Appropriation and re-alignment, Constitutional Law

1. No transferring of appropriations – with exception

GENERAL RULE: No law shall be passed authorizing any transfer of appropriations. (Section 25[5], Article VI, Ibid.)

EXCEPTION: … however, the President, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the heads of Constitutional Commissions may, by law, be authorized to augment any item in the general appropriations law for their respective offices from savings in other items of their respective appropriations. (Ibid.)

2. Requisites

There are two essential requisites in order that a transfer of appropriation with the corresponding funds may legally be effected:

1) There must be savings in the programmed appropriation of the transferring agency.

2) There must be an existing item, project or activity with an appropriation in the receiving agency to which the savings will be transferred. (Sanchez v. Commission on Audit, En Banc, G.R. No. 127545, 23 April 2008)

a. Actual savings

DEFINITION: Savings – refer to portions or balances of any programmed appropriation in this Act free from any obligation or encumbrance which are:

1) still available after the completion or final discontinuance or abandonment of the work, activity or purpose for which the appropriation is authorized;

2) from appropriations balances arising from unpaid compensation and related costs pertaining to vacant positions and leaves of absence without pay; and

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