THE Supreme Court (SC) has urged Congress to augment the judiciary’s 2024 budget by P6.7 billion to fund various judicial programs, including expenses for the Office of the Judicial Marshals.
Court Administrator Raul Villanueva stated that the judiciary’s initial budget request was P71.91 billion. However, the 2024 National Expenditure Program has allotted only P57.79 billion for the entire judiciary.
Villanueva conveyed this message while participating in the budget deliberations led by Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara, who chairs the Senate Committee on Finance.
Villanueva urged Congress to reconsider a substantial portion of the judiciary’s budget that was not included – specifically, 48 percent equivalent to P6.7 billion out of the excluded P14.12 billion.
Out of the P6.7 billion allocation, Villanueva detailed that P4.77 billion would be directed to the SC and lower courts. The Court of Appeals (CA) would receive P1.19 billion, the Sandiganbayan P448 million, and the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) P287.87 million.
Additionally, Villanueva disclosed that a portion of the budget, amounting to P221.892 million, would be designated as hazard pay for lower court judges.
Furthermore, he outlined that the remaining budget would be channeled to support the operation of 46 family courts, totaling P536.7 million.
Moreover, Villanueva noted a requested increase of P200 million for the Office of the Judicial Marshals, which previously had a budget of P50 million.
The establishment of this office was initiated through legislation signed into law by former president Rodrigo Duterte in April 2022.
The primary responsibility of the Office of the Judicial Marshals is to ensure the security, safety, and protection of judiciary members, officials, personnel, and assets.
