DBM releases 81% of P6.3 trillion budget

MANILA, Philippines — The government has released P5.1 trillion or roughly 81 percent of the record P6.326 trillion allocation this year as state agencies move to implement their respective projects.

Latest data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed that it has issued a total of P5.11 trillion of the 2025 budget as of end-March, representing 80.7 percent of the total allocation for the year.

However, this is lower than the 83.2 percent in budget releases in the same period last year.

Data showed that the DBM released P3.68 trillion under the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA). This is 87.2 percent of the total P4.22 trillion financing.

Under the 2025 GAA, the DBM said it has distributed 93 percent or P3.43 trillion of the P3.69 trillion for departments.

In terms of special purpose funds, releases are now at 46.6 percent or P246.76 billion was handed out from the P529.6 billion allocation.

On the other hand, automatic appropriations are at 65.8 percent or P1.39 trillion of the P2.11 trillion aggregate funding.

Broken down, the government finally released in March the allocation for interest payments at P152.88 billion or 18 percent of the total P848 billion.

It also increased the releases for the tax expenditure fund, which is now at P11.52 billion or 79.5 percent of the P14.5 billion allocation.

For three months now, DBM has yet to release any amount from the P28.7 billion for net lending.

During the quarter, the agency already released the entire P1.03 trillion for the national tax allotment, the full P83.42 billion for the block grant, the complete P480,000 allocation for pension of former presidents or their widows, as well as the whole P27.35 billion in the special account in the general fund.

The DBM also freed up the entire P68.55 billion in retirement and life insurance premiums of state workers as early as January and added some P7.04 billion in extra funds last month.

Further, the DBM recorded P41.46 billion in other releases as of March, 61 percent or P25.2 billion of which went to other automatic appropriations.

There was also P7.51 billion released for unprogrammed appropriations.

Unprogrammed appropriations provide standby authority to incur additional agency obligations for priority programs or projects when revenue collection exceeds targets or when additional grants or foreign funds are generated.

The bulk of the unprogrammed appropriations worth P6.27 billion was earmarked to the National Food Authority as a form of budgetary support.

The remaining P1.1 billion was allocated to support the foreign-assisted projects of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Department of Health and Department of Transportation.