House okays 2001 budget of P715 B

Voting 131-23, the House of Representatives approved last night a P715-billion national budget for 2001, cut by P10 billion from the original proposed figure.

But according to opposition congressmen, who are seeking as much as P100 billion in cuts, the outlay is still bloated and unrealistic. Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella told reporters that the budget will now be sent to the Senate.

He said in case senators, who are preoccupied with President Estrada’s impeachment trial, are unable to approve the appropriations bill before yearend, this year’s P629-billion outlay is deemed automatically re-enacted.

Rep. Gilberto Duavit (LAMP, Rizal), chairman of the committee on appropriations, said the P715 billion 2001 budget includes provisions for a five percent salary adjustment for the more than one million government personnel.

He said the adjustment will be effective Jan. 1 next year.

He added that local government units and government corporations may also grant a similar pay adjustment to their personnel, but that they have to charge the increase to their own funds.

Duavit said the budget also provides for an additional P500 monthly allowance for state workers.

For war veterans, some P11.9 billion is appropriated. The money will answer for the P500 increase in monthly pension, bringing it to P4,500. The adjustment will be effective Jan. 1.

The Duavit panel endorsed the proposed P725-billion 2001 budget after agreeing with the proposal of the minority that it be cut by at least P10 billion. Opposition congressmen led by Minority Leader Feliciano Belmonte Jr. (Lakas, Quezon City) had sought a bigger reduction.

The internal revenue allotment (share from national taxes) of local government units will amount to P132 billion, while the debt service fund will total P145 billion.

Duavit said consistent with the constitutional mandate and in terms of sectoral allocation, the education sector will get the biggest slice of P112 billion.

Opposition congressmen would still seek a bigger reduction when the outlay is taken up in the bicameral conference committee.

Rep. Ralph Recto of Batangas, former chairman of the economic affairs committee, and Rep. Florencio Abad, a former senior vice chairman of the appropriations committee, are jointly studying how much reduction the minority would propose when the House and the Senate holds a budget conference.

The congressmen, who used to belong to the ruling coalition, have allied themselves with the minority after calling for Mr. Estrada’s resignation and supporting the impeachment case against him.

Recto wants a budget cut of at least P100 billion, since by his own estimate, the budget deficit next year will reach P209 billion given the 85 percent historical collection performance of the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs.

He said if next year’s outlay is reduced by P100 billion, from P725 billion to P625 billion, the deficit would still be P109 billion.

"We should go back to the basic principle that we should live within our means," he said.

He stressed that a bigger budget gap, which would be bridged through local and foreign borrowings, will hurt every Filipino, from businessman to ordinary consumer.

The deficit this year was originally projected at P40 billion before it was adjusted to P62.5 billion. As of October, it already shot up to more about P85 billion and is expected to break the P100-billion mark by yearend.