Teachers who will volunteer to supervise the conduct of elections in the country should receive tax-free compensation, Senator Nancy Binay said.
Binay has introduced a bill in the Senate which seeks to exempt from income tax the compensation given to teachers whenever they serve as members of the electoral board during national or local poll exercises.
“Teachers are often said to be heroes of every election season. They are often called on to be on the frontlines, serving as members of the Board of Election Tellers [BET] tasked with operating the Vote Counting Machine [VCM] and assisting voters on Election Day,” said Binay.
Unfortunately, she said the election season is prone to incidents of election-related violence and deaths.
She said the government should recognize the public service that teachers perform during national and local elections by at least exempting from income tax the compensation given to them.
Under present laws, compensation for services in whatever form paid, including but limited to fees, salaries, wages, commissions, and similar items are included in gross income and taxable.