President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has slashed the Unprogrammed Appropriations (UA) in the 2026 national budget to their lowest level since 2019 after vetoing nearly P92.5 billion worth of proposed items, reinforcing fiscal discipline, transparency, and accountability.
In his veto message to Congress accompanying the signing of the P6.793-trillion General Appropriations Act (GAA) for 2026 on Monday, Marcos said the UA had been reduced to the “bare minimum,” stressing that standby funds must be accessed only when “absolutely necessary and strictly in accordance with conditions set in this Act.”
“I acknowledge the support of the Congress in limiting the coverage of the Unprogrammed Appropriations (UA), heeding the public’s call for transparency and accountability. However, I push further and reduce the same to the bare minimum, at a level that is the lowest since FY 2019,” the President said.
Data from the Department of Budget and Management showed a steady tightening of UA allocations, which dropped to PHP150.9 billion in 2026 from P363.4 billion in 2025. This is significantly lower than the P731.4 billion allocated in 2024 and P807.2 billion in 2023.
Marcos underscored that UA “are not blank checks” and warned against treating them as a “backdoor for discretionary spending” that could exceed fiscal targets and widen the budget deficit.
“We will not allow the UA to be misused or treated as a backdoor for discretionary spending that will exceed our fiscal program and widen our deficit from our original projection,” he said.
“Its utilization is provided with safeguards, with the UA only available when clearly defined triggers are met and released only after careful validation,” Marcos added.
Among the items vetoed were proposed UA allocations for budgetary support to government-owned and -controlled corporations, prior years’ local government unit shares, personnel services requirements, insurance of government assets, and industry support programs. These included funding for the Comprehensive Automotive Resurgence Strategy and the Revitalizing the Automotive Industry for Competitiveness Enhancement program.
Marcos described the veto as a “measured exercise of Executive authority to rebuild public trust in the budget process,” and directed all government agencies to practice prudent fiscal management to ensure the continuity of public services.
The President clarified that the vetoed items would not affect scheduled salary and benefit increases for civilian government employees and military and uniformed personnel. He also assured that funding for ongoing foreign-assisted projects and flagship infrastructure programs would remain intact, as these are already covered under programmed appropriations.
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