LEADERS TESTIFY IN WASHINGTON Drop takeover plan

Opposed to a proposal to apply federal immigration laws in the Northern Marianas, leaders of the Legislature appealed to a U.S. Senate committee to drop the plan in favor of joint undertakings with Washington to reform local labor and immigration.

They warned the legislation would have adverse impact on the CNMI economy and open the island to a new wave of immigrants and permanent residents who would displace the indigenous people in the future.

“Senate Bill No. 1052 is not the vehicle that will further the best interest of the Commonwealth. Instead, it would be the vehicle that destroys our fragile economy and make us dependent once again on federal grant assistance,” lawmakers said.

The statement was part of the joint testimony presented by House Speaker Diego T. Benavente and Senate President Paul A. Manglona to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources during the oversight hearing in Washington D.C. Tuesday.

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio led the CNMI delegation comprised of administration officials, members of the Legislature and representatives from the business sector, who are in the U.S. capital to attend two congressional hearings this week.

In a 20-page report, the presiding officers of the Legislature outlined reform measures undertaken by the island government in the past one and half year since appearing before the same panel in a hearing conducted in March 1998.

They also made recommendations, such as increase federal assistance, in an attempt to convince the committee against the bipartisan measure offered by Chairman Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) and ranking minority member Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii).

The panel, which has jurisdiction over the CNMI and other insular areas, specifically called the hearing to review the bill — one of host of legislation pending in Congress that aim to strip local authority over its immigration, minimum wage and custom standards.

S. 1052, introduced last May, will seek full extension of Immigration and Nationality Act to the island and permit the Immmigration and Naturalization Service to oversee the function based on U.S. Attorney General’s findings that CNMI does not possess either the “institutional capacity” or “genuine commitment” to control its own immigration.

“We sincerely believe, as we have pleaded with this committee last year, that the (INA) should not apply to the Commonwealth, at least not yet,” said Benavente and Manglona.

Reforms in place: Citing local enforcement measures put in place since Tenorio assumed office last year, they said the island government has “earnestly” begun to address Washington’s concerns on the size of alien worker population as well as the alleged labor abuses here.

“We have tremendous progress — although we acknowledge there is still much to be done,” they said.

These efforts reflect the serious commitment that this government has vowed to pursue, correcting inadequacies found in the local immigration system and stopping mistreatment of guest workers, according to their testimony.

The Tenorio administration has also managed to bring down the number of nonresident workers on the island by nearly 23 percent since the imposition of a selective hiring ban in March last year.

Their number is expected to go much lower next year, “as the Commonwealth aggressively screens out the need for guest workers in many of the job categories that have been advertised in the past but are unnecessary.”

Since these reforms point to the capability of the Commonwealth to handle its own immigration, the Senate must not consider the proposal in view of its potential effect on the economy as local leaders attempt to diversify its business base beyond tourism and garment manufacturing.

“We humbly this committee not to report out legislation that would take away our ability to tailor our labor and immigration system to local needs,” the legislative leaders explained.

“We ask that decisions that need to be made locally, in the Commonwealth, not be made in Washington D.C.,” they added.