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DPW warns local landfill costs and suspended accounts complicate proposed solid-waste authority change
Summary
The secretary of Public Works told the committee that suspended municipal fund balances, missing tipping‑fee collection and the high operational costs of compliant landfills complicate Senate Bill 24-32’s plan to shift expenditure authority for solid‑waste subaccounts to municipal delegations.
Secretary Yumo of the Department of Public Works told the committee that while proposed changes in Senate Bill 24-32 could speed local decision-making on solid-waste projects, the Commonwealth faces unresolved financing and operational hurdles that legislation alone will not fix.
"The problem here with this legislation is that Road and Tinian are not collecting tipping fees," the secretary said, explaining that a long period during which municipal solid-waste accounts were suspended by the budget act left local accounts depleted. He told members permitting and environmental work remain under way and that current grants and A&E work are progressing but will not eliminate recurring operating costs.
Secretary Yumo said construction grants (identified in the hearing as SADRA/Assadra and other grant programs) can fund compliant landfill construction, but operating a landfill is costly. "The landfill up here in MARP costs the department over $1.44 million a year to operate," he said, adding that financial-assurance obligations for closure and long-term compliance will also require substantial funding.
Committee members pressed the secretary on technical status. He said RoA’s existing facility has recently been permitted but remains short of full compliance and that design, NEPA reviews and endangered‑species constraints complicate the Saipan work. Tenian requires separate NEPA work but may be easier to permit. The department is pursuing equipment grants and recycling-support grants (including a Swiffer/Assadra grant noted in the hearing) to improve municipal operations and enable recyclable-material hauling.
Members flagged three policy questions: whether municipalities collect and retain tipping fees under local law; whether a municipal-first expenditure authority creates unsustainable cost obligations for small districts once landfills open; and how the committee will ensure ongoing operations are funded. Representative Julie Ogo asked the committee to share a letter from the mayor of RoA documenting local needs; the secretary said he has participated in regular coordination calls and that municipal staff are engaged on implementation details.
The committee agreed to table Senate Bill 24-32 and meet again with the secretary and the Secretary of Finance to clarify fund status, tipping‑fee collection, and the operational funding model before further action.
What happens next: The committee will request updated account balances from the Secretary of Finance, follow up on tipping-fee collection and schedule a return session with DPW to review design, NEPA and operating-cost estimates.
