Senator Raffy Tulfo filed a bill to provide free parking for senior citizens, and persons with disabilities (PWDs), and validated consumers in commercial establishments to make shopping more convenient and accessible.
Senate Bill (SB) No. 1920, or 'Free Parking Act', offers the public a 'small break from the current wave of fuel, energy, commodity, and other price hikes that the average salary rate is unable to adequately cover'.
Under the bill, senior citizens, PWDs, and validated customers are required to comply with the following:
- Senior citizens and PWDs shall be required to present a valid ID issued by the government, such as a senior citizen ID or a PWD ID, to avail of the free parking privilege.
- Validated customers must present the validation stamp or sticker issued by the commercial establishment to avail of the free parking privilege.
- Commercial establishments shall be required to designate parking spaces for senior citizens, PWDs, and validated customers, and these spaces shall be clearly marked and located as close as possible to the entrance of the establishment.
- The free parking privilege shall be valid for three (3) hours per visit.
The establishment that will violate the provision will be fined not less than or more than P10,000 but not more than P100,000 for the first offense and not less than P50,000 but not more than P500,000 for subsequent offenses.
Repeat offenders will suffer from the cancellation of the permit.
Establishments with less than ten parking spaces and those in areas where parking is not readily available are exempted from the Act.
