TENO APPEALS TO CONGRESS Postpone action on takeover bill

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio yesterday urged U.S. lawmakers to hold off action on legislation extending federal immigration laws to the Northern Marianas as he expressed disappointment over its approval by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee despite CNMI’s protests.

But he remains optimistic that other members of Congress will weigh the full impact of the proposal to the island’s economy.

“Hopefully, I’d like to see that they would take it very seriously and try to give us the opportunity to delay implementing the INA,” Tenorio told reporters in an interview.

The committee, which has oversight of the CNMI and other insular areas, last week passed Senate Bill 1052 that would automatically extend the Immigration and Nationality Act to the island one year after its enactment by Congress.

It is now up for voting by the full Senate, after which it heads to the House of Representatives for another round of review before becoming a law.

Local leaders are hoping to draw support from their allies in Congress to block this latest attempt to take over immigration, which they maintain will have disastrous consequences to the island’s economy dependent on alien workforce.

According to Tenorio, the government fought hard against the legislation during the committee hearings last month. “We tried our best and at the same time we provided them all the information we have. We were hoping at that time that they would review our concerns,” he said.

“It’s really going to cause serious impact here in the CNMI,” added Tenorio, who declined to comment on specific recommendations proposed by the panel.

Jointly sponsored by Committee Chairman Sen. Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) and two ranking minority members, the initial bill was revamped during deliberation to accommodate concerns expressed by CNMI leaders, particularly on its economy.

The amendments scrapped provisions allowing a one-year probation in which the U.S. Attorney General could make the determination whether INA’s full application is necessary as well as a legal means by which the island government could contest such findings in court.

Moreover, the committee shortened the transition period to nine years, but agreed to provide extension of up to 10 years for tourism industry and five years for other businesses.

It also inserted provisions granting immigrant visas to long-term nonresident workers under a one-time grandfather clause as well as guaranteeing financial and technical assistance from the federal government to train locals.

Island officials and business leaders have strongly opposed Washington’s attempt to strip CNMI authority over its immigration, minimum wage and custom standards in fear it would further paralyze the economy, which has suffered on the heels of Asian recession.

The Clinton Administration has pushed takeover legislation for the past two years due to alleged failure by CNMI to curb entry of alien workers and stem labor abuses.