House Bill 8-17 authorizes the sum of $60,287,987 and the appropriation of $58,787,987 from the National Treasury for the remainder of FY 2009, which started on Oct. 1, 2008 and ends on Sept. 30, 2009.
According to the House Committee on Ways and Means report, public oversight hearings or inputs from the executive branch were no longer necessary. The committee chaired by Del. Jonathan Isechal said any additional funding can be resolved through a supplemental budget. The funding proposed by President Johnson Toribiong remained intact but the House eliminated the following funding provisions:• $32,000 for the second post-convention committee. “The work of the convention committee is finished, and that…$32,000 can be better used for other purposes,” the Ways and Means report said. • $46,000 for a household income survey. Ways and Means said it “requires more information to determine if $46,000 is a realistic amount to conduct the referenced survey, as it is unaware of past surveys that have been conducted on this topic, does not know who is likely to conduct this survey, and if any public bidding or other procurement activity has already taken place. … [T]he authorization for this amount remains in place in this bill. Upon receipt of the information detailed above, [Ways and Means] is confident that the House of Delegates will act quickly to make necessary changes to the bill.”• $500,000 for the Compact review.Ways and Means noted that the Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Act appropriated $800,000 for the Compact review.The panel would like to know what amount of the fiscal year 2008 non-lapsing funds remained unexpended, and the projected breakdown of what the additional $500,000 will be used for.Toribiong also proposed $1,546,000 for the “neediest of Palau citizens,” but the House wants to determine how “ low-income” is defined.
