House transmits 2020 budget bill to Senate

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives officially transmitted to the Senate on Tuesday the 2020 general appropriations bill, with a challenge for senators to look for pork in the budget measure.

“Again and again, we contend that it is a pork-free budget as we strictly confined ourselves to the decision of the Supreme Court, which declared the (Priority Development Assistance Fund) unconstitutional and prohibited the post-enactment identification of projects,” Deputy Speaker Neptali Gonzales II said.

The Senate will pass its own version of the budget bill, after which the two chambers will meet in conference to reconcile differences in both measures. —DJ Yap