Screen grabbed from bicameral conference, Dec. 16, 2025- Senate of the Philippines/ YouTube
Lawmakers from both chambers of Congress are aiming to conclude the bicameral conference committee deliberations on the proposed 2026 national budget on Wednesday.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said only 11 agencies remain to be tackled by the conferees.
“Our target is to finish tomorrow. Hopefully, because the next step in the bicam is putting the budget together, and that’s the tough part — physically and computation-wise,” Gatchalian said in an ambush interview early Wednesday.
“That’s why Rep. Mika (Suansing) and I were discussing the schedule earlier, because we want to transmit this to Malacañang with enough time before the New Year, since there is a New Year cut-off,” he added.
While saying there is still enough time to deliberate on the budget, Gatchalian noted that some lawmakers are expected to go on holiday vacations, which could complicate ratification.
“So, what we need to verify is whether we have a quorum when we ratify,” he said.
House appropriations chairperson Rep. Mika Suansing likewise said they are confident of finishing the bicam on December 17.
“Based on our latest count with Sen. Win, we still have 11 to go. But we’re very, very positive that we’ll be able to finish the bicam tomorrow,” Suansing said.
“We will do our best… Even during the holidays, even on Christmas,” she added.
Earlier, Gatchalian said the proposed P6.793-trillion national budget for 2026 could be transmitted to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for signing by Dec. 29, 2025.