Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco and House Appropriations Chair Mikaela Suansing clashed during the opening day of the 2026 budget briefings on Monday, August 18, 2025, over the release of the signed small committee report for the 2025 national budget.
Tiangco demanded the document, saying it should be on record and furnished to all members under House rules. “This is of public record,” he said.
“This is in accordance with the rules… that all committee reports must be given to all members.” He added: “Public office is a public trust.” The hearing was suspended after he asked the panel to provide an electronic copy.
Suansing maintained that a separate report is not required. She said the small committee’s work is already reflected in the House General Appropriations Bill (HGAB).
“The small committee is subsumed within the Committee on Appropriations… and the output of the committee on appropriations, once that is elevated to the plenary, is the HGAB,” she said.
“There’s no other committee report that needs to be furnished… apart from the HGAB.” She noted she was not appropriations chair during the 19th Congress and directed the secretariat to check the records.
Tiangco argued that the committee report is distinct from the bill and cited Rule IX, Section 39 on committee reports and minutes.
He asked the secretariat to identify the meetings held and explain why the signed report — if any — was not archived within 15 days. The committee secretariat said there were two meetings; minutes and a signed report were not produced during the hearing.
Tiangco said the document is needed ahead of agency budget reviews.
“Papano natin sila tatanungin kung papano nila ginastos yung budget nila kung hindi natin alam papano sila nabawasan at papano sila nadagdagan,” he said.
He cited two districts whose allocations, he said, increased from the committee stage to the enacted budget and asked who introduced those changes and from which items they were sourced.
“Madam chair, I will not hold this budget hostage. Gusto ko lang malaman meron o wala,” Tiangco said.
Suansing said the panel would review the files and inform members.
