SENATE RATIFIES 2011 BUDGET, RESTORES MOOE FOR SUC'S

Following yesterday's Senate ratification of the General Appropriations Bill for 2011, Senator Edgardo J. Angara expressed his approval over the final increase for the State Universities and Colleges' (SUCs) allocation.

The Department of Education was given an additional P110.33-Million--restoring the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) allocations of 80 SUCs that was slashed from the initial 2011 budget proposals.

According to Angara, former UP President, the Senate prioritized the SUCs that would be able to generate income to supplement the state subsidy. Within a few years, he said, they would then be able to rechannel the surplus funding to the needier schools.

"It was all a matter of realigning the allocations so that these learning institutions may be able to function properly. We were able to grant the MOOE requests of 80 SUCs because they were able to show high productivity rates whether from their R&D (Research and Development) projects or by utilizing their land grants," he said.

Angara, head of the Committee on Education, Arts and Culture, explained that he and his fellow legislators were all pleased to be able to make this particular addition to the budget.

"All of us here in the Senate were in favor of boosting the budget in our state-run colleges because we all know how valuable education is. We want to provide sufficient funding for the SUCs, and we did the best we could to accomplish that under the circumstances," he said.