THE Board of Education and Commissioner of Education Alfred B. Ada informed Gov. Ralph DLG Torres on Tuesday that the Public School System is proposing a fiscal year 2022 budget of $58.8 million.
Of this amount, $24.1 million will be provided by the CNMI government, and the rest will come from the federal government.
In their joint letter, Board of Education Chairman Andrew Orsini and Ada noted that $24.1 million represents the constitutionally mandated 25% of $96.4, million which is the CNMI government’s total projected revenue available for appropriation in FY 2022.
The U.S. Education Stabilization Fund, Orsini and Ada said, will provide PSS with $34.7 million.
They said PSS’ FY 2022 budget will be allotted for salaries and benefits of existing staff as well as additional staff to meet enrollment needs and continued investment in school repairs and classroom retrofitting to comply with the Covid-19 guidelines.
The proposed budget, Orsini and Ada said, also includes “additional investments in other key areas” of the school system.
PSS plans to spend $12.6 million on personnel paid from the CNMI general fund; $29 million on personnel paid in federal funds; and $17.1 million for “all other” expenditures.
Personnel cost comprises the largest spending in the school system’s general fund budget.
In FY 2022, which starts on Oct. 1, 2021, Orsini and Ada said PSS will spend a total of $41.6 million on salaries and benefits, which represent 70% of the total general fund budget, while the “all others” represent 30% of the budget.
“As PSS’ share of the [local] general fund continues to decrease, we are fortunate to have other financial resources from federal funding through the Education Stabilization Fund to fill the budget gap for FY 2022,” the education officials said.
“The additional federal revenue will be used to make additional investments that will benefit our students directly during this challenging time,” they added.
Under the current FY 2021 budget, PSS will receive a total of $24.1 million from the CNMI general fund. In FY 2020, prior to the global Covid-19 pandemic, PSS’ locally funded budget amounted to $37.7 million. In FY 2019, prior to Typhoon Mangkhut and Super Typhoon Yutu, PSS was originally allotted $42.8 million in local funds.
