Yumul tells Rota, Tinian DPW to collect tipping fees
Public Works Secretary Ray N. Yumul has notified Rota and Tinian that DPW will need to administer tipping fees on all transfer and landfill stations in the CNMI.
In a memorandum dated Friday to Rota DPW resident director George A. Atalig and Tinian DPW resident director Joal Untalan, Yumul said he is authorizing the implementation and collection of tipping fees as provided for in the Commonwealth Code.
All fees collected will be used to support operational needs, Yumul said, citing the Commonwealth’s revenue shortfall and the enactment of the budget law, Public Law 23-09, that excludes funding for DPW operations.
To address the continued critical services DPW provides to the public, it becomes necessary to address this funding shortfall through other funding measures, Yumul said.
He said DPW’s Solid Waste Division on Saipan relies on tipping fees collected from commercial and residential haulers of trash and other wastes brought to the landfill and transfer station to pay for its operational needs.
Last Nov. 17, Yumul received a letter from Rota DPS resident director Atalig requesting assistance through the Solid Waste Management Revolving Fund to help his office procure diesel fuel for the landfill maintenance operation on Rota.
Atalig cited the difficulties in maintaining the Rota Dump without available fuel supplies.
Last Thursday, Yumul informed Atalig that he looked into Rota’s allocation for the Solid Waste Management Revolving Fund and found that no tipping fees were collected and deposited into the sub-account for fiscal year 2022, 2023, and the present.
Yumul said Rota’s situation is not unique as the Solid Waste Division on Saipan now relies on tipping fees collected from commercial and residential haulers of trash and other waste brought to the landfill and transfer station to pay for its operational needs.
Yumul said he is sympathetic to Rota’s needs and will provide Atalig’s office with a limited amount of funds for the acquisition of diesel fuel to sustain the operations of the Rota Dump.
Ray N. Yumul
