PHILIPSBURG:--- The 2025 Budget for St. Maarten remains unpublished and unratified due to significant errors in budget amendments provided by the government, leading to an ongoing delay in finalizing the legislative process.
A letter from Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina addressed to Parliament President Mrs. Sarah Wescot Williams confirmed that the government is still incorporating amendments and verifying their accuracy. However, serious concerns have emerged regarding the quality of the amendments submitted, which have been described as “sloppy” and riddled with technical errors.
According to the Prime Minister’s update, the budget process has been stalled due to seven amendments, three from the government and four from Parliament. However, incorporating two of these amendments has revealed multiple errors that prevent the budget from being finalized.
These errors highlight a concerning lack of precision in the amendment process, including missing or incorrect dates, absent line items, and even budgeted amounts that do not match, rendering the amendments incompatible with the overall budget framework. The discrepancies are so severe that the budget cannot be published or ratified until they are corrected, further delaying critical government financial planning.
With budget approval being one of the most essential responsibilities of any government, the delays could have ripple effects on government agencies, businesses, and social programs that depend on timely budget allocations, leaving the country in a state of financial uncertainty.
Additionally, it appears the government has sought advice from the Netherlands regarding a procedure known as "novelle wetgeving." While this mechanism is used in Dutch legislative processes to amend bills before final approval, it remains unclear how the government plans to implement such a procedure in St. Maarten, given that the country does not have a bicameral system. The execution of this approach within the framework of the Constitution of St. Maarten raises further questions about legal feasibility and parliamentary oversight.
SMN News is interested in knowing the position of the Governor and the 15 Members of Parliament regarding this procedure and whether there is a true constitutional legal basis for its application in St. Maarten. Given the concerns surrounding transparency and governance, clarity from the highest levels of government is essential to ensure that any legislative process follows the proper constitutional framework.
As the people of St. Maarten wait for answers, officials must now work swiftly to correct these issues and ensure the budget is finalized. The longer the delay continues, the greater the potential consequences for the nation’s financial stability.
SMN News will continue to follow this story as more details emerge.
