Senate to give PSS additional $1.6M to meet MOE

Senators confirmed yesterday they are poised to give the Public School System an additional $1.6 million, on top of what the House of Representatives gave them under the $134.33-million budget bill for fiscal year 2015, to be able to meet the federal Maintenance-of-Efforts requirements, reduce class sizes, and address other needs. The budget bill is still under Senate review.

“The bottom line is, the MOE has to be met first and foremost,” Senate President Ralph Torres (R-Saipan) said yesterday. “We are seriously looking at the possibility for that, yes.”

Sen. Pete Reyes (Ind-Saipan) pushed the idea of giving PSS an additional $1.6 million during a Senate leadership meeting so that PSS would be able to comply with the MOE requirements.

“The Senate leadership, led by President Torres, agreed with my recommendation. I am thankful for my colleagues for supporting this,” Reyes said.

Education Commissioner Dr. Rita Sablan asked the Senate in a July 25 letter to give PSS an additional $1.6 million. She said the House’s proposed $32.279 million disregarded PSS’ request for more funding.

However, while the Senate is poised to give PSS a total of at least $33.879 million for 2015, the House could still reject or make changes to the Senate version of the budget bill.

Reyes said the $1.6 million that will be added to PSS’ budget will be coming from a $1.7 million earmark for the Marianas Visitors Authority.

The senator, however, clarified that the House gave MVA its requested 2015 budget. He said the $1.7 million is on top of MVA’s main budget.

“So the additional earmark for MVA will not affect MVA’s main appropriation,” Reyes said, adding that some House members expressed support to the Senate’s move so long as MVA’s operations won’t be affected, considering that tourism is on the upswing.

Reyes said the leadership is still trying to get more information from Northern Marianas College, also to ensure that its 2015 budget will meet MOE requirements.

Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee chair Jovita Taimanao (Ind-Rota) has planned to meet with agencies about their 2015 budget, before recommending action to the full Senate on the budget bill.

A new budget has to be passed and signed into law by Oct. 1, or the government will have to shut down.

Historically, the House and Senate do not agree on each other’s budget bill versions so they end up forming a conference committee that hashes out the differences between the two houses and comes up with a “compromise” spending plan.