House Speaker Martin Romualdez FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives (HOR) will resume regular sessions on Monday after a five-week break.
In a statement on Sunday, Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said that the lower house will prioritize the enactment of the P5.768 trillion national budget for 2024 and the passing of 11 remaining priority bills on the resumption of sessions.
The HOR also aims to submit the budget measure to President Ferdinand “Bong Bong’ Marcos Jr. and have him sign it before the year ends.
“The budget is the lifeblood of our nation’s progress and development. The House is fully dedicated to the task at hand, ensuring that the national budget is ratified and enacted on time to guarantee the continuity of essential services, support economic growth, and promote the well-being of our citizens,” said Romualdez.
The HOR, on Saturday, submitted the approved 2024 General Appropriations Bill to the Senate with P194.5 billion in realignments for security, inflation protection, and food security.
Romualdez further said that the HOR will tackle the 11 key legislative priorities outlined mostly in both the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) and Marcos’ State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July.
Among the pending bills under LEDAC are as follows:
- Department of Water Resources and Services and Creation of Water Regulatory Commission
- Tatak-Pinoy (Proudly Filipino) Act
- Blue Economy Law
- Amendments to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) or Republic Act (RA) No. 9136
- Government Procurement Reform Act
- Amendment of the Cooperative Code
- Budget Reforms Modernization
- National Defense Act
- New Government Auditing Code
- Philippine Defense Industry Development Act
Meanwhile, seven bills are still pending under SONA, but six of these were also listed as LEDAC measures:
- Department of Water Resources and Services and Creation of Water Regulatory Commission
- Tatak-Pinoy (Proudly Filipino) Act
- Blue Economy Law
- New Government Auditing Code
- Government Procurement Reform Act
- Amendment of the Cooperative Code
The seventh SONA bill, on the other hand, is Motor Vehicle User’s Charge/Road User’s Tax.
READ: House transmits proposed 2024 budget to Senate
“We are resolute in our mission to fulfill our legislative duties and responsibilities,” Romualdez said.
“Our primary focus continues to be the legislative agenda outlined by President Marcos, and we are fully committed to working diligently to pass these vital bills for the betterment of our nation,” he added.
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The statement likewise mentioned that one of the 17 SONA 2023 priority measures has already become law, another one has been ratified by the bicameral conference committee, and eight have been passed by the HOR on the third and final reading.
Meanwhile, out of the 57 LEDAC priority measures, eight have become law, while two have achieved ratification by the bicameral conference committee.