Approval of national budget, salary standardization law seen by year-end

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. is seeing a smooth sailing passage of the proposed P226-billion four-year Salary Standardization Law of 2015 (SSL 2015), alongside the 2016 proposed national budget on or before December 16. The House Chief said he has no qualms that both measures seeking to ease the financial plight of 1.53 million state workers and ensure the delivery of basic services will be passed before they adjourn for the Christmas break. “We already passed it on second reading. It is already funded by the 2016 budget. We can approve it on third reading before or same day as the budget,” Belmonte said in an interview. QUORUM ISSUES He even took opportunity to appeal to his colleagues to religiously attend the plenary session to pass SSL 2015 or House Bill (HB) 6268. Belmonte earlier vowed to pass the proposed SSL 2015 on third and final reading when Congress resumed session [...]