THE administration may have to reclassify the positions of some appointees who will receive salaries above the cap, said Rep. Stanley T. Torres, the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means.
House Speaker Heinz S. Hofschneider, R-Saipan, recently requested Torres to look into all the certifications on the lifting of the salary cap transmitted by the Office of the Governor to the Legislature.
“At the (beginning) of our review of the certifications of positions, the committee found some inconsistencies in hiring due to the lifting of the salary cap. The governor needs to reclassify all those positions and inform the Legislature so that it can look into the correct procedures,” said Torres, R-Saipan.
But the lawmaker stressed that reclassifying positions should be justified and should not be done to circumvent the law.
Torres also asked if Governor Juan N. Babauta “is getting the correct advice from his legal advisers.”
“I don’t know who his legal advisers are. He may not be getting the correct advice,” he said.
Based on copies of certifications for annual salary in excess of the cap set by the Compensation Adjustment Act, at least four individuals received salaries higher than the salary cap.
For instance, Torres said an individual appointed as the governor’s executive secretary could not receive $45,000 as P.L. 7-31 mandates that salaries of secretaries should not exceed $30,000 per annum.
Based on the governor’s certification dated March 15, 2002, Celina R. Babauta as executive secretary will receive $45,000.
Torres said this discrepancy could be corrected by reclassifying the position.
Based on records from the Office of the Governor, Celina R. Babauta as executive secretary of Lt. Gov. Jesus C. Borja received $35,000. The salary rate of a paralegal assistant during the previous administration, Donna J. Cruz, was $45,000.
Celina R. Babauta as executive secretary of the governor will get the same amount.
Torres said the committee is expected to come out with the results of the review soon.
