Mikee Romero

Judiciary gets P5.7B budget for 2023

September 1, 2022 Ryan Ponce Pacpaco 484 views

THE entire judiciary will receive a total of P5.7 billion in additional funds next year, 1 Pacman Party-list Representative Mikee Romero said Thursday.

Romero said the huge increase is included in the proposed P5.268-trillion 2023 “Agenda for Recovery” national budget President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. submitted to Congress last Aug. 22.

“The additional funds are in the President’s proposal. I have no doubt that the House will support the adjustment, which we hope would allow the judiciary to meet its requirements for a quicker disposition of cases and faster dispensation of justice,” Romero said.

The House Committee on Appropriations conducted a hearing Thursday on funding for the judiciary made up of the Supreme Court, Sandiganbayan, Court of Appeals (CA), Court of Tax Appeals (CTA), Regional Trial Courts (RTCs), and lower courts.

In the proposed national budget, the Supreme Court, RTCs, and lower courts, which are lumped together, are allocated “new appropriations” amounting to P41.923 billion, P2.203 billion more than this year’s P39.720 billion.

The Sandiganbayan, CA, CTA, and Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) have their own separate funding allocations.

New funds for the Sandiganbayan will go up by P482 million, from P1.593 billion this year to P2.074 billion next year.

Among courts, the CA will receive the highest increase of P2.988 billion, with its outlay jumping from P3.504 billion this year to P6.492 billion in 2023.

The adjustment of more than P2 billion in the CA’s capital outlay, from P532.3 million this year to P2.678 billion in 2023, largely accounts for the huge increase in its budget.

The PET, which is the Supreme Court itself, will get P167.3 million next year, up from this year’s P157.3 million.

Romero said total new appropriations for the Supreme Court, CA, CTA, PET, RTCs, and lower courts next year would total P51.432 billion, P5.7 billion or 12.46% higher than this year’s P45.735 billion allocated in the P5.024 trillion 2022 national budget.

“It’s the largest budget increase for the judiciary in recent years,” he said.

He added that the judicial branch had P44.109 billion last year and P40.163 billion in 2020.

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