THE current administration says its predecessor should be lauded for reducing the deficit and implementing spending controls.
Then Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio’s expenditure controls reduced the deficit by 15 percent, Gov. Juan N. Babauta said.
“I commend the former governor for his expenditure controls and I salute him for his tremendous efforts,” Babauta said.
It was a “big accomplishment,” according to Lt. Gov. Diego T. Benavente.
When Tenorio began his third term in office in 1998, the government’s deficit stood at an all-time high of $80.608 million.
He then implemented austerity and belt-tightening measures, reducing the deficit by 15 percent or to $68.287 million in FY 1999.
If the current spending controls would meet the administration’s goals, the $20 million projected deficit spending in FY 2002 will be prevented, Benavente said.
However, the previous administration expected the FY 2002 revenue to reach $206 million, but the new administration found out later that only $193 million could be collected.
This may lead to deficit spending “because we already started at a much higher level than what we actually would receive,” Benavente said.
