The House of Representatives on Wednesday ratified the bicameral conference committee report on the bill postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, originally scheduled for December this year, to October next year.

After being approved by both chambers of Congress, the bicameral conference committee report will be sent to Malacañang for President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos to sign into law.

Earlier, the respective bicameral conference panels of the House and the Senate discussed how to harmonize the disagreeing provisions of House Bill 4673 and Senate Bill 1306, both of which sought to postpone the barangay and SK elections.

The version of the bill approved by the lower chamber set the next barangay and SK elections on the first Monday of December 2023, while the Senate version slated it for the second Monday of December 2023.

Funds necessary for the implementation of the law postponing the barangay and SK elections shall be taken from the appropriations of the Commission on Elections under the General Appropriations Act or supplementary appropriations that Congress may subsequently approve.

Lawmakers called off the postponement of the barangay and SK polls for various reasons, including using the P8.4-billion allocation for the elections to address issues associated with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Officials elected in the 2023 barangay, and SK elections will take office at noon on 30 November following their election.