House of Representatives (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

It's that time of the year again in the House of Representatives as the Committee on Appropriations starts the deliberations on the P6.352-trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2025 on Monday morning, Aug. 5. 

As per tradition, the four members of the President’s economic team who comprise the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) will be the first to face the panel, for the purpose of discussing the general provisions and principles of the NEP. 

They are Department Budget Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Ralph Recto, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Director General Arsenio Balisacan, and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Eli Remolona Jr. 

Expected to welcome the economic team at the plenary are House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co, who is appropriations committee chairman. 

Speaker Romualdez said he and his colleagues would like to know from the administration’s economic managers “how the country could sustain its economic growth and how such growth could benefit our people". 

“Our economic expansion, projected by multi-lateral financial institutions at between 5.9 to 6.2 percent next year, should be felt by our people, especially the poor, in terms of more job and income opportunities, more affordable food on their table and lower consumer prices,” he said. 

He says many of the poor complain that the economic boom is benefitting only the rich, the big companies, and stock and financial market investors. 

“They say they cannot eat economic growth. If majority of our people do not feel our economic expansion, they should at least see it in terms of the proper use of the national budget for social services, education, health, infrastructure, and direct financial assistance to the poor and other vulnerable sectors,” Romualdez stressed. 

The leader of the 300-plus-strong House of Representatives added that he would like to see increased allocations for these services and pro-poor programs. 

“Maybe, we cannot get all the data from our resource persons tomorrow, but this is a forewarning to all agency heads who will be asked to attend our hearings: they should better be prepared when it is their turn to face us,” he said. 

The NEP is the basis for the annual General Appropriations Bill (GAB) or the proposed national budget, Once signed by the President, it becomes the General Appropriations Act (GAA). 

The P6.352-trillion NEP for next year is 10 percent higher than the current 2024 GAA worth P5.768 trillion. 

Week 1 of budget deliberations 

On Tuesday, Aug. 6,officials of the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corporation (Pagcor) and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) will brief the appropriations committee on their operations. 

The two agencies are major contributors to the national treasury, along with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and Bureau of Customs (BOC). 

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development will be on deck on Wednesday, Aug. 7. 

Then, It will be the turn of the Department of Energy (DOE), Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on Thursday. 

The appropriations committee will conduct hearings up to Sept. 9. 

Speaker Romualdez earlier said the House would approve the President’s budget proposal before Congress goes on recess later next month.