Legislator eyes loans from Fund
A lawmaker has recently introduced a bill that will compel the Northern Mariana Islands Retirement Fund to provide personal loans to members who may need extra cash in light of the worsening economic crisis.
Sen. Edward U. Maratita, author of Senate Bill 11-80 or the Retirement Fund Loan Act of 1998, has proposed that the Retirement Fund allow government employees to utilize at least 25 percent of their contribution in the form of personal loan.
Acting NMIRF Administrator Fred Camacho said the Retirement Fund’s Board of Trustees may consider the proposal as another way of investing part of the system’s assets to the community.
However, Camacho said the board has yet to make a stand on the pending bill.
“If it should be passed, I don’t know exactly how the board will view that — whether they’ll go and implement it right away or examine it further and see what the actual impact is,” he said.
Right now, the Fund provides only home loans. But even this is limited for newly constructed houses.
Former administrator Edward Manglona explained that a moratorium has been imposed on home improvement loans as the NMIRF’s Home Loan Program operates on a fixed budget of only $10 million which he described as barely enough.
The Fund has 5,421 members as of fiscal year 1997.
