Palace to lawmakers: Speed up 2026 national budget deliberations

By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter

MALACAÑANG on Tuesday urged lawmakers to hasten the passage of the proposed 2026 national budget to avoid a reenacted spending plan.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. wants Congress to move swiftly on the budget bill, Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro said.

“The President does not want a reenacted budget. So, we should move as quickly as possible. Even though time is short, hopefully we can speed things up,” she told a Palace briefing in Filipino.

The proposed 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA) has been subject to more scrutiny after allegations that billions of pesos of unprogrammed appropriations were inserted in this year’s national budget.

The Budget department defines a reenacted budget as “a situation where the previous year’s GAA is extended and remains in effect for a preceding year until such time Congress passes a budget bill into law.”

Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said on Monday that the chamber is on track to pass the budget bill.

The House of Representatives approved the P6.793-trillion national budget on final reading last October. The Senate is set to approve the budget bill on second reading on Wednesday, and on third and final reading on Dec. 9.

The bicameral conference committee is scheduled to hold deliberations from Dec. 11-13 to reconcile the conflicting versions of the House and Senate versions. The bicam report is set to be out by Dec. 16.

As part of efforts to boost transparency, Mr. Marcos had earlier ordered the bicameral conference committee proceedings to be livestreamed.

Congress is expected to ratify the budget bill by Dec. 17. Mr. Marcos is expected to sign the 2026 GAA on Dec. 29.

Mr. Marcos, during his fourth State of the Nation Address on July 28, said he would not sign the budget unless it aligns with his administration’s goals.

Ederson DT. Tapia, a political science professor at the University of Makati, said a reenacted budget would be a setback for governance because it forces agencies to operate on outdated assumptions.

“When the budget is reenacted, no new initiatives can move, agencies are locked into outdated priorities, and critical programs in education, health, infrastructure, and disaster response are either delayed or frozen altogether,” he said via Facebook Messenger.

Mr. Tapia said it also undermines Congress’ role in setting national priorities and risks normalizing governance by default rather than by deliberate planning.

Gary G. Ador Dionisio, dean of the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde School of Diplomacy and Governance, said a reenacted 2025 budget threatens the Philippine economy, public services and Mr. Marcos’ political capital.

He said this would undermine reforms introduced by Congress to address past budget controversies, raise doubts among stakeholders about the administration’s economic leadership, and increase risks of inefficiency and corruption, particularly in discretionary fund allocations.

“A reenacted budget increases vulnerabilities to inefficiency and corruption, especially in the allocation of discretionary funds,” he said via Facebook Messenger.

“If this will happen, certainly various sectors both national and international stakeholders will cast a shadow of doubt to the leadership and capacity of (President Marcos) to stir our problematic economy and downgraded international credit rating.”