MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations will proceed with briefings for the 2020 budget despite the withdrawal of next year's P4.1-trillion national budget bill.
Rep. Isidro Ungab (Davao City), chair of the House appropriations committee, appealed to his colleagues to proceed with the budget hearings.
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"As to the question on our hearings or briefings conducted, the briefings will continue and be the same considering that... as a mayyer of procedure. We are still conducting budget briefing," Ungab told the House panel.
The lawmaker added that this has been the procedure in the past years. The General Appropriations Bill (GAB) was supposed to be printed and distributed Monday but it was recalled.
Ungab added that House Bill 4228 ot the GAB 2020 was deliberated on the first reading Wednesday last week.
House Deputy Speaker LRay Villafuerte (Camarines Sur) on Sunday confirmed that the budget bill had been withdrawn. According to Villafuerte, House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano supposedly ordered the withdrawal of the GAB.
Ungab, meanwhile, insisted that the GAB he filed last week was faithful to the National Expenditure Program.
The NEP, which the Department of Budget and Management submits to Congress, is the basis for the General Appropriations bills.
Ungab: Withdrawal will derail budget timeline
The Davao City solon contradicted Villafuerte's claim that the filing of the budget bill last week was premature.
In a letter addressed to Villafuerte, Ungab formally expressed his objection to the withdrawal of the GAB 2020, pointing out that recalling the bill would deail the schedule and approval of the budget.
"Needless to say, any alteration of the National Expenditure Program or NEP, which is the version of your revised General Appropriations Bill, will surely raise doubts on our proceedings and the House will be questioned on why it will alter the proposed budget prepared by the Executive Department," Ungab said in his letter.
The House appropriations committee already set a timetable for the 2020 national budget. The last day for the budget briefings has been scheduled on September 6 while the committee report is set on September 10.
The plenary deliberations have also been scheduled from September 12 to October 4, which is also the planned approval of the budget for third and final reading.
Noting that House staff are already preparing for plenary and pre-plenary deliberations, Ungab warned Villafuerte that preparing another set of the GAB will require time and resources and will delay the passage of next year's budget as well.
The delayed passage of the national budget for 2019—the first that Congress failed to pass before yearend since Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was president—has been blamed for slower economic growth and the delayed implementation of government projects. — Patricia Lourdes Viray