Government to subsidize electricity bills of poor families

MANILA, Philippines — The government will roll out next month a program that will help low-income households pay their electricity bills, Malacañang said Sunday.

Palace said in a release that the lifeline rate program will provide a subsidized electricity rate to poor households who are unable to pay their bills at full cost.

Beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and those identified to be living below the poverty threshold can apply for the program. The Palace said only one distribution utility or electric cooperative service per qualified household can be granted a lifeline rate. 

The power reduction rate varies depending on the prevailing rates of distribution utilities or electric cooperatives such as Meralco. 

In the Meralco franchise area, lifeline end-users with a monthly electricity consumption ranging from zero to 20 kilowatt-hours will receive a 100-percent discount on the generation charges, with the exception of a fixed metering charge of P5.

This means that they will only need to pay around P20. They will shell out around P250 if they do not take advantage of the program. 

Lifeline rates offered by Meralco are the following:

• Households with 21 to 50 kWh consumption: P300 (P550 if they do not apply for lifeline rate)
• Households with 51 to 70 kWh consumption: P522.9 (P763.37 if they do not apply for lifeline rate)
• Households with 71 to 100 kWh consumption: P904.21 (P1,099.10 if they do not apply for lifeline rate)

Out of the 4.2 million household beneficiaries of 4Ps, only 12,829 members have applied for the program as of July, according to the Energy Regulatory Commission. 

A beneficiary of 4Ps is eligible to receive a lifeline rate if he or she remains in the annual certified list. If delisted, the customer who lives below the poverty line may get a certification from a local Social Welfare and Development Office and reapply for the program. 

For non-4Ps beneficiaries, the lifeline rate will have a three-year validity from the date of issuance of certification by the local SWDO. 

In May 2021, former President Rodrigo Duterte signed a law extending the lifeline rate for 50 years. — Gaea Katreena Cabico