Bloody debate on 2020 budget seen
Fierce conflict anticipated over 1100-B appropriation deemed by Lacson as ‘pork’
Abloody bicameral conference meeting between the Senate and the House of Representatives is expected over a reported special 1100-billion appropriation in the proposed 2020 national budget which Senator Panfilo Lacson considered as pork barrel.
This fierce conflict was anticipated as the Senate began on Tuesday plenary debate on the budgets of various government departments, agencies, and offices contained in the proposed 14.1-trillion General Appropriations Bill (GAB or national budget) for 2020.
Lacson commended Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, for following the timelines for his eight sub-committees in conducting their public hearings so that both houses of Congress would be able to present to President Duterte an enrolled national budget bill for approval or veto soon.
The floor debate on the GAB is expected to end on November 20.
Lacson had hinted that disagreements between the two legislative chambers on the proposed 2020 national budget before
the year ends might force the Duterte administration to use a re-enacted budget.
At issue is the report that the House of Representatives would submit during the bicameral conference committee a special P100billion appropriation which spells “pork” to Lacson, an known antipork advocate.
These are reportedly projects submitted by congressmen to the House leadership months after their victory in the May, 2019 midterm elections and months after Malacañang had finished its National Expenditure Program (NEP). The newly elected House members took office on Ju1y 1.
But Lacson had earlier pointed out that a constitutional provision prohibits the inclusion of new appropriations after the House of Representatives had already approved its GAB on third and final reading.
In the first three months of 2019, the Duterte administration was forced to operate under a reenacted budget as both chambers fought over the insistence of the Lower House to include a P90billion pork barrel after it had approved its budget version on third and final reading.
Based on the rigid position of senators, led by Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III, the President sided with the senators and vetoed the 190-billion House pork barrel. This ended the three-month impasse.
But the economy, as reflected by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), suffered under the re-enacted budget.
Lacson pointed out that the economy would improve if the national government would be able to plug a P161.5-billion revenue leakage from China, United States, Hong Kong and Korea, among others.
“Are there efforts to plug the leakages? Baka di natin kailangan additional sin taxes kung ma-plug ang leakages (We may not need to collect additional taxes from “sin” products such as cigarettes and liquor),” he said. Assuming that the 1161.2-billion revenue loss could be plugged, the government’s 3.2 percent budget deficit would be reduced to 1.7 percent of GDP, he added.
Extended budget validity
Meanwhile, Angara has filed a measure seeking to extend the validity of the 2019 General Appropriations Act (GAA) to 2020, considering the late passage of this year’s appropriations and the ban on infrastructure projects due to the mid-term elections.
In filing Senate Bill No. 1153, Angara said it is necessary to extend the appropriations this year as the late implementation of infrastructure projects and social services resulted in the delay of the implementation of infrastructure projects and basic social services.
“There are appropriations that have not been released and allotment issued that have not been obligated which shall automatically lapse, depriving the people and the country of the much-needed MOOE and CO to fund priority projects, financial assistance program, aid, relief activities as well as for the maintenance, construction/repair, and rehabilitation of schools, hospitals, roads, bridges, and other essential facilities of the national government,” Angara said in the explanatory note of the bill.
Angara is referring to the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) and Capital Outlays (CO).
He noted that the President, under Section 5 of Executive Order No. 91, mandated the implementation of an operational cash budget for fiscal year 2019, which requires all appropriations be obligated by December 31, 2019, but allows the implementation of and payment for MOOE, as well as other CO, and infrastructure projects to extend until June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2020.
“It is, therefore, necessary that Section 65 of the General Provisions of RA No. 11260 should be amended such that the validity of the MOOE and CO appropriations be extended for another fiscal year for the benefit of the people and for the welfare of the nation,” Angara said. (With a report from Hannah L. Torregoza)