DBM to submit P5.024-T proposed 2022 nat'l budget to Congress on Aug. 23

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Tuesday said it aims to submit to Congress the proposed P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022 within the constitutionally mandated deadline.

“Ang target namin is August 23, 2021 para ma-submit ang budget,” DBM spokesperson Assistant Secretary Rolando Toledo said during state-run PTV’s Laging Handa briefing on Tuesday.

Toledo said the target date of submission is “within 30 days constitutional deadline.”

The Constitution requires the DBM to submit the budget proposal 30 days after the President delivered the State of Nation Address (SONA), which took place on July 26.

The proposed national budget for 2022 is higher by 11.5% than the P4.5-trillion fiscal program for 2021. It is also equivalent to 22.8% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

The interagency Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) has already given the thumbs up for the P5.024-trillion national budget for 2022. 

“The proposed 2022 national budget will continue to invest in building the country’s resilience amidst the pandemic by prioritizing funding for  COVID-19 response measures, such as healthcare development and social services, while also ramping up economic growth through investments in public infrastructure,” the DBCC said.

The interagency body comprises the departments of Budget and Management, of Finance, and the National Economic and Development Authority. —KBK, GMA News