The $156.7 million Senate budget version for fiscal year 2009 proposes to shut down government offices every other Friday on at least 10 occasions and an additional 13 unpaid holidays will be observed during the period.
These provisions, which will cut payroll by 184 hours, however, are still subject to change when the House and the Senate convene a conference committee.
Sen. Maria Frica T. Pangelinan, D-Saipan and chairwoman of the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee, said the Legislature wants to place priority on basic services of health, safety and education.
She said the proposed austerity holidays will be fewer than what the Fitial administration originally proposed.
“Each austerity day will have a reduction of $200,000 in costs and be available for appropriation. Other options will mean, cutting personnel costs (firing people) cut ‘all others’ limiting basic services provided to the taxpayers. I don’t believe the businesses will agree to additional increases in taxes and fees during this time of world financial crisis affecting everyone,” the senator said in an e-mail.
“Regardless, we hope for a conference committee, if the House will reject the Senate Substitute, and hope to have a budget for FY 2009,” she added.
The other highlights of the Senate budget version are:
• Narrows the gap between the full-time employee ceilings and the number of persons actually employed.
• Preserves current levels of employment, using attrition as the means for incremental reductions in personnel costs.
• Controls personnel costs through a salary and hiring freeze government-wide, with consideration given to long-term employees.
• Restricts the instigation of legal action between government entities.
• Creates an avenue by which the Retirement Fund can lift its ban on releasing benefits to employees applying for retirement.
• Specifies appropriation for utility costs and protects them from reprogramming, ensuring that the government can pay the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.
FY 2009 officially began on Oct. 1.
The government currently operates under the revised FY 2007 budget ceiling of $163.5.
No budget was passed for FY 2008.
