HOUSE Ways and Means Chair Donald Manglona and Judiciary and Governmental Operations Chair Celina Babauta want Finance Secretary David DLG Atalig and Commerce Secretary Edward “Tofila” Deleon Guerrero to provide information regarding the implementation of the Building Optimism, Opportunity and Stability Together or BOOST program, which is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act.
Manglona, Ind-Rota, and Babauta, D-Saipan, are seeking the following information from the Republican administration: 1) The name of the entities/agencies/offices and principals that administer the BOOST program; 2) The funding or revenue source for the BOOST program; 3) The names of all approved and disapproved applicants for the BOOST program; 4) The amounts awarded to all awardees of the BOOST program.
The two lawmakers asked Atalig to provide the information no later than 10 a.m. today, Friday, Nov. 18.
Once they receive the information, Manglona and Babauta told Atalig and Deleon Guerrero that the House will schedule a joint hearing later this month.
Variety was told that if Atalig fails to provide the requested information, the House may issue a subpoenas duces tecum.
Rep. Leila Staffler, the Democrats’ former candidate for lt. governor, said although there are a lot of people who have applied and received financial assistance, “there are a lot of people who have not received anything at all, and it looks like it’s a pick and choose kind of game and that is really not an equitable and fair way of using federal funds to support the business community.”
She said there are “a lot of small businesses that are being ignored right now, and that is not appropriate.”
Independent gubernatorial candidate Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios said under his administration, federally funded programs such as BOOST would be implemented fairly, and the criteria would be transparent so everybody will know.
Palacios said right now, “no one knows who is getting what and for what.”
Rep. Tina Sablan, the Democrats’ former candidate for governor, said: “We feel for…businesses who really need help. And if I may say, small businesses have needed help since ever since also. They needed help since the Covid-19 pandemic began, they needed help post-Yutu. Why did Ralph Torres wait until the week when people were voting to start passing out checks? It’s blatantly political.”
Sablan and Staffler have endorsed the candidacy of Palacios and his running mate, Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang.
Palacios said the timing of the distribution of the BOOST checks is “questionable.” He said, “People in the community were saying it appears like vote buying.”
Sablan said some are receiving “huge sums from what I’m hearing, we don’t really know for sure because there [is no] transparency,” adding that “there was no way to know how much is going out to whom and based on what criteria, which is a huge concern, as it should be a huge concern for all of us.”
Sablan said the BOOST program, “among the many other programs that have been rolled by Governor Torres…needs to be audited. And I fear that if and when there is an audit, the CNMI will fail that audit.”
The governor’s chief of staff, William Castro, earlier said that the BOOST program does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of ethnicity, religion, social status or political preference.
He said, “No submitted application has been rejected so far,” and individuals or businesses that have deficiencies in their applications are assisted by a BOOST team from the Bank of Saipan, the Department of Commerce and the Department of Finance.
“We make sure they get the help they need so they can complete whatever it is that they lack in their application,” Castro said.
