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Over-the-cap request withdrawn
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Posted on Mar 03 2006
The Fitial administration has formally withdrawn a request for an over-the-cap salary for one of its appointees.
Linda T. Cabrera, special assistant for programs and legislative review, wrote the Legislature to recall a Feb. 14, 2006, letter sent by then acting Gov. Timothy P. Villagomez asking the lawmakers to certify an over-the-ceiling salary for John P. Del Rosario Jr.
Del Rosario is the governor’s senior policy adviser. He has also been appointed to serve as the interim secretary of the Department of Public Lands, which replaces the newly abolished Marianas Public Lands Authority.
“Please note…that this administration’s policy toward salary cap is to remain within the salary cap and that request was an oversight, and therefore, with the instruction of the Governor, we are recalling this particular memorandum,” Cabrera told Senate President Joseph M. Mendiola and House Speaker Oscar M. Babauta in a Feb. 23 letter.
Villagomez had told the Legislature that, after diligent search, the administration had been unable to find anyone technically qualified to fill the position of senior policy adviser.
He had also informed the lawmakers that he had approved to waive the $50,000 salary set for Del Rosario’s position. The waiver would have allowed Del Rosario to receive a salary of $54,000 a year.
The cash-strapped government has put in place different austerity measures, including a ban on over-the-cap salaries.
The administration is also now looking into the possibility of cutting the workhours of government employees. The proposed 32-hour workweek is expected to apply to employees earning more than $20,000 a year.
Cabinet members are also facing a likely 10- to 20-percent cut in their salaries. With most Cabinet members earning $50,000 a year, the cut could amount to $5,000 to $10,000 annually.
All government agencies also stand to get their budgets reduced by 18.7 percent in view of a $15-million reduction in the government’s revenue projection for fiscal year 2006, as well as the $24.4 million subsidy required by the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.
