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Overdue bills catch up with school system

By Junhan B. Todeno & Emmanuel T. Erediano

SAIPAN, CNMI (Marianas Variety, March 7, 2012) – Despite assurances from the Fitial administration in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas (CNMI) that the interest of the Public School System’s (PSS) over 11,000 students will be protected, the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. (CUC) disconnected the administrative offices of the Public School System and the Board of Education (BOE) from its power grid.

Education officials said this was a "stunning reversal" of the central government’s pledge to work with PSS in preventing a disconnection.

Then-acting Gov. Eloy Inos reiterated this pledge in his recent meeting with Education Commissioner Rita A. Sablan.

The Medicaid office on Capital Hill was also disconnected.

Sablan suspended classes today to allow Saipan school administrators and staff to draw out "contingency plans" and avert future power disruption...

Private-sector effort to raise profile in Washington

By Frank Whitman

HAGÅTÑA, Guam (Marianas Business Journal, Feb. 27, 2012) – A recently formed pro-buildup lobbying group has been incorporated on Guam, is registered with the U.S. Congress and has reported to Congress its first payment to the firm representing it. Guam US Asia Security Alliance Inc. filed its articles of incorporation as a nonprofit corporation with the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation on Jan. 17.

About a month before, on Dec. 16, 2011, lobbying firm K&L Gates LLP had registered GUASA as a new client with both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. On Feb. 16, K&L Gates filed a quarterly report indicating that GUASA had paid it $20,000 during the fourth quarter of 2011. A December email to prospective group members indicated that it would cost $25,000 per month to hire the Gates firm. (See "Group forming, soliciting funds to lobby for buildup" in the Jan. 2...

Proposed system hopes to minimize impact of septic tanks

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (Radio New Zealand International, March 6, 2012) – Tuvaluans are being shown a new film encouraging them to install composting toilets.

Called ‘Falevatie: A Toilet for our Future,’ it shows how composting toilets can help conserve water and minimize other damage to the environment, food security and human health.

The Tuvalu manager for the Integrated Water Resources Management project, Pisi Seleganiu, says the septic tanks that are currently in use pollute the ground water and the lagoon.

"Small atolls like Tuvalu really have no significant land scale to filter the waste water that comes out of our septic systems. That is one of the factors that we are really looking at and trying to find a solution to."

Pisi Seleganiu says the project, which is managed by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community with money from the Global Environment Facility, will help build 40...

Increased revenue strategies hoped to outpace expenditures

By Felix Chaudhary

SUVA, Fiji (Fiji Times, March 6, 2012) – Fiji’s government aims to reduce national debt in the medium term by implementing strategies which include prepayment of expensive loans, reducing fiscal deficits and maintaining an efficient market for government securities, according to acting permanent secretary for finance David Kolitagane.

Speaking at the recent Nadi Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Business Forum, Mr. Kolitagane explained that in general, expenditure continuously exceeded revenue over the past four years.

"Over the years, expenditures have generally exceeded revenue collections. However, in 2008; there was a marginal increase in revenues compared to government spending. This was largely attributed to subdued spending in both capital and operating expenditures," he said.

Mr. Kolitagane also revealed that the net deficit for 2011 was expected to register...