Deliberations for the proposed P5.1-billion budget of the Negros Occidental provincial government for 2023 will start next week.
Acting Governor Jeffrey Ferrer said Monday that they are targeting the budget approval by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan by the first week of December.
Ferrer is acting governor of Negros Occidental until Nov. 11, since Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson is on official business in Australia.
Board Member Manuel Frederick Ko is the acting vice governor.
The proposed General Fund Budget for next year is P4,952,981,228, while the proposed budget of its Economic Enterprise Development Department amounts to P190,379,525.15.
The proposed budget is down 12.7 percent, due to the reduction in its National Tax Allotment, equivalent to P780 million.
Ferrer said the focus of the proposed budget will be food security and health services, including requests from various local government units./GB
