General-account budget requests from government ministries and agencies for fiscal 2001 are likely to total about 84 trillion yen, exceeding the 80 trillion yen mark for the third year in a row, government sources said Tuesday.

The budget for fiscal 2001, which starts next April 1, will be comparable to the current year's initial budget of 84.99 trillion yen, with the aim of helping boost an economy gradually moving toward a self-sustaining recovery.

The government has been maintaining an expansionary fiscal policy to stimulate the economy despite a deterioration in the nation's financial situation.

The government also plans to compile a supplementary budget for fiscal 2000 after the release of gross domestic product data for the April-June quarter, which will be announced in early September.

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori expressed his intention earlier this month to compile an extra budget to cover areas such as environmental degradation and the promotion of information technology.

As for the fiscal 2001 budget, requests for general expenditures on policy programs are likely to amount to around 48.5 trillion yen, up more than 2 percent from the initial budget for the current fiscal year.

Requests for public works will also be comparable to the initial budget for fiscal 2000, at about 9.4 trillion yen.

Each ministry and agency will submit its budget requests, excluding those related to next January's reorganization of government bodies, by the end of this year.