Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The handling of millions of dollars in interest earned from federal ARPA funds came under sharp scrutiny in the House of Representatives Tuesday, with lawmakers demanding a full accounting of how the money has been invested.

The issue was raised on the House floor by Representative Faimealelei Anthony Allen. He said lawmakers have been told that the Administration has invested the interest, which had already grown to about $10 million two years ago. But so far, he said, the Fono has not seen any report on where the money went or how it is being used.

Allen said the only way to get a straight answer may be to issue a subpoena requiring the Administration to produce a detailed report on the investment and the use of the earnings. Without that, he argued, the House has no way to verify what happened to the funds.

He noted that Representative Fagaima Larry Sanitoa had previously suggested that the interest should be used to pay down the American Samoa Government's long-standing debt to the ASG Employees' Retirement Fund.

Vice Speaker Fetui Fetu backed the call for action, saying talk alone is not enough.

"If we just keep speaking and do nothing, our words mean nothing," Fetui said. He warned that if reports are true that the Governor invested the $10 million without informing or getting approval from the Fono, the House has a responsibility to investigate. The government, he said, is not run by one person, and the Executive Branch cannot spend or invest public funds without the Legislature's approval.

The Chairman of the House Budget and Appropriations Committee, Representative Vailoata Eteuati Amituanai, said his committee is already pursuing answers. He told members that information on the $10 million has been requested from the Director of the ARPA Office, who was scheduled to testify before his committee the following day.

The Senate is also looking into the matter. The Senate Government Operations Committee held a hearing earlier that morning with Acting Treasurer Carri-Lee Magalei-Tulafono testifying on the investment of the ARPA interest.

In other business, Representative Fagaima said recent developments at the American Samoa Telecommunications Authority point to the need for stronger legislative oversight.

He urged the House to revive a bill that would formally establish ASTCA as an authority by statute. Right now, he said, aside from reviewing its budget, the Fono has little say over how ASTCA is run. He pointed to the recent dissolution of the ASTCA Board, which he said was done without any communication to the Fono.

"It feels like the government is being run by the Executive alone, and the Fono is being kept in the dark," Fagaima said.

Fagaima and Representative Vailoata also objected to language in ASTCA's proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget, which stated that some financial information is confidential.

ASTCA is a public entity, Fagaima argued, and it should not be deciding what information the Fono is allowed to see. That decision, he said, belongs to the Fono.