Golkar Flags Fiscal ‘Alarm’ in Bangli’s 2026 Revised Budget Debate

Bangli, Bali — The Golkar faction in the Bangli Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) has tabled 11 critical notes on Bangli’s draft revised 2026 regional budget (R-APBD Perubahan 2026), highlighting what it calls a fiscal “alarm” over the regency’s continued dependence on central government transfers.

The concerns were delivered in a plenary session on Friday, 11 September 2026, when DPRD factions presented their general views on the proposed budget changes. Golkar spokesperson I Nengah Darsana said the revised budget should function as a policy instrument geared to clear outputs and outcomes for residents, not merely a technical adjustment to spending plans.

According to Golkar’s presentation, the revised budget was discussed against a backdrop of declining overall revenue and spending compared with the original 2026 budget, as previously set out in the regent’s financial note. The regent had disclosed that transfer revenue was projected to fall from around Rp974 billion to about Rp951 billion in the revision, reinforcing the need to strengthen locally generated revenue (pendapatan asli daerah, PAD).

Golkar framed this composition as a fiscal warning for Bangli and urged the administration to reduce reliance on central transfers by systematically improving PAD collection and broadening the local tax base.

Spending, infrastructure and village funding

On the expenditure side, Golkar questioned whether the planned budget changes would translate into better public services. The faction argued that the reported increase in total spending in the draft should be assessed by its outputs and outcomes rather than by the rate of budget absorption, echoing concerns raised more broadly in DPRD discussions on the revised budget.

One of Golkar’s key points was the jump in capital expenditure. The faction noted that capital spending in Bangli’s 2026 budget framework had been raised from roughly Rp138 billion to more than Rp165 billion, a rise of over Rp26 billion, with the additional funds slated mainly for roads, networks and irrigation. Golkar called for these allocations to be directed towards priority needs such as road improvements, irrigation, education facilities, health services and other basic infrastructure.

The faction also asked the regional government to explain a cut in village financial assistance. Golkar said the allocation for village aid had been reduced from Rp131 billion to Rp100 billion, a decrease of 23.56 percent, and requested a public justification for the change.

In its seven detailed notes, Golkar grouped its concerns around revenue, spending performance, infrastructure, village support, data quality, staffing and public assets. It pressed the administration to reconcile figures and percentages across budget documents, including a discrepancy in the reported percentage increase in PAD in the regent’s submission.

Staffing and official residence

Golkar also raised questions about the continued recruitment of non-state civil servants (non-ASN), or contract workers, in several regional work units. The faction urged the administration to base staffing decisions on transparent workload analyses while still taking humanitarian considerations into account, in line with broader budget committee notes on personnel management and fiscal capacity.

Another concern involved the planned construction of an official residence for the regional head. Golkar asked the government to clarify the urgency and direct public benefit of the project, given Bangli’s constrained fiscal position and competing infrastructure priorities.

Following the DPRD’s initial critiques, including Golkar’s 11 notes, the Bangli administration later responded in a separate session, addressing issues such as village roads, transfer dependence, reduced village assistance, staffing needs and the proposed official residence. Subsequent deliberations between the budget committee (Banggar) and the regional government team (TAPD) led to formal approval of the revised 2026 budget, which was set at around Rp1.24–1.25 trillion with a higher capital expenditure allocation and lower overall spending compared with the original budget.

Broader budget pressures

Bangli’s 2026 budget revision debate reflects wider challenges faced by Indonesian regional governments that depend heavily on intergovernmental transfers to finance services and infrastructure. In Bangli’s case, the regent and DPRD factions acknowledged declining transfer revenue, a need to raise PAD, and pressure to preserve road and irrigation projects while tightening other spending lines.

How far Golkar’s recommendations reshape future allocations and implementation requirements will depend on ongoing monitoring of capital projects, village funding and staffing reforms as the approved revised budget is executed through the remainder of the 2026 fiscal year.

Sources

• Tribun-Bali
• Media Indonesia News
• NusaBali
• Bali Post