Gov. Ralph DLG Torres has vetoed a bill that would have designated the mayors of Rota and Tinian as the expenditure authority for the solid waste funds for their respective island municipalities. Currently, the secretary of the Department of Public Works is the expenditure authority of the revolving fund.<\/p>\n
Torres, in his May 30, 2016 veto message to the Legislature, finds no major legal deficiencies within the Senate Bill 19-60, but says policy considerations compel its disapproval.<\/p>\n
Torres notes the \u201ccentralized system for solid waste management\u201d established through current law, in his veto message.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe current solid waste management statute established a centralized system for solid waste management in the Commonwealth under the expenditure of the DPW secretary\u2026All appropriations for solid waste management, all tipping fees or other solid waste disposal or collection fees collected by DPW\u2019s Division of Solid Waste Management, and any funding from federal grants and loans for solid waste management must be deposited into the revolving fund,\u201d Torres said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe revolving fund is then divided into four sub-accounts reserved to meet financial assurance requirements for permitting facilities within the Commonwealth,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n
Torres also noted that the sub-accounts for Rota and Tinian \u201cinclude fees collected in Saipan.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sub-accounts for Rota and Tinian are allotted 10 percent of the total funds deposited into the revolving fund.<\/p>\n
Torres said not all of the fees within the sub-accounts for Rota and Tinian come exclusively from the fees generated from those two municipalities.<\/p>\n
\u201cIndeed, the sub-accounts include funds generated within the third senatorial district and from federal resources,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The monies within the revolving fund are not segregated according to the point of collection by senatorial district and are in fact co-mingled, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor that reason, the revolving fund expenditure authority, inclusive of the sub-accounts, should remain with the secretary of the Department of Public Works,\u201d Torres said.<\/p>\n
The Senate bill, in its findings and purpose statement, says that the expenditure authority should be vested in the Tinian and Rota mayors to \u201cexpedite the disbursement of funds, and procurement of services and equipment for each municipality.\u201d<\/p>\n
It says that the mayors have \u201cfirsthand knowledge\u201d of the solid waste needs and requirements of their municipality and should prioritize the sub-account funding for those purposes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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