Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Senate President Tuaolo Manaia Fruean on Monday this week received an administrative request from Governor Lemanu P.S. Mauga for a bill appropriating the sum of $3.1 MIL from unobligated and unexpended revenues from Fiscal Year 2022 to supplement the Fiscal Year 2024 budget.

This bill addresses the appropriation of funds that were the subject of House Bill 38-30, which was vetoed by the governor on February 1, 2024.

Governor Lemanu said in his letter to the Senate president that the bill was introduced to provide for urgent needs at the time. Since then, other needs have arisen.

“I have weighed all these needs and developed a new appropriations bill that I believe will put these funds to their best use,” he wrote.

According to the preamble of the new appropriations bill submitted by the governor to replace the vetoed bill, “due to the urgent need to assist in providing adequate funding for government operations, this act shall be effective immediately upon passage by the Legislature and approval by the governor.

Also included was a new list of fie (5) proposed expenditures.

1. Governor’s Office for Flag Day 2024 Celebration — $1,000,000
2. New Fono Building Equipage, Incidentals & Furnishings — $1,500,000
3. Governor’s Special Projects for infrastructure projects — $400,000
4. Criminal Justice Planning Agency for Victims of Crime Compensation — $75,000

Governor’s Office for Capital Improvements of Jean P. Hayden Museum — $125,000

The expenditure items included in the original supplemental that were vetoed are:

1.            $1 MIL for the Fono’s 75th Jubilee;

2.            $1.5 MIL to buy furniture for the new Fono building;

3.            $400,000 for the Immigration Office;

4.            $75,000 for the Criminal Justice Planning Agency for Victims of Crime Compensation Program;

5.            $50,000 for the Shipyard Services Authority to maintain compliance with USEPA requirements; and,

6.            $75,000 for the Jean P Hayden Museum.

As can be seen, the proposed Fono’s Jubilee for $1 MIL has been given to the 2024 Flag Day Celebration, the proposed Immigration Office of $400,000 has been shifted to the Governor’s Special Projects for Infrastructure, and the proposed Jean P. Hayden Museum gets an additional $50,000 for a total of $125,000 that was eliminated from the Shipyard Services Authority proposed expenditure.