Previous Story
Administration to sponsor standalone austerity measure
|
Posted on Feb 12 2009
The Fitial administration is sponsoring a standalone bill that will provide for austerity measures that include the reinstatement of austerity Fridays/unpaid holidays and a reduction in the employer contribution to the Retirement Fund from 18 percent to 11 percent.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial vetoed on Tuesday the $156.76 million budget bill submitted by the Legislature for Fiscal Year 2009, which includes $148 million in local revenue collections, due to lack of austerity measures.
The Senate overrode the budget veto, while the House is expected to decide on it in today’s session.
Finance Secretary Eloy Inos yesterday said the administration-sponsored bill, which is expected to be out soon, essentially provides three major cost-cutting measures.
The first part, he said, is the reinstatement of unpaid holidays and austerity Fridays every two weeks between now and the end of FY 2009 on Sept. 30. The goal is to have 72 hours instead of 80 hours of regular work hours per pay period.
Inos said the 12 austerity Fridays and five unpaid holidays will save the government $250,000 a day or over $4 million between now and Sept. 30.
According to Fitial and Inos, the bill will exempt federally funded positions, as well as employees of the Northern Marianas College and the Public School System. The NMC president and PSS commissioner will have to identify those who will be exempted and report it to the Legislature.
There are some 4,000 government employees, including those at PSS and NMC.
The Executive Branch has 1,800 to 1,900 employees who will be affected except those funded by the federal government, Fitial said.
The second portion of the bill is to reduce employer contribution to the Retirement Fund from the current statutory rate of 18 percent to 11 percent, said Inos.
“The final part is to memorialize by statute the existence of some $3.5 million in non-general fund resources that was identified in the vetoed bill but was not authorized by way of suspension. This bill will allow for the transfer of $3.5 million into non-general fund resource essentially identical to the procedure that was allowed under Public Law 15-71,” he added.
