By Charmaine A. Tadalan
Reporter
THE House Ways and Means Committee on Monday approved the measure granting additional privileges to persons with disability by increasing incentives to their employers.
The unnumbered Substitute Bill provided that employers that regularize disabled persons will be granted an additional tax deduction from gross income, amounting to 50% of the total amount paid as salaries and wages to disabled persons.
This is in addition to the 25% additional tax deduction to gross income already granted to employers that hire PWDs at the “apprentice or learner” level.
This will amend Republic Act No. 7277, or the “Magna Carta for Persons with Disability,” whic provides the 25% deduction.
Department of Finance Director Juvy C. Danofrata, for her part, opposed the proposal, which she said would add to the administrative work of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
“We do not want to add any…additional incentives because as it is, there’s no data to indicate, that’s why we cannot estimate how much would be the impact of the proposal,” Ms. Agustin told the panel Monday.
“It would be very difficult to administer, on the part of the BIR, because again we have two layers, you have to distinguish, you have to require the employers a lot of documentation to prove that you belong to the 25% additional or the 50% additional,” she added.
Moreover, the bill also proposed that at least 2% of all positions in government agencies, offices or corporations be filled up with persons with disability; at least 1% for private corporations and at least 2% for those with over 1,000 employees.
It will also entitle PWDs to a monthly stipend of P500, provision of free assistive technology services and devices, as well as exemption from passport processing fees, travel taxes, and terminal fees among others.
National Council on Disability Affairs Officer-in-Charge Carmen Reyes-Zubiaga, for her part, said the measure will benefit only 7,000 of the estimated 15 million disabled persons.
“Less than 1% of the 15 million (are employed) right now in the government. The government is mandated to employ at least 1% and the government has only registered only 7,000 employed out of the millions,” she told the panel.
