FEMA: CNMI situation is uncommon

The Federal Emergency Management Agency faced a lot of citizenship and eligibility issues in the CNMI when it comes to receiving federal aid and assistance, especially after disasters like Typhoon Soudelor in 2015 and Typhoon Mangkhut on Rota and Super Typhoon Yutu on Saipan and Tinian last year.

“The citizenship and eligibility issues here in the CNMI are a bit challenging and not as common in the [U.S.] mainland. Each individual case must be considered based on its own merit,” FEMA Office of External Affairs representative Todd Hoose told Saipan Tribune.

Hoose was responding to reports that some guest workers who were previously approved to receive federal assistance were later told to give back the cash aid awarded them due to eligibility issues, like not being U.S. citizens or green card holders, or they have no son or daughter who was born in the CNMI.

These incidents involving guest workers, who are under the CNMI-Only Transitional visa or CW-1, also happened during Typhoon Soudelor in 2015 where FEMA asked disaster survivors, who were ineligible, to return the money they got.

“Not everyone who is living in CNMI and who was affected by the disaster will be eligible for FEMA assistance because there are laws that require FEMA’s compliance. FEMA assistance is provided under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1988,” states FEMA information, as provided by Hoose.

“The Stafford Act was passed by Congress and was meant to supplement the efforts of the state and to provide an orderly and continuing means of assistance by the federal government to state and local governments in carrying out their responsibilities to alleviate the suffering and damage which result from such disasters.”

Those eligible are U.S. citizens and nationals and qualified alien that falls under the legal permanent resident category or referred to as a green card. Qualified aliens may also be lawfully admitted permanent residents or was granted asylum or a refugee, or a humanitarian parolee for at least one year.

CW-1 visa holders are workers who are allowed temporary employment in the CNMI. Employers apply foreign non-immigrant workers to earn CW-1 status if they are ineligible for other non-immigrant worker visa categories. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services had already informed FEMA that CW-1 workers are not qualified aliens.

FEMA, however, said that if a member of a guest workers’ household is a U.S. citizen or a national or a qualified alien—having a child born in the CNMI that is a citizen—then they could be considered eligible to receive assistance.