Ten members were in favor and eight were opposed. The override required 14 votes.
Those who voted against the override were House Floor Leader Joseph N. Camacho, R-Saipan, Minority Leader Oscar M. Babauta, Covenant-Saipan, Reps. David M. Apatang, R-Saipan, Francisco S. Dela Cruz, Covenant-Saipan, Justo S. Quitugua, D-Saipan, Raymond D. Palacios, Covenant-Saipan, Stanley T. Torres, R-Saipan, and Ramon A. Tebuteb, R-Saipan.
The representatives of Rota and Tinian — Victor B. Hocog, an Independent member, and Edwin P. Aldan of the Covenant Party — were not present.
Rep. Tina Sablan, Ind.-Saipan, said she was disappointed by her colleagues’ failure to “move on the right direction.”
The failure to override the governor’s veto is a failure for the CNMI people, she said.
This failure, she added, will have serious consequences for public services and the government’s ability to plan for the rest of the fiscal year.
Sablan said records have shown that the administration, since Jan. 2008, has already certified nearly 200 vacant positions despite lawmakers’ calls to trim the size of government and require it to live within its means.
“Even on this day, the governor certified more positions, including those for PIO and community outreach director,” she said. “This is why we should have [overriden the veto] and [imposed] immediate spending controls and pass a new budget that reflects the true figures.”
The governor vetoed the $156 million budget bill, saying that the revenue projection has dropped to $148 million.
Rep. Ed T. Salas, R-Saipan, said overriding the governor’s veto puts a cap on government spending.
“By not overriding it, we will be back to the continuing budget resolution of $164 million. That’s scary because the projection is only $148 million this fiscal year,” he told Variety.
Salas also expressed dissatisfaction with the figures used in the budget.
“The figures given to us were inaccurate,” he said, noting disparity between the numbers provided by the administration and those approved by the Legislature.
Salas said the government has already spent $47 million just for the first quarter of the fiscal year.
“By the end of FY 2009, based on this expenditure level, we’re looking at an $188 million overall spending,” he added.
The override, he said, is essential because the government cannot afford to operate under the continuing resolution.
Rep. Heinz S. Hofschneider, R-Saipan, said the government must have a new budget to prevent the financial “abuses” and “excesses” of the administration.
But Rep. Dave M. Apatang, R-Saipan, said he objected to the override because he wanted to see the passage of a “true” budget.
He asked colleagues to defer voting on the override until after a meeting with the administration.
“I request that we meet with the secretary of finance to know the actual budget,” Apatang said.
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, noted that since July last year, lawmakers have been meeting with administration officials regarding the “same budget issues.”
