House set to start hearings on 2023 nat’l budget Friday

FILE: Empty session hall of the House of Representatives. (Photo By Gerald Tejada/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)

MANILA – The House of Representatives is all set to start its hearings on the proposed PHP5.268-trillion 2023 “Agenda for Prosperity” national budget on Friday.

Members of the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) will brief the House Committee on Appropriations on the state of the economy and the macro-economic parameters the executive branch used in putting together next year’s spending program.

The invited guests for the budget briefing are Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Secretary Arsenio Balisacan of the National Economic and Development Authority, and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe Medalla.

Speaker Martin Romualdez gave his assurance that the House would “effectively respond to the needs of the people, especially in addressing the continued impact of the health crisis and in creating more jobs and ensuring food security” in considering and approving the 2023 national budget.

He also stressed that the chamber would ensure that “every centavo of the national budget will be spent wisely to implement programs that would save lives, protect communities and make our economy strong and more agile.”

He also said the budget process would be transparent.

“The budget will be product of the entire House of Representatives, where the majority will listen to the minority’s concerns and of course, we as the representatives of the people, will also be attuned to their needs. This budget basically represents the hope of the future and the agenda for prosperity in the country this coming 2023,” Romualdez said.

The House is targeting to approve the spending measure on or before Sept. 30.

Congress is scheduled to go on its first recess on Oct. 1. The break will last up to Nov. 6.

He House appropriations committee is aiming to finish its budget hearings by Sept. 16, which would give the House two weeks for plenary discussions and approval of the proposed 2023 budget.

Next year’s outlay is 4.9 percent higher or PHP244 billion more than this year’s PHP5.024 trillion.

Based on budget documents, the spending proposal targets to implement an eight-point agenda: food security, improved transportation, affordable and clean energy, social services, health care, face-to-face education, bureaucratic efficiency, and sound fiscal management.

“The agriculture sector will receive a substantial increase of 39.2 percent, with a total proposed budget of PHP184.1 billion, to ensure food security and agricultural productivity,” according to the DBM.

It said a total of PHP1.2 trillion is allocated for “shovel-ready” infrastructure projects under the Marcos administration’s Build Better More Program, “to propel growth in agriculture, trade and tourism sectors and eventually reduce transportation and logistics costs.”

The education sector will get the highest allocation of PHP852.8 billion, while the health sector will receive PHP296.3 billion.