House members cross party lines to reject cash-based budget

While they may have locked horns on a range of issues, members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday crossed party lines in rejecting the cash-based budget for 2019 as proposed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

The legislature held a caucus to discuss the new budgeting system laid out in Malacañang’s P3.757-trillion national budget for next year.

Two lawmakers said several House members would sign a manifesto protesting against the DBM’s move to end the obligation-based appropriations.

Budget Secretary Ben Diokno had earlier explained that implementing a cash-based budget would help reduce underspending as experienced in the obligation-based budget.

In the proposed cash-based allocations, state agencies will only get budget based on the actual funds the government has and that they have to use their approved budgets within the fiscal year, or else lose them. —Marlon Ramos