Reenacted budget looms as review set

Recto: Marcos mobilizes review teams

MANILA, Philippines — A week-long reenactment of the 2025 national budget won’t affect government operations, Malacañang said yesterday, as it emphasized the importance of thoroughly examining the P6.793-trillion proposed outlay for next year.

“It will be better for everyone that Malacañang review the budget carefully. It may take a week to go over the budget with a fine-tooth comb,” Executive Secretary Ralph Recto told The STAR.

“A reenacted budget for a week will not affect government operations. A careful review of the budget will improve its execution,” he added.

President Marcos has decided to skip Christmas break so he can review the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026, Malacañang said yesterday.

“The President will be spending the holidays working,” Presidential Communications Secretary Dave Gomez said when asked where the President intends to celebrate Christmas.

Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro, at a recent press briefing, said the President and executive officials would forgo any holiday break to ensure that the proposed General Appropriations Act (GAA) is thoroughly reviewed and scrutinized.

The House of Representatives on Monday extended its session calendar to give the bicameral conference committee (bicam) more time to submit and sign the report on the 2026 national budget.

The House adopted a new legislative calendar, with the resumption of session set on Dec. 29 and the adjournment on Dec. 30, instead of Dec. 23.

Senate finance committee chairman Sherwin Gatchalian earlier said both chambers were scheduled to ratify the bicam report on Dec. 28 and prepare it for transmittal to Malacañang.

For House committee on appropriations chairperson and Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Suansing, Marcos is likely to sign the 2026 budget on Dec. 29.

On Monday, Senate President Vicente Sotto III raised the possibility of this year’s national budget being reenacted in the first week of January.

The 2026 budget may still be signed into law within the year if President Marcos has already begun reviewing the bicam report. Sotto expressed doubt such a scenario would materialize.

According to Sotto, completing the review of the appropriations bill within the first week of January would be “ideal.”

He added that reenacting the budget for a few days or a week would not cause problems.

The national budget for the preceding year is automatically reenacted if a new appropriations law is not enacted. In earlier statements, officials said President Marcos does not want a reenacted budget as it could stall the implementation of key state programs and affect economic growth.

The P6.793-trillion proposed national budget for next year was subjected to intense scrutiny as the government faced mounting calls to punish those involved in the multibillion-peso flood control mess.

After delays caused by disagreements over public works allocations, the bicam finished deliberations on the spending bill last week.

At a recent press briefing, lawmakers claimed the completion of the bicam discussions would pave the way for the timely enactment of the 2026 budget and remove the risk of a reenacted outlay.

The House or Representatives and the Senate intend to ratify the budget bill on Dec. 29.

Review teams

Presidential Communications Secretary Dave Gomez has assured the public – particularly critics – the proposed 2026 appropriations bill would be reviewed thoroughly.

“The President will be spending the holidays working. As early as now, the President is already mobilizing his team to facilitate the immediate review of all amounts and corresponding provisions agreed in the bicam and trace the changes made from the originally submitted National Expenditure Program,” Gomez said in a text message to reporters.

“This thorough review will ensure that taxpayers’ money will be put to good use, contributing to the attainment of societal goals that will be felt by all Filipinos, consistent with his pronouncement in the last State of the Nation Address,” he added.

Officials had said the NEP for next year was designed to promote growth and support education and other vital services intended to improve the lives of Filipinos and uphold fundamental rights.

A senior administration lawmaker and member of the bicam has reassured the public that the national budget for 2026 has “safeguards” against abuses and is very doable.

In a statement, Rep. Brian Yamsuan said the various safeguards enclosed in the special provisions of the proposed budget would ensure that government programs and projects are insulated from politics and are directly felt by the people.

“What is important is that these programs and projects approved by the bicam are executed properly so that these would be truly felt by the people,” the second district congressman from Parañaque stressed.

Technical staff of both the Senate and the House, according to him, are “working double time” to fine-tune the final version of the reconciled budget bill and its accompanying special provisions approved by the bicam during its deliberations from Dec. 13 to 17.

“We are a key partner of the executive department to ensure that all programs and projects of the government are truly felt by the people,” he said.

More time needed for scrutiny

House deputy minority leader and Act Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio welcomed yesterday the commitment of the House leadership to provide members with a copy of the bicam report on the proposed 2026 national budget one day before its ratification.

He emphasized, however, that more time is needed for proper scrutiny of the voluminous document.

“We do not want a repeat of what happened before, that the copies are given at the last minute only and then they would say that, on the basis that Congress is being turned into a rubber stamp, as it is a rubber stamp approval. During these times, the people would no longer accept reasons like the House members did not have a chance to read the changes made in the bicam,” Tinio said.

“The Filipino people deserve a budget process that is transparent, accountable and subject to genuine legislative scrutiny. Giving lawmakers sufficient time to review the bicameral report is a basic requirement of democratic governance. While one day is better than receiving it on the same day of ratification, we continue to push for longer review periods that allow for meaningful analysis,” Tinio said.

House committee on appropriations vice chairman Zia Alonto Adiong, for his part, clarified yesterday that he did not admit in an interview on One News the presence of pork barrel funds in the 2026 General Appropriations Bill.

“Within the context of the longer clip, I in fact stated the opposite,” he said, referring to the interview. “In responding with a ‘Yes,’ I was merely recognizing the host’s interjection and the people’s apprehension regarding ‘pork’ in the budget,” he said. — Delon Porcalla, Jose Rodel Clapano