FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
First Regular Session 
1 
,.' .<- 
1 
7 JUL -3 
r L .?i 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
SENATE 
S.B.NO. 
810 
Introduced by Senator RAMON BONG REVILLA, JR. 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill proposes to establish a procedure for controlling executive 
impoundment of funds. 
In the 1992 budget program of P334.55 billion, only P270.63 billion 
was released during the year. P63.92 billion or about 20% program was 
impounded and not released. 
In 1993, similar non-release or impoundment of funds have delayed 
and/or terminated the initiation and completion of critical and vital 
infrastructure and capital investments. 
TO ensure immediate and timely implementation of government program 
and projects and minimize delays and wastage, we urge the early passage of 
this bill. 


FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
First Regular Session 
1 
7 
,/Ut -3 i-2 3 2  
MIiCFkVED RW 
SENATE 
S.B.NO. 
$10 
Introduced by Senator RAMON BONG REVILLA, JR. 
THE BUDGET IMPOUNDMENT CONTROL ACT 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Title. - This is Act shall be known as "The Budget 
Impoundment Control Act" 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to 
formulate and implement a National Budget that is truly an instrument of 
national development. Towards this end, all appropriations, except those which 
shall be deferred, rescinded, reserved, or othenvise provided in the General 
Appropriations Act, shall be automatically released within the first semester of 
the year through the issuance of advices of allotment in accordance with 
approved work and financial plans, and shall be utilized according to the 
purposes provided in the General Appropriations Act. Any deferral, rescission 
or reservation of appropriations in the General Appropriations Act shall be in 
accordance with this Act. 


SECTION 3. Definition @Terms. - For purposes of this Act: 
(a) Rescission - means cancellation of all or part of an enacted 
appropriation, which has not yet been spent or obligated. 
(b) Reservation - means imposition of reserves on appropriated 
amounts for government expenditures. 
(c) Deferral of releases - means withholding or delaying the release of 
appropriated amounts provided for projects or activities, 
(d) Impoundment resolution - means a joint resolution of both Houses 
of Congress expressing its disapproval of a rescission, reservation or 
deferral of an appropriation or several appropriation items as 
proposed by the President. 
(e) Advice of allotment - the formal document issued by the 
Department of Budget and Management, which 
contains 
authorizations, conditions, and amount of obligations that an agency 
can incur pursuant to a legislative appropriation. 
( f )  Work-and-financial plan - the monthly breakdown of financial 
requirements and physical perfonnance targets of an agency. 
(g) Appropriations - unless otherwise described or specified herein, 
the term appropriations refers to the appropriations included in the 
annual General Appropriations Act. 


SECTION 4. Rescission and Reservation of a Budget Appropriation. - 
Whenever the President, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of the 
Department of Budget and Management, determines that all or part of any 
budget appropriation will not be required to carry out the full objectives or 
scope of programs for which it is provided, or that such budget appropriation 
should be rescinded for fiscal policy or other reasons, including the termination 
of authorized projects or activities, or whenever all or part of any budget 
appropriation for the current fiscal year is to be reserved from obligation for 
such fiscal year, the President shall transmit to both Houses of Congress a 
special message specifying: 
1). the amount of budget appropriation which he proposes to be 
rescinded or which is to be so reserved; 
2). Any account, department, agency or instrumentality of the 
government to which such budget appropriation is available for 
obligation, and the specific projects or governmental functions involved; 
3). The reasons why the budget appropriations should be rescinded or is 
to be so reserved; 
4) The estimated fiscal, economic and budgetary effect of the proposed 
rescission or reservation; and 
5) All facts, circumstances and considerations relating to or bearing upon 
the proposed rescission or reservation, and the estimated effect of the 


proposed rescission or reservation upon the purposes, programs, 
activities and projects for which such appropriation is provided. 
SECTION 5. Approval of Rescission or Reservation. - Both Houses 
of Congress shall act on the proposed rescissiodreservation within sixty (60) 
calendar days after the receipt of such proposal fi-om the President by issuing a 
joint impoundment resolution: Provided, That if the President's special 
message is received within the period of less than sixty (60) calendar days 
before the end of a regular session, the President's message shall be deemed to 
have been submitted on the first day of the succeeding regular session of 
Congress and the sixty (60) day period referred to in this Section shall 
commence on the day after such first day. If Congress does not issue an 
impoundment resolution within the specified period, the President shall proceed 
with the rescissioillreservation procedures: Provided, That funds corresponding 
to the rescinded appropriations shall revert to the unappropriated surplus of the 
general fund and shall not be made available for expenditure for any purpose 
except 8s provided for by a subsequent legislative enactment. 
SECTION 6. Use of Reserves. - When changes in conditions during 
the year justify the use of the reserved appropriations which have been imposed 
under this Act or under the General Appropriations Act, the amount involved 
Shall 


be allocated back for the use by, and upon the request of the Department, 
office or agency on whose appropriation the reserve was originally imposed. 
SECTION 7. Deferral of Releases. 
a) Whenever the President, the Secretary of Budget and Management, 
the head of any department, agency or instrumentality of the 
Govermnent proposes to defer the release of any appropriation for a 
specific purpose, program, activity, or project, the President shall 
transmit to the House of Representatives and the Senate a special 
message specifjmg: 
(1) The amount of the appropriation proposed to be deferred; 
(2) Any account, department, agency or instrumentality of the 
Government to which such appropriation is available for 
obligation, and the specific projects or governmental functions 
involved; 
(3) The period of time during which the appropriation is proposed 
to be deferred; 
(4)The reasons for the proposed deferral, including any legal 
authority invoked by him to justify the proposed deferral; 
(5)The estimated fiscal, economic and budgetary effect of the 
proposed deferral; 


(6) All facts, circumstances and considerations relating to or 
bearing upon the proposed deferral and the decision to effect the 
proposed deferral, including an analysis of such facts, 
circumstances and considerations in terms of their application to 
any legal authority and specific elements of legal authority 
invoked by him to justify such proposed deferral, and the 
estimated effect of the proposed deferral upon the objects, 
purposes, program, activities and projects for which such 
appropriation is provided. 
b) A deferral may not be proposed for any period of time extending 
beyond the end of the fiscal year in which the special message 
proposing the deferral was transmitted to the House of 
Representatives and the Senate. 
SECTION 8. Approval of Release Deferral. - Both Houses of 
Congress shall act on the proposed deferral within sixty (60) calendar days after 
the receipt of the proposal from the President: Pmvided That if tha President's 
special message is received within a period of less than sixty (60) calendar 
days before the end of a regular session, the President's message shall bO 
deemed to have been submitted on the fist day of the succeeding regular 
session of Congress and the sixty (60) day period referred to in this Section 
shall commence on the 


day after such first day. If Congress does not issue an impoundment 
resolution within the specified period, the PreSid8nt shall proceed with the 
deferral procedures. 
SECTION 9. Submission of Quarterly Reports. -Within thirty (30) 
days after the end of each quarter, the Secretary of the Department of Budget 
and Management shall submit to the Committee on Appropriations of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate, a list of 
releases made out of reserved and deferred appropriations, and comparative 
statements showing the annual general appropriations, the annual program of 
continuing and automatic appropriations, and the corresponding releases of 
allotments and cash allocations for each department, agency, corporation and 
fund Provided, That the releases from each lump-sum or special-purpose fund 
shall be supported with schedules indicating the specific departmentsfagencies, 
corporations or entities which received the fund releases and the purposes of 
such releases. The quarterly reports shall also include a cumulative sumnary 
of all appropriations rescinded, deferred or reserved. 
SECTlON IO. Mode of Transmittal of the Special Message of the 
President, - The President shall transmit to Congress at any time during the 
budget year but not later than the fifteenth day of October of the budget year 
the 


special message which may include one or more proposals for impoundment, 
reservation, or deferral on one or more appropriation items through the 
Committee on Finance of the Senate and the Committee on Appropriations of 
the House of Representatives. 
SECTION 11. Penal Provision. - Any violation of the Sections 
2,4,5,6,7,8, and 9 of this ,Act shall be punished by a fine not exceeding One 
hundred thousand pesos (PI0 0,000.00) and the penalty of temporary special 
disqualification. 
SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive 
orders, letters of instructions, letters of implementation, rules and regulations or 
parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, 
modified, superseded or amended accordingly. 
SECTION 13. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen 
(95) days after its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two 
(2 ) national newspapers of general circulation, whichever comes earlier. 
Approved,