Revenue Expansion and Spending Control

Last week, the Bureau of the Treasury released the Cash Operations Report (COR) for July 2025.

- Bienvenido S. Oplas Jr.

Here, I compare the total for January–July 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively. All units in billion pesos:

Total revenues: 2,271.9, 2,606.9 and 2,732.5, or an increase of only 125.6 in 2025. The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has collected 1,492.3, 1,681.8 and 1,889.4, or an increase of 207.6 in 2025.

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) underperformed with collections of 506.5, 535.9 and 544.0, or an increase of only 8.1. Big underperformance in January–June 2025, but last July, BOC collected 85.2 versus an average of only 76/month in April–June. So new BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno has delivered in his first month in office. Congratulations Commissioner Nepomuceno, keep it going.

The non-tax revenues suffered a big decline: 255.3, 368.7 and 277.0, or a decline of 91.7 this year. This is because "other non-tax" like remittances by government corporations have significantly expanded in 2024 and not able to sustain it this year: 63.0, 143.6 and 73.7, a decline of 69.9.

Expenditures have increased faster: 2,871.4, 3,249.7 and 3,516.9, or an increase of 267.2 this year. The expansion came mainly from national government disbursements: 1,859.0, 2,100.0 and 2,229.5, or an increase of 130.0 this year. The allotment to local government units have increased too: 538.2, 590.4 and 670.0, or an increase this year of 79.3.