HE doesn’t want to go there, but Tinian Mayor Edwin P. Aldan told lawmakers on Monday, “you’ll leave me no choice,” but to bring the central government to court if the Legislature will approve Gov. Arnold I. Palacios’ proposal to cut Tinian’s budget by $2.7 million in fiscal year 2024.
In his remarks during a budget hearing at the Tinian courthouse, the mayor told the House Ways and Means Committee that he understands that the administration is going through a lot of financial problems.
But he said there should be fairness for everybody.
“As you know, Tinian is the only municipality that was singly deprived of the general fund and being mandated to use American Rescue Plan Act funds,” Aldan said.
“I think that in itself is borderline frustrating [for] the municipality and there are [similar] legal issues [in the past] that [were brought to] court,” he added. “We don’t want to go there. I seriously don’t want to go there. But if my hands are tied and our people are struggling then you’ll leave me no choice.”
In his FY 2024 budget submission, Governor Palacios proposed $4.6 million for Tinian, which is $2.7 million less than Tinian’s revised FY 2023 budget of $7.3 million.
The governor reduced the proposed budget of the Tinian Mayor’s Office to $111,000 from $2.7 million.
Aldan said last year, then-Gov. Ralph DLG Torres provided Tinian $3.6 million in ARPA funds.
The mayor said Palacios now “intends to include $3 million of ARPA funds currently held in the Tinian Municipal Treasury to cover the difference.”
But as he had already explained to Gov. Palacios, the Tinian mayor said, “these funds will not be available on Oct. 1, 2023 [the beginning of new fiscal year] as most of the funds had already been allocated.”
“In fact, as of today, we don’t even have a cash balance of $3 million as we have been using these funds for local payroll and operations since the passage of the revised FY 2023 budget,” Aldan said.
The governor’s proposal provides the Tinian Mayor’s Office a budget for only one position, “my position,” the mayor said.
Since his office has a total of 125 personnel including himself, Aldan said the governor’s FY 2024 budget proposal is like terminating the other 124 employees of the Tinian Mayor’s Office.
“Without…124 full-time employees or FTEs, the Tinian municipality will essentially grind to a halt as we not only oversee all the [CNMI] departments on Tinian but we also coordinate with all autonomous agencies on municipal matters,” Aldan said.
He said the Tinian Mayor’s Office is “responsible for operating the library, the youth center, the dog control division, the ID division, the ground maintenance of nearly all parks and tourist sites, building repairs, new project planning, municipal scholarship, the slaughterhouse, the municipal treasury, emergency preparedness, grant writing and management, the Saipan guest house, military liaison, and planning and budget.”
Moreover, he said his office assists every CNMI department and agency including the Public School System, the Marianas Visitors Authority and Tinian Health Center by, among other things, providing personnel through a memorandum of understanding.
Where did the ARPA monies go
“So, to start, I would like to give this committee some facts regarding the $3 million of ARPA funds that Tinian is supposed to use in FY 2024 for personnel and operations,” Aldan said.
He said upon receiving the $3.6 million in ARPA funds from Governor Torres, the Tinian and Aguiguan Legislative Delegation adopted Resolution 22-8 identifying ARPA-funded capital improvement projects or CIPs which included the veterans cemetery, a new fire station, the Mayor’s Office warehouse, a multi-sports facility, the Taga and Tachogna beach renovations, to name a few.
Aldan said the entire $3.6 million “was allocated and prior to the passage of the revised FY 2023 budget $600,000 was already spent or encumbered leaving a balance of $3 million.”
He said it wasn’t until before the bicameral conference committee passed the revised FY 2023 budget when the Finance secretary informed him that the funds were “incorrectly booked.”
As a result, the mayor said the Legislature removed the $225,000 in operating funds that were supposed to be given to the Tinian municipal departments in the revised FY 2023 budget.
Aldan said he has told Governor Palacios that Tinian’s ARPA monies have already been allocated:
• $294,000 for payroll for 19 municipal FTEs for the remainder of FY 2023.
• $840,000 for payroll for municipal FTEs for FY 2024.
• $320,000 for FY 2023 and FY 2024 annual events and ground maintenance for tourist sites since the Hotel Occupancy Tax funds have been suspended.
• $100,000 for professional services for FY 2023 and FY 2024.
• $400,000 for operations for the departments for FY 2023 since no operating funds were appropriated to Tinian for operations.
Aldan said Tinian is projecting $849,000 in remaining ARPA funds which will be used for the island’s multi-sports facility, veterans cemetery, tennis court resurfacing, guest house operations, and municipal department operations in FY 2024.
‘Don’t play with people’s lives’
Aldan told the committee members: “Most of you know that I have been in politics for over 20 years and sat in the very same seat that you are sitting in today.”
“Never have I ever seen a budget proposal that excludes a mayor’s office from general funds,” he added. “Not only is this budget unbalanced but the people of Tinian will not be provided the same public services as the rest of the CNMI. We are not simply talking about numbers here. We are playing with people’s lives. If this budget passes, come October 1st, four months from today, 124 Mayor’s Office employees will be out of a job. And it will not be me who has to explain to the people of Tinian why the governor and Legislature were unable to save their jobs when every other job in the entire CNMI was maintained.”
Aldan also told lawmakers that “even though you represent a district in Saipan or Rota, you also represent the entire CNMI. Therefore, my request to this committee is to reinstate all of the mayor’s 124 FTEs and provide at least $800,000 in operations for the departments. That’s all I will ask for.”
“If this body is unable to do this, come October 1st,” he added, “124 Mayor’s Office employees will be out of a job as I do not have an alternative funding source to keep them all employed.”
Who’s accountable?
The mayor also noted that in the beginning of the Palacios-Apatang administration, “there were questions and concerns as to how much ARPA funds were remaining. Six months into the administration, there has never been any reporting or accountability as to how much ARPA funds are still available to supplement the general funds for personnel and operations.”
Aldan said “before you eliminate 124 FTEs from Tinian’s budget, this committee should first hold the administration accountable for the balance of those funds.”
“Shouldn’t this committee press the administration to amend the CNMI ARPA spending plan to make those funds available?” he asked.
“All I’m asking is that this committee holds the administration accountable for identifying the balance and appropriate the funds accordingly as it appears there are sufficient ARPA funds available to reinstate all 124 Mayor’s Office FTEs. If this budget is truly equitable, why is my budget cut when my colleague Mayor RB Camacho [of Saipan] has nearly $7 million in ARPA funds and his budget wasn’t cut?” Aldan asked.
“Therefore, all I ask is that you do the right thing and allocate the general funds fairly. Many of you here today campaigned and were elected on a platform of accountability and transparency. Let’s not waste our time to entertain or much less pass a budget that unfairly represents the municipality and people of Tinian. Here is your best opportunity to prove to the people of the CNMI that your actions and decisions in passing the FY 2024 budget will be fair, equitable, and just for all the municipalities and people of the CNMI,” Aldan said.
Edwin Aldan
