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ss Insight
Thursday, December 5, 2jtg

Salceda: Bicam panel to adoPt

Malacanang-propose d 2020 budget
BY WENDEIf, VIGIUA
THE disagreeing provtsions between
the House of Representatives and the
Senate vetsions of the proposed P4.l
uillion national budget have already
been ironed out in t-he bicameral con-
ference comrmrtee level. Albay Rep.
Joey Salceda said yesterday.
Salceda said there was an agreemeot
among membets of the bicameral
paoel to revert to Malacadang's original
proposal as contained,in the National
Expenditutq Program (liEP) to.avoid
conflicting provisions and approve the
budget bill by Monday, December 9.
''fharall,u, ,n ug.."menr to go back
to NEP and to consider amendments
or disagreeing provisions towards an
agreement by Monday," Salceda told
reportets. "By Monday we will be
signing All significant differences have
essentially been reconciled."
Davao City Rep. Isi&o Unga\ chair
of the House committee on appropria-
tions, on Tuesday held a one-on-one
meecing wirl Sen. Juan Edgardo An
gara, who chairs the Senate committee
on finance, to reconcile the diffetences
between rhe tuo versions of dre Cen-
etal Apptopriations Bill (GAB)
Ungab said he uants rhe budget rari-
6ed next week so there will be enough
time for pdnting before President
Duterte signs the measure.
He said his panel secrelariat iust hn-
ished scrutinizing the Senate-approved
version rhat was presented to his House
colleagues in a meeting last Mondal'
'Eoth chairmen will still have to go
See SALCEDA) PageB3

butwas In his website, Lacson said he

SALCEDA
lhrough the details and we still
have to agree on the contentious
figwes," said Ungab. "Neverthe-
less, both panels agree on the
need to pass and aPProve the na-
tional budset before the Christmas
DteaK.
"The House APProPriations
iust Gnished studlng
Secrerariat
fMondayl die figures in *re Sen
ate's GAB as approved on final
reading, I presented these findings
to dre House bicameral conference
gommittee panel and will Proceed
to discuss the details with mY
Senate qounterpart, Sen. Angara,"
ddded Ungab.
Salceda earlier said there were
discrepancies in dre allocations by
ihe House and the Senate fot the
' deDartmeots of health @OH),
'aa'ri
sportation @OTr;. and public
worki and highways PPWHI
The House of RePreseoatives
allocated P88.92 billion budget
for DOH, but the Senate gave the
depa.rtinent P1 00.49 billioo.
The DOTIwas allocated P146.04
billioo budget by the House
.rrrtu sil en the introduced amendments in the
Ftzo.:z bilion under
Seri#'approued uersion budgets of tht departments of
ln the'case of rhe DP\l(H, agriculrure. educauon, environ-
conslessmen allocited i529.?5 m]ent and naRrtal resources. healtlt,
billi"on while senators allocated informauon communication and
P536.58 billion. technology, interior, national de-
fense. science and technologY,
TRiNSPAX.ENCY ttansportation,theNationalEco-
nomic Development AuthoritY,
"In the spitit of transparency," state universities and colleges, and
\0fidnesday other executive of6ces.
Sen. Pan6lo Lacson on
made public the amendments tiat Senate President Vicente Sotto
he intoduced to tle budget bill III has eadier said Congress is eye-
Lacson said he proposed that irrg the ratiGcation of the proposed
additional funding be allocated national budget on Monday when
fot the tltee landmatk proiects of the Senate tesumes its sessions
the Duterte administration - the since "there vrill be very few points
national ID program, the univetsa.l of disagreements".
healdr program, and the fiee col- "Most probably (the ProPosed
lege education prognm. 2020 budget will be ratilted on
He also moved to decrease t}re Mondar. It is possible, dePende
proposed budgets for the DP!0H kung napirmahan ng lahat ng mga
and the DOTI after he found out memben ng bicam (it dePends if
that the two agencies have been the draft has been signed bY all
undet-spending t}te Past Years. members of the bicam) There
Lacson said the ProPosed de- are 23 members of the bicam in
ducted budget from the two agen- t-heHouse and15 members of the
cies will be realigned to "more Seoate bicam," Sotto said. - Wrli
worthwhile projects Raymond
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