The Palace believes the 2018 budget will not be re-enacted despite differences between the versions of the Senate and House of Representatives' bills.

“Well, anything is a possibility and it will really be up to the members of the bicameral committee to discuss and to thresh out their differences in the budget,” Presidential Communication Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar told government radio on Saturday.

“I am pretty sure that it will resolve just like the past bicameral conferences,” he said.

The government has proposed a budget of P3.767 billion for 2018.

“Both Houses are really the holder of the purse of the nation. At the end of the day, I believe it would not be re-enacted. We will still have a budget for 2018,” Andanar added.

Andanar said the Palace is not bothered despite differences in positions as the bicameral conference committee began last Thursday.

“No it’s not because you know like what I always say we have the co-equal branches of the government --- the legislative, you have the executive. You have the judiciary and in their territories they have their own debates,” Andanar said.

The Senate passed its version of the budget on Wednesday while the House of Representatives passed the budget bill a few months ago.

Meanwhile, the bicam panel began their deliberations on the tax reform bill.

The Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN), Andanar said, is the cornerstone of the Duterte administration's anti-poverty program.

TRAIN aims to lift the burden on low-income earners by lowering personal income taxes and making bonuses, like 13th-month pay, tax-free.

The proposed tax reform, Andanar added, is designed to raise revenues to help fund the government's Build-Build-Build infrastructure program. Robina Asido/DMS