Returning entire NEP to DBM could trigger reenacted budget — Gatchalian

Sens. Sherwin Gatchalian and Bam Aquino talk on the sidelines of a Senate plenary session on Wednesday, September 3, 2025. — Photo from Senate Social Media Unit

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian on Thursday cautioned of a possible reenacted budget—relying on the previous year’s allocations—next year, should Congress return the proposed 2026 National Expenditures Program (NEP) to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for revisions.

Although unprecedented, the senator believes that returning the entire budget proposal to the DBM is possible.

“That hasn’t happened before. As far as I know, in my entire political life, that hasn’t happened because there are other mechanisms to fix the budget. You can even amend it; you can file an erratum,” Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on finance, said over dzMM.

“But returning the entire budget is not done because, first of all, it might delay the budget process. The schedule is very tight, and the budget needs to be approved before the end of the year. So it hasn’t been done yet, but it’s not impossible,” he said.

The House recommended returning the NEP to the DBM after identifying the budget allocations for infrastructure for already completed infrastructure projects.

READ: House party leaders recommend sending NEP back to DBM

However, Gatchalian said the Senate would proceed with the budget briefings, directing agencies with problematic appropriations to amend their proposals.

For the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), he said the Senate would remove its budget for certain flood control projects and relocate it to education.

The Senate and the House are conducting separate investigations into alleged mismanaged flood control projects, deemed either substandard or nonexistent.

“That’s my concern — the schedule. We want it signed before the end of the year; otherwise, we’ll end up with a reenacted budget,” Gatchalian said.

“That’s why what we agreed on here in the Senate is to continue with the budget briefings,” he went on.

Gatchalian pointed out that the budget can be corrected through amendments or an erratum, in which agencies submit revisions.

“There are two things that can be done to keep the budget process moving and to avoid any delays,” he stressed.

Contrary to Gatchalian’s belief, however, Sen. Panfilo Lacson thinks Congress could not return the NEP to Malacanang “since it is only a budget proposal, not an Enrolled Bill for approval or line-item veto by the President.”

“However, the DPWH through the DBM may submit errata sheets, but it is up to Congress to adopt such ‘errata’ or not,” Lacson said in a post on X. /das/abc