MANILA, Philippines?Congress is set to ratify the proposed P1.54-trillion national budget for 2010 on Friday, meeting its deadline to approve the measure before it goes into recess for the holidays.

Following the bicameral conference committee?s reconciliation of the Senate and House versions yesterday, the bicam report can be submitted to the Senate and the House for ratification on Friday, said Sen. Edgardo Angara, chair of the Senate finance committee.

Angara said the committee agreed to restore some of the cuts and realignments proposed by the Senate in the budgets of the Supreme Court and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The Senate proposed to cut P162 million from the Supreme Court budget but the bicam agreed to restore half of the amount to be used for maintenance and other operational expenses.

The Senate acted to cut the high court budget in support of Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago who objected to the Supreme Court ruling censuring her last August.