SENATE has approved on third reading Senate Bill No. 1483, which seeks to extend the lifespan of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) from 2025 to the end of 2027.

The measure, principally authored and sponsored by EDCOM II Co-Chair Senator Loren Legarda, is now officially the first bill to pass third reading in the 20th Congress.

Under Republic Act No. 11899, EDCOM II was originally mandated to conclude its work in December 2025. However, senators agreed that the Commission has not yet reached a winding-down phase. Instead, it continues to operate at full momentum, with much of its mandate still unfolding as it pursues structural reforms in the Philippine education system.

Legarda, in championing the bill, highlighted the Commission’s groundbreaking reports—Miseducation: The Failed System of Philippine Education and Fixing the Foundations: A Matter of National Survival—describing them as the most rigorous, data-driven analyses of the country’s education system in recent memory.

Beyond research and analysis, EDCOM II has played a strategic role in shaping legislation, informing financing decisions, and improving inter-agency coordination. It has acted as both a think tank and a convergence body, building trust among educators, parents, government agencies, and policymakers.

Legarda reiterated her commitment to driving reforms based on EDCOM II’s findings, including the Last Mile Schools bill and the modernization of the charters of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

The proposed extension received early backing from DepEd, CHED, and TESDA during a Senate hearing held on October 8, 2025.

“We are at a moment when progress is within reach,” Legarda said. “The work has direction. The coordination is in place. The momentum is real. It is only right that we see it through.”