JV Ejercito files bills to scrap system loss, VAT on electricity

Senior Deputy Majority Leader Sen. JV Ejercito has filed two bills seeking to lower electricity rates by removing the system loss charge passed on to consumers and exempting power bills from the 12 percent value-added tax (VAT).

Senate Bills No. 2342 and 2343 were filed following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s call in his fifth State of the Nation Address for measures to reduce electricity costs.

Ejercito said Congress must act to ease the burden on Filipino households facing some of the highest electricity prices in Southeast Asia.

Senate Bill No. 2342, or the Consumer Protection Against System Losses Act, would prohibit distribution utilities and electric cooperatives from charging consumers for system losses.

He said consumers should only pay for the electricity they actually use and the services they receive.

The measure also directs the Energy Regulatory Commission to amend its rules within 90 days of the law's effectivity to remove the system loss charge as a separate item on electricity bills.

Meanwhile, Senate Bill No. 2343 seeks to remove the 12 percent VAT on electricity.

Ejercito said eliminating the VAT would reduce household and business expenses, allowing consumers to spend more on essential needs such as food, medicine, and education.

He urged the immediate passage of both measures to provide direct relief to electricity consumers.