PB OKs ₱11.9B annual budget

Board Member Celestino "Tining" Martinez III, chair of the Committee on Budget and Appropriations, said the timing of the third and final reading will depend on the availability of board members after the holidays.

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"I will leave it up to the body," Martinez said, noting that members will be formally notified once the Vice Governor's Office sets the schedule.

During a meeting held after the regular session, January 5 was set as a tentative target date.

Martinez also pointed out that under the Provincial Board's House Rules, the annual budget cannot be certified as urgent and must undergo the full legislative process.

He said the proposed budget has been transmitted back to the Provincial Budget Office to incorporate the changes and amendments agreed upon during the second-reading deliberations.

"After that, it will be sent back to us for third and final reading," Martinez said, adding that the board wants to avoid calling a session without a sufficient number of members present.

He stressed that holding the final reading next year would not delay government services, explaining that second reading is the most critical stage in the passage of any ordinance.

"Second reading is where all the amendments, changes, and proposals come in," Martinez said.

He added that the worst-case scenario would have been a deferment due to unresolved major revisions, but this was avoided after discussions between the executive branch and a majority of the board led to consensus on key provisions.

₱178M REAPPROPRIATED

One of the major points of deliberation involved a ₱178-million adjustment recommended by the committee, which Martinez clarified was not simply cut but reappropriated.