House to scrap 'small committee' amid budget transparency reforms

MANILA, Philippines — The new head of the House appropriations panel has laid out reforms for the 2026 national budget, as Congress renews its push for a more transparent budget process.

Rep. Mikaela Suansing (Nueva Ecija, 1st District), the youngest and first woman to chair the appropriations committee, said the first big change will be the abolition of the so-called “small committee,” which has drawn criticism for possible discretionary insertions.

What the small committee is. In past Congresses, the small committee was formed after the House passed the General Appropriations Bill on third reading. 

The committee, composed of around four elected members, would finalize institutional amendments before the lower chamber joins in bicameral conference committee hearings to reconcile differences with the Senate.

The 2025 General Appropriations Act stands as one of the most controversial national budgets in Philippine history.

Constitutional challenges filed with the Supreme Court have cited multiple issues, including alleged pork barrel provisions, illegal removal of government subsidies for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., infrastructure allocations exceeding education funding, and other contentious budget line items.

These criticisms prompted both House and Senate leadership to call for increased transparency in the budget process, beginning with the 2026 national budget. Suansing's proposed reforms are just a few of the changes expected to be made. 

The subcommittee's role

In place of the abolished small committee, Suansing said a subcommittee within the budget panel will be established to streamline the review process for amendments proposed by government agencies and House members.

It will be composed of the following members:

• a senior vice chairperson or vice chairperson of the appropriations committee
• a member nominated by each political party and party-list coalition
• minority-nominated members

“So this ensures proper representation for all members and also ensures exhaustive deliberations as all the viewpoints are heard,” Suansing said at a press briefing on Monday, August 4. 

The subcommittee will run alongside the appropriations committee’s deliberations and "continually receive proposed amendments," she said. She also expects this to intensify debates, with deliberations scheduled weekly to biweekly.

Suansing said the subcommittee will begin reviewing budget amendments as soon as the House starts its appropriations committee deliberations with the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC), with hearings targeted for September 1.

“Ibig sabihin, makikita ng ating mga kababayan ano ‘yung mga pinapanukala ng mga amendments, ano ‘yung deliberation, at higit sa lahat, ano ‘yung mga aaprubahan at ipapasok sa ating panukalang budget,” she added.

(This means that our fellow citizens will be able to see what amendments are being proposed, what the deliberations are, and most importantly, which ones will be approved and included in the proposed budget.)

The people's budget review

The second budget process reform she proposed addresses the long-standing call to livestream bicameral conference committee proceedings and make their documents public.

“The bicam shouldn't be the curtain call of transparency, rather it should be its final act. So through this, through opening the bicam, the public will see how the final budget figures are decided on. Not just decided on, but heavily deliberated,” Suansing said. 

RELATED: Joint resolution filed to open bicam budget deliberations

For her third reform, civil society organizations would be given the opportunity to review and scrutinize the proposed national budget.

While awaiting formal deliberations, the appropriations committee will launch a public budget review process where citizens can question the National Expenditure Program (NEP) and suggest changes to the executive branch’s proposal.

“So ito po talaga ‘yung gusto nating gawin, na gawin itong people’s budget kung saan malakas po ang boses ng bawat Pilipino sa pagbuo ng budget,” Suansing said. 

(So this is really what we want to do, to make this a people’s budget where every Filipino has a strong voice in the budget-making process.)

Rather than being viewed as merely procedural, she argued that the budget process is political, moral, and constitutes a commitment to restore Filipinos' lost faith in the management of public funds.

Suansing expressed confidence that the House will pass the budget bill on schedule without rushing the process.

The House expects to receive the 2026 NEP, which is the proposed budget allocation of P6.73 trillion, by the second week of August. Only then will the official House and Senate deliberations begin.