulation (Section 38).