THE House Committee on Appropriations yesterday approved Malacañang’s proposed P6.7-trillion national budget for 2026 after realigning to different departments and agencies the P255 billion that was taken out from the proposed appropriation of the graft-ridden Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
The panel voted 54-6 with six abstentions in favor of House Bill No. 4058 or the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) for 2026, which includes amendments introduced by the Budget Amendments Review subcommittee on Monday night.
Nueva Ecija Rep. Mikaela Suansing, panel chair, sponsored the committee report on the budget in the plenary session, saying the House of Representatives has responded to the public’s clamor for a transparent budgeting process in light of the flood control fund scandal and the questionable insertions made by the House’s “small committee” in this year’s national budget.
Among the huge realignments made in the committee version of the GAB was a P60-billion subsidy to Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) as well as fund increases for social services.
The realignments came from the P255 billion cut in the proposed budget of the DPWH, P252 billion of which came from locally funded flood control programs for 2026. Also part of the amendment was P46.86 billion taken out from the DPWH’s proposed budget, of which P32.6 billion was realigned to the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and P14.82 billion to the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Worker (TUPAD) program of the Department of Labor and Employment.
Lawmakers also added P3 billion to the DSWD’s sustainable livelihood program and P26.5 billion to the Department of Education’s budget, including P22.5 billion for the construction of new classrooms and P1.88 billion for school feeding programs.
The Department of Health’s budget was increased by P29.28 billion, of which P26.73 billion was earmarked for medical assistance program for poor patients and P2.4 billion for the construction of government hospitals.
