In an unprecedented event, The economic commissions of Congress denied the amount of the General Budget of the Nation (PGN) proposed by the National Government. The proposal submitted by the Ministry of Finance contemplated resources for 2025 for $523 billion.
It should be remembered that the PGN proposed by The Government has a funding shortfall of 12 billion pesos, money that is expected to be obtained with a financing law that has also already been filed.
(Read more: Amid strong controversy, Congress denied the amount of the 2025 Budget)
Although most congressmen were in favor of lowering the amount due to the lack of funding presented by the PGN, five of the seven proposals presented to achieve this objective They also failed to receive the endorsement.
Without the necessary votes for either party, Congress is currently in a ‘limbo’ due to the lack of consensus regarding the entire budget. This was stated by Senator Angélica Lozano in conversation with EL TIEMPO and indicated that “The law does not say what to do if there is no agreement.”
For context: the legislature has four economic commissions (3 and 4 in the House and 3 and 4 in the Senate). In order for the amount of the PGN to be approved, all four have to approve the same amount during the established dates. In other words, it is considered that there is no agreement even if the approval of two or three of the commissions is received.
According to the congresswoman, during the session held on Wednesday, September 11, the amount proposed by the Government had the support of the House, but not of the Senate, which led to the proposal being rejected.
During the debate, other alternatives that were on the table were also discussed. One of them was that of Senator Lozano herself, who proposed reducing the amount foreseen by about $23.7 billion to leave it at a total of $499.2 billion. In this case, the initiative was approved by the Senate committees, but not by those of the House.
Another proposal that faced the same fate was that of legislator and Senate President Efraín Cepeda, who sought to cut $12 billion from the Budget to reach $511 billion.
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How much time is left?
The established dates indicate that the legal deadline for approving the final amount of the National Budget is September 15thThe motion, for its part, must be discussed before the 25th of the same month and Congress has until 11:59 pm on October 19 to approve the project.
In this regard, according to Lozano, there are two ways to reach a consensus. “The first is to try again between now and Sunday (September 15) and agree on an amount. The second way is to continue until the proposal that must be voted on by September 25 at the latest.”he indicated.
It should be remembered that if an agreement is not reached before October 20, the National Government may opt for fiscal dictatorship. In other words, issue by decree the PGN proposed by the Ministry of Finance, including the modifications approved in the first debate (if it is achieved).
However, if this scenario materializes, another gap arises, considering the imbalance in the Budget and whose missing resources (close to $12 billion) are expected to be collected with the financing law, which is also subject to approval by Congress.
In that order of ideas, the senator emphasized that “We have to act responsibly and recognize that no one has the votes for this amount or another. Then it is up to all of us to give in and find the appropriate amount for the fiscal reality, which is a deficit, where there is neither the revenue nor the ‘fat cows’ that the torrent of spending that the Government demands would require.”
Wednesday’s session to discuss the amount was adjourned due to a lack of agreement.
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