“It is deeply concerning that despite the clear and urgent need, programs directly focused on education continue to receive insufficient funding.”
The lower chamber passed House Bill No. 10858, a P7.2-trillion spending bill detailing next year’s state operations, government salaries, infrastructure, and social services, on second reading via a voice vote. While the measure clears a major hurdle, its passage coincides with intense scrutiny over how lawmakers chose to reallocate roughly P116 billion from the executive branch’s initial National Expenditure Program.
Civil society monitors have voiced strong reservations about these legislative realignments. The People’s Budget Coalition stated that roughly 85 percent—or P99.41 billion—of the reallocated funds went toward items flagged as red flags, arguing that the bulk of the money was channeled into programs dependent on politician referrals and opaque infrastructure insertions.
Where the Education Cluster Fell Short
While the broader education cluster secured an additional P8.12 billion through floor amendments, lawmakers left several high-impact programs entirely unfunded or drastically below proposed thresholds. Diokno pointed out that the Last Mile Schools Program, which provides facilities and other resources to schools in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas, received zero allocation yet again.
Other vital initiatives received incremental boosts that barely touched their requested figures. The Department of Education’s Special Needs Education Program gained an extra P75 million against a proposed P541.57 million increase. The Madrasah Education Program secured P50 million compared to a proposed P242.67 million rise, while the Indigenous Peoples Education Program received P25 million against a requested P78.27 million bump. Meanwhile, the Commission on Higher Education’s Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education initiative was granted P2.10 billion instead of the P14.11 billion hike that had been proposed.
Diokno connected these persistent budgetary shortfalls directly to the country’s ongoing learning crisis, arguing that freezing or underfunding these specific frameworks deepens existing societal inequalities.
Realignments Favor Infrastructure and Social Safety Nets
While education advocates push back against flatlined allocations, the House realignments heavily favored infrastructure build-ups and emergency social programs. The Department of Public Works and Highways captured an extra P11.49 billion for infrastructure projects. Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation secured an additional P2.35 billion to cover public transit service contracting and the Edsa busway project—initiatives that initially carried zero funding in the executive draft.
Vulnerable populations saw substantial funding injections elsewhere in the budget. A total of P25 billion was funneled by lawmakers into the crisis assistance initiative of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, alongside P24.96 billion allocated toward the indigent patient relief scheme managed by the Department of Health. The agriculture sector also secured a P20.86 billion boost.
In a separate allocation, the Department of Justice’s National Coordination Center against Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children and Anti-Child Sexual Abuse or Exploitation Materials was allotted P10 million, falling short of its proposed P65.90 million increase.
House Extends Legislative Calendar for Spending Bill Approval
The second-reading approval on Wednesday means the House missed its self-imposed Friday deadline for final passage, constrained by a mandatory three-day cooling-off rule between legislative approvals. To prevent procedural delays, House leaders formally requested permission from the Senate to extend their legislative calendar to Monday. Third-reading approval for the entire P7.2-trillion spending bill is now officially expected on October 12.
