DBM claims faster budget disbursements

About seven-tenths of this year’s national budget has been released as of end-April, but Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad said agencies must use the funds to ensure that expenditures would improve.

Abad said Wednesday that 69.2 percent, or P1.26 trillion, of the P1.816-trillion budget for 2012 has been disbursed well before the middle of the year.

“Nonetheless, [the funds] must be fully optimized, especially by the agencies that have already received them,” he said. “Otherwise, the government’s overall expenditure performance suffers despite the releases already made.”

Of the amount already disbursed, P796.2 billion has been released to all government departments, constituting 92.9 percent of the P856.9-billion budget earmarked for them.

Abad said 99.8 percent of the P425.11-billion budget for salaries of national agencies’ employees has been released.

Likewise with the budget for maintenance and other operating expenditures, 98.3 percent, or P218.22 billion, of the P222.39-billion budget has already been sent out.

On the other hand, less than three-quarters of capital outlays have been released, with only P152.6 billion of the P208.4-billion budget released as of April.

Further, Abad noted that P33.9 billion, or 14.4 percent, of special purpose funds has been given out to cover the terminal leave and retirement gratuity benefits of retiring government employees, the third tranche salary increase under the Salary Standardization Law, and the subsidy requirements of government-owned or -controlled corporations.

Releases under automatic appropriations have also reached 57.5 percent, or P416.2 billion, to cover internal revenue allotments for the full year, interest payments and net lending requirements for the first quarter, and retirement and life insurance premiums.

“We enjoin all government departments not just to make the most of the releases, but also to submit documents and requirements that may be needed for the release of other funds,” Abad said.

“At least P61 billion for government departments are still unreleased, and agencies cannot secure these funds until they submit their special budget requests and other documentary requirements to the DBM,” he added.