Bicam report on 2026 budget signed, ratification next

MANILA, Philippines – The bicameral conference committee report on the disagreeing provisions of the 2026 national budget was finalized on Sunday, December 28, after representatives from the House and the Senate signed the document that will be separately ratified by both chambers of Congress on Monday, December 29.

Sunday’s meeting marked the culmination of this year’s bicam deliberations, which were streamed for the first time in the wake of amplified calls for greater transparency in the budget process.

The public nature of the deliberations exposed the public to negotiations that were once held behind closed doors, including government agencies such as the Department of Transportation, Department of Public Works and Highways, and Department of Agriculture making last-minute appeals to increase their funding.

The bicameral conference committee approved a higher 2026 budget for social amelioration program Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations or AICS, which critics believe promotes patronage politics.

The bicam delegates also gave the Marcos administration P243 billion in unprogrammed appropriations, which are standby funds that have been derided for supposedly enabling discretionary spending in the executive and in Congress.

“This budget was painstakingly put together by the House of Representatives and the Senate, and we did everything to make it transparent and accountable,” House appropriations committee chair Mika Suansing said in Filipino on Sunday afternoon.

“This is the first time we are doing this, that the reconciled enrolled copy has already been printed and shown to our colleagues so they can see what we agreed on,” Senate finance committee chair Win Gatchalian added. “The reconciled version will be uploaded to our transparency portals after it is ratified tomorrow.”

Acting Executive Secretary Ralph Recto previously said that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will sign the 2026 budget in the first week of January, which means that the government will be operating on a reenacted budget when the Philippines welcomes the new year. – Rappler.com