DBM: Budget provisions unaffected by SC ruling implementable

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MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said provisions of the 2026 national budget not covered by the Supreme Court (SC) ruling on unprogrammed appropriations (UA) remain implementable.

In a statement yesterday, the DBM said it remains committed to implementing the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA) in accordance with the Constitution.

“Unaffected provisions remain implementable, subject to their respective legal bases, funding conditions and established budgetary procedures,” the agency said.

The court declared Special Provisions 1(a) and 1(b) of Chapter XLIII of the 2026 General Appropriations Act unconstitutional, calling them “overly broad, lacked prioritization standards and partly functioned as prohibited lump sum appropriations.”

After the ruling announcement, the DBM clarified that releases charged against the 2026 UA as of that date were limited to foreign-assisted projects, which are subject to a separate funding condition not invalidated by the Court.

The DBM said it would comply with the high court’s directives on UA without prejudice to the government’s right to seek reconsideration through appropriate judicial processes.

Meanwhile, the DBM is seeking to prevent the SC’s ruling on the 2025 national budget from disrupting government spending and further weakening economic growth, as officials clarify which outstanding funds may still be released.

Budget Secretary Kim Robert de Leon said the government has not considered a general suspension of fund releases under the 2025 budget, although it is prohibited from using the disputed P17.99-billion increase in the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)’s Special Road Fund.

“We are still clarifying and working with the Office of the Solicitor General on how to interpret the decision,” De Leon told reporters on the sidelines of the PHINMA Policy Forum over the weekend.

De Leon said the DBM was still studying whether the ruling’s effects on the 2025 budget extended to the entire spending law or were limited to the disputed increase in the Special Road Fund.

He said the distinction was crucial because there were still continuing appropriations, or funds authorized under previous budgets that remain available for eligible projects and expenses, as well as unreleased allocations and unpaid obligations from 2025.

These include funds already allotted to government agencies for ongoing projects and payments that have yet to be settled.

De Leon expressed hope that Congress would approve the proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027 on time despite renewed scrutiny of spending provisions following the high court’s ruling.

Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian, who attended the policy forum, said the upper chamber would coordinate with the DPWH to review infrastructure projects following extensive changes made to the proposed budget by the House of Representatives.

Meanwhile, the DBM has approved new 5,703 regular positions for frontline workers in the Department of Social Welfare and Development to institutionalize and expand the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program program’s workforce nationwide. — Keisha Ta-asan, Delon Porcalla