Although the House in their session last Friday passed spending measures addressing $7 million in mold remediation and brand new air-conditioning units for the Judiciary\u2019s Guma Hustisia, a lawmaker still skeptical about the large amount allocated for the project.<\/p>\n
Rep. Edwin K. Propst (Ind-Saipan) said he supports appropriating funding for brand new air-conditioning units as well as the mold remediation for the Guma Hustisia but he still has doubts about the $7 million amount.<\/p>\n
The House passed last Friday with a vote of 19-1 Rep. Angel A. Demapan\u2019s (R-Saipan) House Bill 20-165, which appropriates $7 million to the Judiciary and $1.3 million to the private telecommunications company, Docomo Pacific.<\/p>\n
Propst is concerned about the $7 million the Judiciary is asking for the project, saying it \u201cseems extremely high\u201d when other private businesses have installed new air-conditioning systems in businesses that are \u201cmuch larger and have far more square footage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are two businesses on Saipan that spent well under $1 million for new, energy-efficient air-conditioning systems and they are almost double the square footage of Guma Hustisia,\u201d said Propst.<\/p>\n
In a previous interview with Demapan, he said the amount is based on a cost breakdown provided by an engineering firm that won the bidding when the Judiciary solicited proposal to do the assessment in late 2017.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also [looking at] the cost breakdown provided by the Judiciary on what it would take to [complete] the project while keeping the Judiciary open in other locations,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026To the question of whether the $7 million was exorbitant\u2014that is something we will finally see when the court is able to address the mold remediation and air-conditioning units. That is why, as the author of this bill, I made sure that the expenditure authority of the $7 million rests with the secretary of Finance,\u201d Demapan added.<\/p>\n
Demapan further stated that the Finance secretary could make sure the funds would be used for the stated purposes only.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel that is a safety net we were able to include in the provision instead of handing over the money outright,\u201d said Demapan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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