COA sets new rules on calamity funds, donations

MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Audit (COA) issued stricter rules on the use of foreign and local aid during calamities and disasters, following public demand for more transparency and accountability in donations for victims of Super Typhoon Yolanda.

In an eight-page circular issued on April 15, COA Chairman Ma. Gracia Pulido-Tan and Commissioner Heidi Mendoza pushed for a more thorough accounting of disaster funds, including the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan Fund.

The new accounting and reporting guidelines crafted by Tan and Mendoza detail how funding and other aid like relief goods should be recorded, itemized, utilized and returned to donors if necessary.

Under the new rules, government officials – from department heads to local government units, accountants, cashiers, disbursing officers and budget officers – are directed to follow specific procedures so that government funding is efficiently used.

Cash donations shall be acknowledged through official receipts, deposited in an authorized government depository bank and recorded by a designated collecting officer.

Supplies, materials, equipment, relief goods and even small items procured out of cash donations shall also be properly accounted for.

 Tan and Mendoza also ordered all unutilized donations, after the purpose for the same has been served, to be remitted to the Bureau of Treasury or returned to the donor if such an agreement exists.

When it comes to donations in kind, the new rules require stricter procedures, including proper accounting and valuation before and after repacking and distribution.

 â€œDonated goods shall be sorted, inventoried and/or counted, and recorded upon receipt and before repacking. The distribution shall be made immediately, especially the perishable goods and/or items,” the COA circular prescribes.

As to reporting, national and local government agencies and the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) shall make monthly reports to respective COA auditors.

The new rules also require donation recipients, implementing agencies, the OCD and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to post the reports on their official websites for the public to see.