Big unprogrammed funds contained in 2025 budget

AT GROUND LEVEL

- Satur C. Ocampo

A record-high P6.149 trillion in unprogrammed funds have been inserted in the 2025 national budget approved by Congress’ bicameral conference committee this week.

This has instantly evoked suspicions among budget observers that the huge additional fund may be availed of by House members in their campaign for re-election in the mid-term polls in May.

This, in light of their having increased—by more than 100 percent—the House of Representatives’ budget, from P16.3 billion this year to P33.7 billion in 2025.

It’s not clear, from media reportage on the national budget, if that huge amount was different from the P531.665-billion in unprogrammed funds that the national government can use to address unexpected situations or prioritized important projects.

Under the National Expenditure Program (NEP), unprogrammed funds amounted to only P158.665 billion, but the House increased it by P373 billion.

The original program for the national budget was set at P5.767 trillion. This represented P4.009 trillion under the 2024 national budget and P1.757 trillion in automatic appropriations, continuing appropriations from 2023 and unprogrammed appropriations.

Apparently, P382.327 billion in additional unprogrammed appropriations have been inserted in the running budget.

In this regard, the contentious Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) has been restored by the bicameral conference committee.

Introduced as a “surprise insertion” by the House in the 2024 national budget, the AKAP provision was heavily criticized by several senators, because it was neither in the NEP nor in the Senate’s approved version of the 2024 annual budget.