Subsidies to GOCCs up 186% to P8.8B

The national government distributed to state-run corporations P8.8 billion in subsidies or almost triple the amount a year ago last August, with the National Housing Authority (NHA) receiving P4.41 billion or half of the month’s allocation, the latest Treasury data showed.

The subsidies given away to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) in August were 186-percent higher than the P3.08 billion in the same month last year.

Besides the NHA, the other recipients of state support in the form of subsidies were: Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (P52 million); Cultural Center of the Philippines (P73 million); Lung Center of the Philippines (P70 million); National Dairy Authority (P72 million); National Irrigation Administration or NIA (P99 million); National Power Corp. (P97 million); Philippine Children’s Medical Center (P43 million); Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (P4 million); Philippine Heart Center (P32 million); Philippine National Railway (P14 million); Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (P3.79 billion); People’s Television Network Inc. (P17 million); Southern Philippines Development Authority (P4 million), and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority (P22 million).

At the end of the first eight months, GOCC subsidies totaled P55.09 billion, down 7 percent from P59.24 billion last year.

In most cases, the national government subsidy covers GOCCs’ operational expenses that are not being supported by corporate revenues. Subsidies may also be spent on specific programs and projects.

The government plans to ramp up budgetary support to state-run firms next year as the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing document for fiscal year 2016 showed that the proposed allotment for GOCCs would increase to P127.1 billion from the projected P74 billion this year and the P80.3 billion released in 2014.

Budgetary support for GOCCs comes in the form of subsidy, equity and net lending, net of tax subsidy and loans outlay, gross of special accounts.

Of the proposed 2016 amount, P96.1 billion would be subsidies, P31 billion would be equity and P26.5 million would be net lending. Ben O. de Vera