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Senators press DPW on solid-waste funding, unpaid hazardous-pay claims and tipping fees for islands
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Summary
Senators pressed DPW on Sept. 10 about solid-waste funding for Saipan, Tinian and Rota and on outstanding hazardous-pay claims dating to 2022; DPW said tipping fees fund operations but that Tinian and Rota have not consistently remitted fees and that the department is coordinating with OPM to resolve hazardous-pay eligibility and payment processing.
Senators used the DPW budget hearing to press the department on solid-waste funding, staffing and unpaid hazardous-pay claims dating to 2022. DPW officials said solid-waste revenue from tipping fees funds operations but that Rota and Tinian have not consistently collected or remitted those fees; the department said municipalities have been subsidizing operations in the interim.
DPW’s secretary and directors told senators the administration’s FY2026 submission restores special-fund distribution for solid-waste operations if the legislature does not suspend provisions that were temporarily modified. The department listed an administrative budget and described contracts in Saipan that must be funded for landfill operations and for environmental monitoring required by the permitting agency.
Senators repeatedly asked whether solid-waste employees would receive hazardous pay tied to pandemic and disaster response. DPW officials said those workers were not always included in prior first-responder designations and that the department is working with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and Homeland agencies to the designate solid-waste staff who qualify for hazardous differential. DPW and senators discussed whether hazardous pay should be embedded in base pay or triggered automatically by emergency declarations; DPW said the civil-service regulations allow hazardous differential but processing requires person-action forms reviewed by OPM and appropriate documentation of work performed in hazardous conditions.
Senators asked DPW to seek legislative or administrative fixes so that solid-waste staff who worked during COVID and other emergencies receive payments without multiyear delays. One senator estimated total owed for hazardous pay in recent years at close to $160,000 and asked whether those amounts could be paid from currently budgeted allocations.
Why it matters: Solid-waste operations are essential public services; unpaid hazardous-pay claims and unclear revenue flows for Tinian and Rota affect worker morale and operations and could create liabilities for the territory if not resolved.
DPW said it will work with OPM and the administration to clarify eligibility and accelerate payments where legal and budgetary authorities permit. Senators asked for a clear account of tipping-fee receipts and a timeline for paying outstanding hazardous-pay obligations.
