The Philippines’ first-ever livestreamed proceedings of the bicameral conference committee on the proposed 2026 national budget commenced on December 13, 2025, with an immediate and intense confrontation over budget documents and key agency allocations.
The bicameral panel faced its first challenge when Senator Imee Marcos flagged the initial reconciliation document circulated among members for conspicuously omitting the budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
Senate Finance Committee Chair Sherwin Gatchalian quickly addressed the concern, explaining that the DPWH budget was scheduled for discussion on Sunday and assuring colleagues that the document would be provided before the session.
Marcos further questioned the Department of Education (DepEd) budget, calling it “too high” relative to the low number of classrooms the agency had successfully built.
Gatchalian explained the historical lag, noting that DPWH had previously been exclusively tasked with classroom construction.
He confirmed that the 2026 budget would change this structure, authorizing DepEd to partner directly with local government units (LGUs) to expedite construction.
In addition to education and infrastructure, Senators Loren Legarda and Bong Go emphasized the need to bolster the health sector, insisting on securing more funds for the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
Legarda specifically called for the agency to receive its mandated allocations from “sin tax” revenues.
In his opening remarks, Senator Gatchalian contextualized the budget deliberation, stating that the nation finds itself in “extraordinary times” following the “corruption revealed in the flood control scandal.”
He stressed the imperative to repair public trust, acknowledging the Filipino people as the ultimate stakeholders of every government peso.
His House counterpart, Appropriations Chair Mikaela Suansing, provided details on how the chambers addressed the corruption issue.
She confirmed that P255 billion removed from the “corrupted flood control projects” under the DPWH had been reallocated to three key sectors identified by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.: education, health, and agriculture. Of this amount, P201.1 billion—or 79 percent—was distributed, with P90.7 billion going to health, P56.6 billion to education, and P53.7 billion to agriculture.
Senator Erwin Tulfo urged his colleagues to remain focused on education and health, describing them as “twin foundations of long-term national development.”
Following the initial debates, lawmakers began the painstaking task of reconciling the House General Appropriations Bill and the Senate version line by line, starting with the education sector.
The panel successfully approved a budget of over P958 billion for the DepEd Office of the Secretary and its attached agencies before moving on to review the individual budgets of over 100 state universities and colleges.
The bicameral panel is expected to conclude its work on Sunday, aiming for the ultimate version of the budget to be ratified on December 22, ahead of the President’s scheduled signing on December 29.