House bill pushes digital portal for full budget transparency
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Following recent probes into alleged anomalies in the national budget, a bill has been filed seeking to institutionalize full transparency in the budget process through the creation of a centralized digital portal.
Negros Occidental Third District Rep. Javier Miguel Benitez filed House Bill No. 6761, which aims to ensure a transparent national budget process through the establishment of the Government Hub for Information and Verified Expenditure.
Under the proposed measure, all national budget documents, including those related to planning, legislation, execution, procurement, and audits, will be uploaded to a secure and publicly accessible digital portal. The bill seeks to address gaps in the publication, accessibility, and traceability of fiscal information.
“The Philippines continues to face persistent gaps in the publication, accessibility, and traceability of national budget information. Fiscal documents are released in various formats across multiple platforms and with uneven completeness, making it difficult for citizens and oversight institutions to follow the full flow of government spending,” the bill stated in its explanatory note.
The measure requires government agencies to upload expenditure-related documents within seven working days from issuance or completion, using machine-readable formats and tamper-resistant technology to ensure authenticity and prevent manipulation.
The proposal also aims to strengthen oversight of the national budget by government watchdogs, including representatives from government, civil society, media, and the private sector.
The portal, dubbed G-HIVE, will interface with existing financial and procurement systems and provide verified audit trails linking every stage of the budget cycle.
House Bill No. 6761 serves as the counterpart of Senate Bill No. 1506, or the Citizen Access and Disclosure of Expenditures for National Accountability Act (CADENA Act), filed by Sen. Bam Aquino, which likewise proposes a unified, tamper-resistant digital system for full disclosure of government financial transactions.
Meanwhile, the bicameral conference committee meeting on the proposed 2026 national budget has been reset to December 13, Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian confirmed on Thursday.
The bicameral body will reconcile differing versions of the General Appropriations Act passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate before the measure is submitted to the President for approval.
