Senate panel OKs judiciary’s P44.98 billion budget for 2022

Senator Sonny Angara during the Senate subcommittee hearing on the judiciary’s 2022 budget.

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate Finance subcommittee on Monday approved  the judiciary’s proposed P44.98 billion  budget for 2022.

 “Without further ado, there’s a motion. Hearing no objection, the motion is approved and the budget of the judiciary, the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the Sandiganbayan, the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, and the Court of Tax Appeals, and other courts is approved at the committee level and will be favorably recommended to plenary for plenary debate,”  said committee chairman Sen. Sonny Angara. 

 Angara was referring to Senator Francis Tolentino’s motion to approve the proposed budget of the judiciary “with the other requirement that they be given an increase during plenary.”

 “There is a motion. The chair has no issues with the judiciary and in fact would like to reiterate his continuing support for all the courts and for the increase in the budget which we will do at the appropriate time,” Angara said.

Before the approval, Supreme Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez told the panel they have proposed P67.28 billion budget next year  but the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) reduced it by  P22.3 billion as it only allocated P44.98 billion under the National Expenditure Program.

The DBM’s approved budget is even lower than the judiciary’s 2021 budget of P45.31 billion which violates the Constitution, according to Marquez.

 “It is lower and this is actually in violation of the Constitution, specifically Section 3 of Article 8, where the budget of the judiciary cannot be lower than the previous year,” Marquez  said.

 He also requested to restore the P7.47 billion to the judiciary’s budget.

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