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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Appropriations panel finishes 2026 budget hearings; plenary debates start Sept 22

Appropriations panel finishes 2026 budget hearings; plenary debates start Sept 22

Published Sep 18, 2025 01:50 pm

At A Glance

  • Ranking members of the House of Representatives have announced the start of the plenary debates on the P6.793-trillion proposed national budget for 2026 this coming Monday, Sept. 22.
The House plenary (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)
The House plenary (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)


Ranking members of the House of Representatives have announced the start of the plenary debates on the P6.793-trillion proposed national budget for 2026 this coming Monday, Sept. 22.
This, after the Committee on Appropriations chaired by Nueva Ecija 1st district Rep. Mikaela Angela "Mika" Suansing adjourned the panel-level deliberations on the P6.793-trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) on Wednesday night, Sept. 17.
Appropriations panel senior vice chairman, Bataan 2nd district Rep. Albert Garcia made the motion to adjourn at the end of the committee's marathon hearing on the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) budget at just before 10 p.m.
"After one whole month of extensive budget deliberations, it has been moved and seconded, the motion is carried. The budget hearing on the proposed fiscal year 2026 General Appropriations Bill (GAB) under House Bill (HB) No.4058 is hereby adjourned," Suansing said.
HB No.4058, filed last August 27, was based on NEP that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) prepared and submitted to the House of Representatives.
"It has been very eventful to say the least, but we made and I really do believe that the committee will be able to come out with a budget that we will be proud of," Suansing said.
"We assure our distinguished members in the House and of course the Filipino people that the Committee on Appropriations will work hard to come up with a budget that will ensure that every peso allocated to the government programs, the different departments and agencies...that would really benefit the Filipino people and respond to the needs of the Filipino people," added the Harvard-educated solon.
'Hanggang madaling araw yan'
Majority leader Ilocos Norte 1st district Rep. Sandro Marcos confirmed the committee's schedule earlier on the sidelines of Wednesday's plenary session.
"We start plenary debates on Monday. Hanggang madaling araw yan (We will hold hearings up until morning). There will be no committee hearings during budget debates," he said.
The Suansing panel began the per agency discussions on NEP last Aug. 18. In the month that followed, only the budget hearings of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and DPWH were deferred, or temporarily postponed.
Between the two, the DPWH funding for next year was the most contentious. This was in large part due to the flood control projects corruption scandal and the questionable entries in the agency's budget under the 2026 NEP.
Wednesday's DPWH budget hearing lasted 11 hours. Secretary Vince Dizon led the attending resource persons of the agency.
Bicam made insertions
During the hearing, Marikina City 2nd district Rep. Miro Quimbo received confirmation from DPWH officials that the controversial “insertions” in the previous 2025 budget came from the Bicameral Conference Committee (bicam), and not from the House of Representatives "small committee".
The bicam is composed of select senators and House members.
Quimbo said the House actually reduced the DPWH budget by P73.7 billion, from P898 billion in the 2025 NEP to P825 billion when it transmitted that year's GAB to the Senate.
“Kung dito pa lang binabawasan, paano ka magsisingit? Binawasan nga ng P73.7 billion ng House (If reductions were already made in the House, then how were insertions made? The House actually reduced it by P73.7 billion). So how can you have an insertion?” Quimbo asked.
But he noted that after the bicam, the DPWH budget ballooned to P1.13 trillion, an increase of nearly P289 billion.
Officials from the DPWH confirmed Quimbo’s account. Undersecretary Ador Canlas and Director Alex Bote said the department had no knowledge of changes after Senate plenary deliberations, only discovering them when the final General Appropriations Act (GAA) enacted budget was released.
“That’s on the record,” Bote told the congressmen.
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