House stands ground against proposed 2019 cash-based budget

August 13, 2018

The House of Representatives is standing firm against the proposed shift to cash-based budgeting system for 2019, according to House Committee on Appropriations chairman Karlo Alexei Nograles.

In a press briefing on Monday, Nograles said the new cash-based system has led to budget cuts in many critical agencies as the 2019 proposed budget fell P10 billion, from P3.767 trillion this year to P3.757 trillion next year.

As a result, the House committee announced it has temporarily suspended hearings as the House works with the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).

Nograles cited programs that stand to see severe budget cuts such as the Human Resource for Health Deployment Program under the Department of Health (DOH).

Under the proposed P3.757-trillion budget for 2019, the program will lose P8.4 billion in funding compared to 2018. The budget of the DOH's Health Facilities Enhancement Program will also fall by P30.3 billion, he said.

Funds to conduct national and local elections under the Commission on Elections will decrease by P6.3 billion.

The education sector will also experience drastic budget cuts under the proposed 2019 National Expenditure Program.

The Student Financial Assistance Program allocations under the Commission on Higher Education will fall by P3 billion, while the budget for basic educational facilities such as classroom buildings under the Department of Education will drop by P69.4 billion.

Nograles said the transition to a cash-based system is better taken year by year, and that 2019 may be “too much too soon.”

He also addressed concerns that the suspension of budget hearings would lead to a re-enacted budget.

“This will not happen. We are studying this closely... there is time to fix the proposed 2019 budget,” he said. DMS