House Bill 16-107, which was offered by Rep. Justo S. Quitugua, proposes to appropriate $51,620 for San Vicente school.
It has been unanimously passed by the House of Representatives.
According to the bill, the amount will come from various sources: $20,000 from the developers tax fund collection; $3,000 from Saipan Local Law 15-10; $10,000 from S.L.L. 15-12; $10,000 from S.L.L. 15-28; and $8,620 from the completed and closed local projects on Saipan.
Two weeks ago, reconstruction started for one of the two kindergarten classrooms which was funded by the PTA and donations received by the school.
San Vicente principal Joaquina DLG. Salas, in an earlier interview, said they were looking for funding for the renovation of the other kindergarten classroom.
“Currently,” according to Quitugua, “these classrooms are so dilapidated that they pose a significant safety hazard to the students especially the kindergarteners. In addition, the shortage of classrooms forces the school to be on a double session schedule. The conditions of the classrooms are not conducive to student learning which play a significant role in the success of students throughout their entire educational years.”
The Western Association of Schools and Colleges visiting team has urged the school to repair the dilapidated kindergarten classrooms.
Quitugua, D-Saipan, said the House members of Precincts 2 and 4 also realize the importance of addressing this concern and have each pledged $10,000 for the renovation project.
The amount will come from their local capital improvement project funds.
The bill, if becomes law, authorizes the education commissioner to be the fund’s expenditure authority in consultation with the school principal of San Vicente.
The funds cannot be reprogrammed to other purposes and an annual report is required to be submitted to the Legislature.
The co-authors of the bill are Reps. Oscar M. Babauta, Covenant-Saipan, Jose N. Camacho, R-Saipan, and David M. Apatang, R-Saipan.
