The 20 percent budget cut will sacrifice programs, reduce work hours or even reduce his office’s workforce, Saipan Mayor Donald G. Flores said.
He is urging senators to retain his current spending level of $1.59 million. The governor has proposed $909,587 for his office, which the House of Representatives approved.
In his letter to Senate President Paul A. Manglona, Ind.-Rota, and Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee Chairwoman Jovita S. Taimanao, Ind.-Rota, Flores said.
Under House Bill 17-215, HS1, HD5, or the budget measure, the mayor said his office is expected to deliver services to the public on a $153,499 operations budget, which reflects a 33 percent cut.
Such a budget level will carry his operations cost at least eight months into the next fiscal year, he said.
“This is a very significant reduction on our operations budget in light of the scope of responsibilities that our office is statutorily charged with to perform. And we do not foresee requests by the public for services declining anytime,” Flores said.
His office’s tasks include delivery of water to residents who still do not have access to water, repair of washed out secondary road, clearing of roads heavily covered by overgrown vegetation that poses a risk to vehicular and pedestrian traffic safety, the removal or trimming of trees that pose risk to public safety, among other public services.
Flores said the House bill also reduces his personnel budget to 6.5 percent which is equivalent to $53,080.
“Our effort to administer an effective animal control project hinges on making sure we have the personnel for it. By reducing our personnel budget by 6.5 percent and deleting the number of positions we added to our fiscal year 2012 budget, our effort will be hampered,” he said.
He said without an adequate number of personnel, services will be severely impacted and the public will be frustrated in the end.
Flores also told the senators that because the House Committee on Ways and Means failed to conduct a budget hearing with the mayor’s office, the budget bill lacks any accurate representation of their concerns, needs and struggles.
“The least we expected from the chair was for him to listen to the departments and agencies, inclusive of our office, to learn the struggles and challenges each has had to endure during the current fiscal year,” he said, referring to Rep. Ramon S. Basa, Covenant-Saipan.
If a budget hearing was conducted, he said, it would have identified programs and expenditures that might only need partial funding, Flores said.
