House subpanel OKs additional P4.09M for next year’s LGSF

MANILA, Philippines — A House subcommittee of select lawmakers late Thursday increased funding for the local government support fund (LGSF) by an additional P4.091 million in next year’s national budget.

As the Budget Amendments Review Sub-committee (BARSc) began deliberations on the proposed amendments to the P7.2-trillion House budget bill, Deputy Speaker Bambi Emano moved to allocate an additional P4,091,400,000.

The LGSF was given P58.53 billion under the 2027 National Expenditure Program.

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Emano argued that the additional funding would allow the local government units, barangay, municipal, and provincial governments to directly implement programs and projects that their respective community needs.

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“And if we continue and even add to the budget of LGSF, it will teach our local government units, barangay, municipal and provincial empowerment that they will be able to implement projects of their own choosing and hopefully what their barangay, the municipal, the city and the province needs,” he said.

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House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan sought to include special provisions in a bid to establish safeguards in the LGSF.

House Committee on Appropriations chair Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing then requested proposed wording from the minority on the raised provision.

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“My request, given that a lot of the members of the minority raised the same concern around safeguards and introducing a special provision for LGSF, may we request, if there is a proposed wording coming from the members of the minority, we would be very happy to look through it and put it for consideration, including it in the HGAB (House General Appropriations Bill),” Suansing said.

The motion was afterwards carried after no objections were made. /cb