Finance Minister Nigel Clarke announced several measures to ease the pressure on citizens recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Among them was a loan financing programme that would benefit the operators of public passenger vehicles (PPV).

LIGHT BILL BAILOUT

20% subsidy for nearly half a million customers; welfare boost for busmen, cabbies, PATH students

23 Mar 2022/Editorial@gleanerjm.com

APPROXIMATELY 457,786 customers of the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) with monthly electricity consumption of up to 200 kilowatt-hours (kWh) will benefit from a 20 per cent contribution to their bills by the Government, over a four-month period, to cushion the effects of rising energy prices on the global market.

At the same time, the Holness administration is also providing relief in the form of transportation assistance for welfare students on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH).

The Government is increasing the transport subsidy for PATH students by 40 per cent. This will cost the Government $152 million in the 2022-2023 fiscal year. Further, the Government will provide $25,000 in vouchers to operators of public passenger vehicles, including route taxi operators and contract carriage operators who are impacted by the higher cost of fuel. Dr Nigel Clarke,

minister of finance and the public service, in closing the 20222023 Budget Debate in Gordon House on Tuesday, said that the Government had increased its support to the most vulnerable from $2 billion to $2.95 billion for the new financial year.

Dubbed ‘We CARE Energy Co-Pay’, Clarke said that the Government would contribute the JPS household subsidy which would run from April to July.

The finance minister said that the assistance will benefit 81 per cent of the JPS retail customer base.

He said that the top 19 per cent of households accounted for nearly half of JPS’s household billing, with the bottom 81 per cent counting for the other half.

Clarke said that JPS’s prepaid customers will also get temporary support from the Government.

“For the months of April, May, June and July, every JPS electricity prepaid top-up purchased will receive bonus credit from the GOJ representing 20 per cent of the top-up amount,” he said.

Giving more details on the $25,000 voucher programme for taxi operators, Clarke said the exercise will begin towards the latter half of April and will be administered by the Transport Authority. The programme will cost the Government just under $600 million.

Additionally, the Government will provide $200 million in revolving loan financing for public passenger vehicle operators. This sum will be available for short-term loans to purchase tyres, batteries, and spare parts for public transport operations.

The loans can be accessed from microcredit and approved financial institutions through the Development Bank of Jamaica.

For feedback: contact the Editorial Department at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com.