Teno lauds passage of omnibus bill

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio yesterday welcomed the passage of the new version of the proposed Omnibus Labor and Business Reform Act, saying it is the consensus reached by his administration and the Senate with the private sector.

At the same time, he assured that efforts to establish garment manufacturing business on Rota and Tinian are not meant to backslide on earlier labor and immigration reforms that included moratorium on the issuance of new licenses for factories on Saipan.

Although he has not read the amendments made by the Senate to the proposal under HB 12-39, the governor hinted at supporting the new substitute which cleared the upper house on Tuesday after more than three months since its passage in the House of Representatives.

“I [had] instructed my staff and my legal counsel to meet with members of the Senate and review some of the concerns that we raised on the original bill,” Mr. Tenorio told reporters in an interview.

“I am sure that the Senate passed the version which is the consensus among the business sector, my staff and the Senate,” he added.

The chief executive had previously expressed concern on some of the provisions of the Omnibus sponsored by House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial, which originally sought repeal most of the laws deemed restrictive in doing business on the island and in wooing potential investors.

These included the hiring ban and the three-year stay limit imposed on nonresident workers as well as the fair compensation law for locals, garment attrition scheme and denial of certificate of origin for apparel exports manufactured by factories which violate labor laws.

All of these laws will not be repealed under the Senate version which will only provide flexibility to companies on the island in complying with government regulations, such as terms of hiring nonresidents and the $100,000 security deposit imposed on foreign investments.

One such provision will allow Rota and Tinian to issue new business license for a garment manufacturer wishing to open up a factory on the island municipalities as well as to allot 1,000 new guest workers for each apart from the 15,727 cap on the number of nonresident employees that has been in place on Saipan.

Mr. Tenorio said he does not see any problem in granting leeway to the two smaller islands if they want to explore other industries that will boost their economic development.

Noting that there are existing provisions permitting them to establish their own garment industry, the governor stressed this does not mean that the CNMI is backsliding on its reforms that have been implemented since 1998.

“I am not sure whether anybody will be interested in establishing a garment industry on Tinian and Rota. At the same time, I don’t want the people of Rota and Tinian to feel that we are blocking their interest,” Mr. Tenorio explained.

“If that is the consensus reached by the Senate , what can I do? But as I said, I am not sure whether anybody will be opening up a factory at this time,” he added.

While the local garment sector has been a target of criticisms for the past few years, industry leaders have maintained that the anticipated elimination of trade barriers in the global market by 2004 could lead to relocation of Saipan factories to more investment-friendly areas, like Latin America and Asia.