Senate approves P5-trillion national budget for 2022 on third reading

Voting 22-0, senators on Wednesday approved on third and final reading the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) containing the P5-trillion national budget for 2022, the last under President Rodrigo Duterte's term.

The members of the Senate and the House of Representatives will meet in a bicameral conference to reconcile the disagreeing provisions of the version of the budget bill passed by both houses.

This comes after Senate Finance Committee chairman Sonny Angara introduced the institutional and individual amendments proposed by his colleagues during the Senate’s Wednesday plenary session.

A bill certified as urgent, such as the 2022 proposed budget, may be approved on second and third reading on the same day.

In introducing the amendments to the 2022 GAB, Angara said the Senate budget version focuses on health and the country's COVID-19 response.

The senator highlighted the need to prioritize funding for the health sector considering the emergence of COVID-19 Omicron variant.

According to Angara, the budget for the Department of Health (DOH) gets around P48 billion increase as compared to the version passed by the House of Representatives.

“Of course the [Omicron] situation is still developing, but needless to say we have to be prepared for the worst case scenario,” Angara said.

“This is why, our health sector will continue to receive a significant portion of the national budget, with the Department of Health receiving over P230 billion, much higher than the P182 billion [that] was appropriated under the General Appropriations Bill passed by the House of Representatives,” he added.

Where the budget will go

There are also increases in the funding for the COVID-19 Benefits and Compensation for Healthcare Workers, COVID-19 Human Resource for Health Emergency Hiring, COVID-19 Laboratory Network Commodities, DOH’s Epidemiology and Surveillance Program, operations of the National Reference Laboratories like the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM), and the hiring and training of 25,000 contract tracers.

The senators likewise provided more funds for the purchase of drugs, medicines and vaccines that will be approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The Senate augmented the funding for the DOH’s Health Facilities Enhancement Program by around P3.231 billiion from P17.478 billion to P20.710 billion, which will be used for the construction, upgrading or expansion of government health care facilities and the purchase of hospital equipment.

DOH hospitals’ operations budget was likewise increased with P4.363 billion facilities in Metro Manila and P10.724 billion for those in other regions.

The Senate has also allotted up to P24.423 billion for the assistance to indigent and financially incapacitated patients across the country. 

The Doktor Para sa Bayan Law will be boosted as the Senate sought P1.560 billion budget for the State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) with schools of medicines.

Angara said the education sector would still get the “lion’s share” of the proposed 2022 budget with DepEd receiving an increase of P6.743 billion, while SUCs will get P26.569, and P1.46 billion for TESDA.

The senators included a special provision allowing appropriations for maintenance and other operating expenses to be used for making improvements or modifications in classrooms, laboratories and other spaces for proper ventilation.

The provision will authorize the procurement of  COVID-19 test kits for faculty and staff, and other necessary supplies, equipment and tools to ensure compliance with existing safety protocols and standards, Angara said.

Additional support for teachers such as extra cash allowances, including teaching supplies allowance or chalk allowance were also provided under the proposed budget measure.

The DepEd’s Last Mile Schools Program will receive more budgetary support as well as the electrification of unenergized schools and the modernization of electrical systems of on-grid schools.

The Tulong Trabaho Fund was also increased to equip workforce with the necessary skills to meet the challenges of rapidly evolving workplaces and work structures.

Social amelioration

For the social assistance programs, Angara said there will be P5 billion funding for the social amelioration program; up to P25.018 billion for social pension for indigent senior citizens; P108 million for Department of Labor and Employment’s Integrated Livelihood Program; P12.592 billion for the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations; and augmentations on the Emergency Repatriation Fund of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).

Angara also disclosed budget increases in programs that are related to employment and economic recovery such as:

• P2.869 billion for Tulong Panghanapbuhay Sa Ating Disadvantaged Or Displaced Workers or TUPAD
• P57 million for Government Internship Program
• P644 million for establishment of Negosyo Centers
• P700 million for Shared Service Facilities
• P10 million for the Empower Philippines Project which will support local PPEs, face masks and other critical supplies’ manufacturers.

Agriculture, defense support

Funding for the construction of facilities and procurement of agricultural machineries and equipment and fuel vouchers and discounts to farmers and fisherfolk were likewise considered under the GAB passed by the Senate.

Around P10 billion was allocated for fuel vouchers of Filipinos in the agriculture sector and transportation sector.

The senators also revived the appropriations for the Loan Proceeds of the foreign-assisted project, Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT), which was cut by the House.

Other agriculture-related budgetary items that received additional funding under the Senate version are the Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita Program (P250 million), the subsidy for Dairy industry Development Program (P484.908 million), Agro-Industry Modernization Credit and Financing Program (P2.536 billion).

For the security sector, Angara said the Department of National Defense received additional P2.933 billion which was proposed for the procurement of equipment for the production of 9mm ammunitions and the implementation of Information Systems Strategic Plan.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines as a whole will receive P1.638 billion additional funding for the procurement of mission-critical equipment and supplies.

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process will also be provided P535.98 million for the socio-economic development assistance to former Moro National Liberation Front combatants.

The Senate contingent for the bicameral conference are Angara, Senators Juan Miguel Zubiri, Cynthia Villar, Ronald Dela Rosa, Pia Cayetano, Sherwin Gatchalian, Bong Go, Richard Gordon, Risa Hontiveros, Imee Marcos, Joel Villanueva, Grace Poe, and Nancy Binay.

In a statement, House Appropriations Committee chairperson Eric Yap welcomed the passage of the proposed 2022 national budget “ despite their busy schedule deliberating other matters of national concern.”

“While there may be conflicting provisions between the two, rest assured that our common end goal is to submit a budget that will sustain our COVID-19 response efforts while supporting our gradual transition to full recovery,” Yap said.—LDF, GMA News