Marshall Islands 1979 Constitution (reviewed 1995)

ARTICLE VIII. FINANCE

Section 1. Legislative Control of Public Revenue and Expenditure

1. No taxes shall be imposed or other revenue raised and no public money shall be expanded unless authorized by law.
2. All revenues received by the Government of Republic of the Marshall Islands shall be paid into an appropriate public fund or account established by this Constitution or by Act.

Section 2. The Cabinet to Take Responsibility for Budgetary Matters

1. It shall be the responsibility of the Cabinet to make proposals to the Nitijela on all matters pertaining to the budget.
2. Except with the recommendation or consent of a member of the Cabinet, the Nitijela shall not proceed further than the first reading of any Bill or amendment thereto introduced by a member of the Nitijela other than a member of the Cabinet, if that Bill would, in the opinion of the Speaker, dispose of or charge any of the public revenues of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, or revoke or alter (otherwise than by way of reduction) any disposition thereof or charge thereon, or impose or alter or abolish any tax, rate, due, fee or fine.

Section 3. The General Fund

1. There shall be a Republic of the Marshall Islands General Fund.
2. All taxes and other revenues and moneys raised or received by the Government of the Republic shall be paid into the General Fund, unless permitted by Act to be paid into some other fund or account established for a specific purpose.

Section 4. Withdrawals from the General Fund or Other Public Account

1. No moneys shall be withdrawn from the General Fund unless the issue of those moneys
   1. has been authorized by the Appropriation Act or a Supplementary Appropriation Act; or
   2. has been authorized as anticipated or reprogrammed expenditure pursuant to Section 7 of this Article, or as an advance against a Contingencies Fund, pursuant to Section 9 of the Article; or
   3. is to meet expenditure specifically charged on the General Fund by this Constitution or by Act.
2. No moneys shall be withdrawn from the General Fund except with the authority of the Secretary of Finance, who shall satisfy himself that the expenditure of those moneys has been approved pursuant to Section 5 of this Article and that the withdrawal is made in accordance with such other procedures as may be prescribed by law.
3. No moneys shall be withdrawn from any other public fund or account unless the issue of those moneys has been authorized by or pursuant to [an] Act.

Section 5. The Cabinet to Supervise Expenditure and to Account to the Nitijela

1. No public money shall be expended without the approval of the Cabinet or of a person or body to which such approval authority has been delegated by or pursuant to [an] Act.
2. Any such delegation, whether or not to one or more members of the Cabinet, shall not derogate from the Cabinet’s collective responsibility to account to the Nitijela for all public expenditure and to relate such expenditure either to the appropriations made by the Nitijela or to the authority conferred by this Constitution or by Act.
3. The Secretary of Finance may make a report to the Cabinet on the immediate and long-term financial implications of any proposal for the expenditure of public money, and he shall make such a report pursuant to a direction of the Cabinet or of the Minister of Finance given either generally or in the particular case.
4. The Minister of Finance shall, as soon as practicable after the end of the financial year, lay before the Nitijela at its regular session the accounts relating to all public revenues and expenditure for that financial year.

Section 6. The Annual Appropriation Bill

1. The Minister of Finance shall, in relation to each financial year, lay before the Nitijela, as soon as practicable after the commencement of its regular session, budget estimates of the revenues and expenditure of the Republic of the Marshall Islands for that financial year.
2. The budget estimates shall cover all expected sources of revenue payable into the General Fund, including loans raised or to be raised, and all proposed expenditure from the General Fund including expenditure charged on the General Fund by this Constitution or by any Act, or payable under a continuing appropriation.
3. Budget estimates relating to the raising of loans shall be accompanied by an analysis showing the future cost of servicing and repaying the loan.
4. Budget estimates of capital expenditure shall be accompanied by an analysis showing the estimated future cost of maintaining the asset created or acquired.
5. The program areas categorized in the budget estimates for that financial year (other than items charged on the General Fund by this Constitution or Act or payable under a continuing appropriation) shall be included in a single Bill, to be known as the Appropriation Bill, which shall be introduced into the Nitijela to provide for the issue from the General Fund of the sums necessary to meet the expenditure incurred in those program areas and the appropriation of those sums for the purposes specified in the Bill.

Section 7. Anticipated and Reprogrammed Expenditures

1. Subject to such restrictions as may be prescribed by Act, the Cabinet may approve the expenditure of such sums as it considers necessary
   1. in anticipation of provision to be made in the Appropriation Act for any financial year. Provided that the total amount issued and paid under this subparagraph in relation to any program area in any financial year shall not exceed the unexpended balance of the amount appropriated for that program area for the preceding financial year, together with an amount equal to 25 percent of the amount so appropriated; and all money so spent shall be included in the budget estimates for that financial year; or
   2. where, during the period between the passing of the Appropriation Act for any financial year and the end of that financial year, it is desirable that money appropriated in one program area should be spent in another program area:

   Provided that the total amount of all sums issued and paid under this subparagraph in any financial year shall not result in an increase or decrease of more than 10 percent in the funds appropriated for any program area.

2. A statement of the reprogrammed expenditure for any financial year shall be included in the accounts for that year laid before the Nitijela.

Section 8. Supplementary Appropriation Bills

1. If, after the passing of the Appropriation Act in respect of any financial year, the cabinet finds it necessary or desirable to propose any expenditure over and above that authorized by that Appropriation Act, the Minister of Finance may lay before the Nitijela one or more supplementary estimates of the proposed expenditure and of the unappropriated revenues which are, or will be, available to meet that expenditure; and all requirements relating to budget estimates shall in each case apply.
2. The program areas categorized in any such supplementary estimates shall be included in a Supplementary Appropriation Bill, which shall be introduced into the Nitijela to provide for the issue from the General Fund of the sums necessary to meet the supplementary expenditure incurred in those program areas and the appropriation of those sums for the purposes specified in that Supplementary Appropriation Bill.

Section 9. Contingencies Fund

1. If so empowered by Act, the Cabinet, on being satisfied that there has arisen an urgent and unforeseen need for expenditure for which no other provision exists, may authorize advances from the General Fund, to be charged against the amount prescribed as a Contingencies Fund, to meet that need.
2. A statement of all advances charged against the Contingencies Fund for any financial year shall be included in the accounts for that year laid before the Nitijela.
3. If the amount so advanced has not already been appropriated by a Supplementary Appropriation Act, the budget estimates for the next succeeding financial year shall include provision for such an appropriation.

Section 10. Lapse of Appropriation

The appropriations made by the Appropriation Act or any Supplementary Appropriation Act shall lapse at the end of the financial year to which that Act relates, or at the end of such longer period as that Act may have prescribed in relation to a particular program area.

Section 11. Compensation of Certain Officers Charged on the General Fund

1. The compensation payable to the holders of the offices of judge of the Supreme Court or of the High Court, of member of the Public Service Commission and of Auditor-General shall be a charge on the General Fund.
2. During the term of office of a holder of any such office, his compensation may be increased but not reduced, unless as part of a general reduction of compensation applied proportionately to all persons whose compensation is required to be specifically prescribed by Act.

Section 12. Public Debt Charged on the General Fund

All debt charges for which the Republic of the Marshall Islands is liable shall be a charge on the General Fund.

Section 13. The Auditor-General

1. The Speaker shall nominate and, with the approval of the Nitijela, signified by resolution, the President shall appoint an Auditor-General of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
2. The Auditor-General shall hold office during good behavior until he reaches the age of 72 years.
3. The Auditor-General may at any time resign his office by writing signed by him, addressed to the Speaker; but he shall not be removed or suspended from office except on the like grounds and in the like manner as a judge of the High Court or of the Supreme Court.
4. If the office of Auditor-General is vacant, or it appears that the Auditor-General is for any reason unable to perform the functions of his office, the Speaker shall nominate and the President shall appoint an Acting Auditor-General; and the Acting Auditor-General shall continue to perform those functions until a new Auditor-General is appointed and assumes office, or, as the case may be, until the Auditor-General is again able to perform the functions of his office.
5. A person who has held office as Auditor-General shall not be eligible for appointment to any other office in the service of the Republic within a period of 3 years after ceasing to hold the office of Auditor-General.

Section 14. Compensation of Auditor-General

The compensation of the Auditor-General shall be specifically prescribed by Act.

Section 15. Audit of Accounts

1. The Auditor-General shall audit the public funds and accounts of the Republic of the Marshall Islands including those of all Departments or offices of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government and of any other public corporation or other statutory authority constituted under the law of the Republic unless, in relation to any such public corporation or other statutory authority, provision is made by Act for audit by any other person.
2. The Auditor-General may exercise his responsibilities under paragraph (1) of this Section either in person or through officers of the Public Service who are subordinate to him, acting in accordance with his general or special instructions.
3. For the purpose of carrying out his functions under this Article, the Auditor-General or any person authorized by him shall have full access to all public records, books, vouchers, documents, cash, stamps, securities, stores or other government property in the possession of any officer.
4. The Auditor-General shall report at least once annually to the Nitijela, at its regular session, on the performance of his functions under this Article, and shall, in his report, draw attention to any irregularities in the accounts audited by him.
5. In the exercise of his functions, the Auditor-General shall not receive any direction from the Cabinet or from any other authority or person, but shall act independently.
6. Nothing in this Section shall prevent the Auditor-General from offering technical advice and assistance to any person or authority having a responsibility in relation to the public revenues and expenditure of the Republic.