CPA Board Approves FY 2027 Austerity Budget with 72-Hour Pay Period and 15% Airline Fee Adjustment

​The Commonwealth Ports Authority (CPA) Board of Directors unanimously approved its proposed Fiscal Year 2027 operational budget on August 27, adopting a cost-cutting plan that implements a 72-hour biweekly work schedule for staff, applies a 15% increase to airline rental and landing fees, and allocates $5 million in surplus seaport funds to manage a projected airport deficit.

​The board voted to adopt "Scenario D" for the airport division, balancing deep departmental expenditure cuts with modest revenue enhancements ahead of the new fiscal year starting October 1. Under the approved airport plan, CPA projects $6.2 million in baseline operating revenues against $14.33 million in personnel and operating expenses. Factoring in the $5 million transfer from seaport reserve funds, the airport faces an anticipated net operating shortfall of approximately $3.12 million.

​Board members extensively debated the reduction of working hours for agency personnel, ultimately choosing an 8-hour reduction per pay period rather than mirroring the 64-hour austerity measures implemented elsewhere in the central government.

​"The employees of CPA have done more than their fair share of sacrificing," the CPA board chairman Bartley Jackson said during the meeting. "What I’d like to recommend is that we proceed with a budget based upon a 72-hour, two-week pay period. That’s what I think is prudent. It’s responsive and yet not unfair to the hard-working staff of CPA."

​Financial Affairs Committee and CPA Secretary Carline Sablan noted that shielding employees from deeper reductions was critical given recent economic pressures across the commonwealth.

​"We know that PSS has been operating on 64 hours per pay period and they’ve lost 137 employees," Sablan said. "We’ve invested in our employees. We want as much as possible to reduce their hardships and at least prepare them for bigger cuts if necessary. So, I think it would be safe to start off with the 72 hours."

​The board also approved Board Resolution No. 26-02, amending the FY 2027 Rate Reduction Program to institute a 15% increase in landing and facility rental fees. Leadership characterized the adjustment not as a newly imposed financial penalty on air carriers, but rather as a calibrated reduction of existing discounts CPA has extended to incentivize flights.

​"We're reducing the reduction, because the price that was recommended by our consultant is much higher," Jackson explained. "We’ve offered a reduction so that we give the incentive for airlines to continue to fly. That reduction will continue, but it won’t be as big, so yes, there’ll be a small increase in landing fees. We believe it is enough to generate additional revenue without scaring away our current set of carriers."

​In contrast to the airport's financial strain, the seaport division presented a balanced operational outlook. The board unanimously adopted the FY 2027 seaport budget, projecting $6.37 million in revenues, $1.04 million in personnel costs across 23 full-time employees on the same 72-hour schedule, and an operating income of $2.37 million. CPA Comptroller Sheryl Sizemore confirmed that tapping $5 million from seaport reserves to aid the airport remains within the threshold required to maintain bond covenants and debt service coverage ratios.

Executive Director Estrellita Ada highlighted positive developments in international air connectivity in her reports. United Airlines expanded service to Saipan on August 3 with three weekly direct flights from Narita, offering renewed access to the Japanese market and broader transit routes to the U.S. mainland. Additionally, Philippine Airlines is on track to resume twice-weekly scheduled service to Saipan on October 25.

​CPA management confirmed that ongoing recovery projects continue across all port facilities following recent typhoon damages, including roof restoration at the international terminal, repairs to passenger loading bridges, and conveyor belt overhauls in arrival baggage areas. The authority was recently awarded $48,180 under the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Law Enforcement Officers reimbursement program to offset port police screening costs, while staff prepare for mandatory FAA Part 139 compliance inspections scheduled across Saipan, Tinian, and Rota airports in mid-September.

​The approved CPA budget package will now be submitted to the Governor’s Office for incorporation into the CNMI's consolidated fiscal year submission.