Senate, SET and CA

The 2027 proposed expenditure program of the Senate of the Philippines, Senate Electoral Tribunal, and Commission on Appointments. At this juncture, the Chair recognizes the Committee Secretary to call in our resource persons.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon. For the briefing on the proposed FY 2027 budgets of the Senate, the Senate Electoral Tribunal, and the Commission on Appointments, we would like to acknowledge our resource persons. From the Senate of the Philippines, we have Secretary Renato Bantug, together with Attorney Arnel Jose Banuez, the Deputy Secretary for Administrative and Financial Services, and Director Rio Samanala, Director III of the Legislative Budget Service. For the Senate Electoral Tribunal or SET, we have Secretary Luis Jose Geronimo, together with Attorney Eleanor Francisco Anunciacion, the Deputy Secretary, and Director Eloisa Marquez, Director III of the Financial Management Service. From the Commission on Appointments or CA, we have Secretary Myra Marie Villarica, together with Deputy Secretary for Legal Affairs,

Attorney Alfredo Alvin S. Cruz, Deputy Secretary Lyndon Paul Das, Deputy Secretary for Administration Attorney Arturo Paras, Deputy Secretary for Investigation and Appointment Review, and Director Elsie Monticello, Director III of the Budget Service. We have also invited representatives from DBM and COA. From DBM we have Assistant Director Lulu Vispo, Ms. Mary Lou Lagarde, and Mr. John Paul Maria P. Faigal. From COA we have Ms. Cynthia Ferrer, Supervising Auditor. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you. Good afternoon, everyone. Today, as we discuss the 2027 budget of the Senate, the Senate Electoral Tribunal, and the Commission on Appointments, while these agencies represent a relatively small fraction of the overall 2027 National Expenditures Program, the work that happens here is vital to keeping our democracy running smoothly. For the Senate, every peso allocated must directly strengthen our mandate to craft meaningful laws and ensure that public funds across all sectors are spent wisely.

For the SET, proper support ensures that electoral disputes involving the Senate are resolved swiftly, impartially, and fairly to protect the integrity of the vote.

Finally, the proper funding for the Commission on Appointments enables us to thoroughly vet presidential appointees.

As we go through today's briefing, our focus is simple.

To make sure that each agency gets the support they need to serve the public effectively.

Thank you.

So I now call on Secretary Renato Bantug Jr. to present the 2027 proposed expenditure program of the Senate of the Philippines.

Then after, Secretary Luis Jose Geronimo for the Senate Electoral Tribunal, and lastly, Secretary Myra Marie Villarica for the Commission on Appointments.

Please keep your presentations brief so that we can already wrap up today.

Secretary Batug, you now have the floor.

Thank you, and good afternoon, Your Honor.

Today, we respectfully present.

We respectfully present the 2027 budget context of the Senate of the Philippines in support of its constitutional mandate to legislate, to provide service to the people, and sustain an institution that is fiscally responsible and accessible, transparent, and responsive to the people.

In 2025, the Senate held 68 session days and recorded significant legislative activity, with a total of 1,694 bills and 313 resolutions filed.

These efforts produced meaningful legislative outcomes.

In 2025, 197 bills became Republic Acts, while additional measures advanced through the legislative process.

Key laws included measures on government optimization, judiciary fiscal autonomy, digital governance, telecommunications connectivity, teacher-school leader career progression, and reforms of right-of-way acquisition.

In 2026, the Senate sustained its legislative momentum by advancing

measures that address infrastructure delivery, public protection, education access, and economic concerns.

From January to June 2026, the Senate recorded an additional 33 session days

with a total of 653 bills and 249 resolutions filed.

As of October 15, 2026, 13 measures had become Republic Acts.

A further 16 measures had been transmitted for presidential approval,

6 pending in the Conference Committee, 38 approved on 3rd reading, and 19 pending 2nd reading.

Among the notable outcomes were the suspension of the excise tax on petroleum products,

which provides a policy mechanism for responding to fuel price pressures,

education-centered reforms through measures for last mile or geographically isolated and disadvantaged area schools,

and expanding opportunity for quality tertiary education, especially for underserved communities.

The measures still progressing through the legislative process also demonstrate

a continuing commitment on addressing practical barriers to development,

protecting the public interest, and widening access to essential services.

Through all these, the Senate's legislative outcomes relied and depended on institutional support,

which must be strengthened and sustained so that the Senate can continue translating priority measures into concrete public benefit.

Thus, for the years 2025,

and 2026, the Senate also continued strengthening institutional policy and administration

through policy orders covering Senate proper and the Senate Secretariat.

We expanded digital transformation initiatives that improve legislation,

public access, transparency, visitor services, and internal systems.

Employee services, information services, and organizational development were likewise enhanced.

On fiscal performance, the Senate maintained prudent use of public funds.

For 2025, total allotment

was 10.1 billion

with 8.1 billion in

obligations incurred, equivalent

to an 80.22%

obligation rate.

As of October 14, 2026,

the Senate had obligated 6.5

billion out of 8.8

billion allotment, or to date,

a total

of 74.41%

obligation rate.

Our financial

stewardship was also affirmed by the

Commission on Audit, which issued an

unmodified

opinion on the fairness of the Senate's 2025 financial statements. And it is also our good fortune that no audit suspensions, disallowances, and charges were made for that particular fiscal year.

For 2027, the National Expenditure Program provides 7.7 billion for the Senate. This is 187.5 million or 2.5% higher than the 2026 NEP, but 863 million or 10.1% below the 2026 General Appropriations Act.

We are respectfully submitting for the

For the consideration of the Honorable Committee, various budget permutations of the 2027 Senate Budget that will enable the Senate to sustain its constitutional mandate, to legislate effectively, provide accessible and transparent public service, modernize institutional system, maintain responsible management of public resources, while sustaining personal requirements, essential operating needs, and the delivery of legislative and public-facing services.

Our budget permutations would include, at the maximum,

at a level provided for in the NEP, and as low as 2 billion less than the NEP.

With that, Your Honor, we respectfully submit our budget proposal for the Honorable Committee's consideration.

Thank you, Secretary Bantug. Just for the record, before we ask Secretary Luis Geronimo and Secretary Mayra, just on the Senate, we are practicing what we preach.

We are one of the very few agencies that has a lower budget for 2027.

Because of the very limited fiscal space.

So we are already, you know, but we practice austerity.

Okay, so next is Secretary Luis Jose Geronimo.

Of Senate Electoral Tribunal.

Now, the floor is yours.

Good afternoon, Your Honor.

We are happy to present our budget proposal for fiscal year 2027.

In keeping and in faithful compliance of its mandate as a sole judge of all contests relating to the election returns and qualifications of the members of the Senate under Article 6, Section 17 of the 1987 Constitution,

the defining standard for the Senate Electoral Tribunal is readiness.

to fulfill

its

mandate as an adjudicative body.

In keeping with this, we are proud to note that in years past, particularly in the most recent year, the Tribunal has earned an unmodified opinion from the Commission on Audit, a testament to its faithfulness in its accountability in guarding the finances of the Republic.

Your Honor, in keeping with our standard to maintain readiness to discharge our adjudicative function,

the Tribunal is proud.

The Tribunal is proud of how, at present, for the first time.

Sorry to interrupt you.

I'm quick here.

We're direct to the budget.

Yes, Your Honor.

So that will save everyone's time.

It's okay.

We know all of these things already.

So, our proposed budget, Your Honor, maintains fidelity with the budget that we have secured from the previous fiscal year.

Particularly, the Tribunal was granted an increase in its personal services allocation, despite something that it has secured, despite no increase having been given to it over the course of an entire decade.

Unfortunately, the current national expenditure program does not yet include the increase which was already reflected last year.

And therefore, our humble request is that this item.

which has been secured in the previous year be restored in order to secure the proper level of benefits and compensation for our employees.

Likewise, Your Honor, in view of the very recent experiences of the Tribunal, where the safety and security of its personnel were severely compromised by the state of its building and its premises, we are seeking a budget to

to undertake

the most urgent repairs and improvements to be undertaken for our premises. Also in keeping with our desire to be future ready and to be capable of handling the adjudicative mandate of the tribunal, we are proposing a budget which will adequately cover our needs for information and communications technology

upgrading as well as for other necessary expenses relating to the upskilling of our employees, their welfare including HMO coverage and other initiatives relating to future readiness such as digitization and digitalization. With that, Your Honor, we are thankful for this opportunity. We humbly submit our budget proposal for fiscal year 2027. Thank you, Your Honor.

Thank you, Secretary Luis Jose Geronimo.

So, yung budget natin for next year also is lower than this year's budget, kung hindi mabibigay.

Yes, Your Honor.

If the requested increase is not granted, but basically talaga ano rin tayo, kumbaga we also practice austerity. Iba kasi lalaki ng mga increases eh. So, thank you sa SET natin, Sec. Luis Geronimo.

And last but not least, for Commission on Appointments, Secretary Myra Marie Villarica. Ma'am, you are now recognized.

Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, Your Honor. Thank you very much. I'll be very brief upon your instruction, Your Honor.

Your Commission on Appointments, in the performance of its constitutional mandate, initially requested and proposed a budget proposal, as submitted to the DBM, in the amount of 1.9, roughly approximately 1.9 billion.

However, the DBM only recommended in its NEP for 2027, 1.137 approximately billion with a variance of about 847,256,866,000

In the GAA of 2026, which is our current budget, Your Honor, we received approximately 1.714 billion as compared to the NEP of 2027, which is again, as I pointed out

earlier, only 1.137659 billion, with a variance of about 576 or so million.

Our proposed, Your Honor, budget and upon the instruction of our own Chairperson and Senate President, Win Gatchalian, and also with the reminder of the Chairman of the Finance Committee that there's very limited fiscal space, we've been instructed to trim and streamline our budget and to reduce our requested augmentation.

So for our proposed budget for the year 2027, we have reduced our request for augmentation to only a total of 1.733451548 billion pesos.

That's only, Your Honor, an increase of 1.1% from our present GAA of 2026 budget, Your Honor. That is all. Thank you very much.

How much is that, Secretary?

The request for augmentation. It's only now

595.

595, 792, 548,000, Your Honor.

Okay. Just for the record.

Sec. Luis Jose [unclear], for the record, yung sa SET nga, yung inyong pong for augmentation. [unclear] just for us so that we

Our request for augmentation, Your Honors, in the total of 93.506 million, Your Honor.

Okay. We'll take note of that. So thank you.

I have some questions here, but I will just forward it to all of you, to the Senate, to the CA and to the SET. So please prepare for this just in case it will be asked in plenary. So pakihanda na lang din sa mga index cards so that it will help, it will help hasten the defense of your respective budget. [unclear] ko na lang po sa inyo

Yung mga questions and issues that may arise during the plenary.

So with that, the Committee Chair would like to thank everyone, especially our esteemed resource persons, for actively participating in our discussions today.

There being no further questions, the budget of the Senate of the Philippines, the Senate Electoral Tribunal, and the Commission on Appointments are now deemed, submitted for plenary's consideration,

subject to the discussion and submission of the documents requested.

Thank you very much.

This briefing is hereby suspended.