4Ps beneficiaries urged: Avail of lifeline subsidy

CEBU, Philippines — The Department of Energy (DOE) strongly urges household beneficiaries listed under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) to avail of the electricity lifeline rate program of the government in order to continue to get discounts on their electric bills.

DOE Secretary Raphael Lotilla, in a statement, said that there are 4.2 million household beneficiaries of 4Ps, and the registration for lifeline subsidy remains very low.

Lotilla said that only those who register will continue to receive a reduction of their electricity bills beginning August 2023.

He said that for lifeline consumers who have been struggling to make ends meet on their monthly budgets, electricity discounts could help them ease their pockets.

The Secretary stressed that all they need to do is simply apply and register with their distribution utilities (DUs) or electric cooperatives (ECs).

The scale of rate reduction varies depending on the prevailing rates of the DUs. To apply for the lifeline rate program, any household consumer who is a beneficiary of the 4Ps must only submit to their DUs/ECs a duly accomplished application form, the most recent electricity bill, and any valid government-issued identification card (ID) containing the signature and address of the consumer.

Other marginalized end-user applicants who are not in the 4Ps beneficiaries but belong to a household of at least five (5) members and have a combined monthly income of P12,030, must submit to their DUs a certification by their local Social Welfare Development Office (SWDO) issued within six (6) months before the filing of the application showing their family income at the time of application, a duly accomplished form, most recent electricity bill and any government-issued ID containing the signature and address of the consumer.

The monthly income threshold may change and vary for each DU franchise area as may be determined the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Earlier, the Visayan Electric said it is expected to extend an estimated P14 million in Lifeline Subsidy discount to some 40,000 to 50,000 beneficiaries within their franchise area who are either beneficiaries of 4Ps or are from marginalized sectors whose family income is below the poverty threshold.

Under the joint new policy of Enhanced Lifeline Subsidy issued by DOE and Department of Social Welfare and Development and Energy Regulatory Commission, if the beneficiary’s monthly electricity consumption is 100kWh and below, he or she is eligible to apply for the lifeline subsidy.

For those from the marginalized sector who are not members of 4Ps, they need a certification from DSWD.

The lifeline rate, initially provided for in R.A. 10150 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, refers to the subsidized electricity rate given to qualified customers who have a monthly electricity consumption of not more than 100kWh.

Under R.A. 11552, an Act Extending and Enhancing the Implementation of the Lifeline Rate, which was signed into law in October 2022, specifies that aside from the 100kWh and below electricity consumption, the Lifeline Rate will only be available for beneficiaries of the government’s 4Ps or those households whose monthly family income lie below the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)’s poverty threshold.

The new law also increased the year of the subsidy’s validity from 20 to 50 years.

The ERC, DOE, and DSWD have collaborated to sign the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), which provides the criteria for qualified end-users and allows the DSWD to provide distribution utility firms such as Visayan Electric with a list of their 4Ps members.

To apply for the Lifeline Rate subsidy, eligible households can submit an application form which can be acquired from any Visayan Electric Service Center or online via the company’s Facebook page, a recent electricity bill, a valid government-issued ID, and, for non-4Ps households, a certification from the local Social Welfare Development Officer (SWDO) issued within six months prior to the filling of the application that his/her household is below the poverty threshold.

Visayan Electric will then evaluate and validate the applications and reserves the right to reject applications that do not satisfy the requirements.

All qualified marginalized end-users shall continually meet the criteria in this Act to avail of the lifeline rate, part of the guidelines reads. — (FREEMAN)