THE House Committee on Appropriations on Thursday terminated the briefing on next year’s P63.57-billion proposed budget of the Judiciary which covers the Supreme Court of the Philippines and the Lower Courts (SCPLC), Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), Court of Appeals (CA), Sandiganbayan (SB) and Court of Tax Appeals (CTA).
Committee chairman and AKO Bicol Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co said the judiciary department under the Constitution has the profound dispensability to settle actual controversies and exercise judicial power.
“It encompasses the critical duty involving legally demandable and enforceable rights and to determine whether there has been a grave abuse of discretion amounting to a lack or excess of jurisdiction by any branch or instrumentality of government,” he said.
He lauded the launch of the Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations (SPJI) 2022-2027 aimed at addressing the twin challenges of delay and case congestion issues that threaten to undermine the nation’s very foundation of justice.
“This comprehensive policy document lays out clear guiding principles, a definite work plan, and a portfolio of projects to achieve targeted outcomes. The primary goal is to ensure that the Philippine judiciary operates without losing its competence, efficiency and efficacy, thus improving the delivery of justice and creating a more responsive and expedient justice system,” Co said.
In addition, he said the Judiciary has made significant strides in addressing issues of vacancies with the processing of application for newly-created and existing vacant courts now moving forward faster,
Co added that the Judiciary has collaborated proactively with local government units to construct halls of justice nationwide, thus ensuring better access to justice and creating more conducive environments for court operations.
Court Administrator Raul Villanueva said that under the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA), the Judiciary has been allotted a budget of P60.176 billion. For 2025, the Judiciary proposed an original budget of P84.39 billion, but only P63.57 billion was approved by the Department of Budget and Management.
Of this amount, Villanueva said P54.78 billion would be allotted for SCPLC; P171.71 million for PET; P5.2 billion for CA; P2.37-billion for the Sandiganbayan; and P1.019-billion for CTA.
He also said that Judiciary’s share to the 2025 proposed national budget of P6.352-trillion is 1.002 percent.
Among the salient features of the 2025 National Expenditure Program for the Judiciary are: 1) P6.493 billion for judicial reform initiatives of the SC, such as P625 million for the e-Court System, 2.01 version; P50 million for Upgrade Information Sharing in the Justice System; P5.438 billion for SPJI under the SC; and P379-million for other information and communications technology requirements to use technology as an enabler for swift and efficient dispensation of justice; 2) P333.665 million for Justice Sector Coordinating Council; 3) P956.6 million for the 2025 bar examinations (regular and Shari-ah); 4) P100 million for Unified Legal Aid Service (ULAS).
General Santos City Rep. Loreto Acharon and AKO Bicol Party-list Rep. Raul Angelo “Jil” Bongalon, both vice chairpersons of the appropriations committee, are the Judiciary budget sponsors.
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