(Eagle News)– The House of Representatives on Monday (September 26) started plenary debates on House Bill 3408 or the 2017 General Appropriations Bill (GAB), which refers to the P3.35 trillion national budget for next year.
The deliberations started with a sponsorship speech of House committee on appropriations Chairman Davao City Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles and explained the General Principles an General Provisions of the 2017 GAB.
The period of amendments has been set for October 7.
From August 22 to September 14, the appropriations committee conducted at least 33 hearings on the budget proposals of the different departments and government offices.
The committee also held 15 pre-plenary conferences from September 14 to 22, and will conduct seven more pre-plenary conferences this week.
The proposed budget is 11.6 percent higher than the current year’s budget.
The top 10 agencies with the biggest budget allocations are: Department of Education (DepEd), P567.5 billion; Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), P458.6 billion; Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), P150 billion; Department of National Defense (DND), P134.5 billion; Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), P129.9 billion; Department of Health (DOH), P94 billion; State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), P58.8 billion; Department of Transportation (DOTr), P55.4 billion; Department of Agriculture (DA), P45.2 billion; and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), P41.7 billion.
