This Circular is issued to implement Administrative Order (AO) No. 88 dated 5 December 2003, which authorizes the grant of Extra Cash Gift (ECG) for 2003.

2.0 COVERAGE

The ECG herein authorized shall apply to all government personnel, whether in NGAs, GOCCs, GFIs, or LGUs, elected or appointed in a permanent, temporary or casual status, including contractual personnel whose employment is in the nature of a regular employee, who are under the following instances from January 1, 2003 to October 31, 2003 and are still in the service as of October 31, 2003: 

2.1 Those who have rendered at least a total or an aggregate of four (40 months of service including leaves of absence with pay; 

2.2 Those who are on approved leave without pay but have rendered at least a total or an aggregate of four (4) months of service provided they are not yet dropped from the rolls; and 

2.3 Those who have rendered less than four (4) months of service.

3.0 EXEMPTIONS

All government personnel under the following instances as of October 31, 2003 shall not be entitled to the benefits authorized herein: 

3.1 Those who are absent without leave (AWOL); 

3.2 Those who are no longer in the service due to retirement/resignation/separation/death or for whatever reasons; 

3.3 Those who are hired as part of the organic manpower of agencies but as consultants or experts, to perform specific activities or services with expected outputs; student laborers; apprentices; laborers of contracted projects (pakiao); mail contractors including those paid on piecework basis; and other similarly situated; and 

3.4 Those who are formally charged administrative cases as well as criminal cases which relate to acts of omissions in connection with their official duties and functions and found guilty and/or meted penalties in 2003 shall not be entitled to the benefits authorized herein.

3.4.1 In this regard, if the penalty meted out is only a reprimand, such penalty is not one that can be made the basis of disqualification to receive the said benefits. 

4.0 RULES AND REGULATIONS 

4.1 Government personnel covered under item 2.1 and 2.2 hereof shall be entitled to ECG of not more than FIVE THOUSAND PESOS (P5,000.000) each provided that in the case of personnel in NGAs, the amount shall not be less than THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED PESOS (P3,500.00). 

4.2 Government personnel covered under Item 2.3 hereof shall also be entitled to ECG but this shall be pro-rated based on the amount granted to other employees of the same agency, as follows:                  

Length of Service

Percentage

3 months but less than 4 months

40%

2 months but less than 3 months

30%

1 month but less than 2 months

20%

Less than 1 month

10%

 

4.3 The ECG of government personnel who are on full-time or part-time detail with another government agency or special project shall be drawn from their respective mother agency. In the case of those who are paid from project funds, the benefits shall be drawn from the same source where they draw their salaries. No one shall receive benefits from more than one source. 

4.4 The ECG of government personnel who are employed on a part-time basis shall be pro-rated corresponding to their services rendered. Those who, by the nature of their employment, are on part-time service with two (2) or more different agencies, shall be entitled to a proportionate amount for the corresponding service in each agency, provided that the total ECG shall not exceed P5,000.00.  

4.5 The ECG of government personnel who transferred from one agency to another shall be granted by their new office. For this purpose, a certification that they have not availed themselves of the ECG from their former office is necessary. 

4.6 Government personnel formally charged administrative and criminal cases and which cases are still pending for resolution shall be entitled to ECG until found guilty and meted penalties. 

4.7 Those found guilty and later on exonerated by a competent authority upon appeal of the case, shall be entitled to the back ECG unless decided otherwise by said authority.

5.0 SPECIFIC GUIDELINES 

  5.1 For NGAs, the payment of ECG shall be sourced as follows:

5.1.1 Additional allotment and cash allocation shall be released by the DBM to departments/agencies to cover the amount of P3,500.00 per personnel, chargeable against available funds of the government specifically from the following sources, among others: 

- Unreleased Programmed Appropriations;
- Withheld Appropriations; and
- Reserves. 

5.1.2 Savings in released agency allotment and cash allocation for the remaining P1,500.00 per personnel.

5.1.2.1

Savings in allotment shall refer to such portions or balances of the agency's released budget free of any obligation or encumbrance and which are no longer intended for specific purpose/s, such as:

 

 

-

After completion of the work/activity for which the allotment is authorized;

 

-

Arising from unpaid compensation and related costs pertaining to vacant positions; or

 

-

As a result of improved systems and procedures, cost saving measures and efficiency where the agency was able to meet and deliver the required or planned targets, programs and services approved in the annual budget at a lesser cost.

 

5.1.2.2

Savings in cash allocation shall refer to the free portion of the available cash allocation after all agency requirements up to December 31, 2003, have been satisfied.

5.1.3 The Department Secretary/Head of Agency (in the case of other executive offices) is hereby authorized to pool all available savings in allotment of their bureaus/regional offices/attached agencies and transfer the same to bureaus/regional offices/attached agencies with deficient savings in allotment in accordance with existing budgeting and accounting rules and regulations. 

5.1.4 Based on the pooled available savings in allotment and cash allocation, as reflected in the submitted data of bureaus/offices/regional offices/attached agencies, the Department Secretary or Head of Agency (in the case of OEOs) shall determine the amount to be given as additional ECG which should not exceed P1,500. 

5.1.5 Likewise, the Department Secretary shall determine the amounts of available cash allocation to be transferred from the MDS sub-account of one bureau/regional office/attached agency for credit to another, thru the Notice of Transfer of Allocation (NTA), or thru other modes. Said transfer shall be coordinated by the Office of the Secretary/Central Office to the recipient bureau/office/agency, so that necessary arrangements can be made with the MDS-servicing banks.

  5.2 For GOCCs, GFIs and LGUs:

5.2.1 The funds necessary to implement this Circular shall be charged against their respective funds; provided, that said amount shall be within their approved annual corporate/local budgets. 

5.2.2 GOCCs, GFIs, and LGUs which do not have adequate or sufficient funds, may partially implement the benefit, provided that the partial implementation shall be uniform for all positions. 

6.0 ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS/CONDITIONS 

6.1 No program or service shall be sacrificed as a result of the grant/payment of that benefit authorized herein. 

6.2 The implementing rules and regulations issued by the Public Sector Labor Management Council (PSLMC) for EO No. 180, dated June 1, 1987, particularly Section 3, Rule VIII thereof, on the non-negotiability of benefits which require appropriation of funds, shall be strictly observed in the grant of the herein and other benefits.

7.0 RESPONSIBILITY OF THE HEAD OF AGENCY

The head of NGA/GOCC/GFI/LGU concerned shall be personally liable for any payment of benefit not in accordance with the provisions of this Circular without prejudice, however, to the refund thereof by the employee concerned.

8.0 SAVING CLAUSE

Cases not covered by this Circular shall be referred to the Department of Budget and Management for resolution

9.0 EFFECTIVITY

Payment of the ECG authorized herein shall be made not earlier than December 15, 2003.

Adopted: 05 Dec. 2003

(SGD.) EMILIA T. BONCODIN
  Secretary