House Approves P7.2-Trillion Budget Bill on Second Reading

The House of Representatives approved House Bill 10858 on second reading on October 7, 2026, advancing a proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for fiscal year 2027 by voice vote, as reported by The Philippine Star. The spending plan includes nearly P200 billion in realignments across 123 budget line items, according to a technical assessment conducted by Adolfo Jose “AJ” Montesa, coconvener of the People’s Budget Coalition.

House Bill 10858 P7.2 Trillion Budget Realignments

The approved second reading version of the budget bill contained P198.9 billion in reshuffled funding, roughly P80 billion higher than the P116.32 billion publicly disclosed by the Budget Amendments Review Subcommittee (BARSc). Of that total, realignments directed funds toward health, social welfare, agriculture, infrastructure, and education to address rising living costs and agricultural vulnerability.

According to The Philippine Star, specific allocations in the House-approved measure include P8.12 billion for the education cluster, P20.86 billion for the agriculture sector, P11.49 billion for Department of Public Works and Highways infrastructure, and P2.35 billion for the Department of Transportation. Additional funding also covers P25 billion for the Department of Social Welfare and Development crisis assistance program and P24.96 billion for the Department of Health indigent patient relief program.

Budget Watchdog Allegations of Patronage Politics

The People’s Budget Coalition warned that the budget measure is shifting toward a politics-centered spending plan, as reported by newsinfo.inquirer.net. Montesa stated that the approved version substantially deviated from what was livestreamed by the BARSc, contradicting commitments to transparency reforms.

The watchdog’s assessment identified nearly P70 billion directed toward projects susceptible to patronage politics, including P24.8 billion added to the Department of Social Welfare and Development cash assistance program for individuals in crisis, P24 billion to the Department of Health financial assistance program for indigent patients, P10 billion for farmers and fisherfolk through the Department of Agriculture, and P4.7 billion to the Department of Labor and Employment jobs program. The House also cut P130 billion from foreign-assisted projects and slashed P10 billion from the Pension and Gratuity Fund, P7.8 billion from the calamity fund's local government reconstruction assistance, and P4.9 billion from Department of Health family health and immunization items.

Chel Diokno Notes Funding Gaps in Education Programs

Akbayan Party-list Rep. Chel Diokno noted that key education programs were left without funding or received increases below proposed levels in the House version of the budget, The Manila Times reported. Diokno pointed out that the Last Mile Schools Program received no allocation, while proposed increases for the School-Based Feeding Program, Learner Support Programs, and Support to Operations were not granted. Additional funding for special education programs, the Madrasah Education Program, the Indigenous Peoples Education Program, and the Commission on Higher Education’s Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education program fell short of proposed increases.

Analysts questioned the long-term economic impact of the realignments. Philippine Institute for Development Studies Senior Research Fellow John Paolo R. Rivera stated that while social assistance supports consumption, its lasting economic impact depends on strengthening productive capacity and service delivery. Analysts also emphasized that the quality of public spending hinges on understanding which programs lost funding to finance the additions.

Third Reading Approval Schedule

The House of Representatives scheduled the third and final reading approval of House Bill 10858 for October 12, 2026, after House leaders requested the Senate’s permission to extend their legislative calendar, The Philippine Star reported.