QUEZON CITY -- THE House of Representatives will be aiming to extensively deliberate and pass the 2024 national budget while simultaneously fast-tracking the approval of the priority bills of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Romualdez Marcos Jr. before this year ends.

Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez said the bigger chamber will have two major focus for the rest of 2023: pass the proposed P5.768 trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2024 on time and approve the remaining bills set as priority measures during the 2nd Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) presided by no less than the President last Wednesday.

“Mas lalong magta-trabaho ang inyong Kamara de Representantes sa pagbubukas ng 2nd Regular Session nitong kasalukuyang buwan na ating sisimulan sa SONA ng ating Pangulong Marcos,” said Romualdez. 

“With our firm commitment to approve the remaining priority measures agreed upon during the LEDAC meetings, various House panels will continue working during committee deliberations of the proposed 2024 NEP," he added. 

"When the House starts Plenary deliberations of the national budget, some committees may be authorized to pursue the performance of its mandate of passing vital pieces of legislation," Speaker Romualdez said. 

The Speaker painted a picture of a House that is working overtime to comprehensively scrutinize the national budget by virtue of its “power of the purse” mandate and, at the same time, carry out the crafting of the priority measures of the Marcos administration.

He said that if the productivity of the House of Representatives during the first year of the 19th Congress is any indication, he is confident that the chamber can accomplish its goals for the rest of 2023.

“If members of the House of Representatives will work with the same passion and vigor they exhibited during the First Regular Session, I have no doubt that we can do better this time around,” Romualdez expressed.

During the first 10 months of the 19th Congress, the chamber has processed a total of 9,600 measures: 8,490 bills, 1,109 resolutions and one petition. This is an average of 30 measures for each session day.

Lawmakers were also able to approve on third and final reading 33 out of 42 bills listed as priority measures of President Marcos and the LEDAC, which forms part of the total 577 bills passed on final reading, which also includes the P5.268 trillion 2023 national budget.

When the 2nd Regular Session opens before July ends, Congress is set to buckle down to work on the P5.768 trillion spending measure for 2024 and 20 priority bills of the LEDAC.

Romualdez said they will study ways on how to still improve on the process and system they used during the 1st Regular Session that enabled them to pass a record number of bills and resolutions, while performing their mandate of oversight.

“Processes and systems can always be improved. I believe there are still better ways we can perform our mandate of legislation without sacrificing the quality of our work,” the Speaker said. (Congress)