PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Monday, September 26, 2022, certified as urgent the passage of the P5.268-trillion proposed national budget for 2023 under the National Expenditure Program (NEP) of the General Appropriations Bill (GAB).
In his letter to House Speaker Martin Romualdez, Marcos called for the immediate enactment of House Bill 4488 “in order to address the need to maintain continuous government operations following the end of current fiscal year, strengthen efforts to respond more effectively to the Covid-19 pandemic and support initiatives towards national economic recovery.”
The House of Representatives is now allowed to approve the bill on second and third reading on the same day.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) turned over the NEP for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 to the House of the Representatives in August.
Romualdez earlier said they aim to finish the deliberation and approve the 2023 budget on or before October 1, before their first recess. (SunStar Philippines)