American Samoa's Senate President Lolo Moliga says a 15 percent increase in the American Samoa Power Authority's fiscal year 2007 budget will end up being paid by customers.
He says instead there should be a reduction given the independent government agency is getting a 900-thousand US dollar subsidy for solid waste from the executive branch in their new budget.
Lolo says the proposed ASPA budget of more than 49-million dollars in the new fiscal year is a little over 8 million dollars compared to the current fiscal year.
ASPA board chairman Afa Ripley says he believes the drastic hike is due to the continued increase in fuel prices worldwide, and that increase is passed on to consumers.
