House begins committee hearings on proposed 2025 national budget

By: Gabriel Pabico Lalu - 4 months ago

PROPOSED 2025 BUDGET / JULY 29, 2024The House of Representatives under the leadership of Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez today received from Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman the proposed P6.352-trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for Fiscal Year 2025. With this, the Committee on Appropriations will soon start the deliberations for the country’s national spending plan which aims to deliver social and economic transformation and position the Philippines as a prosperous, inclusive, and resilient society. Anchored on the theme “Agenda for Prosperity: Fulfilling the Needs and Aspirations of the Filipino People,” the budget proposal centers on social services and economic growth. The budget will fund education and training programs, expanded quality healthcare services, and development of job opportunities. During the turn-over ceremony, Speaker Romualdez said the House recognizes its collective responsibility towards the swift and timely passage of the proposed 2025 national budget and to ensure that the same shall not only meet the immediate needs of the Filipino people but will also set the stage for a prosperous and equitable Philippines. Joining the Speaker in receiving the FY 2025 NEP are Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr., Majority Leader Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe, Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan, and Appropriations committee chair Elizaldy Co. Likewise present are Deputy Speakers David “Jay-jay” Suarez, Kristine Singson-Meehan, and Yasser Balindong, Senior Deputy Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, other House Members, officials from the DBM and Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO), and House Secretariat officials led by Secretary General Reginald Velasco . PHOTO FROM HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

House Speaker Martin Romualdez (left) receives from Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman the proposed P6.3-trillion National Expenditure Program for Fiscal Year 2025. | File photo dated July 29, 2024. from the House of Representatives

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives started its deliberations on the P6.3 trillion proposed national budget for 2025 at the committee level on Monday.

Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez initially presided, and then the House Committee on Appropriations started its deliberations by scrutinizing the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).

The DBCC consists of representatives from the Department of Budget and Management, the Department of Finance, the National Economic and Development Authority, the Office of the President, and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

It will be quizzed about how it formulated the National Expenditures Program (NEP) and identified its funding sources.

In his opening speech, Romualdez said crafting the national budget was a “critical tool for steering a country’s development path.”

“As we proceed, we are fortunate to have the opportunity of listening to our esteemed guests as they elucidate on the process of formulating the P6.352 trillion National Expenditure Program,” he told lawmakers.

“The proposed 2025 national budget is anchored on the theme ‘Agenda for Prosperity: Fulfilling the Needs and Aspirations of the Filipino People,’” he noted.

According to Romualdez, education will be a priority, along with public works, health, local government, defense, and transportation.

He gave the following proposed allocations:

education: P977.6 billion
public works: P900
health: P297.6 billion
interior and local government: P278.4 billion
defense: P256.1 billion
social welfare: P230.1 billion
agriculture: P211.3 billion
transportation: P180.9 billion
judiciary: P63.6 billion
justice: P40.6 billion

READ: DBM submits proposed P6.3T national budget for 2025 to House

After the DBCC, the House will discuss on Tuesday, April 6, the contributions to the budgets of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

As of Monday, here is the schedule of agencies that will appear before the Committee on Appropriations:

August 7: Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development
August 8: Department of Energy, Energy Regulatory Commission, Commission on Higher Education
August 12: Department of Agriculture
August 13: Department of Foreign Affairs and Commission on Audit
August 14: Department of Trade and Industry
August 15 Department of Agrarian Reform, Office of the Vice President, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government
August 20: Department of Migrant Workers and Department of Tourism
August 22: Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Information and Communications Technology, and Department of Social Welfare and Development
August 27: Civil Service Commission and Office of the Ombudsman
August 28: Department of Transportation
August 29: Commission on Elections, Commission on Human Rights, and Department of Science and Technology
September 2: Department of Education
September 3: Office of the President and Presidential Communications Office
September 4: Department of Health
September 5: Judiciary, Department of Justice, and Department of Public Works and Highways
September 9: Department of National Defense

The proposed 2025 budget was transmitted to Congress last July 29 — the earliest that the executive, under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., sent an NEP to the legislature.

Under the Constitution, the executive is given 30 days after a president’s State of the Nation address to submit the NEP to Congress.