Bicam raises AICS budget to P63.9B

Beyond the controversial health aid program anchored on politicians' guarantee letters, another financial assistance scheme also received a budget boost during the third bicameral conference hearing.

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The bicameral conference committee holds its first-ever livestreamed deliberations for the 2026 national budget on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025.

Five hours into the hearing, the panel approved a P63.895-billion budget for the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS), which is more than double the P27 billion originally sought by the executive branch.

AICS, a program under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), offers financial aid for medical, burial, food, transport, and education needs of indigent Filipinos in emergencies.

While the program is implemented by the DSWD, it has long been criticized as a stopgap or “band-aid” solution that lends itself to patronage politics, with public officials portrayed as the source of assistance. It has also been at the center of repeated allegations of misuse and possible “pork.”

House Appropriations Chair Mikaela Suansing proposed the additional funding after Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian requested an extra P43 billion from Congress, hoping to bring the total AICS budget to P70 billion.

“The department seeks additional funding to continue providing necessary financial support to around 7 million beneficiaries who would otherwise be left without assistance due to the non-inclusion of the AKAP (Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program) and the decreased allocation for AICS for 2026,” Suansing said, reading Gatchalian’s request.

The House, however, in its approved version of the 2026 General Appropriations Bill (GAB), was only able to accommodate a P32-billion increase due to the limited fiscal space, Suansing said. This raised the proposed AICS budget to P59.1 billion.