Bill filed to double economic relief allowance

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Mark Villar filed on Wednesday a bill seeking to double the personnel economic relief allowance for government employees.

Villar said he filed Senate Bill 1378 or the proposed “Act Providing an Increase and an Automatic Adjustment Mechanism in the Personnel Economic Relief Allowance (PERA) Granted to Government Employees” to increase the financial assistance given to government workers “to defray some of their expenses corresponding to the cost of essential goods and services.”

“Increasing along with the price of gasoline are the prices of basic commodities. So it is just right to hike the PERA of our employees to make it sufficient to cover their primary expenses,” Villar said in Filipino. “I believe this is a small cost compared to their huge sacrifices to serve the nation. We will make sure that this will pass Congress.”

The PERA, implemented in 1990, first amounted to P500 and was increased to P2,000 in 2009.

However, Villar noted that 13 years after its implementation, the cost of basic goods has risen fast.

He said his bill covers civilian government personnel at the local and national level whether elected or appointed, whether occupying regular, contractual or casual positions, whose positions are covered by Republic Act 6758 or the Compensation and Position Classification Act of 1989.

The military and uniformed personnel will also receive the same amount, except for government personnel stationed abroad who receive overseas allowances.

“This is long overdue. Our government employees deserve this increase to make ends meet due to the high prices of basic commodities. This is a huge help to our hardworking government employees, especially as the Yuletide season is fast approaching,” he said.