THE House of Representatives, under the leadership of Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III, concluded its first week of plenary deliberations on the proposed 2026 General Appropriations Bill, approving the budgets of the judiciary, three constitutional commissions, 10 departments, and several other agencies.
The House terminated deliberations on the proposed budgets of the Commission on Elections, Commission on Human Rights and the Office of the Ombudsman, among others, during its plenary hearings over the period Sept. 24 to 26.
The proposed 2026 budgets of the Departments of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev), Budget and Management (DBM), Finance (DOF), National Defense (DND), Justice (DOJ), Energy (DOE), Agrarian Reform (DAR), Tourism (DOT), National Security Council (NSC), Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) were also approved.
The House’s approval of the proposal to reallocate to education a portion of the budget for flood control projects highlighted the first week of plenary deliberations, which ran until dawn of Wednesday and Thursday.
A total of P12.3 billion will be allotted for the full implementation of Republic Act (RA) 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act.
Deliberations continued even at the height of Typhoon Opong and government work in areas affected by the weather disturbance was suspended.
Other agencies whose 2026 budget proposals were approved during the plenary sessions include the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), and Games and Amusement Board (GAB), among others.
Plenary deliberations of the 2026 budget shall resume on Monday, September 29. The House aims to finish deliberations on the General Appropriations Bill by October 10, 2025.
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