The first fiscal year budget proposed by the Lemanu Talauega administration is now before the Fono for review.
The Fiscal Year 2021 budget mirrors the budget that former Governor Lolo Matalasi Moliga sent the Fono last year.
It totals $465,955,000 of which $110.1 million are local revenues, $134.7 million are federal grants, $210.7 million are Enterprise Funds and $10.2 million are Capital Improvement Funds.
The proposed budget is 10% higher than the FY2020 approved budget which totaled $424.2 million.
For the part of the budget that’s funded with local revenues:
- 65.9%-personnel costs,
- 19.9% -contractual services,
- 2.4 % -materials and supplies,
- 1.1%-travel,
- 0.7 %-equipment and
- 10 %-others
It’s the first time that an incoming Governor has to propose a budget in the first month of his tenure.
The reason is because former Governor Lolo Moliga did not sign into law the budget bill that the last Fono approved.
Instead he issued an executive order to keep ASG operating.
This expired before Governor Lemanu and Lt Governor Talauega were sworn into office.
Governor Lemanu called the 37th legislature into a special session the same day lawmakers took office, January 3rd and a continuing resolution to keep ASG opened and funded at the Fiscal Year 2020 budget level was introduced. The House approved the resolution that same day while the Senate approved it the following day.
This continuing resolution is in force until March or when an FY2021 budget law is signed.
