Central govt absorbs PSS’ $1.8M debt with CUC

The central government has agreed to absorb the $1.8 million the Public School System owes the Commonwealth Utilities Corp., according to PSS finance director Richard Waldo.

A memorandum of agreement between the administration and PSS is now being finalized, Waldo told the Board of Education during Thursday’s meeting.

Waldo said that PSS is now free from any unpaid obligation to the utilities corporation and is only expecting the new billing for the current period.

“As of today [Thursday], we don’t owe CUC except for the running month. This is because the central government will absorb PSS’ obligation to the utilities firm,” Waldo said.

He disclosed that PSS is billed about $300,000 monthly for the power and water consumption of its schools.

If not for the increased power rates, Waldo believes that PSS could realize substantial savings in utility consumption as a result of the energy conservation efforts being implemented in all public schools.

Education Commissioner Rita A. Sablan told Saipan Tribune that a strict power conservation plan is being observed and PSS expects consumption to significantly go down as most schools will shut off their power during summer except for campuses with summer programs and ongoing repairs and renovation.

Education officials said that once solar panels are installed in schools, power consumption is expected to further decline to about $90,000 a month for all public schools.

Waldo also told Saipan Tribune that PSS has settled its unpaid rent and utilities obligation to the Retirement Fund, which owns the building it occupies on Capital Hill.

A new lease agreement between the two has yet to be finalized, however. Both PSS and the Retirement Fund have issued requests for proposals, with the school system seeking new space for its central offices while the Fund is looking for potential tenants.

PSS is leasing both the second and third floors of the Retirement Fund Building for its central offices and Board of Education. The system pays about $20,000 in building lease and about $10,000 in utility consumption each month. Its lease expired last April and was only extended for two months.

Fund officials disclosed that PSS had asked for a lower monthly lease but the Fund would only agree to reduce the rate with some conditions.