Senators puzzled: Most of DOTr's budget went to 'unprogrammed funds'

MANILA, Philippines — Senators were surprised to find that a significant portion of the Department of Transportation’s (DOTR) proposed budget for 2024 was reallocated to so-called unprogrammed funds.  

In the executive branch's 2024 National Expenditure Program, the DOTr was allotted P213.7 billion. However, in the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) passed by Congress, the DOTr was only allotted P41.2 billion, a mere 19% of the proposed amount.

"It’s that low? Are you sure?" Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel asked.

“Majority of our appropriations was put in the unprogrammed appropriations,” DOTR Assistant Secretary Jesus Gonzales responded, referring to 81% of the proposed budget which was not directly granted to the department.

Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista that the "funds given to us were not enough."

Pimentel asked for how much of the 2024 unprogrammed funds were allocated for DOTR’s project, but Batan said that the unprogrammed funds acted as a lump sum for the entire government. 

Asked by Pimentel if Congress was able to help the DOTR, Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista said “they helped partially.” 

Several big-ticket transportation projects were transferred to the "Support to foreign-assisted program" category under unprogrammed funds. These include:

Senator JV Ejercito was taken aback. “The flagship programs, the priority programs, were relegated to unprogrammed. That is where I am puzzled. Why is this so?” he asked.

A controversial insertion. The issue extends beyond the DOTr's budget. Congress, possessing the power of the purse, controversially added P449.5-billion in unprogrammed funds for the executive branch in the 2024 GAA—far exceeding the initially proposed P281.9 billion.

This brings the total unprogrammed funds for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s executive branch to P731 billion for 2024. This was a 160% increase from the P281.91 billion of unprogrammed funding in 2023.

Closed doors. Senators have also raised concerns about the secrecy surrounding budget deliberations. The bicameral conference, which finalized the 2024 GAA based on the National Expenditure Program, largely took place behind closed doors, following tradition.