TO ACCOMODATE INCREASE House may trim down Legislature’s budget

The House of Representatives may reallocate over half million dollars added into the Legislature’s budget for the next fiscal year to other priority programs of the government, acting Speaker Oscar M. Babauta said yesterday.

But he welcomed the move by Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio to hike up its proposed spending level to $7.9 million under the revised budget he submitted on Monday to lawmakers for their approval.

“We certainly welcomed the additional funds to the Legislature. However, the [Ways and Means] committee will be looking at the previous level that we have. If the committee is content, we may channel those funds… and maybe help other agencies that are in dire need [of more funding],” he told reporters in an interview at yesterday’s Liberation Day parade.

Under the revised FY 2001 budget proposal, the governor shifted about $1 million from repayment of the anticipated $60 million bond float to the legislative and judicial branches as well as to Rota and Tinian and some government programs.

The Legislature got an additional $577,729 on top of the $7.4 million it had initially received when Mr. Tenorio unveiled the proposed spending package last April. The courts, on the other hand, received $148,861 more from its earlier $4.9 million budget share.

These funds were chopped off by the administration from the bond repayment as its issuance, undertaken by the Commonwealth Development Authority, has been pushed back later than anticipated. The $60 million proceeds will be used to finance various capital improvement projects on the islands.

If passed by lawmakers, the proposed $7.9 million budget will exceed the $7.7 million sought last March by the House for the legislative funding for the current fiscal year. The governor, however, vetoed the FY 2000 budget last month.

Meanwhile, Mr. Babauta reiterated commitment by the lower house to expedite passage of the new budget with plans to hold joint review with the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee.

The Ways and Means Committee will also meet with heads of departments and agencies to discuss their funding requirement before drawing up a budget proposal acceptable to the House and to the administration.

It will also seek meetings with the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Public Auditor and the Department of Finance to ensure that what they will approve will meet the anticipated revenues.

The revised budget has set general appropriations level at $217.25 million which will oil government operations from October 1, 2000 to September 30, 2001, while total resources are pegged at $226.24 million, including public land leases.

Although there has no specific action yet on the administration’s proposal, Mr. Babauta stressed that they will thoroughly review not only the local resources, but also federal grants that will be extended to the Commonwealth for the next fiscal year.

“We have yet to go through our local resources, but we are going to be reviewing the total federal grants that departments and agencies will be receiving in this fiscal year,” he said.

The House is targeting passage of the FY 2001 budget by late this month or early August. Its regular session resumes on July 17.