QUEZON CITY — Following weeks of intense legislative scrutiny, the House of Representatives has officially approved the largest national budget in the country’s history.
Lawmakers approved House Bill No. 10858, which outlines the ₱7.2-trillion General Appropriations Bill (GAB) for 2027, on third and final reading during Monday’s plenary session on October 12. The measure secured 281 affirmative votes, while 13 members voted against it and one abstained, concluding a rigorous 56-day process of committee hearings and plenary debates.
Misamis Oriental 2nd District Representative Yevgeny Vicente Emano, presiding over the session, officially declared the passage of the landmark fiscal measure.
Although the final vote surpassed House Committee on Appropriations Chairperson Mika Suansing’s earlier target of October 9, officials noted the slight delay will not disrupt the legislative timeline as the bill heads next to the Senate.
The budget deliberations moved forward despite overlapping legislative distractions, including the House’s participation in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial and intense public scrutiny over a corruption scandal tied to flood control projects.
The budget cycle commenced on August 17 with per-agency hearings led by the Suansing panel, followed by plenary debates from September 15 to September 25.
Notably, the chamber utilized its second-ever livestreamed Budget Amendments Review Subcommittee (BARSc) hearing on October 1—headed by Suansing—to transparently review and adopt institutional amendments, replacing the traditional closed-door “small committee” format.