The override may have failed but the vote on Wednesday should help voters see clearly where their elected representatives stand on the issue of fiscal responsibility. The six who voted against the override are for the status quo; they want more of the same. They know that without a new budget, the governor overspent $10 million in FY 2008 and had to use federal cover-over funds to cover the shortfall. They also know that for the first quarter of this fiscal year, the administration exceeded the spending ceiling by $4 million. Do these six lawmakers believe that the governor, who says he will run for re-election, will not overspend?
Allowing the governor to run this government without a new budget is like pouring taxpayer money into a black hole. That’s what the six voted for when they refused to do the right thing and pass a new budget, which is, after all, the Legislature’s primary responsibility.
A vote against the override is a vote for overspending; for more hiring of nonessential personnel; for monkey business as usual. That’s what Edwin P. Aldan, Oscar M. Babauta, Joseph N. Camacho, Victor B. Hocog, Raymond D. Palacios and Justo S. Quitugua voted for. They want this governor to spend more.
The governor’s veto of the budget was never about his “austerity measures” — nothing prevents him from reducing the expenses of the executive branch. His veto is about who controls the government purse. The Constitution vests that power in the Legislature. But without a new budget, the CNMI coffers will be the governor’s virtual piggy bank. In an election year.
The leaders of this Legislature have done their best. In the Senate, which has six members from Rota and Tinian, the override succeeded by a 7-2 vote. The House, which has until April to act on the budget, needs only two more votes to complete the process. Rep. Stanley T. Torres, who abstained on Wednesday, claimed that he would have voted for the override. Rep. David M. Apatang, who has re-registered as a Republican and votes with the GOP caucus, was absent. The House leadership should try to vote on the override again.
If that is no longer possible, lawmakers should approve the legislative initiative mandating the passage of an annual budget and the bill restricting government hiring.
Voters, for their part, should kick the bums out come November.
Unbelievable
THE economy is dying and the solution offered by the authors of House Bill 16-217 is to finish off the remaining businesses in the CNMI.
The measure will raise business fees from 100 to 5,900 percent in this economy.
The authors of the bill say the costs associated with processing the licenses have increased. This is probably true — but only because the government continues to overspend and hire nonessential personnel.
This bill is like demanding blood donation from an anemic person. It won’t work and it is just not right.
It is not right to punish businesses that create jobs and revenue for this useless government. It is not right that CNMI officials will extort money from a struggling private sector while they refuse to cut this government’s expenses and streamline its operations.
Moreover, as this newspaper has repeatedly pointed out in the past, giving this government more money is like putting out fire with gasoline.
Lawmakers should reject H.B. 16-217. This economy is already breathing its last. The Legislature’s primary task is not to look for more money to waste, but to reduce the size of this bloated government.
