Senate approves 2026 budget bill on 3rd reading

THE SENATE approved the proposed P6.793-trillion national spending plan for 2026 on third reading late Tuesday, amid heightened scrutiny over the budget process following the cloud hanging over infrastructure spending and alleged budget "insertions.

- By Adrian H. Halili

In plenary session, 17 senators voted to pass the chamber's 2026 General Appropriations Bill, which re-channeled funding from public works to education, health, and emergency preparedness.

Next year's spending plan is 7.4% higher than this year's P6.352-trillion budget and equivalent to 22% of gross domestic product.

Economic managers ruled out economic growth hitting the government's 5.5%-6.5% full-year target, following a 4% reading in the third quarter.

"In our long discussions, we revisited two important goals. First, to strengthen government programs to meet the needs of our countrymen, and second to keep (the budget process) open and free from any form of corruption," Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian, who heads the Finance Committee, told the Plenary.

Senators approved the P53.99 billion reduction in the budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to P570.58 billion. The House version of the spending bill had called for DPWH funding of P624.48 billion.