Velasco hopes Congress can ratify 2021 budget before holiday break

MANILA, Philippines — House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco hopes Congress can ratify the proposed P4.5 trillion national budget for 2021 before it goes on holiday break so that President Rodrigo Duterte will be able to sign it before year-end.

Ensuring this remains a “top priority” for the House, he said in a statement issued on Sunday ahead of the resumption of House sessions following a one-month congressional break.

“We are looking forward to the bicameral conference on the 2021 GAB and hopefully, we will be able to ratify the bicam report before Congress adjourns for the holidays,” Velasco said.

The bicameral committee is where the House and Senate reconciled the disagreeing provisions of the budget bill. The House already passed it on third and final reading last Oct. 16 and transmitted it to the Senate for plenary deliberations.

Velasco underscored the importance of the 2021 budget as he called it the government’s “single-most powerful tool” to fight COVID-19, revive the economy and help people recover from the impact of the pandemic.

COVID-19 protocols

Velasco said the resumption would adhere to strict physical distancing and health protocols in place during the continuing threat of COVID-19.

According to House Secretary-General Jocelia Bighani Sipin, all members and employees reporting for work on Monday at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City are required to undergo the real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test for COVID-19.

Velasco already got tested at the House facility last week.

Initial testing began last Nov.11, but it was suspended due to Typhoon Ulysses. Testing will resume on Monday.

Visitors will also be required to undergo COVID-19 antigen testing before being granted access to the offices inside the complex.

Priority measures

“We need to hit the ground running and make full use of this year’s remaining sessions to tackle and pass the priority measures, especially those that have been certified urgent by President Rodrigo Duterte,” Velasco s.

Congress only has four weeks left in session before it adjourns on Dec. 19 for a month-long Christmas break, he noted.

“We are working with our House leaders in finding ways to fast-track priority measures that will ensure a more efficient and responsive government during these trying times,” he added.

“We are confident that our colleagues in the legislature share a common goal as we all report for work on Monday,” he also said.

Also high on the House agenda is the approval of the bill strengthening the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), the proposed Internet Transactions Act, and the proposed Magna Carta of Barangay Workers, according to Velasco.

He noted that Duterte had earlier certified as urgent House Bill No. 6174 seeking to amend AMLA, saying the amendments are necessary for the country to “comply with legal standards for anti-money laundering and countering terrorism financing, as established by relevant international bodies.”

Further, Velasco underscored the urgent need to pass the bill in order to avoid adverse findings against the country, which could lead to higher cost of doing financial transactions of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and the local business sector.

The bill is now up for second reading approval after the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries approved it in October.

Velasco, meanwhile, said the swift passage of the proposed Internet Transactions Act was necessary to protect consumers, especially with the increase in online transactions in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The measure was approved by the House Committee on Trade and Industry during the recess, he added.

Velasco identified other priority measures namely the proposed Coconut Levy Fund; National Land Use Act; Rightsizing the National Government Act; Right to Adequate Food, Anti-Ethnic, Racial and Religious Discrimination Act; and On-Site, In-City, Near City Local Government Resettlement Program.

Velasco also vowed to ensure the immediate passage of economic bills in a bid to “jumpstart the economy and help the country rise above the devastating effects of the pandemic.”

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