House proposes P5B calamity fund increase

The House of Representatives plans to push for a P5 billion increase in the calamity fund under the 2021 national budget to aid areas devastated by recent typhoons.

Speaker Lord Allan Velasco stated that this proposal will be presented during the bicameral conference committee deliberations.

The chamber's approved version of the 2021 General Appropriations Bill was passed before the destructive typhoons Quinta, Rolly, and Ulysses.

Velasco emphasized the necessity of augmenting the calamity fund to assist Filipinos in rebuilding their lives and communities.

The total damage to infrastructure and agriculture caused by the three recent typhoons has reached P35 billion.

The proposed calamity funds for 2021 are P20 billion, an increase from the P16 billion allocated this year.

P5 billion of the proposed amount is earmarked for the reconstruction of Marawi City.

An additional P6.25 billion will be allocated as augmentation for the quick response funds of six different agencies.