n Wednesday, December d 2019vor.rs ruo.

ss

Congress leaders: '20

budgetbill OK nextwk By rovEE MARrE N. DELACRuZ J @jol,eemarie
! -
& BUTCH FERNANDEZ9 @butch|BM

ONGRESS leaders have moved to avert

the prospect ofthe government operating
P9.58
under a rgenacted 2019 budget by January of Replesentatives to various
should lawmakers miss a deadline Io ratifv and government agencies, covering
submit to Malacaflans for sisnins into law the the sectors of infrastructure,
final reconciled versio"n ofth"e P4ll-trillion 2020 agdculture, education and health
for the Christmas (are ' l

congresses. They are competent

"I do not expect hitches," Senate
PresidentVicente Sotto III told the
BusINEssMrRRoR, adding he ex-
pects the annual money measure
to be "ratified by next week."
This, as Senate MinorityLeader
Franklin Drilon disclosed Tuesday
l{S*b*d*!i irirnn*r,*4rfr5nmr4i
that the Senate-House ionference conference committeel authorized
committee is on trackto meet their Sen. [Juan Edgardo] Angara and
deadline,.forminga'tmall commit- Cong. [sidro] Ungab to constitute
tee" to identify conflicting provi- a small committee to go over the
sions in the two chambers'versions confl icting versions," said Drilon.
that are likely to delay the process. "Ihave workedwith SenatorAngara
"The bicam [two-chamber and Congressman Ungab in the past
and reasonable legislators, and I
am confident they can finish their
task before we adjourn on Decem-
ber 20," he added.
Angara, however, declined
whenaskedto predictif thebicam-
eral panel can meet the yearend
deadline.
SBB "BuDc!T," A2

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Budget. . .
coNTrNuED FRoMAI
Lo BusiNESsMtRRoR'
ln a text message
ilt s hard t o say ahead of
Angara admitted:
trlnng to pass it befove
t i-"e. We are really
krr o iri ngwhar
't" ", ^.o".".ionalbrea}<,
ir,r" zoig budgei \fhareverdif
".""iiirl
i"r"n."" .ry ,.it" borl- oanels realize the
p":'age of the budget "
,,""d to,
".i^.5
Ungab, rhe House Commitree on AP
.'.-i,ion, chai:man. said members of
ih"'Hou." and Sena:e Bicameral Confer-
Com*ir,.",'ii1 be working this week
"rrc" dis-
despite the ircemenIweather to settle
.r"oaacie= irt the two chambers'different
jncluding thejr
u"r'rion, ot rh. buagetbill.
instituiiona l amendments realignments'
or
"The House APProPriations Secre-
tarja-, iust fin;shei studylng lM'ondayl
ii" i'our.. in the Senare s GAB [general
,ooroloriatiott. bllll a' approved on final
f presented these findings to the
'ljai"n.
House'Bicameral Conference Com mittee
Panel and will proceed to discuss the
de-
rails irh mv sen ate co Lrn lerParr' S en ator
w
Ansara. Both chairmen will still have to
eo ihrouqh the details and we stillhave
igree on"the conrentious figures,' Ungab
exolained.
"Nevertheless, both panels agree on
rhe need to pass and approve the nat ional
budget before the Christmas break [on
December 18]," he said'
Meanwhile, a source from the House
said the bicamelal conference committee
is eveins to finish and approve the budger
.hil weJk for the two chambers'rafifica-
tion on MondaY nexr week
Congress is eyeing to sub'nit lhe 2020.
nationiJ budget to Presidenl Duterte on
December 20.
Earlier, House Committee onWays and'
Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda said
the senatots have realigned P135 billion
under the 2020 budget
He said the P135 billion has been re-
aligned to the unprogrammed projects of
the sovernment.
T"he D"P.rt-".,1 of Budger and Man-
tt 4E\sfilE
("2-)
agment said the national budget provides
for standby appropridtion under unPro-
qrammed funds that wiU supposedly give
ihe sovernment some allowance to under-
takJoroactive measures in urgent sjtua-
tioos. How"v"r, this was not detailed in
gram
the Paiace's NationalExpenditure Pro
h ap - (NEP).
Realionments for 4 sectors
iN th-e House of Representatives P9 5
billion in funds were realigned to various
governmenr agencies covering the sectors
if ir'rtr"r,ru.tut" agricuJlure, edLrcation
and health care.
At least P3.5 billion was allocated
throueh the Department of Agricu[ture
(DA) i enable it to buv more palay from
lermers amid the piummeting farm-gate
ori.a, irr a"rt"in p,rrs ofthe (ountrv and
io set uo a quick-resPonse fund
The instiiutional amendments also in-
cluded P800 million to the Department
of Education (DepEd) for the operation
oi ,.t oott fto* finder to Grade 12' and
establishment of model day-care centers
nationwide.
I ih"phitippitt" ceneralHospital(PGH)
'
to also eor P50 b mill ion as Part ofthe realign
Board
-"r,is. while the Dangerous Drugs main-
(DDB) received P250 mjllion forthe
i"nal,c" and other operating exPenses of
community-based rehabi litarion centers'
The other beneficiaries of the amend'
- me9ts were: the Department of Health
(DOLI) ro auqment funds for the Nation-
(NCMH) in
al Cenl er fo; Mental Health
the amount of P100 million and another
P100 million for a quick-response fund;
the Phllippine National Police (PN?) and
(AFP)
theArmeiForces of the Philippine!
which received P1 billion each to set up
developmentf ultd s;
theirrespective camp
and Departme4t of Environment and Nat-
ural Resources (DENR), P500 million for
its National Resource Conservation aod
Development-Protected Areas and D evel-
op*"rri M"tt.g"-ent Program (NRCD-
PADMP).
The DePartment of TransPortation
(DOTr). P274.95 million for rhe operat-
ine expenses of the Davao Internat ion al
jfication
a;7poit toet); National Electt
AjtrLNa arl minisrration (NtA), P500 mlllion Ior
its sitio electrificationprogram; Metro-
nolitan Man ila Development Autbority
if,rfft4Oe)' P500 million for the
special
.l1ow"n."s ofttaffic enforcers and fleld
oersonnel, and salary increases of 4'000
inb ord". p"rso,t,'"1; and the Philippine
'sports Commission (PSC), P500 mjllion'
ii, ih" or"o",ttion and training of ath-
i"t", fo, ztizo oly*pic Games and 10th
Asean Para Games'