House appropriations panel OKs proposed P6.7-T budget for 2026

The House appropriations panel on Tuesday approved House Bill 4058 or the P6.7 trillion proposed budget for 2026 which realigned P255 billion of flood control program to various agencies, including P60-billion subsidy to Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) as well as increase in social services fund.

This developed after the panel approved the motion by its chair, Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Suansing, with 54 in favor, six against, and four abstentions.

The list of budget items where the P255 billion funding for flood control projects were realigned include:

• P32.6 billion for Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations
• P26.73 billion for Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients Program
• P14.82 billion for Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD).
• P8.9 billion for Farm-to-Market Roads
• P8.69 billion for the Establishment/Repair/Rehabilitation of Post harvest facilities and Transportation Equipment
• P7 billion for the Presidential Assistance to Farmers and Fisherfolk (P7,000 per beneficiary)
• P6.6 billion for Tertiary Education Subsidy
• P4.076 billion for Solar Powered Irrigation Program
• P2.69 billion for Tulong Dunong Program
• P2.5 billion for the Cybersecurity Information Infrastructure Development and Management
• P2.4 billion for completion of legacy hospitals such as National Kidney and Transplant institute, Philippine Cancer Center, Philippine Children's Medical Center, among others.
• P2.4 billion for Deep Water Ports for Agri-Industrial Product
• P2 billion for Construction/ Rehabilitation/ Improvement of Fish Ports
• P1.5 billion for Cold Storage 
• P1.5 billion for National Irrigation System - Repair and Restoration of New
• Irrigation Systems
• P1. 5 billion for Communal Irrigation System - Repair and Restoration of
• Pump Irrigation
• P1 billion for the National Broadband Program
• P1 billion for the Crop Insurance Program
• P1 billion National Soil Health Program
• P1.3 billion for Enhancing Sugar Production Project/Farm-to Mill Road 
• P1.4 billion for Massive Coconut Planting Program
• P627.5 million additional funding for the Philippine Gradiometry and Seismic Survey Project (PGSSP)
• P121 million for the Expansion of the Cybercrime Response Center (CRC)
• P79.46 million for the funding requirements for the implementation of Konektadong Pinoy Act
• P35 million to support the Department of Finance’s mandate under Republic Act No. 12022, or the Anti- Agricultural Sabotage Act
• P30.5 million for the Expansion of the Cybercrime Complaint Center (C3)
• P24.9 million for the Establishment of the Threat Monitoring Center (TMC)
• P10 million for confidential fund of the Bureau of Internal Revenue
• P10 million for the confidential fund of the Bureau of Customs, among others.

The realignments, Suansing said, were based on the funding request of the government agencies implementing the said programs, not the request of the lawmakers. 

“Taken together, these allocations reflect not only the priorities of the government but also the aspirations of our people. With the reforms we instituted through the House Budget Review Amendments panel, we are assured that proposed amendments will be evaluated with transparency, consistency, and fairness,” she said.

“Our task ahead is to ensure that every peso appropriated in this ?6.79 trillion budget is invested where it matters most—uplifting lives, protecting communities, and securing our nation’s future,” she added. —AOL, GMA Integrated News