The chairwoman of the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee, Pangelinan tracked down all the spending measures, including pending bills, that cited the tobacco control fund as their funding source.
In a six-page report, she said some already existing appropriations were not funded in fiscal years 2008 and 2009 due to lack of revenue.
“Also note that the total of the appropriations exceeds the $1,225,000 credited into the tobacco control fund in Public Law 16-32, the FY 2009 budget, and also exceeds the balance of $1,063,882 available in Exhibit A attached to House Bill 16-241,” she said.
She recommends “to ‘wipe the slate clean’ by gathering together all existing laws that are receiving any funding from the tobacco control fund (preferably by working with the Department of Finance), and working together to repeal some and amend others so that revenues are not exceeded by appropriations.”
Pay Aetna first
One of the critical appropriations, she added, is the $122,630 that must be paid to Aetna no later than June 26, 2009.
Aetna is the third-party administrator of the government’s health insurance program.
“The other appropriations might be reduced to realistic levels therefore making room for paying Aetna, or making Aetna the first appropriation to be funded and at 100 percent,” said Pangelinan, D-Saipan.
She said the assistance of the legal counsels from both houses is needed to help clean up the tobacco fund appropriation mess.
“I do not know which [of the pending] House bills should be amended or whether an amendment is needed. Perhaps this is the appropriate time to stop the continuing appropriation and prioritize programs based on each fiscal year projection. If a program could wait for funding to be available, then it must not be an important or accountable program,” she added.
“I recommend that the Senate hold passage of H.B. 16-241, HD1 and H.B. 16-247 until the legal counsels come up with recommendation to either amend or not amend any of the subject bills passed by the House and what options are available to prioritize the Aetna payment.”
