A Tinian resident, who declined to be identified, said the “inaction” of the mayor and the island’s other elected officials is “disappointing and disheartening.”
The retroactive salaries mandated by a 1991 law amount to $520,913.84 and will benefit over 100 Tinian employees, most of whom are already retirees while some have already passed away, the resident said.
Mayor Ramon M. Dela Cruz has yet to respond to this reporter’s request for comment.
Rep. Trenton B. Conner, R-Tinian, on Friday said he talked with Alan Perez, the chief of staff of the mayor, regarding the retroactive salary issue.
“There’s a shortfall in the local budget,” Conner said, quoting Perez.
According to the lawmaker, the current collections are not enough to pay for the retroactive salaries.
Variety learned that the Tinian municipal government received $1.7 million in license fees and taxes from the casino this year.
But Conner said the collections were used to pay the salaries of the current employees of the casino commission, the municipal treasury and the youth center.
