MARK VILLAR FILES BILL INCREASING GOVERNMENT'S PERSONNEL ECONOMIC RELIEF ALLOWANCE (PERA) FROM 2,000 TO 4,000 PESOS

Senator Mark A. Villar has filed a bill seeking to increase the Personnel Economic Relief Allowance (PERA) being granted to government employees on Wednesday, 12 October 2022.

Senate Bill No. 1378 entitled; An Act Providing an Increase and an Automatic Adjustment Mechanism in the Personnel Economic Relief Allowance (PERA) Granted to Government Employees, aims to increase the financial assistance given to our government employees to defray some of their expenses corresponding to the cost of essential goods and services.

"Kasabay ng pagtaas ng gasolina, gayon na rin ng presyo ng bilihin, nararapat din na itaas ang PERA ng mga empleyado upang maging sapat ito sa pagtugon sa kanilang mga pangunahing pangangailangan," Sen. Villar said in a statement.

Through Senate and House of Representatives Joint Resolution No. 4, the PERA amounted to five hundred pesos (Php 500.00) and was increased to two thousand pesos (Php 2,000.00) in 2009. However, after 13 years after its implementation, several changes have emerged mainly on the rising cost of basic goods. In the proposed bill, PERA will be adjusted to Four Thousand pesos (Php 4,000) per month.

"Naniniwala ako na ito ay maliit lamang kumpara sa laki ng kanilang sakripisyo upang maglingkod sa ating bayan. Sisiguraduhin natin na ito ay maipasa sa kongreso at may sapat na pondo para sa mga lingkod bayan na mga empleyado," Villar added.

Villar explained that this bill covers civilian government personnel at the local and national level whether elected or appointed, or whether occupying regular, contractual, or casual positions, whose petitions are covered by the Republic Act No. 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 receive overseas allowances.

Once enacted into law, this will relieve government personnel from the pressure of securing their basic necessities, thus, allowing them to concentrate and be further motivated in providing public service, Villar stated in the explanatory note.

"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." Villar ended.

The PERA bill was first passed into law in 1990 as a subsidy to government workers to cope due to high inflation.