Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Joint Fono budget hearings and Senate committee hearings on concerns that senators have on specific government spending of ASG money are being held within the same timeframe — with the Senate hearing, if scheduled, held in the morning and the Joint Budget hearing(s) following. This is allowing the public or community an in-depth look at ASG spending of taxpayers money. 

Joint Fono budget hearings on the American Samoa Government’s proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget began Tuesday, September 8, 2026 in the morning at the old Senate chamber, with Budget Director Tauaisafune Niualama Taifane and Acting Treasurer Carri‑Lee Magalei‑Tulafono serving as the first witnesses.

The following day, Wednesday, Sept. 9th, the Senate Government Operations Committee held their hearing in the morning prior to the Joint Budget hearings. 

The much anticipated Senate GO Committee hearing was on the $10 million ARPA Interest Fund investment that the Senate says was done without Legislative knowledge, which they believe is against the law. Three witnesses were subpoenaed for this hearing — Brett Butler- the Governor’s Executive Advisor, ARPA Office Director James John Faumuina, and Director of the American Samoa Medicaid Office Louise L. Kuaea. 

JOINT FONO BUDGET HEARINGS — SEPTEMBER 8, 2026

House Budget & Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. Vailoata Eteuati Amituanai, who co-chaired the hearing with Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee Chairman Utu Sila Poasa, opened the hearing by asking Tauaisafune, who helped prepare the FY 2027 spending plan. 

Tauaisafune said she worked directly with Governor Pulaalii Nikolao Pula and Brett Butler throughout the process.

Senator Magalei Logovii followed up by asking who created the revenue projections and whether Tauaisafune's staff played a role. The budget director explained that she and her team worked closely with the Governor and Butler to set the projection ceiling based on total expected revenue.

House Speaker Savali Talavou Ale then turned to Acting Treasurer Magalei‑Tulafono, asking her to clarify Butler’s role in preparing the revenue numbers. He reminded officials that local revenue figures — the foundation of any budget — are normally the responsibility of Treasury.

Magalei‑Tulafono explained that Butler currently holds two positions: Governor’s Executive Advisor for Finance and Treasury Executive Consultant when he moved to Treasury.

She also revealed that she was originally invited to join the FY 2027 budget‑building team but declined because she believed she would no longer be Acting Treasurer by the time the Fono held its hearings. She said she expected Butler to be Treasurer by then and to present the budget himself.

After declining the invitation, she said she was not included in later discussions.

“So after that I was never included in the discussions until the very end, where I was supposed to have a discussion with Brett to go over his revenue projections — but we didn’t have that discussion yet,” she said.

Budget Director Tauaisafune told lawmakers that according to her staff’s reports, local revenue collected by the end of the third quarter of FY 2026 (through June) totaled $123,110,717.

Rep. Fagaima Larry Sanitoa asked for the final amount collected at the end of FY 2026. Taifane responded that the total was $140.2 million.

(Samoa News should point out that FY 2026 does not end until September 30, 2026.)

Fagaima immediately pointed out that this number does not match the latest financial report given to lawmakers, which lists $122 million as the final amount for FY 2026. He added that Treasury’s own reports show a projection of $137 million, creating three different figures for the same fiscal year.

These inconsistencies raised concerns about the accuracy of the data being used to build the FY 2027 budget.
Acting Treasurer Magalei‑Tulafono told lawmakers she could not give a final revenue total yet because Treasury still needs to reconcile July and August. She said she expects to provide updated projection numbers by the end of the week.

Rep. Fagaima then asked about accounts payable, noting that in FY 2025 the government owed $35 million in local funds.

Magalei‑Tulafono said the most recent report she received — about two weeks ago — shows accounts payable at around $31 million, a number that includes obligations to the American Samoa Government Employees Retirement Fund (ASGERF). She clarified that for FY 2026 alone, accounts payable are about $10– 11 million.

Budget Director Tauaisafune noted that the FY 2027 budget includes an $18 million debt service fund for ASEDA bonds and other government debts, and that this amount is counted within both Local Funds and Enterprise Funds.

Rep. Fagaima explained that the debt service fund is paid for using local taxes earmarked specifically for that purpose. Because of this, he said the $18 million should be subtracted from the Local Revenue portion of the budget when calculating how much money is actually available for government operations.

Based on the numbers presented, Fagaima said the real amount of money available to run the government is likely between $120 and $125 million.

He stressed that this highlights a long‑standing problem: year after year, projected revenues do not match what is actually collected. The government ends up operating on much less than what the budget assumes.

Fagaima reminded officials that actual revenue collected — not projected revenue — is what pays for government services, salaries, and daily operations. When projections are too high, he said, it creates financial strain and makes planning difficult.

He added that this pattern has repeated across multiple fiscal years, raising questions about the reliability of revenue forecasting and whether the administration is aligning projections with real‑world collection trends.
Senate President Tuaolo Manaia Fruean asked Budget Director Tauaisafune whether the projected $137 million in local revenue would actually be reached. Tauaisafune responded that it was not certain.

Tuaolo then asked what the next step would be if the government fails to meet its revenue projections. The budget director said the administration would need to submit a supplemental budget to adjust for the shortfall.

House Speaker Savali Talavou Ale asked whether the $13.7 million listed under Transfers In came from ARPA interest earnings. Tauaisafune began explaining that the amount came from cover‑over military taxes and DOI Grants & Aid, but lawmakers pointed out that those revenues were already listed elsewhere in the budget.

They also noted that the executive summary submitted by the administration clearly states that the $13.7 million is anticipated revenue from ARPA interest, raising concerns about inconsistent explanations.

Senator Magalei suggested that the Fono call in Brett Butler, since he was the main person who compiled the budget and prepared the revenue projections.

Senator Togiola T.A. Tulafono also questioned why contributions to the Retirement Fund listed in the budget were not being paid. Acting Treasurer Magalei‑Tulafono said payments were made only when cash was available, and that the government had paid 8 percent up to June.

Togiola asked why the government was not paying the statutory 14 percent required by law. Magalei‑Tulafono explained that former Acting Treasurer Brett Butler made the decision to pay only 8 percent, and she continued that practice.

Togiola responded that he did not know one person could change the law, and said it was clear from the testimony that both witnesses were not fully familiar with the budget.

Senator Gaoteote Palaie Tofau and Rep. Faimealelei Anthony Allen agreed that Butler should be called in to provide clear answers about the proposed budget.

However, Senate President Tuaolo disagreed, saying that someone who is not a director should not be testifying on the budget. He emphasized that this responsibility belongs to the Budget Director and Acting Treasurer.

Tuaolo added that in his 60 years in government, this would be the first time someone other than the Treasurer or Budget Director would be questioned about the budget.

Speaker Ale and Senator Togiola stressed that the Fono needs accurate answers, not guesses. Tuaolo reminded the two officials that they are responsible for the budget, not Brett Butler.

He warned that if issues such as the $10 million transfer ends up in court, they will be the ones required to answer — not Butler.

Both directors were scheduled to appear with Brett Butler for the continuation of the hearing yesterday on the proposed FY 2027 budget.

SENATE HEARING ON THE $10 MILLION ARPA INTEREST FUND INVESTMENT 

The Senate hearing that took place on Sept. 9th, will be covered in detail by the Samoa News in its Friday, Sept. 11th edition.