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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 revenues tied to a particular purpose may be excluded from the calculation. He said a draft appropriations bill he had seen that allocates $31,700,000 to the public school system “does not meet this constitutional standard.”
Why it matters: If the appropriation is calculated in a way that excludes ordinary revenues as general revenues, Rother said the legislature would risk noncompliance with the constitution and the prospect of litigation. He urged lawmakers to pass an appropriations bill that meets the constitutional requirement or to face judicial enforcement actions.
Key quotes and claims Rother said, “The public elementary and secondary education system shall be guaranteed an annual budget of not less than 25% of the general revenues of the Commonwealth through an annual appropriation.” He added that the Supreme Court’s language “leaves no room for ambiguity” on how to compute general revenues and that the legislature cannot override the court’s interpretation.
What the record shows The committee chair acknowledged the comment and said the committee would take the testimony into account. Rother recommended that the Public School System pursue litigation if it believes the guaranteed share is not appropriated.
Ending: Rother’s statement was entered into the record and senators acknowledged receipt; no committee action or response to the substance of the claim was recorded during the hearing.
