Budget for universities up since 2011, records show

MANILA, Philippines - Contrary to the claims of Vice President Jejomar Binay, the budget allocation for state universities and colleges (SUCs) under the Aquino administration has consistently increased since 2011.

During his version of the State of the Nation Address held at the Cavite State University (CvSU) on Monday, Binay said the government appears to have forgotten its priorities when it decreased the budget of public higher education institutions.

“In 2014, SUCs requested P59 billion from the DBM (Department of Budget and Management). They were given only P809 million,” the Vice President said in Filipino.

The STAR reviewed available budget documents from 2010 to 2016 to fact-check Binay’s allegations on the budget of SUCs. The year-on-year comparison of the budget for SUCs was taken at face value and did not include inflation and other factors.

Data showed that from P26.7 billion in 2010, the budget of SUCs decreased to P23.7 billion in 2011.

Since then, however, the approved total budget for public higher education institutions has increased annually: P27.2 billion in 2012, P32.8 billion in 2013, P35.3 billion in 2014 and P42.3 billion in 2015.

According to the latest National Expenditure Program (NEP), the executive branch proposed a budget of P43.8 billion for SUCs in 2016, slightly higher than this year’s budget.

The NEP refers to the budget proposal submitted by the DBM to Congress. It differs from the General Appropriations Act (GAA), which is the approved final budget that will be implemented in the particular year.

The P59-billion request mentioned by the Vice President in his speech was apparently based on the assessment of militant groups when it criticized the budget proposal of the Aquino administration for 2014.

There was also no available information as to where Binay based his claim of the P809-million approved budget.

Government documents showed that the DBM actually proposed a P34.6-billion budget for SUCs in 2014. This was further increased to P35.3 billion after budget deliberations, as shown in the GAA of 2014 that was approved by Congress and signed into law by President Aquino.

Misleading

In his speech, the Vice President cited the case of CvSU, which he said was among the top 20 SUCs that suffered a budget cut.

Without citing the sources of his data, Binay noted budget cuts in other universities: University of the Philippines, over P1 billion; Mindanao State University (MSU), over P800 million; Isabela State University (ISU), P77 million.

The GAA of 2014 showed that CvSU actually received P359 million in 2014 from P263 million in 2013, or a P96-million increase.

The DBM initially proposed a P7-million budget cut for the university, but changes were made following deliberations in Congress.

The ISU has a similar case, with its budget growing from P549 million in 2013 to P629 million in 2014, equivalent to an P80-million increase, following deliberations.

While both UP and MSU suffered cuts in 2014, the drop in budget allocations were found to be lower than the amount cited by the Vice President.

Based on the approved 2014 budget, UP suffered a P900-million cut, while MSU suffered a P485-million cut.

This year, UP, MSU and ISU all received increases in budget, while CvSU suffered a cut amounting to over P5 million.

Budget cuts in 2016?

A review of the 2016 NEP showed that the proposed total budget for all 113 SUCs in the country increased from the current P42.279 billion to P43.767 billion next year.

However, 10 SUCs may face budget cuts if Congress approves without changes the DBM proposal.

Based on the NEP, UP is facing the highest possible decrease, from the current P13.143 billion to P10.897 billion next year, equivalent to a P2.236-billion drop.

The bulk of the budget for UP is intended for capital outlay, or for the construction of new buildings and similar projects.

Other SUCs facing possible drops in budget include the Philippine Normal University, P130.203 million; MSU, P28.955 million; Philippine Merchant Marine Academy in Zambales, P12.307 million; Laguna State Polytechnic University, P10.110 million.

Also included are the Marikina Polytechnic College, P7.913 million; Surigao del Sur State University, P6.770 million; Bulacan State University, P6.746 million; MSU-Tawi-Tawi College of Technology and Oceanography, P5.979 million; Carlos C. Hilado Memorial State College in Negros Occidental, P5.139 million.

The budget computation was based on the summary of obligations and proposed new appropriations in the 2016 NEP. It did not include automatic appropriations for the universities.

Meanwhile, the remaining 103 SUCs in the country would receive increased budgets next year, with six among them likely to receive a raise of over P100 million.

These are the West Visayas State University, P171 million; the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University in La Union, P122 million; the Technological University of the Philippines in Manila, P118 million; Pangasinan State University, P116 million; Quirino State University, P112 million; Central Luzon State University, P105 million.

The Zamboanga State College of Marine Sciences and Technology will receive the smallest increase at P882,000.

The budget for SUCs – which include that of UP Manila that operates the Philippine General Hospital – differs from the budget allocated to the Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education.