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Lawmakers press education department on purchases, decentralization and school relocations amid reconstruction

Comisión de Hacienda y Presupuesto (House) / Comisión de Hacienda, Asuntos Federales y Junta de Supervisión Fiscal (Senate) · April 26, 2024

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Summary

Members questioned slow purchases, the P‑card roll‑out and regional capacity to execute contracts; they also demanded clear relocation plans for schools undergoing reconstruction after lawmakers described inaccessible facilities.

During the joint hearing lawmakers raised operational concerns beyond headline budget totals: procurement delays, inconsistent delivery of purchases to schools, and the pace of decentralization pilots. Representative Débora Soto and other members asked whether school purchases were reaching campuses on time and whether P‑card ("Pick‑Card") allocations were being distributed equitably. The department explained the P‑card model is catalog‑based and tied to a bank contract; schools select items from a pre‑approved catalog and the system issues a purchase order directly to a distributor, bypassing some central approval steps. The department said it has increased temporary buyers in regional offices and launched training to expand regional buying capacity.

Lawmakers also demanded specific relocation plans for students displaced by reconstruction. Senator María de Lourdes Santiago described a small annex school with students in wheelchairs and said, "Eso dan ganas de llorar, eso es una vergfcenza... Que en este paeds obliguemos a estas alturas... estudiantes en silla de ruedas, en una escuela llena de barreras arquitectf3nicas, eso no tiene perdf3n de dios." The secretary said regional teams, infrastructure staff and parents are working on individualized relocation plans and that the department would verify alternatives and provide lists and timelines.

Committee presidents requested P‑card transaction logs, per‑school requisition timelines and regional procurement staffing plans within five days, and asked the department to include the requested procurement metrics when it delivers the budget follow‑ups.