Previous Story
Legislature starts budget hearings for Public Works, Fire and EMS
The House Committee on Ways and Means will start today a series of budget hearings for the different government departments and offices at the House of Representatives’ chamber on Capital Hill.
The first agency to face the committee is the Department of Public Works today, May 5, followed by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services on Wednesday, May 6.
On Thursday, the committee will tackle the budget for the Saipan Mayor’s Office.
Rep. Antonio Sablan (R-Saipan), who chairs the committee, earlier said the “bigger” government agencies will have first crack on the budget hearings.
It will be a juggling act for lawmakers, as the funding requests of the departments exceed the proposed budget of $145.8 million by $38.7 million.
Sablan earlier said this means not all government departments will get the exact budget that they requested. Sablan said his committee will have to sit down with the departments and find out how to “help” these departments.
Gov. Eloy S. Inos submitted a budget proposal of $145.8 million to the Legislature, representing an increase of $11.5 million, or 8.55 percent, from the budget of the previous fiscal year.
After adjusting for debt service appropriations, earmarked funds, and other legal obligations, the net resources available for general appropriations is $145.82 million, Inos said.
The budget was derived from the gross budgetary resources reported by the Secretary of Finance for fiscal year 2016 at $183.55 million.
Of that amount, 37 percent ($68 million) came from business gross revenue tax, while 21 percent ($38 million) came from income taxes. Excise taxes contributed 18 percent ($32.4 million) of the gross budget, while “other taxes” pitched in 13 percent ($24.6 million).
Licenses and fees contributed 7 percent ($13.3 million), while charges for services and other revenue contributed 4 percent ($7.2 million) combined.
