2027 National Budget Nears Bicam: What Contractors and LGUs Should Watch

1Where the 2027 budget stands as of 6 November 2026

The proposed P7.2-trillion national budget for 2027 is in the last stretch of the legislative process. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. submitted the National Expenditure Program (NEP) to Congress on 11 August 2026. As reported at the time, the proposal is about 6% larger than the 2026 budget and is equivalent to roughly 21.7% of GDP, with public works rising to P644 billion while education, health and agriculture allocations were set lower than in 2026.

The House of Representatives approved the General Appropriations Bill (GAB), House Bill No. 10858, on third and final reading by a vote of 281 in favour, 13 against and 1 abstention, according to a Daily Tribune report dated 12 October 2026. The bill then moved to the Senate, whose Finance Committee, chaired by Senator JV Ejercito, has been holding its own hearings. On 2 November 2026, Ejercito said the committee was finalising its report and that he expected to sponsor the bill on the Senate floor within November, GMA News reported.

As of the research date we could not confirm that the Senate has approved its version on third reading. One opinion column published on 4 November described the bill as having passed both chambers, but contemporaneous news reports describe the Senate as still at committee stage, so readers should check the Senate's official legislative records for the current status.

• P7.2 trillion
  Proposed 2027 national budget (NEP submitted 11 Aug 2026)
• 281–13–1
  House third-reading vote on HB 10858
• P111.984 billion
  Unprogrammed appropriations in the NEP, per the DBM
• Mid-December
  Senate finance chair's target to finalise the budget

2The bicameral conference: schedule and the "open bicam" commitment

Because the House and Senate inevitably pass different versions, the final text is settled by a bicameral conference committee ("bicam"). On 3 November 2026, Senate and House representatives met to discuss the coordination, schedule and parameters of the 2027 bicam. Ejercito said that meeting was about scheduling, not about the reported realignment of funds in the House version, and that the budget would be reviewed and finalised in the second or third week of December so the President can sign it before the end of 2026, GMA News reported. No specific bicam dates had been published as of 6 November.

Transparency at this stage has become a central issue. The 2026 budget bicam in December 2025 was livestreamed for the first time. For 2027, Budget Secretary Kim Robert de Leon said on 14 August 2026 that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) supports livestreaming the bicam, while stressing that how the conference is run is for Congress to decide.

“This year, we will be inviting CSOs to sit in and observe the bicameral proceedings.”

— Sen. JV Ejercito, as reported by GMA News, 2 November 2026

Ejercito has confirmed that the 2027 bicam will again be livestreamed and that civil society organisations (CSOs) will be invited to observe. Senator Panfilo Lacson has separately urged that cameras keep rolling even during suspensions, citing concerns about off-camera bargaining in earlier years. These are commitments by individual legislators, not rules of either chamber; how they are implemented will only be clear once the conference convenes.

Scheduling is tight. Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian said on 7 October 2026 that the Senate aims to pass the budget before the New Year, but that the timetable is a "moving target" because the Senate is also sitting as an impeachment court and must accommodate the ASEAN summits hosted by the Philippines from 16 to 18 November, GMA News reported.

3The Supreme Court ruling and unprogrammed appropriations

The single biggest legal development affecting this cycle is the Supreme Court's decision on recent budget laws, announced on 20 October 2026. According to GMA News' report on the ruling, the en banc Court, in a decision written by Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen:

• declared the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) unconstitutional because total appropriations were effectively increased by P449.5 billion, mainly through unprogrammed appropriations;
• declared the 2025 GAA unconstitutional over an additional P17.99 billion for the DPWH Special Road Fund;
• struck down Special Provisions 1(a) and 1(b) of Chapter XLIII of the 2026 GAA, which authorised the use of unprogrammed appropriations, as overly broad and partly functioning as prohibited lump sums; and
• found that the bicameral conference committee in those years exceeded its powers and kept no records explaining its changes.

Importantly, the Court did not abolish unprogrammed appropriations. It held they are "not unconstitutional per se" but must contain no lump sums, must stay a narrow contingent appropriation within the fiscal program, should presumptively be programmed instead when funded by new income (unless there are clear reasons, such as foreign-assisted projects), and must carry prioritisation standards when they serve more than one purpose. The Court applied the doctrine of operative fact only to irreversible programs whose beneficiaries acted in good faith, and said it does not shield authors or implementers from liability unless a proper tribunal finds good faith.

The ruling is not yet settled. Malacañang said it respectfully disagrees with parts of the decision, and Solicitor General Darlene Berberabe said her office would seek clarification and partial reconsideration, while advising the executive to hold off implementing the struck-down 2026 provisions. On 22 October, de Leon told senators that no funds had been released under those provisions and that 2026 unprogrammed releases so far covered only foreign-assisted projects, GMA News reported.

For 2027, the practical question is whether the bicam respects the Court's conditions, both in the size and content of the unprogrammed items and in how it documents its own changes. Ejercito has said the ruling is a reminder of Congress's "constitutional duty to exercise fiscal discipline."

4Insertions, realignments and the "red flags" debate

The other major dispute concerns changes made by the House to the executive's proposal. During the House vote, minority legislators objected to the allocations. ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio said 6,212 projects worth P180.5 billion were inserted during House deliberations and that DPWH's project count rose from 11,303 in the NEP to 16,270, while other minority members criticised infrastructure and assistance allocations as patronage-prone, according to the Daily Tribune. Ejercito has also questioned a reported realignment of about P206 billion in the House version.

At the Senate Finance Committee's 26 October consultation with civil society, the People's Budget Coalition (PBC) said it had found "over P1 trillion" in red flags in the House-approved bill, including P112 billion in unprogrammed appropriations it called "shadow pork" and about P190 billion across nearly 7,000 infrastructure projects without publicly available attachments, GMA News reported. The PBC itself said it does not claim all of these items involve corruption. Gatchalian said the analysis aligns with the Senate's own findings and that the Senate would check whether each House amendment is valid and supported by feasibility studies and work programs.

House leaders have defended their amendments. House appropriations senior vice chair Albert Garcia and Deputy Speaker Ronnie Puno said changes were based on agency proposals and made on valid grounds. Allegations of improper insertions remain contested claims, not findings by any court or auditing body.

Some Makabayan legislators asked for the House bill to be returned before the bicam because, they argued, it still contains provisions affected by the Supreme Court ruling. Senate leaders rejected a recall. Gatchalian said corrections could be made during consolidation, and Lacson warned that a recall could lead to a reenacted budget, "which is worse," the Daily Tribune reported on 23 October.

5Timeline to signing, and the reenacted-budget risk

The constitutional framework explains why the December calendar matters. Under Article VI, Section 25 of the 1987 Constitution, Congress "may not increase the appropriations recommended by the President for the operation of the Government," and riders must relate specifically to a particular appropriation. Under Section 27(2), the President may veto "any particular item or items" in an appropriation bill without affecting the rest. Under Section 25(7), if Congress fails to pass the GAB by the end of the fiscal year, the preceding year's GAA "shall be deemed re-enacted" until the new bill is passed.

1. 2026-08-11
   NEP submitted. P7.2-trillion proposal transmitted to Congress.
2. 2026-10-12
   House approval. HB 10858 passes third reading, 281–13–1 (date per Daily Tribune report).
3. 2026-10-20
   Supreme Court ruling announced. 2024 and 2025 GAAs and parts of the 2026 GAA struck down; conditions set for unprogrammed appropriations. Reconsideration to be sought.
4. 2026-11-03
   Bicam coordination meeting. Senate and House discuss schedule and parameters.
5. 2026-11
   Senate sponsorship and plenary. Expected this month per the Finance chair; third-reading date not yet confirmed.
6. 2026-12
   Bicam, ratification and signing. Finance chair's target is to finalise in the second or third week of December, for signing before 31 December.

The 2026 budget was enacted late in December 2025, so a similar compressed timetable is realistic. If the GAB is not passed by 31 December, the 2026 GAA would be deemed reenacted. In general, a reenacted budget lets government continue operating at prior-year levels, but new programs and projects introduced in the 2027 bill would not have an appropriation until the new law takes effect. A specific open question this year is how a reenactment would treat 2026 provisions the Supreme Court has struck down, a point that would likely need DBM guidance and possibly further judicial clarification.

Even after enactment, businesses should watch for the President's item vetoes and any conditional implementation directives, which can affect specific line items months after the headline budget is signed.

6What it means for contractors, suppliers and LGUs

For businesses that depend on government spending, the budget's final shape will determine which projects can be procured and paid for in 2027. Several themes stand out.

Public works contractors

The House raised DPWH funding and added thousands of district-level projects, while the Senate has said it will verify that amendments are backed by feasibility studies and work programs. Projects added in the House could be retained, modified or removed at the bicam, and the Senate finance chair has also signalled concern about cuts to foreign-assisted rail projects. Contractors should not treat a project's appearance in the House bill as a commitment. Our overview of public procurement transparency reforms discusses related compliance expectations.

Suppliers to agencies and GOCCs

Agencies often start procurement before the GAA is signed, with award and contract signing tied to the availability of appropriations. Suppliers should confirm the funding source of any bid, whether a programmed item in the 2027 GAA, a continuing appropriation, or an unprogrammed item that can only be released once its conditions are met. After the Supreme Court ruling, an item placed under unprogrammed appropriations carries more legal and timing risk than a programmed one.

Local government units

LGUs rely on national transfers and on nationally funded projects in their areas. Lump-sum allocations for LGUs were among the items criticised by House minority members, and the Court's ruling targets lump sums in unprogrammed appropriations. LGUs planning 2027 projects should verify which projects survive the bicam and any veto before committing counterpart funds. See our note on Local Government Code devolution in Metro Manila for the broader fiscal setting.

Businesses with indirect exposure

Firms in construction materials, logistics, health supplies and services, and agriculture may feel the effects through their customers' cash flow. The wider policy context is covered in our article on Philippine political developments and business confidence.

7Practical preparation checklist

The following steps help businesses that deal with government manage the uncertainty between now and the signing of the 2027 GAA:

• Map every 2026–2027 government receivable and pipeline bid to its specific appropriation (programmed, unprogrammed, continuing or foreign-assisted).
• Review contracts and bid documents for clauses on availability of funds, suspension, termination for convenience and price adjustment.
• For projects tied to struck-down 2026 provisions, ask the implementing agency in writing about their status and keep records of the response.
• Prepare a cash-flow scenario for a reenacted budget in early 2027 in which new projects are delayed.
• Track the livestreamed bicam, the ratified bicam report and the President's veto message, which together define the final appropriations.
• Document good-faith compliance with procurement rules, since the Court tied the operative-fact protection to good faith.

Startups and technology vendors selling to government face similar issues; our piece on how 2026 government decisions affect startups covers related policy risks.

• The House passed the P7.2-trillion 2027 GAB; Senate floor sponsorship was expected in November, and Senate final approval had not been confirmed as of 6 November 2026.
• Senate and House began coordinating the bicam schedule on 3 November, with a target to finalise in mid-December; the bicam is expected to be livestreamed with CSO observers.
• The Supreme Court ruling of 20 October limits how unprogrammed appropriations can be written, but the government is seeking partial reconsideration.
• Disputed House insertions and realignments are expected to be resolved at the bicam; allegations remain contested.
• If the budget is not passed by 31 December, the 2026 GAA is deemed reenacted, which would delay new projects.

Contractors, suppliers and LGU partners that need to review government contracts, payment claims or procurement exposure can contact Abanto Law Firm to discuss their situation. Our corporate law practice advises on government contracting, contract risk and related disputes.

8Frequently asked questions