House, Senate ratify bicam report on proposed 2026 national budget

The House of Representatives and Senate on Monday ratified the bicameral conference committee (bicam) report which outlines the P6.793-trillion national budget for fiscal year 2026.

Via a voice vote, the House voted for the ratification of the bicameral conference committee report in a plenary session that lasted below two minutes since session opened at 2 pm.

It was Iloilo Representative Lorenz Defensor who moved for the ratification of the bicameral panel report, a motion seconded by his colleagues in a session presided by House Deputy Speaker Kristine Singson Meehan.

On the part of Senate, Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri moved to approve and ratify the bicam report on the disagreeing provisions of House Bill No. 4058 or the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), after Senate committee on finance chairman Sherwin Gatchalian presented the highlights of the measure. 

The motion was approved by Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto III.

House Appropriations Committee chairperson and Nueva Ecija Representative Mikaela Suansing said the proposed 2026 national budget is anchored on the people’s needs and does not fund any flood control projects, except for two items that are financed through foreign loans and other multilateral partners.

“Kung ang worry po ay ‘yung flood control, definitely po I can say with 100% certainty na hindi na po makakahila ng kahit anumang flood control [na pondo] kahit saan man sa budget. Wala na pong flood control sa ating budget para po sa taong 2026,” Suansing told reporters.

(If the concern of the public is flood control, I can say with 100% certainty that no funds for any flood control projects will be included anywhere in the budget. There will be no flood control projects in our 2026 budget.)

Suansing stressed that all budget items are based on government programs and plans, not on whims or secret maneuverings.

“Wala pong insertions sa ating budget, wala pong tago ng mga pondo o programa na isiningit sa budget. Lahat po ito ay dumaan sa masusing deliberasyon ng Kongreso at lahat po ito ay nakabase doon po sa mga in-endorse ng mga district engineering offices ng kanya-kanyang mga distrito base po sa mga pangangailangan,” she said.

(There are no insertions in our budget, and no funds or programs were secretly slipped into it. Everything went through thorough deliberation in Congress, and all of it is based on the endorsements from the district engineering offices of their respective districts, according to their actual needs.)

“Lalo na po pagdating sa DPWH budget, makikita po natin lahat ‘yan ay galing sa ahensiya (DPWH)…doon po sa mga inilatag na plano at programa ng mga respective district engineering offices,” Suansing added, referring to the Department of Public Works and Highways.

(Especially when it comes to the DPWH budget, we can see that all of it comes from the agency (DPWH)…from the plans and programs laid out by the respective district engineering offices.)

She also assured the public that the P243 billion unprogrammed funds under the ratified P6.793 trillion national budget for 2026 will not be used for infrastructure projects.

Unprogrammed appropriations are budget items that will only be funded if there is excess government revenue or other sources of funding, such as special laws or loans.

“When you see the unprogrammed appropriations [off the ratified Bicam report], you will see around 9 or 10 special provisions specifying the parameters as to when the unprogrammed appropriations will be eligible for funding," she said.

"The previous occurrence of flood control being funded under the unprogrammed appropriations under SAGIP, that [provision] is not there anymore,” she added, referring to Strengthening Assistance for Government Infrastructure and Social Programs, which was present in previous iterations of the national budget.

A special provision inserted in the final bicam version of the budget law also guards against possible misuse of unprogrammed funds, Suansing said.

“The special provisions specify what are the authorized uses of the items under unprogrammed appropriations. They are clearly spelled out. Wala na pong SAGIP. Wala na pong infrastructure projects," she said.

She clarified, however, that the only infrastructure projects to be funded through unprogrammed funds in the 2026 budget involve foreign-assisted projects.

"(These) are subject to intense scrutiny because their funding is a product of multilateral negotiations between the Philippine government and our multilateral partners,” Suansing said.

‘No’ votes

Senators Rodante Marcoleta and Robin Padilla, both from the Senate minority bloc, voted “no” to the ratification of the bicam report.

Marcoleta said his vote was based on “concrete audit findings, fiscal patterns, and policy distortions” surrounding various financial assistance programs.

“Mr. President, when we place massive increases in ayuda and standby funds side by side, a troubling picture emerges. We are expanding both the soft channels of political patronage and the fiscal backdoors that allow them to be financed, all while claiming to pursue reform and discipline. This is impunity,” he said.

“Despite all the protective measures instilled in this budget, there is the ever-present danger of loopholes in the wordings that may be exploited—an uncomfortable reminder that safeguards on paper do not always prevent abuse in practice,” he added.

Padilla, meanwhile, also raised concerns over what he described as the “unclear” allocation of funds, particularly for financial assistance programs.

He also cried foul over the inclusion of his name in files allegedly left behind by former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral prior to her death.

“Ginoong Pangulo, napakasakit po nito sapagkat ako po, sa panahon na ’yun, ang presidente ng opposition party na sa kalagitnaan ng kampanya at eleksyon ay nailagay ang aking pangalan dito. Ito ay napakasakit para sa akin,” Padilla said.

(Mr. President, this is very painful for me because I, at that time, was the president of the opposition party, and in the middle of the campaign and election period, my name was included in the list. This is very painful for me.)

According to Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, Senators Imee Marcos, Bong Go, and Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa—all also from the minority bloc—did not sign the bicam report.

The chair of the Senate finance committee, however, said he was unaware of the reasons why the three lawmakers did not sign the report.

“Wala naman (there’s none). In fact, si Senator Imee was present in all of the bicam activities from start to end,” Gatchalian said when asked if there was any expression of opposition from the minority senators.

On the other hand, those who voted “yes” to the ratification of the bicam report included Senators JV Ejercito, Loren Legarda, Risa Hontiveros, Ping Lacson, and Migz Zubiri, some of whom expressed reservations.

Ejercito said his reservations stemmed from the increased funding for the Medical Assistance for Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) program, while Hontiveros cited concerns over the unprogrammed appropriations, among other issues.

Senate President Pro Tempore Senator Ping Lacson.conveyed his affirmative vote "with strong reservations regarding the MAIFIP and AICS."

"Just to manifest that the national budget must not be a political tool and free from political exploitation,” Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said, explaining Lacson’s vote as the latter was not present during the session.

In a separate interview, Suansing said that the guidelines for distributing government aid programs are determined by the Executive branch to ensure that the process remains free from political influence.

"The guarantee letter (GL) as it is now does not have political involvement because the issuer of the GL codes [for approved GL requests coursed from lawmakers] is the Department of Health (DOH)," she said.

The GL serves as a "communication tool" between the DOH and the government hospitals, through the GL code, Suansing said.

"So it is really up to the DOH as to whether they will [still] adopt the guarantee [letter system] and retain the GL code which is their way of communicating to individual hospitals," she said. 

Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan also voted “yes with reservations” on the bicam report, particularly on the provision authorizing the Department of Agriculture (DA) to enter into memoranda of agreement with the DPWH in the implementation of the P33-billion farm-to-market roads program.

“This implementation modality raises significant execution and accountability concerns. I respectfully request the President to veto this specific provision,” he said. 

The ratified bicam panel report provides that all cash assistance and other forms of financial aid distributions shall be conducted exclusively by authorized government officers and personnel or accredited partners.

“No public officials holding elective positions, electoral candidates, politicians, political parties, or any of their representatives, except for officials having direct administrative and executive authority over the implementing agency, shall influence, be present in, participate in, or take part in the actual distribution of any cash assistance and other forms of financial aid in the following programs: Protective Services for Individuals and Families in Difficult Circumstances, Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers, Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients Program, and other similar government financial assistance programs,” it read.

“No political signage, branding, paraphernalia, or activity shall be displayed or conducted within the distribution area,” it added.

Likewise, the ratified bicam panel report reduced the DPWH budget from P880 billion to P529 billion amid ongoing probe on the anomalous flood control projects and kickback schemes. 

The enrolled budget bill is now set to be transmitted to Malacañang for review. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will either sign it into a law or veto it. 

Executive Secretary Ralph Recto earlier said the President is expected to sign the proposed 2026 budget in the first week of January. —AOL/MCG, GMA Integrated News