Senate Debates Supplementary Bill; Business Senator Goes with Gusto

Mark Lizarraga

Prior to the introduction of a motion for a senate select committee to investigate the Immigration and Nationality Department, the Senate was engaged in a debate over the Supplementary Bill.  That piece of legislation would allow government to spend monies that were not included in the 2015-2016 fiscal budget which ended in March.  The contention; however, is that the monies have already been spent, long before the expenditure was brought before the House or the Senate. Business Senator Mark Lizarraga opposed the passage on the grounds that it is a case of practicing after the race.

Mark Lizarraga, Business Senator

“In the case of this bill, Mister President, this bill was for the year 2015-2016 which ended in March. We are now five months—not three months as the law provides—so that makes it illegal. Petro Two also ask, and I will read it, at the time of quarterly reporting, a prospective supplementary allocation shall also be required for all spending proposed to be done in the following quarter, if such spending has not been provided for in the annual estimates of revenue and expenditure. So the Prime Minister has the ability to spend ten percent or five hundred thousand, if there is urgent need for it, and he has the ability to come to us if an item is not budgeted to say in the next three months, this is what I propose to spend. And that would make it legal. Mister President, I believe that we have not been seeing, and I stand to be corrected, prospective supplementary allocation that the law calls for.”