THE Marianas Visitors Authority board chair has expressed concern over a House bill that would reprogram over $800,000 from MVA’s budget.
House Bill 22-91, authored by Rep. Donald M. Manglona, proposes to amend the government’s fiscal year 2022 budget, or Public Law 22-8, “to establish a business unit and properly fund the retirees’ bonuses.”
The House has passed the bill which is now in the Senate.
MVA board chair Viola Alepuyo said the measure will take money from an agency that is already short of funding.
She noted that the government is not collecting hotel occupancy taxes — MVA’s primary funding source — because of a global pandemic that has all but shut down the tourism industry.
It was Republican Gov. Ralph DLG Torres who announced in December that CNMI retirees would each receive a $500 bonus that would be funded by his office and the Department of Finance.
Citing advice from NMI Settlement Fund Trustee Joyce Tang and Attorney General Edward Manibusan, the governor urged lawmakers to adopt a joint resolution allowing him to reprogram funds for the retirees’ bonuses.
The Republican-led Senate adopted Senate Joint Resolution 22-05, but the Democrat-led House of Representatives said H.B. 22-91 was the “right way to do it.”
The House bill would reprogram a total of $1.3 million from the general fund, including from line-items that the governor vetoed when he signed the FY 2022 budget bill into law.
Meanwhile, retirees are still waiting for their “holiday” bonuses.
