By Moneth G. Deposa
Variety News Staff

THE House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare has rejected a request from the Board of Education for additional compensation, saying that no special privileges will be accorded to any government entity or commission “especially in this time of economic difficulty.”
Vice Speaker Justo S. Quitugua, D-Saipan and vice chairman of the committee, said BOE’s request is “not advisable and not advantageous to the government.”
According to Speaker Oscar M. Babauta, Covenant-Saipan, “We understand that BOE is among the boards and commissions that have heavier workloads and are working hard for our schools. But since they are board members elected by the people…they also know that part of their civic duty is voluntarism for our students. We cannot just give them a special privilege, when in fact…other commissions and boards are not seeking additional compensation.”
Quitugua said the committee has disapproved BOE’s request because “a unified rate is in place for all agencies and BOE will not be exempted.”
He said granting BOE an exemption could lead to the same abuses that P.L. 15-32, or the Boards and Commissions Compensation Reform Act of 2006, is trying to address.
“We want to reduce or minimize the abuse of public funds, especially in light of the audit reports that we have been receiving. So to prevent such practices, we have P.L. 15-32. And if we exempt one agency or department we’re only opening ourselves up to abuses,” Quitugua said, adding that the law was based on an Office of the Public Auditor recommendation.
BOE has said that the application of a uniform rate for all boards and commission in the CNMI hampers its ability to conduct business and serve the more than 16,000 students on Saipan, Rota and Tinian.
Early last month, BOE Chairman Roman Benavente asked lawmakers to exempt the board from P.L. 15-32, which states that the compensation of board members and commissions should not exceed $60,000 a year or, for each member, no more than $60 for a full day meeting and no more than $30 for a half day or less meeting.
BOE said the Legislature should consider the amount of time and work board members perform for the Public School System.