House to prioritize okay of ‘25 budget

THE House of Representatives will focus on approving the proposed national budget for 2025 during the third and last regular session of the 19th Congress, Speaker Martin Romualdez said yesterday.

“Syempre naman ‘yung budget, kasi pagkatapos ng SONA (State of the Nation Address), isusumite na naman ‘yung budget sa 2025 (Of course, the budget is the most important [piece of legislation] because after the President’s SONA next month, the proposed budget for 2025 will be submitted to the House),” Romualdez said. “‘Yun ang pinakamabigat at pinakamalaking legislation (That’s the most crucial and the biggest piece of legislation).”

The Marcos administration is reportedly set to propose a record-high P6.2 trillion national budget for next year from this year’s P5.768 trillion outlay.

The 19th Congress opens its third and last session on July 22, the same day that President Marcos Jr. is set to deliver his third SONA.

The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) has said the 2025 national budget is equivalent to 21.4 percent of GDP and higher by 7.5 percent compared to the 2024 national budget.

National Economic and Development Authority chief Arsenio Balisacan has said the budget shall support the Marcos administration’s Build Better More Program “to stay on course and maintain infrastructure spending between five to six percent of GDP from 2024 to 2028.”

Balisacan has also announced that the DBCC had to revise its target economic growth for 2024 following the Philippines’ performance in 2023, when growth fell short of government expectations. The target economic growth is now 6 to 7 percent from 6.5 to 7.5 percent.

Romualdez said Congress will also continue to fund the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)’s financial aid under the agency’s workers’ assistance program, the Tulong Panghanapbuhay para sa ating Disadvantaged at Displaced Workers or TUPAD.

As for the proposed amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL), the House leader said the House and the Senate are close to agreeing on the proposals.

The suggested changes in the law seek to reinstate the palay-buying and rice-selling mandate of the National Food Authority (NFA) so the agency could