PALIKIR, POHNPEI. June 10, 2020 – After twice extending the Fourth Regular Session of the 21st Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia, the online budget session finally adjourned sine-die on Saturday June 6, 2020.
While regular sessions of Congress are 20 days by statute, they can be extended or shortened through resolution. So, through Congressional Resolution (CR) 21-157 and CR 21-164, the Congress extended the May budget session until June 6, 2020 to tackle matters that remain outstanding before the Body.
To meet requirements of the Compact budget, the Congress adopted CR 21-148, to authorize the President to submit the recommended National Government Compact Budget Request, as revised pursuant to the Congress’ recommendations, to the United States Government under Article V of the Fiscal Procedure Agreement.
The Congress also adopted several resolutions for U.S. federal assistance made available to the FSM through the amended Compact with the United States. This assistance included: CR 21-147, which approved and accepted a $467,114 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to fund the project entitled: “Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases” and related services to support capacities for emerging infectious disease control in the FSM, including all the terms and conditions of the assistance.
Through CR 21-151, the Congress approved an application for a federal grant in the amount of $190,915 and its submission to the United States, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS): Impact in Population Health.
The Congress also adopted CR 21-152, to approve and accept a $250,000 grant from the U.S. DHHS -Administration for Children and Families, to fund and support the Personal Responsibility Education Program in the FSM.
Rounding out the amended Compact related resolutions was CR 21-161, which approved and accepted grants totaling $525,042 from the U.S. Department of health and Human Services, SAMHSA to provide funding for prevention treatment services related to substance abuse for the budget period from October 01, 2020 to September 30, 2020.
A ceiling resolution (CR 21-154) was also adopted to set the amount of funds estimated to be available from the General Fund of the FSM for the current fiscal year.
And finally, the Congress adopted CR 21-156, to urge the President of the FSM to work with multi-national lenders to implement measures to help State borrowers in financial stress due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Along with the resolutions were several measures to change lapse dates of funds previously appropriated for public projects and social programs for the states. Measures specific to the state of Chuuk included:
- Congressional Act (CA) 21-144, to change the lapse date, the allotee and the use of funds previously appropriated for public projects and social programs for the state;
- CA 21-145, to change the use of and the allottee of certain funds previously appropriated for the state’s public projects and social programs;
CA 21-146, to change the use, the allottee and the lapse date of funds previously appropriated to fund priority infrastructure projects and other programs in the state; and
CA 21-147, to change the use, the allottee and the lapse date of certain funds previously appropriated to fund public projects and social programs for the people of Chuuk State.
Specific to the state of Pohnpei was CA 21-149, to change the lapse date, the use and the allottee of certain funds previously appropriated to fund public projects and social programs for the people of the state.
The passage of CA 21-143, changed the lapse date of funds previously appropriated to assist the states of Pohnpei and Yap in retiring debt and covering budget shortfalls.
Through the passage of CA 21-142, changes were made to the allottee and the lapse dates of funds previously appropriated for public projects and social programs in all the four states of Yap, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Chuuk.
The final measure of the Fourth Regular Session of the 21st Congress is CA 21-148, to change the use, the allottee and lapse date of funds previously appropriated for public projects and social programs for the people of Kosrae, Pohnpei and Chuuk States.
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