GENERAL SANTOS City– The South Cotabato provincial board has approved a supplemental funding of P20.2 million to facilitate the release of the Productive Enhancement Incentive (PEI) benefits of the local government’s employees.
Board member Vicente de Jesus, chair of the board’s finance committee, said the PEI benefits comprise the bulk of the provincial government’s Supplemental Budget No. 2, which was unanimously approved during its regular session on Monday.
He said South Cotabato Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes earlier certified the passage of the additional budget as urgent.
“All regular employees, including the (elected) officials, will receive their PEI within this week,” de Jesus said.
The PEI, which is also known as the 14th-month pay, will be released to the more than 900 regular officials and employees as provided for in Executive Order 181 issued by President Benigno S. Aquino III.
The governor earlier announced that provincial employees will only receive PEI benefits equivalent to 70 percent of their basic salaries due to funding problems.
But she later declared that the local government would be giving the full one-month salary for the PEI funds after it was able establish its funding sources.
Luz Fontanilla, provincial budget officer, said the funding for the PEI will be drawn out from the savings on the allotted appropriations that are free of any obligation amounting to P2 million; retirement gratuity of P11.28 million; miscellaneous personnel benefit funds of P3 million; other personnel benefits of P3.9 million; and, the unappropriated balance from Supplemental Budget No. 1 of P22,000.
Of the approved allocation, she said P18.27 million will be released to workers under the executive department and P1.94 million under the legislative department.
Included in the second supplemental budget is the purchase of essential carpentry tools worth P22,000 needed by the South Cotabato Rehabilitation and Detention Center or provincial jail.
Fontanilla clarified that only permanent employees and officials who received at least a satisfactory rating under their Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS) will receive the PEI benefit.
Based on the provincial governments salary schedule, the PEI benefits will range from P9,000 to P78,946, depending on the salary grades. pna
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