BILIRAN, Philippines — Biliran Province ended 2025 with approximately ₱62.12 million in unspent prior-year disaster funds, raising questions about how accumulated resources were being translated into preparedness programs and services for communities.
According to the supplied summary of the Commission on Audit’s 2025 Annual Audit Report, the province entered the year with ₱71.03 million in available balances carried over from previous years. It utilized approximately ₱8.91 million during 2025, leaving most of that pool unspent at year-end.
The finding places disaster-fund planning and implementation at the center of TDN Budget Watch’s examination of provincial resources: What activities were supposed to be funded, what prevented their implementation, and what happened after the audit period?
Following the ₱62.12 million
The audit summary provides the following figures:
| Prior-year disaster funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Available balances carried into 2025 | ₱71,028,253.88 |
| Utilized during 2025 | ₱8,912,651.70 |
| Remaining at year-end | ₱62,115,602.18 |
Approximately 12.55% of this prior-year pool was utilized during 2025.
That percentage requires an important distinction: it concerns balances carried over from previous years. It is not the province’s overall disaster-fund utilization rate, and it should not be used to describe spending from its current-year allocation.
The remaining balance also represents the position at the end of 2025. Without subsequent utilization records, it cannot be described as the amount still unspent in October 2026.
An unspent balance does not, by itself, establish theft, misuse, or missing money. It does, however, warrant an explanation of whether funded activities were properly planned, what implementation barriers existed, and whether intended services reached communities.
A gap between available funds and annual planning
The summary states that balances originating in 2022, 2023, and 2024 recorded no utilization during 2025.
It also reports that COA found activities funded from prior-year balances were not separately included in the annual disaster investment plan, potentially delaying implementation.
This makes the planning process a central accountability issue. Available resources need to be connected to identifiable activities, implementation schedules, responsible offices, and measurable results.
The records needed to establish that connection include the approved plans covering the balances, the activities assigned to each funding year, and the reasons those activities did not proceed.
The finding alone does not establish that every unspent peso corresponded to an unmet need. Determining the effect on communities requires examining which activities were delayed and what services residents actually received.
Management pointed to 2027 budget preparation
According to the audit summary, provincial management said the activities would be integrated into preparation of the 2027 annual budget.
That response identifies a proposed planning correction. It does not establish when the activities would begin or whether the accumulated balances were subsequently utilized.
It also leaves a significant follow-up question: What action was taken during 2026 while the correction was pending?
An updated provincial explanation would help establish whether activities were incorporated into revised plans, whether implementation had started, and how much of the year-end 2025 balance remained available.
For residents, the practical question is what these resources were intended to deliver—whether equipment, training, preparedness measures, response support, or other approved activities—and when those benefits became available.
Volunteer insurance raises a related concern
The review also identifies a recurring concern about protection for people involved in disaster response.
In 2023, COA found no appropriation for accident insurance for disaster volunteers, according to the supplied summary.
By 2025, a ₱100,000 appropriation had been made, but premiums had not been paid. The summary states that COA reported job-order volunteers ineligible for Government Service Insurance System coverage remained uninsured.
Management explained that no emergency or disaster volunteers had been accredited with the province and that volunteers from government agencies already had GSIS coverage.
These accounts require clarification of the people and employment arrangements involved. The key questions are who was deployed, whether they served as employees, job-order personnel, or volunteers, and what insurance protection applied to each group.
The available evidence supports describing the insurance concern as identified in 2023 and raised again in 2025. It does not establish identical conditions throughout every intervening year.
Corrective action should also be recognized
The disaster-fund findings form part of a broader audit picture.
The summary reports that the province implemented 58 of 60 prior-year audit recommendations reviewed in the 2025 report. That documents substantial corrective action and should remain part of a fair assessment.
However, the implementation count does not, by itself, establish that the disaster-fund planning and volunteer-insurance concerns had been resolved. Those issues require their own supporting records and updated explanations.
Accountability involves recognizing documented improvements while following unresolved findings through to their practical results.
What the next records should establish
For the ₱62.12 million balance, the next stage of scrutiny should establish:
Subsequent utilization: How much was spent during 2026, for which activities, and with what results?
Planning corrections: Were activities funded from prior-year balances separately identified in approved or revised plans?
Implementation barriers: What prevented the use of particular balances during 2025?
Community benefits: Which locations and residents received services, equipment, training, or other support?
Responder protection: Who was deployed for disaster work, and what accreditation and insurance records cover them?
These records would allow the public to assess both the provincial government’s explanation and the results of its corrective measures.
The accountability question extends beyond the balance itself. How effectively did available disaster resources become timely, documented protection for Biliran’s communities?
TDN Budget Watch examines how local governments in Eastern Visayas plan, spend, and account for public resources. Biliran residents may share specific preparedness concerns and supporting information with TDN without publicly posting sensitive personal details.