Marianas Variety Guam Edition – The Local and Regional Newspaper

12 23Sun05192013

Headlines:

Settings

Font Size

Apply Reset
Back Local News Agency heads take pay cuts

Agency heads take pay cuts

Tuesday, 25 Sep 2012 03:00am
BY MAR-VIC CAGURANGAN | FOR VARIETY
Hits: 1861
  • Print
  • PDF

Savings to be directed to tax refunds

FIVE Cabinet members, including two senatorial candidates, yesterday volunteered to take 10 percent pay cuts amid the seeming deadlock over the Adelup-proposed fiscal reform plan that seeks to slash public spending by $70 million.

Those who offered to take salary reductions effective Nov. 1 were Budget Director John Rios, Revenue and Taxation Director John Camacho, Department of Chamorro Affairs President Joseph Artero-Cameron, Statistics & Plans Director Tommy Morrison, and Youth Affairs Director Adonis Mendiola.

Morrison and Mendiola – the first ones to announce their pay cuts – are Republican candidates for the 32nd Legislature.

The Cabinet officials proposed to direct the salary savings toward the payment of tax refunds. Failure to pay tax refunds exposes the administration to a permanent injunction and possible receivership proposed by plaintiffs in the tax refund class action.

The salary reduction volunteered by the agency heads came as Gov. Eddie Calvo accused the Legislature of playing “political games” over the proposed Omnibus Fiscal Reform Act of 2012 that seeks to arrest the burgeoning fiscal deficit.

“This offer to cut my pay follows bitter resistance from the Legislature to cut spending, despite the dire financial situation the senators are aware of,” Rios stated in his letter to the governor announcing his decision to take a pay cut. “It is my sincere hope that senators finally see how serious this situation is and follow in your footsteps.”

Morrison said: “As leaders I think it is important that we lead by example.”

“I hope you understand you are not alone in your quest to make sacrifices and hard decisions in the best interests of the people of Guam,” he said in his letter to the governor.

Mendiola said he was joining the governor’s “call for fiscal restraint and for moral authority to lead by example,” and hoped the Legislature “understands the grave importance of cutting spending so we can pay tax refunds.”

Camacho said being the director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation has given him a firsthand exposure “to the struggles of our people who are owed their tax refunds. Every bit of savings will count toward the payment of these refunds.”

Artero-Cameron said he expects more officials to follow suit. “While my salary alone certainly isn't enough to pay all outstanding tax refunds, every penny that I am giving is being given to its rightful owner: the taxpayers who are owed refunds,” he added.

Last week, Calvo signed an executive order cutting holiday pay to industry standard. Currently, employees are given double time for work done on government holidays. The order cuts this entitlement to time and a half, saving the government more than $4 million every year.

Comments  

 
+1 #6 troy 2012-09-26 08:32
As a private sector employee for over 20+ YEARS I know first hand more than any Gov worker or elected official what it's like to take a "forced" and voluntary 10 & 20% cut as a Mgr. Years back we had the Korean air crash then the 9-11 attacks which brought. Down tourist arrivals, we were the only sector forced to make hard cuts while the government stayed fat! So to all you nay sayers below you probably don't have a clue what it's like to experience a cut period! If you look at the 2 candidate hopefuls Adonis & Tommy you will see that their main work experience comes from the private sector, which tells me that they know how to sacrifice for the greater good of the rest of the employees. Something you don't see often with gov employees! That's because they are bread from a realistic workforce! The private sector and the military branch! BIBA the new generation of leaders!
 
 
0 #5 Lolita Manglona 2012-09-26 08:19
Thanks Matthew.

Please Write-In NORBERT PEREZ or CHAMORI 4 Guam Washington Delegate this November. A similar call in the CNMI & Samoa.

This Pro-Bono Candidacy equates to $15,000.00 a month or $175,000.00 a year to GMH for medicine & supplies. I do not hear Delegate Bordallo or Senator Blas trumpeting the same talking points.

Glad the Medical Community invited Bordallo & Blas to debate the issues. This is FYI: http://micropacific.tripod.com/id12.html

President John Kennedy once decried, "Ask not what your country can do for you, rather ask what you can do for your country? The national gridlock and sequestration in Congress will affect our peoples more than most will admit. The notion of begging 4 additional foodstamps & welfare become a total gaffe. My Saina is prepared: http://pacifictimes.tripod.com/dvds.html

I love my Saina's slogan: "IF you do not vote for me....YOU LOSE."

Thank you,

LOLITA MANGLONA
Write-In Campaign Chairperson
lolitamanglona@ gmail.com
 
 
+4 #4 Carlo 2012-09-25 18:46
Commendable... Democrats lead by Judy Wonpat gave themselves a $20,000 raise while people need their tax refunds and need jobs. Vote republican. Change the leadership. Please people of Guam. Do we really want change. Get these career politicians out.
 
 
+2 #3 Anthony 2012-09-25 13:37
This Democrat candidates especially the incumbent, they don't want to make sacrifices on their paychecks. 20% would be better since we've been saying last year and the year before that it should be cut by 10%. We need to pay back the money borrowed from the bond market, the more than $300 million for previous years of non-payment to those who already received their tax refunds perhaps from year 2006, 07', 08', 09' and10' plus the second borrowed money to pay the next tax refunds for year 2011. Ignoring again the people's voice by suggesting to cut (not just cut 10%) but to cut it more to 20% because the proposed fiscal budget is so huge, that you all politicians should also focus on the funding deficit as well. Generating revenues will not always be the solution. Because you've amended and passed into law fees, a lot will get hurt, some from middle class and most (if not) all low class families who may someday can no longer afford paying any government fees aside from other fees and rent from private entities. Public's debts could accumulate if there will be additional passed-into-law fees and/or increased fees. Working people who gets less pay on their paycheck or even if they got their pay raised but the rent, fees, and their bills went up (may also include fuel consumption), those affected in adjusting their monthly budget and how to cut their unnecessary spending have to live within their means, to set a very tight budget.
 
 
0 #2 Hafa-gachong 2012-09-25 09:22
What a gimmick this is for Senator hopefuls Morrision and Mendiola. It seems they are so desparate to get more votes this November. As for those Directors, why only 10%? If you afford the cut then you can donate more. What happens if no other Director joins, will you be asking your money back next fiscal year? Ombre lai, lets not kid ourselves. We can see what the intent is by publicly announcing your pay cut....
 
 
-1 #1 Mathew 2012-09-25 07:52
This pay-cut-to-tax-refunds ploy is also known as the 'Palacios-gimmick' when Sen. Palacios promised to not draw a senatorial salary, but since changed his mind, which is his right. For these folks who are doing so, they believe -- or bet -- that the political goodwill that will accrue their way will far outstrip their pay cut pain. When the government has run out of ideas to align spending with revenues, then all that is left will be gimmicks like this.

The thing is if the GOP wants to have majority control for the 32nd Legislature, it needs to field better candidates such as Bob Klitzkie and Larry Kasperbauer, a couple of local guys. They have appeal across party lines and they have name recognition. Short of that, Guam will be stuck with these Democrats who will continue to say "optimistic" things in front of the media such as Sen. Guthertz is prone to do, and do exactly the opposite behind closed doors. The other reason why local Republicans do not have much credibility is because when the time really came to differentiate about the military build-up in 2010, they did not. Not then Gov. Felix P. Camacho or anyone else. It is too little, too late for the GOP to say that they are all in for the build-up when even prominent business folk such as Pete Sgro, Jr. and Gov. Calvo himself have said as much that "we are not hanging our hats on the build-up," While it is a pragmatic statement to make now, the message lacks clarity, nonetheless.
 

Please Login to post a comment.