Tebuteb upset over ‘defeat’ of CARLA funding

Minority bloc congressman Ramon Tebuteb has expressed great dismay over the non-passage Wednesday of a $100,000 funding for the mass reproduction of the Carolinian dictionary known as the CARLA project.

“It’s such a big disappointment because we already voted on the bill and recessed. It was up for transmission to the Governor’s Office but they [other lawmakers] reconvened to recall what we just did. In effect, the CARLA funding was lost,” said Tebuteb.

He was referring to the passage of House Local Bill, 14-52, which appropriates funds for various projects, including the Junior Statesman and other school and road projects.

Tebuteb said the bill contained an amendment for $100,000 for CARLA or the Carolinian and Related Language Assistance project.

He said the bill was passed unanimously during the Saipan and Northern Island Legislative Delegation session Wednesday afternoon.

When the session reconvened, he said that seven lawmakers voted against it. They are Reps. Justo Quitugua, Clyde Norita, Ray Yumul, Oscar Babauta, Vice Speaker Timothy Villagomez, and House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial.

During the second voting, he said four lawmakers who voted for the bill early on had already left: Sen. Thomas Villagomez and Reps. Joseph Deleon Guerrero, Benjamin Seman, and Janet Maratita.

“We were outnumbered because some had left the building,” said Tebuteb.

He said this resulted in seven “no” votes, five “yes,” and two abstention votes by SNILD chair Sen. Pete P. Reyes and Rep. Martin B. Ada.

“I consider that as a vote against CARLA. We could have done something for this noble project, which benefits all our children and the community but their vote just defeated this thing. It’s an act of ignorance,” said Tebuteb.

Rep. Babauta countered that Tebuteb misunderstood the whole thing. First, he said that Tebuteb tried to take $100,000 from another project, a road project for Precinct 2.

“He can’t [take] money from one project for another project. I don’t do that for projects in his precinct,” said Babauta, who is from Precinct 2.

Second, he said that he and Quitugua will soon introduce a separate bill to appropriate $100,000 for CARLA. “We fully support this project. We have identified funding for this,” said Babauta.

Tebuteb said he understands that the money was for Precinct 2 but it was already encumbered with $120,000 remaining funds

“So I offered an amendment to tap $100,000 for CARLA out of $120,000. But they just don’t want to touch it. It’s not about precinct; it’s about funding availability. So CARLA gets nothing right now because they shot it down,” said Tebuteb.

He also accused Babauta’s group of refusing to transmit the approved bill to the Executive Branch if the CARLA funding is not taken out.

Babauta said they reconvened because “there’s something wrong with his [Tebuteb’s] amendment.”

“I didn’t realize he’s taking the same source of funds. I noticed it’s from Precinct 2. He can’t do that. It’s for school road projects,” he said.

Babauta said he cannot be accused of being insensitive to the CARLA project “because I’ve been part of its initial funding.”

The Legislature had appropriated $75,000 for the CARLA project years back. Last March, the Carolinian Affairs Office lobbied the House, asking for additional funds to electronically mass reproduce the revised Carolinian dictionary.

CARLA chairman Frank Rabauliam said that his team has come up with a more organized, authoritative, and comprehensive version of the Carolinian dictionary in CD-ROM, which needs to be reproduced for sale to schools, Northern Marianas College library, court and public libraries. Further, CAO intends to put the document on the web.