House set to approve 2026 budget bill on second reading

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio, Reporter

THE HOUSE of Representatives is expected to approve the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026 on second reading on Friday, a lawmaker said on Thursday.

The House sub-committee on Budget Amendments Review is set to present the final revisions to the proposed General Appropriations Act for 2026 to the plenary for second reading approval on Oct. 10, Lanao del Sur. Rep. Ziaur-Rahman Alonto Adiong said.

“We expect that some individual amendments will be introduced, especially from the minority bloc,” Mr. Adiong, a vice-chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, told reporters in mixed English and Filipino.

“After we approve all the amendments, including that of the recommendations of the Budget Amendments Review sub-committee, then we would go next week for the [budget bill’s] third and final reading,” he added.

The sub-committee, created to enhance transparency in the budget process and publicize changes to the spending bill, finalized its proposed revisions on Wednesday.

Amendments include further increased funding for the Education, Health and Agriculture departments.

Congressmen sought to raise the Education department’s allocation for new classrooms by P35 billion to P63.05 billion from the original P28-billion proposal.

Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Angela B. Suansing, who chairs the Committee on Appropriations, said the budget hike would fund the construction of an additional 25,000 government school classrooms amid a shortage.

Lawmakers also boosted funding for the agency’s computerization program by P414 million, while raising the budget for textbook procurement by P50 million.

They also added P3.2 billion for the Health department’s construction of clinics and public health centers, while increasing the budget of the Philippine Children’s Medical Center by P150 million to support its cancer care and support programs.

The sub-panel retained the P60-billion subsidy for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) in its final budget revisions, but lawmakers added a provision requiring the state health insurer to disclose how the funds are disbursed and utilized no later than June 30, 2026.

Congressmen increased the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) farm-to-market road initiatives by 86% to P16.78 billion. They also hiked funding for farmers’ financial aid to P10 billion from P7 billion.

Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian, who heads the Senate Finance Committee, said he has reservations over approving the P16 billion requested by the DA for farm-to-market road projects, citing concerns over alleged corruption tied to the program.

“If they can’t fix their process, or if the Department of Public Works and Highways doesn’t improve its procedures, I’m having second thoughts about allocating for farm-to-market roads because the money might just go to waste,” he said at a media briefing on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Mr. Gatchalian said that 1,653 farm-to-market road projects approved in the past two years were overpriced, resulting in estimated losses of P10.34 billion — equivalent to about 689 kilometers of farm roads.

The House sub-committee also scrapped P35 billion in unprogrammed appropriations intended for infrastructure programs, slashing nearly half of the P80 billion originally allocated under the budget bill’s Strengthening Assistance for Government Infrastructure and Social Programs.

Mr. Adiong said some lawmakers would likely push for cuts to the Office of the Vice-President’s (OVP) proposed P902-million budget for 2026. Minority congressmen earlier signaled their intent to reduce the allocation following Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio’s absence during plenary debates on the budget for the OVP.

“I’m expecting a discussion on whether to retain or to approve that slash,” he said.

John Paolo R. Rivera, a senior research fellow at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said the budget revisions are a welcome development, but stressed that proper implementation will be critical to ensure the changes deliver meaningful impact.

“The impact will hinge on transparent, efficient and timely implementation, especially with large-ticket items like PhilHealth, where stronger monitoring of fund disbursement is overdue,” he said in a Viber message.

“These moves are broadly aligned with the country’s long-term growth goals, but complementary reforms in procurement, governance, and evaluation must follow,” he added.

The increased budget allocations for education and health are expected to generate a trickle-down effect that would benefit the poorest Filipinos, helping lift them out of poverty through improved access to essential services and opportunities, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.