GPSS faces budget shortfall
2006 funds used for prior obligations
Article published December 14, 2005
By Oyaol Ngirairikl
Pacific Daily News
ongirairikl@guampdn.com
The Guam Public School System can't continue living paycheck to paycheck,
which is what's its having to do to meet payroll and other obligations,
education officials said.
Education spokesman Gerry Cruz said the department already was "in
the red" at the beginning of the school year because it had not received
the full $165 million appropriation for fiscal 2005.
"We've been using 2006 funds to pay for our prior year obligations
because we didn't get all of our budget for last fiscal year," Cruz
said. "And we're not getting the full amount owed to us on a monthly
basis, which makes it harder for us to keep up with all our obligations."
Felix Calvo, GPSS acting controller, said he's worried GPSS won't have
money to pay the last of three pay periods this month or some of its vendors
on time.
"We're concerned with the last payroll," Calvo told acting
superintendent Kenneth Chargualaf, GPSS personnel administrator Luis Reyes
and Sen. Larry Kasperbauer after a hearing yesterday. "We don't have
the cash right now."
Education officials met with senators yesterday in what was scheduled
as a continuation hearing on a bill that would incorporate GPSS financial
operations into the Department of Administration. But the discussion focused
instead on chronically short and late payments to GPSS even after senators
created a direct funding system meant to cure that problem.
According to a new funding system, GPSS has a $160 million appropriation
from the government's General Fund for fiscal 2006. But the monthly payments
are based on 83.2 percent of the government's monthly collection of withholding
tax -- an amount that varies from month to month.
Education officials said they're being frugal with spending because of
fluctuating tax collections. And while education officials and senators
are concerned with the current financial flow, the direct funding system
will help ensure GPSS receives its full appropriation.
During the hearing Sen. Robert Klitzkie, R-Yigo, said he was not satisfied
with the answers to his and other senators' questions about the less than
83.2 percent of the funding sent to GPSS. Lourdes Perez, DOA director,
said this month's $3.4 million shortfall may have been "an oversight."
"We are trying our best because this is a new requirement,"
Perez said after the hearing. "Our intention is to comply with the
law."
Perez said DOA on Monday sent the $3.4 million owed to GPSS, fulfilling
its obligation to pay 83.2 percent of withholding taxes this month.
Calvo yesterday confirmed GPSS received the payment, which was sorely
needed to pay out the $5.1 million for GPSS employees' paychecks this
week.
That leaves the question of where the money for almost 4,000 education
employees' last paycheck of December will come from.
'No payless paydays'
It's a dilemma that Calvo and Chargualaf are hoping to solve with the
help of DOA and Bureau of Budget Management and Research officials.
Carlos Bordallo, BBMR director, and DOA's Perez said they have agreed
to meet with education officials.
"We're working with DOE and there's still time, ... there will be
no payless paydays," Bordallo said yesterday. "We're taking
a look at what they have in the bank, we're going to work to make sure
they have the money to meet payroll at the end of the month."
The school system has received about $31 million for the first three
months of the fiscal year, which started Oct. 1.
But according to education officials, payroll for school teachers, staff
and central office employees is more than $35 million for three months.
Calvo said each pay period is about $5 million. December has three pay
periods, which totals more than $15 million for personnel.
Bordallo and Shawn Gumataotao from the governor's office both said GPSS
should have known that it would have to save money to pay this month's
three paychecks.
Gumataotao said whatever financial oversight GPSS officials have made,
considering they are without a chief financial officer at this point,
the governor "has dedicated the entire resource pool of the government
to address this issue."
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