THE Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation on Friday unanimously passed House Local Bill 22-31 which would appropriate the “un-obligated” $430,000 in casino license fee collection for the Saipan Mayor’s Office and the Kagman watershed project.
Authored by Rep. Corina Magofna, H.L.B. 22-31 now goes to the desk of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres who line-item vetoed a similar provision in April.
All the 17 Saipan delegation members present voted to pass the local appropriation on Friday. Senate Vice President Justo Quitugua, House Minority Leader Angel Demapan and Rep. Joseph Leepan Guerrero were excused while Rep. Leila Staffler was not in the chamber during the roll call vote.
H.L.B. 22-31 proposes to appropriate $430,000 in unobligated casino license fee as follows:
1) $350,000 for the Saipan Mayor’s Office operations; and
2) $80,000 for the ongoing Kagman watershed project of the Department of Lands and Natural Resources.
These were also on the list of appropriations in House Local Bill 22-27 that the delegation passed earlier this year.
The governor signed the local bill, which became Saipan Local Law 22-10, but he line-item vetoed the $80,000 for the Kagman watershed project citing the “assurance that related and adequate federal funding will be prioritized to accomplish this important task.”
He also line-item vetoed the $350,000 for the Saipan Mayor’s Office, saying that he “strongly recommends that these funds be appropriated to support the [Saipan Higher Education Financial Assistance] office so that we may continue to invest in our students and their future endeavors.”
Rep. Corina Magofna smiles during a session of the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation on Friday in the House chamber.
