DOI: Compact fund for PSS not connected with ‘05 polls

Office of Insular Affairs Deputy Assistant Secretary David Cohen said that his office’s review and approval of the CNMI’s Compact Impact fund use for Public School System is not dependent on the result of the Nov. 5 general elections.

“The timing of the election has no connection at all. We’ll approve it in due course,” said Cohen on the grant proposal submitted by the Babauta administration for $5.1 million Compact Impact fund use for PSS.

Babauta, whose re-election bid is uncertain given his ranking in the Nov. 5 elections, earlier proposed that in the next four years, all Compact Impact money totaling over $20 million would be spent for PSS projects.

The incumbent governor, who sought re-election with Lt. Gov. Diego T. Benavente under the Republican Party, has received 3,228 or 269 votes short of leading candidate, Covenant Party’s Benigno R. Fitial with 3,497 and 143 votes shy of second-leading candidate, Rep. Heinz S. Hofschneider with 3,371.

The final votes would be determined on Nov. 19 when the Election Commission tabulates the absentee ballots.

The poll body issued 1,602 ballots to overseas voters.

Meantime, government officials said that if Babauta loses, PSS is not assured that it would be getting the annual allocation in the next four years since a plan of action is submitted by the leadership to OIA every year.

“If there’s a new governor, the Compact Impact money might go elsewhere,” said an official.

The application that is pending review at OIA right now, the official said, is for 2006 use of PSS.

It was expected that OIA would be able to approve the release of funds on Oct. 1 this year.

In an earlier interview, Cohen said the perceived delay should not be misinterpreted as an indication of any problem or possible disapproval.

“The proposal is with my staff, who are reviewing it thoroughly. We have requirements; once we have satisfied ourselves in that, we will allow the release of the money. It shouldn’t take too long to happen,” he said.

Meantime, the Governor’s Office has confirmed that the 2005 Compact Impact money had been directed to the Department of Public Health and the Department of Public Safety.

The 2005 funds was originally intended for PSS but the latter “took too long” to prepare its projects.”

Babauta and the Board of Education first agreed to use the Compact money solely for PSS beginning 2005.

The agreement was for PSS to arrange the necessary contracts for the repair of schools during summer of 2005 or when students are not in school.

“But it took PSS six months to pick A&E [contracts]. In the meantime, the $5.1 million was sitting idle. It couldn’t stay there forever so it was used instead for DPH which is underfunded and DPS,” said an official speaking on condition of anonymity.

The annual Compact funding of $5.1 million is the CNMI’s share in the $30 million federal appropriation to compensate territories on FAS migration-related costs.

The Compact legislation provides that $30 million be divided each year for the next 20 years among the CNMI, Guam, Hawaii, and American Samoa to help these jurisdictions deal with the effects of migration from the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands, which are commonly known as the freely associated states.

The funds are to be divided proportionally among the jurisdictions on the basis of the number of people in each jurisdiction who migrated from FAS after 1986, when the original Compacts of Free Association between the United States and the island governments went into effect.