SAIPAN – The Broadband Policy and Development Office is moving its veterans and Manåmko laptop voucher program to federal General Services Administration procurement after three local procurement attempts could not deliver the equipment within the available budget, Special Assistant Glen Hunter said Tuesday on Good Morning Marianas.
Hunter said the program is still on track and remains a priority for the Apatang administration. The delay has been procedural, he said, not a question of funding.
The Broadband Policy and Development Office first ran the laptop procurement through standard local channels and was unable to come in under the program’s budget ceiling, Hunter said. A second invitation to bid was issued, and the office was still unable to obtain the desired technology at the available price point. A third procurement process was underway when Super Typhoon Sinlaku made landfall and slowed the effort. Local procurement subsequently presented GSA as an alternative route, and the office is now moving forward through that channel.
In partnership with the CNMI Veterans Affairs Office, the program issues vouchers to eligible recipients, who will be called for pickup once the laptops arrive. Hunter said the voucher system was designed to avoid long lines at distribution and to allow a smooth handoff.
While recipients wait for the laptops, a Broadband Policy and Development Office-funded digital navigator is on hand at the Veterans Affairs Office to help with login.gov account setup and online access. Recipients can use other devices to begin setting up their digital accounts before their laptops are delivered, Hunter said.
“Apologies to any of the veterans or the Manåmko that have been patiently waiting,” Hunter said. “This is a focus of ours. It’s a big priority for the governor to get these laptops out to everyone. We haven’t forgotten it. It’s just procurement was a little bit more of a challenge than we thought.”
Hunter noted that none of the laptops were damaged by the storm because the inventory had not yet been delivered.
The veterans and Manåmko laptop program is one of several digital inclusion projects under the Broadband Policy and Development Office, alongside the $81 million Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment sub-grant and a Safe Space pod installation planned for community anchor institutions across the islands.