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Senate OKs revised budget
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Posted on Oct 19 2008
The Senate voted unanimously on Friday to pass a substitute bill to replace the budget previously passed by the House of Representatives.
Details of the Senate version of the bill were not available at press time, as the author, Sen. Maria Frica T. Pangelinan, declined to release a copy until last-minute changes made to the legislation have been included in the text.
The bill, now bound to the House of Representatives for approval, contains provisions designed to cut the government’s payroll, including unpaid legal holidays and the biweekly shutdown of government offices, also called “austerity Fridays.”
The Senate version also provides itemized appropriations for the Executive Branch, a major change from the approach taken by the House, which proposes to give the governor full authority over the $75 million budget for the departments and programs under his wing.
“The [Senate] Fiscal Affairs Committee believes that the FY 2009 appropriation must be made with care, attention to detail and, to the greatest extent possible, preserve provision of the basic services of safety, health, and education,” Pangelinan said.
“The House abdicated from its responsibility by giving the Governor a lump sum amount and allowing him to decide how he would use the money. So the House basically approved a budget for the Executive Branch not knowing how it would be spent. In other words, they do not know what they are approving,” she added.
The budget currently under deliberation is for the 2009 fiscal year, which covers the period from Oct. 1, 2008 to Sept. 30, 2009.
If the House approves the Senate-passed version, the bill will head to the governor for his signature and then become law. If the House rejects it, a joint committee of House and Senate members will be formed to draft a budget that is acceptable to both houses.
