Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rota finance director warns staff burnout, seeks more positions and operating funds
Summary
Rota Department of Finance director told the House Ways and Means delegation at a budget hearing that personnel are underpaid, understaffed and lack operating funds and vehicles, urging approval of additional FTEs, training and repairs to maintain revenue enforcement and customs functions.
Avery Hoco Calvo, resident director of the Department of Finance for Rota, told the House Ways and Means committee on June 5 that her office is understaffed, underfunded and losing trained inspectors because salaries and operating support have not kept pace with workload.
"I am going to run my staff into the ground. They are nearing burnout," Calvo said, describing long-running gaps in within-grade increases and an operating budget that until recently had been zero. She said Treasury, revenue and customs officers are doing work beyond their job classifications and that promotion and pay paperwork has been delayed for years.
Calvo outlined a personnel-heavy budget request that seeks promotionary adjustments, new full-time equivalents for revenue enforcement and inspection, and money for vehicle repairs or replacements. She said customs and biosecurity units are operating with too few vehicles — "the customs biosecurity has 2 working vehicles" — and that shared transportation is creating safety and service problems. She also asked the committee for funds to cover training and equipment so staff can use the new revenue system correctly instead of relying on cellphone-based training.
Why it matters: Finance staff manage tax and fee collection that fund municipal services. Calvo argued that without competitive wages and operating funds — including vehicle maintenance, training and a secure office — the island risks losing revenue and the institutional knowledge needed to regulate and collect revenues properly.
Key details: - Personnel and morale: Calvo said many staff remain at 2020–2021 pay levels and that within-grade increases (WGIs) have not been consistently implemented for customs and biosecurity. She described a backlog of merit promotions and WGI paperwork including outstanding merit awards dating to 2021. - Vehicles and facilities: Calvo asked for money to repair or replace patrol and enforcement vehicles and to secure a proper office for finance and treasury work; she said moving the department back into leased space in the past cost the municipality far more than a smaller rental would have. - Training and systems: The department is managing a new revenue system and Calvo said staff need in-person training and professional development money; she criticized the prevailing reliance on virtual or phone-based training. - Revolving accounts: Calvo told the committee that Rota has tried to establish local revolving accounts (for auctions, customs collections, etc.), but low local incomes and statutory rules have complicated efforts to retain proceeds locally. OMB later confirmed a special commerce filing-fee balance of roughly $100,953 for the First Senatorial District.
Reaction and follow-up: Committee members pressed OMB and the Department of Finance to clarify which WGI years were outstanding and asked the director to work with central OMB and OPM to move personnel actions before year-end. Calvo said she had asked Saipan offices for technical support and that the regional director of biosecurity has been helpful but cannot substitute for locally funded positions.
What comes next: Lawmakers told Calvo they will continue conversations with the governor's office and OMB about converting and protecting any local revolving-account balances and about prioritizing personnel and training requests in the final budget.
