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PSS had wanted veto of technical school
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Posted on Jan 22 2005
Citing insufficient funding, the Public School System had pushed for the veto of the newly enacted technical education program.
In a Jan. 7 letter to Gov. Juan N. Babauta, Education Commissioner Rita H. Inos asked that the bill be rejected because “it is an under-funded mandate.”
Inos said that, as written, House Bill 14-210 only provided $500,000 to PSS to initially develop the program at three campuses in the CNMI. She said it would cost $2 million to establish such a program within a school.
“While the bill is a positive step in the right direction, we request that you veto the bill until fully funded and amendments are made,” said Inos.
Babauta had agreed with PSS on the funding issue but he nevertheless signed the bill into law on Jan. 17.
Babauta said the legislation, when implemented will serve the dual purpose of providing employment to the resident population as well as reducing reliance on nonresident labor.
The lack of funding, he said truly presents a dilemma.
“I sign this measure into law because of this administration’s unqualified commitment to education as the key to improving the lives and living standards of our community,” he said. He urged the Legislature “to take the funding needs into consideration in its future budget deliberations and allocate resources that are sufficient to establish the first-class program that our youth deserve.”
Rep. Justo Quitugua, who authored the bill, said that there is a need to integrate technical curriculum in public high schools to prepare students for higher education or immediate employment.
He cited that many students who are not inclined to pursue higher education are experiencing tremendous difficulty in finding jobs in the Commonwealth for lack of technical skills or training.
Quitugua, chair of the House Committee on Education, said the bill was introduced based on a PSS survey indicating that 88 percent responded favorably to the creation of a technical school in the CNMI.
The measure said the program shall be developed at Marianas High School, Tinian High School, and Rota High School.
