The House committee on appropriations has approved the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) proposed budget of P151.34 billion for 2022, the bulk of which is allocated for the improvement of the railway sector.
In a statement, DOTr said its budget proposal advances to the plenary for deliberations.
Of its total proposed budget for next year, P150.763 billion needs to be included in the 2022 General Appropriations Act, while P579.8 million is already covered by existing appropriations previously authorized by Congress.
Giovanni Lopez, DOTr undersecretary for finance, said the agency’s proposed 2022 budget will be allocated for the following: personnel services, P16.75 billion; maintenance and other operating expenses, P16.86 billion; financial expenses, P7.88 million; and capital outlays, P117.13 billion.
Infrastructure projects get a share of 88 percent out of the total capital outlays budget, with the railway sector getting the biggest chunk of 98 percent or P101 billion of the total infrastructure budget for 2022.
The proposed budget for next year is 73 percent higher than the approved budget this year of P87.45 billion.
Meanwhile, the service contracting initiative emerged as a prominent topic during the deliberations, DOTr said.
