FLASHBACK – September 22, 2011

Scholarship program gets $1 million[/B]

Legislators will boost funding for the government scholarship program by about $1 million to try to deal with anticipated deficit that threatens to cut substantial financial assistance to off-island students as well as those attending the Northern Marianas College. Members of the House Ways and Means have decided to slash proposed appropriation for the purchase of new computer hardware to realign funds to the Scholarship’s Office, according to its chair Rep. Karl T. Reyes. He said the committee has identified these money as possible source for much-needed funding for financial aid provided to local students, adding that at least a million dollars is expected to be generated from such move.

Acting Gov. Jesus R. Sablan signed new three laws yesterday, including a measure granting expenditure authority to Commissioner of Education, Rita H. Inos, over close to $30 million in fresh funding for capital improvement projects of the Public School System. The two other laws, meanwhile, amend the statute that created the Board of Professional Licensing as well as the Fire Safety Code which the Legislature enacted recently. In Public Law 11-100 concerning the PSS funds, Sablan said giving spending power to Inos would avoid jeopardizing construction of the infrastructure projects that were part of an initial appropriation bill he approved last month.

Water desalination project pushed[/B]

The chair of the Senate public utilities committee has expressed support again for the much-delayed water desalination project on Saipan, which the government plans to build to ease chronic water shortages in several areas on the island. Senate Vice President Thomas P. Villagomez said he prefers this technology than the reverse osmosis plant that is now being considered by the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. Noting that residents tend to associate wastewater as dirty, he maintained it would cost the government more money to educate them when that type of technology is adopted here rather than water desalination. Reverse osmosis turns liquid waste or brackish water into potable water fit for consumption, while desalination makes use of the ocean to process them into tap water.

The Governor’s Developmental with Disabilities Council is spearheading a drive to collect 500 signatures in support of a nationwide petition to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The council is currently routing the petition in various public and private agencies, hoping to gather more signatures that could push President Clinton and the U.S. Congress to increase the current IDEA federal funding from 13 to 40 percent. According to the National Campaign to Fully Fund the IDEA group, the 13 percent federal share falls far short of the funds needed to assist states and territories in providing special education and related services to students with disabilities.

Bill eyes exemption to moratorium law[/B]

The House of Representatives has passed a bill amending the moratorium law to enable persons with disabilities to hire nonresident workers as full-time house workers or chauffeurs. The lower chamber passed Friday House Bill 13-333, recognizing that lifting the moratorium on the hiring of new nonresident workers would have minimal impact on the local employment picture as there are few resident workers who are interested in applying for these positions. The bill, introduced by Rep. Herman T. Palacios, is an amendatory measure to the moratorium law, Public Law 11-6, and the Omnibus Labor and Business Reform statute, Public Law 12-11.

A bill that would enable CNMI taxpayers to expect a more timely release of their refund and rebate checks now goes to the Senate for similar passage after the lower chamber passed the measure in Friday’s session. The House of Representatives voted to pass House Bill 13-328, which would create a special account for income tax withheld, with the restriction that the money can only be used to disburse rebate and refund payments. The proposed measure, also known as the CNMI Income Tax Special Account Act of 2003, came about after its proponents determined that, while taxpayers are remitting their income tax timely, the government continues to delay the compensation of taxpayers’ tax refunds and rebates.