Additional electricity cost of work-from-home employees must be deducted from taxable income —Tolentino

Work-from-home employees who are incurring additional residential electricity expenses amid the COVID-19 pandemic should have lower income taxes to pay, according to Senator Francis Tolentino on Monday.

During a hearing of the Senate energy committee, Tolentino proposed considering these additional expenses shouldered by employees as deductibles from the taxable income.

"Hindi na sila nagtatrabaho doon sa opisina nila, hindi kumo-konsumo ng aircon at kuryente. Dahil nagtatrabaho sila sa bahay, nadagdagan ang kanilang gastusin sa kuryente," he said.

"I am proposing publicly with Senator [Sherwin] Gatchalian if we can craft a measure amending the National Internal Revenue Code providing for an appropriate, considerable, reasonable deduction on gross income of any taxpayer who was able or required to work away from the office," he added.

The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), which services Metro Manila and surrounding areas, confirmed that electricity consumption of residential customers spiked by 30% during the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and modified ECQ in previous months.

Metro Manila shifted to a general community quarantine since June 1—allowing some business establishments and limited transportation to resume operations at limited capacity. The same quarantine protocols will be in place until July 15.—AOL, GMA News