With still four months left in Fiscal Year 2010, President Johnson Toribiong has exhausted all his funds and in order to stay afloat for the remaining four months of the Fiscal Year the best option is to ask for a supplemental budget.
Another option is to reprogram funds which the president is allowed to do, however the decision Vice President and Finance Minister Kerai Mariur he said will be up to Toribiong.
The community and government officials has been asked repeatedly by the president to practice austerity measures but according to the third quarter financial report, Toribiong already spent more than 100 percent of his budget for Fiscal Year 2010.
For the third quarter of the Fiscal Year, government agencies in order to stay within their budget should record at least 75 percent spending.
Asked where he will get the money for the remaining months, Toribiong said, “I don’t know, maybe ask for a supplemental budget.”
The president said the overseas trips are necessary as he announced that he is again scheduled to leave the country on Sept. 1 for Washington to meet the U.S. counterpart in the ongoing talks on the Compact of Free Association economic assistance.
“Maybe there will be fewer expenses after the Compact agreement has been concluded,” Toribiong said.
Toribiong has justified the “overspending” as necessary. He said that the budget were spent mostly on travels and hosting of regional and international events.
He said that he is working hard and that the lawmakers should be more accommodating by supporting his request for additional funds.
Based on the financial report documents, the president’s office have a budget of $689,589 and from that amount he already obligated 109.8 percent of his budget.
The president would have only spent $517,191.75 if he had stayed within the 75 percent but as of June 30, 2010, it showed that he already “overspent” $240,262.25.
In the proposed budget for FY2011 he is asking for $759,000, however the House of Delegate version cut it down to $700,000.
The House version of the budget also warned the government against a supplemental budget instead asked the Executive Branch to live within it means.
Del. Seciliil Elbedechel said that in the spirit of fairness, the president should not be asking for an increase in the budget while other branch of government does not get an increase.
