Senate starts budget deliberations

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate will start plenary deliberations tomorrow on the proposed P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019 without any iron-clad commitment to pass the money measure before Congress goes on a break two weeks from now.

Malacañang last week appealed to the Senate to pass the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) and allow President Duterte to sign it into law before the end of the year, thus preventing the government from operating on a “reenacted” budget.

Sen. Loren Legarda, chairperson of the Senate committee on finance, earlier said she would do her best to have the GAB approved, and was willing to push to extend Congress’ session to Dec. 19 if needed.

“I want the budget to be passed and to be signed by the President before the end of December, avoid a re-enacted budget even for just one month,” Legarda told reporters after she and Senate leaders met on Wednesday with Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno, who carried Malacañang’s appeal.

“There’s the timeline we are following and trying the best of our ability to abide with the timeline… try whatever is physically feasible as long as there is no physical impossibility that we pass and finish,” she said.

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri on Thursday said senators—including those from the minority bloc—agreed to work 12 hours a day to deliberate on the GAB as delays could derail the implementation of urgent infrastructure projects and other programs due to lack of authority to spend.

 Malacañang’s request came after senators warned they would be able to approve the budget in January, which means the government would have to be operating on the 2018 budget for at least the first two quarters of 2019.

The reenacted budget frees certain authorized allocations for specific programs that Malacañang may spend for other items. It would also mean there will be no appropriations for programs lined up for 2019 until a new budget is passed.

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto warned lack of funding for 2019 will surely affect the country’s growth as the government does not have the proper permission to spend.

Under the proposed schedule, the Senate will start plenary budget deliberations at 10 a.m. on Tuesday until 10 p.m., and continue every day until Dec. 11 where the GAB will be passed.

It was suggested that the bicameral conference committee be given only one day – Dec. 12 – to reconcile conflicting provisions of the Senate and the House and ratify the budget the following day.

The House of Representatives passed GAB on Nov. 20. The bill was formally transmitted to the Senate the following day.

Diokno’s pitch to senators was that a delay in the approval of the GAB meant the government would not be able to start fresh infrastructure projects until after the first six months of next year owing to the 90-day election ban on such projects that starts in March.

 He expressed optimism that Malacañang’s appeal will be heeded.

“I have passed 10 budgets in my lifetime so it (passage) can be done,” Diokno told reporters after the meeting.

 He said the best time to undertake infrastructure projects is during the first half of the year when there are less typhoons.