Philippine Daily Inquirer

Budget gap widens, exceeds ceiling

2018 expenditur­es hit P3.41 trillion, higher than programmed

- By Ben O. de Vera @bendeveraI­NQ

The government breached its budget deficit ceiling in 2018 as it spent beyond the amount programmed for public goods and services.

Data obtained by reporters yesterday showed that the budget deficit last year widened to P558.3 billion, bigger than the P526.8billion adjusted program set by the Cabinet- level, interagenc­y Developmen­t Budget Coordinati­on Committee ( DBCC) in October last year.

The programmed budget deficit cap for 2018 was equivalent to 3 percent of gross domestic product ( GDP).

Last year’s budget deficit was also larger than the P350.6 billion posted in 2017.

Data showed that expenditur­es reached P3.41 trillion, exceeding the P3.35 trillion that the government was supposed to spend last year.

Meanwhile, the tax and nontax revenues collected by the government in 2018 totaled P2.85 trillion, surpassing the P2.82- trillion program.

To recall, the DBCC down-

graded the revenue target for 2018 from P2.85 trillion as the government was unable to implement the fuel marking and the e- receipts programs last year.

The disburseme­nt program was also reduced from P3.37 trillion previously.

The earlier budget deficit program for 2018 was P523.7 billion.

For 2019, the government had programmed a wider budget deficit equivalent to 3.2 percent of GDP or P624.4 billion “in order to fund key priorities of the government, particular­ly infrastruc­ture

and investment­s in human capital developmen­t,” the DBCC had said.

The budget deficit cap will be brought back to 3 percent of GDP from 2020 to 2022.

“The expansiona­ry fiscal policy of the Duterte administra­tion is anchored on the need to invest heavily in public infrastruc­ture and human capital developmen­t. This will unleash the potential of the Philippine economy and put it on a path of sustained growth,” Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said last month.

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