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House committee adopts $149.5M proposed ‘budget bill’
The House Committee on Ways and Means adopted a $149.5-million “budget bill” for fiscal year 2016, which is slightly higher than the government’s earlier proposal of $145.8 million.
Rep. Antonio P. Sablan (Ind-Saipan), chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means pre-filed House Bill 19-86 or the “Appropriations and Budget Authority Act of 2016” last Wednesday.
A House session is expected to be convened soon by House Speaker Joseph P. Deleon Guerrero (Ind-Saipan) to approve the draft bill.
“We just passed the draft budget. It will be presented to the whole body and if approved, will be transmitted to the Senate,” Sablan earlier said.
The House Committee on Ways and Means in the last few weeks has been conducting budget deliberations for the government departments in the CNMI.
Sablan said as expected, most of the agencies wanted more than what was proposed.
During the deliberations, committee members looked at the personnel requirements of the various departments, as well as possible sources of budget allocations on the balance sheets.
Some of the biggest CNMI departments, meanwhile, are scheduled to appear before the Senate chamber for the budget hearings.
The Department of Finance is scheduled on July 7 at 9:30am, while the Department of Public Safety is scheduled on the same day at 2pm. The CNMI Medical Referral Program is scheduled on July 9 at 9:30am, while the Department of Public Works is scheduled on the same day at 2pm.
The Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. is expected to have a budget hearing on July 15 at 9:30am, while the Public School System is scheduled on July 14 at 9:30am.
