Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Kim Robert de Leon revealed that the “rigorously” reviewed, record-high ₱7.2-trillion proposed national budget for 2027 has until mid-August to reach the Lower House.

De Leon told reporters on the sidelines of the post-State of the Nation Address (SONA) forum on Friday, July 31, that the DBM is targeting the submission of the President’s Budget by Aug. 14, about half a month before the deadline.

Under the Philippine Constitution, the President is required to submit the National Expenditure Program (NEP) to Congress within 30 days after the regular legislative session opens.

According to the DBM, the Marcos Jr. administration has proposed a record ₱7.2-trillion national budget for fiscal year (FY) 2027, an increase of six percent over the current year, as the government seeks to counter an economic slowdown triggered by geopolitical conflict and domestic spending scandals.

Last year’s flood control fiasco prompted the government to reappropriate the budget originally intended for infrastructure projects. For one, the 2026 agency budget for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) was nearly halved to ₱530.9 billion from ₱1 trillion in 2025.

De Leon assured that the 2027 budget had undergone a thorough review of agency proposals during the first semester.

“As we crafted the FY 2027 national budget, we subjected agency proposals to one of the most rigorous reviews in recent years,” the DBM chief said, noting that the scrutiny covered the proposed projects’ shovel-readiness and relevance—not merely a collection of wish lists.

“Every proposal was carefully evaluated not only for completeness but also for its implementation readiness, strategic relevance, measurable outcomes, fiscal sustainability, and alignment with the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) and the President’s priorities,” he said.

Local leaders’ active involvement in the 2027 budget preparation was among the major reforms implemented.

De Leon explained that “priority regional programs are required to secure the endorsement of the respective regional development councils before they are included in the agency budget proposals.”

This shift seeks to ensure that national investments are “grounded in regional realities” and prevent development from being “decided in isolation,” he said.

To restore public confidence following the discovery of the high-profile flood control corruption scandal, the DBM is deploying high-tech monitoring tools.

De Leon introduced the DBM Compass, a digital platform that allows every Filipino to trace the movement of public funds. The DBM also uses Project DIME, which relies on satellite imagery, drones, geotagging, and geographic information systems, to verify whether major projects are progressing as reported.

De Leon framed these fiscal reforms as a moral imperative, saying that “every peso lost to corruption is a classroom that is never built,” noting that budget misuse no longer revolves around money but rather the opportunities stolen from the public.