He said it was formed in response to the administration’s need to maintain the management of the ARRA funds, which Ada performed as Commerce secretary.
He said when he advised the administration about his intent to resign, he was asked if he would consider to stay just to manage the ARRA funds.
He said he told the administration that if it wished to retain his services, “they would have to do so in a professional service capacity.”
Ada said before he resigned, the ARRA office completed a report and responded to the questions of the various grantors.
The ARRA office under his leadership was also in the middle of getting the maintenance of effort waiver approved for the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund, for which Ada said he had been going “back and forth” with the U.S. Department of Education.
Ada said if the administration didn’t retain his services, the CNMI would not be in compliance with several grant conditions.
He said Gov. Benigno R. Fitial contacted the Office of Public Auditor upon learning that he, Ada, was leaving the government.
He said Fitial was concerned that if the contract was put out to bid, the CNMI, for at least two months, would not have someone knowledgeable on everything that was going on with ARRA funds.
This, Ada said, would have risked the millions of dollars in ARRA grants for teachers, the Department Public Safety, the Department of Public Health, the Department of Public Works, the Division of Energy, several other projects and programs.
“I know many people may question this contract because it was sole sourced,” Ada said. “However, the administration went through the proper channels to ensure that it was justifiable.”
There is no other firm or individual in the CNMI, or the region for that matter, that knows all the different issues and intricacies of the ARRA funding and grants, he added.
He said the funds used to cover the cost of his contract is the administrative rate that is allowed by federal rules.
“I am taking the ARRA staff and moving them into the private sector. If anyone has any question, I invite them to contact me directly so that I may clear any misconceptions,” he said.
The administration said Ada remains the CNMI’s state lead for ARRA funds.
Fitial said Ada is “the lone individual in the CNMI with the historical and current knowledge and skill set required to manage the ARRA funds awarded to the commonwealth.”
Fitial said Ada no longer wanted to be an employee of the CNMI government.
However, the governor said he asked Ada to remain as the CNMI’s state lead.
The governor said he requested OPA for guidance in maintaining Ada on a contractual capacity to manage the entire ARRA operations.
He said OPA agreed with him with respect to Ada’s qualifications.
Fitial said his office executed a contract with Ada’s Integrated Professional Solutions LLC in the amount of $392,406 for a period of 18 months to manage ARRA operations.
There are 18 months left for the implementation of the ARRA program pursuant to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
“This contract was to essentially privatize the ARRA management to Ada’s company as a professional contractor.
Under the terms of the contract, IPS will absorb the government employees paid under the ARRA office, covering payroll, benefits, and all other related expenses associated with operating the office. Many jurisdictions across the nation have outsourced the management of their ARRA funds to large consulting firms; however the CNMI was not in a financial position to follow suit at the onset of the ARRA program,” Fitial said.
Press Secretary Angel A. Demapan said to prevent any loss of federal dollars to the commonwealth, the Fitial administration had to move quickly on the contract because in the absence of a contractual agreement with Ada, there would be no state lead for ARRA projects.
“This is of particular concern because Ada was required to respond to inquiries on the recently completed reports from federal grantors, as well as work with the U.S. Department of Education on getting the [maintenance of effort] wavier approved. Ada is the only one with the understanding of what has been going on with these federal grantors. The funds used to cover the contractual agreement are derived from the allowable administrative rate that the CNMI uses to administer the ARRA program,” he said.
