Manila, March 23 -- House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander "Sandro" Marcos of Ilocos Norte is pushing for the passage of a measure that would require higher education institutions to provide free academic records to fresh graduates and adopt digital systems to streamline their release.

House Bill No. 8701, or the Academic and Labor Pathways Assistance for Students (ALPAS) Act, targets fresh graduates, defined as those within 12 months from graduation, and aims to remove financial and administrative barriers they face when applying for jobs.

Under the proposed measure, all higher education institutions, whether public or private, are required to provide fresh graduates with free employment application documents, including transcripts ...