MANILA – The Senate on Tuesday approved on final reading the proposed 2024 national budget amounting to P5.768 trillion.
The Senate version of the proposed General Appropriations Act of 2024 got 21 affirmative votes.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel 3rd abstained from voting due to his objection to the certification of the GAB as urgent.
Senate President Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri said the bill was certified by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as “urgent,” citing the necessity to maintain continuous government operations after the end of the fiscal year.
The proposed budget is 9.5 percent higher than the P5.268 trillion spending plan in 2023.
During the budget deliberations, several agencies either waived or asked the Senate to reduce their confidential and intelligence funds, including the Office of the Vice President, the Department of Education and the Office of the Ombudsman.
After the Senate’s approval of the GAB, a bicameral conference will convene to reconcile the disagreeing provisions of the budget measures passed by the House of Representatives and Senate.
Once reconciled, the final version of the GAB will be ratified separately by the House of Representatives and the Senate, then it will be sent to Malacañang for the President’s review and approval.
The Senate contingent in the Bicameral Conference Committee will be led by Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara.
