The Colombian government issued the 2027 budget by decree, setting it at 634.9 trillion pesos (about US$201 billion), after an error in the legislative process prevented its approval from being completed in Congress.
The decision allows the executive branch to ensure state funding for the coming year, but it also changes the allocation of some public resources and highlights the political consequences of a process that ended without the reconciliation required between the two chambers.
The episode cost Interior Minister Rodrigo Lara his job amid controversy over responsibility for the legislative failure and difficulties coordinating between President Abelardo de la Espriella’s government and Congress.
Although the budget had received approval from the Senate and the House of Representatives, differences between the versions passed by each chamber prevented the process from being completed within the legal deadline. The executive branch then turned to the mechanism provided for under the Organic Budget Statute to issue the budget by decree.
Colombia approves 2027 budget by decree
The problem originated in Article 65 of the budget bill. The Senate withdrew a motion to amend that section, but the House ultimately approved the text with the amendment included. The discrepancy required the two versions to be reconciled, a procedure that was not completed before the legal deadline expired.
The government invoked Article 59 of the Organic Budget Statute, which allows the executive’s original budget proposal, incorporating amendments approved during the first debate, to take effect when Congress fails to enact the budget within the established deadline.
The executive branch argued that lawmakers had neither rejected nor defeated the budget, but that its approval had been derailed by a procedural inconsistency. The episode nevertheless triggered mutual accusations: some officials blamed the bill’s sponsors for including the amendment in the wrong section of the text, while senators questioned how the Finance Ministry had handled the information.
Rodrigo Lara’s abrupt departure ultimately reflected the political cost of the crisis. The incident weakened the government’s standing in Congress and placed under pressure the institutional coordination needed to advance its main legislative initiatives.
El presidente @ABDELAESPRIELLA expidió el Decreto 1599 de 2026, mediante el cual se adopta el Presupuesto de la Verdad para 2027, por $634,9 billones, con las modificaciones aprobadas en primer debate.
https://t.co/FiT4H5tvrf https://t.co/m4WULdJSJs
— MinHacienda (@MinHacienda) October 23, 2026
Less funding to address El Niño
Issuing the budget by decree does not substantially change its overall size, but it does affect the allocation of certain budget items. According to the Fiscal Observatory at Javeriana University, Colombia will have 3 trillion pesos less (approximately US$950 million) available to address the effects of the El Niño climate phenomenon in 2027 than it would have received if the bill had completed the ordinary legislative process.
The analysis also highlights changes to additional funding earmarked for health care and budget items related to earthquake response and debt operations. These differences reflect the decision to retain the budget allocation established during the first debate rather than incorporate adjustments that could have emerged from reconciliation between the Senate and the House.
Overall, investment spending would increase by 1.2 trillion pesos (approximately US$380 million) compared with the government’s initial proposal, while operating expenses would decrease by the same amount. Debt servicing, meanwhile, would remain unchanged from the original proposal.
Health care gains funding as Finance ministry faces largest cut
Among sector-specific allocations, the health sector would receive an additional 2 trillion pesos (approximately US$635 million) compared with the government’s initial proposal, although it would lose another 3 trillion pesos (about US$950 million) that Congress initially approved to strengthen funding for the EPS [private companies that manage the health care system].
By contrast, the Finance Ministry would face the largest reduction, with a cut of 3.6 trillion pesos (about US$1.14 billion). Budget allocations would also increase for Congress, the Labor Ministry, the National Civil Registry, and oversight agencies. These adjustments were incorporated during the first debate and included in the budget issued by decree.
The changes are even more pronounced when 2027 allocations are compared with those of the previous year. According to the Fiscal Observatory, the Equality and Equity and Presidency sectors would see cuts of 98% and 77%, respectively. Conversely, Social Inclusion would receive a 78% increase, while debt servicing would rise by 46%.
The 2027 budget ultimately maintains an allocation that combines funding for public services, financial obligations, and government investment amid mounting pressure on the country’s public finances.
Although the 2026 budget was also approved by decree, in that case by President Gustavo Petro’s government, the current administration’s parliamentary majority meant that this procedure should have been unnecessary. Nevertheless, a procedural error once again forced the government to resort to it, with consequences for the De la Espriella administration.
