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Educator warns Senate that proposed appropriation may fall short of constitutionally guaranteed share for public schools
Summary
A career educator told the Fiscal Affairs Committee that the Senateappropriations draft providing $31.7 million to the Public School System may not meet the constitutional guarantee of 25 percent of general revenues and urged the legislature to pass a compliant appropriation or face litigation.
During the DLNR budget hearing’s public‑comment period, career educator Jeremiah Rother urged the Senate to abide by Article XV, Section 1(e) of the Commonwealth Constitution, which he said guarantees public elementary and secondary education an annual appropriation of not less than 25 percent of general revenues.
Rother told senators the CNMI Supreme Court’s 2020 slip opinion clarified that general revenues must be calculated before earmarks and that only special…
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