House Speaker Martin Romualdez and Senate President Chiz Escudero are optimistic that House Bill 10800 or the General Appropriation Bill (GAB) will be passed on time.

The GAB covers the budget of the national government as well as of government agencies.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. certified the bill as urgent, stressing the need to ensure uninterrupted operations of critical government functions and other vital initiatives.

According to Romualdez, this will allow the lower chamber to pass the bill on second and third readings on the same day.

“Tonight, we will be able to pass that on the third and final reading and have it ready for transmission in short order to the Senate. This is the most important law that we have tackled in Congress. And I am confident that we will finish this because of Malacañang’s urgent certification, so that will be done,” he said in a press briefing following the sixth LEDAC meeting.

For his part, Escudero said the Senate will wait for the approved House bill, adding that the Senate has started its hearings with different government agencies regarding their budgets for 2025.

“Right now, the Senate committee hearings are on schedule and we hope that the [GAA] will be approved with enough time for it to be read and reviewed by the President in relation to line-item vetoes he may make so that it may be signed into law before the end of the year,” Escudero said.

The proposed national budget for 2025 is P6.352 trillion, which is 10 percent higher than last year’s P5.768 trillion.