THE government has released 91 percent of the 2026 national budget as of July, according to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
Latest data from the DBM’s Status of Allotment Releases showed that P6.18 trillion of the P6.793-trillion General Appropriations Act (GAA) had been disbursed as of end-July, leaving a balance of P610.9 billion.
The release rate was higher than the 89.9 percent recorded a month earlier, but lower than the 93.8 percent posted in the same period last year.
Of the total, P3.36 trillion or 91.4 percent of the P4.39-trillion adjusted program was released to government agencies and departments.
An adjusted program is a revised or recalibrated spending and fiscal framework that updates original allocations during budget execution to reflect changing economic conditions, newly enacted laws, or shifts in available government resources.
Special Purpose Funds received P497.67 billion, equivalent to 69.2 percent of their P719.07-billion adjusted program.
Meanwhile, releases for Automatic Appropriations reached P2.16 trillion, or 89.9 percent of the P2.4-trillion adjusted program.
The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) has set a P6.43-trillion disbursement target this year, equivalent to 21.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
The target is 7.2 percent higher than the P6.005 trillion recorded in 2025.
Government spending slowed in the second half of 2025, following a major corruption scandal involving infrastructure projects.
For this year, the government is targeting infrastructure spending equivalent to 4.3 percent of GDP, or about P1.3 trillion under the GAA.
