Senate tackles $700K PSS budget request

The Public School System’s $700,000 supplemental budget request has passed the House of Representatives and is now due for discussion at the Senate.

Sen. Henry H. San Nicolas, chair of the House Committee on Health, Education, and Welfare and Programs, said he is set to hold a committee meeting on the matter Tuesday.

San Nicolas said that he has no problem with the budget request, but he would want to make sure that the government has the money for it.

“So I told PSS that they better talk also with the Senate Committee on Fiscal Affairs,” said San Nicolas.

The senator said that PSS federal program officer Tim Thornburg had met with him to lobby for the passage of the bill. Thornburg had also met with other lawmakers to get assurances of their support.

Despite initial reservations, House members eventually passed House Joint Resolution 14-32, which seeks to reprogram funds to address the reported shortfall in the PSS budget in fiscal year 2005.

The House earlier moved to defer action on the resolution pending further analysis, prompting PSS to intensify its lobbying efforts.

In at least two letters to the House members, Education Commissioner Rita H. Inos and Board of Education chair Roman C. Benavente warned that PSS has no more funds to open schools in August.

As contained in the proposed measure, the PSS officials said they need $200,000 for payment of 313 PSS teachers’ annual leave; $100,000 for payment of security guards; $100,000 for school bus repairs and maintenance; $50,000 for fuel of buses; $40,000 for trash collection; and $210,000 for minor repair and maintenance in schools prior to the fall opening of schools this year.

The officials noted that PSS has expanded over the last six years yet its funding remains at the same level—$37.2 million a year.

PSS opened five new schools and increased enrolment by 2,000 in the last six years. Right now, PSS has 11,630 students enrolled in 20 schools.

Some House members had said, though, that aside from local funds, PSS also gets a substantial amount of federal grants: about $25 million every fiscal year.

Lawmakers also said that PSS stands to get $5.1 million every year for four years beginning this year from Compact Impact funds as promised by Gov. Juan N. Babauta. The Compact money can be used for repair and maintenance of schools. Further, the Babauta administration seeks to provide PSS its entire budget request of $50 million for FY 2006.