By Gerardo R. Partido
Variety News Staff

THE Guam Public School System has agreed to integrate its financial system with the Department of Administration to “weather” the financial hardship facing the island’s public education sector.
Last Friday, GPSS again nearly had a “payless payday” as GPSS Superintendent Luis S.N. Reyes refused to issue checks unless the gross pay of GPSS employees was fully covered.
However, acting Gov. Michael Cruz invoked the Organic Act and ordered the release of the paychecks.
The administration and GPSS have been at loggerheads over the money remitted to the public school system.
GPSS maintains that DOA has not been remitting enough funds in a timely manner, while the administration insists that it has been sending adequate funding.
Things came to a head when Gov. Felix P. Camacho, in his State of the Island Address last week, asked GPSS to return the accounting and cash management aspects of GPSS operations back to DOA.
“It is obvious that the lack of controls and oversight has led to some questionable expenditures and a seeming disregard for the cash realities the government faces. Decisions by the school system clearly emphasize the need for greater accountability in the way funds are spent and allocated,” the governor said.
He added that the administration needs the authority to work side by side with the school system to analyze GPSS’s true needs and help it prioritize spending to ensure that the funds given make it into the classrooms and to the vendors.
Since the governor’s speech, GPSS has been holding meetings with DOA and the Bureau of Budget and Management Research to discuss the governor’s proposal.
In a letter sent to the governor, Reyes said he is open to working with DOA to streamline and improve GPSS’s finances.
Reyes noted that the governor’s proposal mirrors the recommendation made by Dr. Steve Medlin, a consultant for the federal government, who recommended that GPSS and DOA integrate business functions by utilizing a common financial management system while preserving some level of independence for GPSS.
“With a united front, the sharing of ideas and resources by GPSS and DOA, if done collaboratively and executed well, could be a great blessing,” Reyes said.
Reyes has already instructed GPSS finance and legal officials to immediately begin working with DOA to create a memorandum of understanding to expedite the integration process.
“Together, I am sure we will weather this time of financial hardship in the government while at the same time ensuring that the students of Guam receive adequate education,” Reyes said.