‘Tinian presents the best solution for CNMI’s economic recovery’

Edwin P. Aldan

With the increasing role Tinian plays in the U.S. military’s plans for the region and with the tourism industry still struggling to rebuild, the island presents the best solution for the economic recovery of the entire CNMI, according to Tinian and Aguiguan Mayor Edwin P. Aldan.

Speaking before the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget hearing for the Tinian municipality last Monday, Aldan said that, as it stands today, Tinian is the primary focus of the U.S. Department of Defense and national security in the region.

“So wouldn’t it make more sense for the administration and Legislature to work with the Tinian leadership to pass policy, laws, and regulations that can benefit the entire CNMI,” he said.

Aldan said all CNMI municipalities are experiencing financial and economic challenges so they need to be united now more than ever if they have any chance of rebuilding the CNMI.

In the same vein, Aldan said he shares Rota Mayor Aubry Hocog’s position to ask the Legislature not to suspend the Hotel Occupancy Tax allocation for Tinian and Rota in the fiscal year 2024 budget. He said these funds are essential for the promotion of tourism and the funding of their annual festivals and ground maintenance contracts.

Aldan again asked the House Ways and Means Committee to appropriate funding for emergency situations and provide each municipality with funding prior to or at the beginning of any emergency or disaster so they are able to procure the necessary goods and services for response and recovery. Aldan said he is sure Hocog will support this request as she recently experienced the same challenges Tinian had with Super Typhoon Yutu.

Also, he raised with the committee the need to give the mayor expenditure authority over solid waste management funds. This is a request that Aldan said he has made to the Legislature every year and is becoming increasingly important, with the increased Department of Defense exercises and projects on Tinian.

Currently, this authority lies with the Department of Public Works secretary and he said it needs to be transferred to the mayor or Tinian DPW resident department head in order for them to implement their zero waste management plan and efficiently operate the solid waste transfer station.

“Although we have lobbied to transfer this authority through legislation, we have been unsuccessful in our efforts,” said Aldan, adding that he is asking the committee to once again insert this provision in the fiscal year 2024 budget bill so Tinian can finally budget for the operations of the transfer station and resolve some their solid waste management concerns.

The most important issue facing the municipality, Aldan said, focuses on providing the municipality the authority to manage their financial resources so they can efficiently manage their operations, projects, and programs.

Essentially, he said, what he is asking is to reinstate municipal imprest accounts and that operating funds be transferred to the Tinian Department of Finance’s imprest account at the beginning of every month to allow them direct control and management of vendor payments. An online definition describes an imprest system as a form of financial accounting, with the most common being petty cash—a reserved amount that is regularly replenished.

Aldan noted that he is only requesting the transfer of funds for operations and local appropriations—not personnel. He pointed out that he is not asking to create a new division or policy, but to allow Tinian Department of Finance employees on Tinian to be given the same authority as their Saipan counterparts in order to eliminate excessive delays, confusions, and conflicts within their procurement and financial systems.