The Finance Ministry is studying the possibility of allowing a transfer of unused subsidies from one category to another to better serve the demand of recipients of the government's welfare scheme.
Some of the government's welfare cardholders might not have any expenses for inter-provincial public buses, which could be transferred to living allowances to buy goods at Thong Fah Pracha Rat shops, said Somchai Sujjapongse, the finance permanent secretary.
The scheme's recipients receive smart cards that contain their personal information and let them access state assistance, covering subsidised transport, utility bills, staple goods to be bought at Thong Fah Pracha Rat shops, student uniforms, stationery and fertiliser.
All transactions must be carried out through electronic data capture terminals.
The cabinet on Aug 29 approved a new aid package worth 41.9 billion baht for low-income earners, providing monthly subsidies to buy low-priced consumer products at Thong Fah Pracha Rat and other designated shops.
The package includes allowances for rides on public buses and trains and subsidised utility bills.
Recipients who earn under 30,000 baht a year receive a monthly living allowance of 300 baht, and those earning 30,000-100,000 a year get 200 baht a month to cover basic living expenses at participating shops.
Each cardholder receives 1,500 baht a month for subsidised transport, with 500 each going to inter-provincial public buses, third-class trains, and public buses and electric trains.
There are 11.7 million low-income earners who qualify for the scheme. A total of 14.1 million low-income earners registered this year, up from 8.27 million in 2016.
Mr Somchai said that ideally the changes will not increase the budget for the aid scheme, as funds will merely be transferred from one category to another.
There are 1.3 million recipients living in Bangkok, with distribution of the smart cards expected to start today. But the cards cannot be used for transport until November, as the Mangmoom (Spider) card system, which lets users pay for public bus and electric trains fares on one card, is still being set up.
The Commerce Ministry recently said that it aimed to double the number of Thong Fah Pracha Rat shops to 20,000 by year-end.
Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak has said the government is committed to allocating a larger budget to support low-income earners in fiscal 2018, especially through training programmes to make them more employable.
