Talks on federalization to start with DHS’ visit

Officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are expected to arrive Friday to begin talks about the implementation of the new CNMI immigration law.

The Department of Homeland Security is the lead agency tasked with drafting the regulations for the application of the “federalization” law, which requires the U.S. government to assume control of local immigration.

The names and itinerary of the visiting officials have yet to be announced.

But press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr. said yesterday the Fitial administration will work with the federal officials, even as it pursues legal action to stop the U.S. government’s takeover.

“I think you can do that concurrently,” Reyes said about the administration’s plan to sue while negotiating with the U.S. government. Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has announced he had hired a team of U.S.-based attorneys to review a draft complaint challenging the recently enacted immigration law for the Northern Marianas.

Howard Willens, one of the governor’s legal counsels, drafted the complaint. Jenner & Block, a national law firm with offices in Chicago, New York and Washington, D.C., is doing the review.

Reyes said the administration has not set a specific timeline for the legal review and the possible filing of the lawsuit. “It all depends on the attorneys,” he said.

He reiterated the governor’s expressed concern about language in the immigration legislation requiring the number of foreign workers in the Commonwealth to be brought down to zero by Dec. 31, 2014, or whenever the transition period ends.

The governor has said that most of the foreign workers now in the Commonwealth would not qualify for U.S. work visas and would have to go home.

“It’s just inconceivable. We cannot have all of the workers leave. Not only do they fill most of the jobs, they also contribute to the economy. Without them, the businesses will not have a market,” Reyes said.

Federal Ombudsman Jim Benedetto, who helped write the legislation and who will help draft the regulations, has said the Commonwealth has little reason to worry about losing the ability to hire foreign workers. The transitional program allowing the CNMI to keep its foreign worker program will continue as long as the Commonwealth’s economy need guest workers. Even after the transition period ends, foreign workers can enter the CNMI through the federal program.

“Theoretically, it’s possible that we’d go down to zero [foreign workers]. But is that going to happen? I don’t think so. I don’t think you really have anything to worry about,” he has said in a recent forum for guest workers.