Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson on Tuesday, Nov. 18, rejected former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co’s allegations that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered ₱100 billion in budget insertions and received a supposed ₱25-billion “commission” from the amount. During the...
The Senate will no longer allow “alien” provisions to be included in the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026. Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said this was the agreement in the Senate to make the budget process open “all the way to the bicam, and all the...
President Marcos said the government will begin livestreaming bicameral conference committee (bicam) deliberations on the proposed 2026 national budget to ensure transparency and accountability in the legislative process. Marcos said this after the House of Representatives approved its version of...
Senator Erwin Tulfo on Tuesday called on the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to be proactive in flagging questionable items in the National Expenditures Program (NEP) to ensure that there were no insertions from politicians. “Lahat po naman kayo dito sa Executive, well wala pa nung...
The Senate is unanimously supporting the House of Representatives call to open bicameral conference committee meetings during the crafting of the national budget. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, said the Senate has unanimously signed and filed Senate...
Malacañang has expressed its support for moves to institutionalize transparency in the budget deliberations. Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said the Palace respects the independence of the Congress in pushing to institutionalize a transparent budget...
The Senate is open to proposals seeking to enhance transparency of the budget process by opening the bicameral deliberations to the public. Senate Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. said the bicameral conference is a joint undertaking of the Senate and the House of Representatives, so both chambers have...
Senators on Sunday, June 8 called for the immediate convening of the bicameral conference committee that will tackle the wage hike bill to provide the much needed income relief to private sector workers amid the growing economic pressures. Since both the Senate and House of Representatives have...
After calling on his Cabinet secretaries to resign, President Marcos challenged them to complete all projects under their agencies on time and on budget. Speaking during the presentation of two new laws—Republic Act (RA) 12145 and RA 12180—at the Malacañan Palace on Thursday, May 22, Marcos...
President Marcos will "keep an eye," not literally sit, on the 2026 budget deliberations, Malacañang clarified. Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said the President 's pronouncement to oversee the budget process was merely to express that "he will keep an...
The Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) has suspended further action on the criminal complaints filed against House Speaker Martin Romualdez and three other congressmen for their alleged involvement in the reportedly illegal entries made in the 2025 national budget. In a resolution dated March...
The country’s leading business groups are calling for sweeping reforms in the national budget process to ensure that long-term economic stability is prioritized amid controversies surrounding this year’s budget. In a joint statement on Wednesday, Feb. 5, published on Makati Business Club’s...
