DOLE remits P351.8-M excess in verification fees

Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz and President Benigno Aquino III (Malacanang Photo Bureau)

MANILA — Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz on Saturday said the DOLE for the first six months of 2015 has remitted to the Bureau of Treasury (BTr) P351,760,136.38 representing the excess amount of verification fees it has collected.

“The remittances of the Department to the Bureau of Treasury will augment government funds needed for the implementation of priority projects for the welfare of the Filipinos,” said Baldoz.

Citing a report of Director Warren M. Miclat of the DOLE’s Finance Management Service (FMS), Baldoz said the P351.760 million is the excess verification fees and interest collected by the DOLE’s 21 Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs).

Excess Verification Fee Collections, as defined in Joint Circular No. 3, Series of 1999 and signed by the DOLE, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Budget Management (DBM), Department of Finance (DoF), and the Commission on Audit (COA), is the residual collection of verification fee collected by the Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) for remittance to the BTr after deducting all authorized withdrawals from the Verification Fee Fund and other obligations not exceeding the Advice of Disbursement Limits (ADL) issued by the DOLE Central Office during the year, plus allowable buffer fund equivalent to the first quarter requirements of the POLOs for the ensuing year.

Baldoz said the DOLE will remit to the BTr an additional P8,626,639.98 at the end of July representing additional excess verification fees collections of two POLOs.

Meanwhile, Miclat also reported to Baldoz that there are no major non-compliance found for the Processing of Disbursement Voucher in the Stage 2 External Audit conducted in the FMS-Accounting Division.

The AJA Registrars, Inc., DOLE’s ISO consultant, conducted the Stage 2 External Audit at the FMS on 26 June for the ISO 9001:2008 Certification. Among the processes the AJA Registrars, Inc. audited was the processing of disbursement vouchers by the Accounting Division.

During the audit, the AJA Registrars consultant/auditor suggested that the Accounting Division should have an open source back-up system and a controlled log book to comply with its procedures manual.

Disbursement Voucher (DV) is a form authorizing the disbursement of government funds for the payment of claims. The procedure starts from the receipt of DV from the Budget Division and/or concerned offices up to the release of documents to the Administrative Service-Cash Division.

The audit is part of Baldoz’s push to make all DOLE programs and services simple, transparent, and accountable through the development and establishment of quality management systems leading to ISO certification.

At the end of 2015, Baldoz expects all DOLE offices, including POLOs, to be ISO-certified.