Bill to repeal Justice Center Fund Revolving Account passes committee

The House Standing Committee on Ways and Means passed yesterday House Bill 23-114 to repeal the Justice Center Fund Revolving Account despite recent push back by the NMI Judiciary.

Yesterday, the standing Committee on Ways and Means passed by majority vote H.B. 23-114 which essentially repeals the Justice Center Fund Revolving Account and reverts it back to the Department of Public Safety.

Authored by Rep. Marissa Flores (Ind-Saipan), the bill essentially aims to give back revenue collected through traffic fees to DPS as these funds have been kept in the Justice Center Fund Revolving Account—controlled by the NMI Judiciary—for 15 years.

“There has been confusion and resistance by the courts because this fund has been used to aid building the court and providing other types of support. The genesis of that is because at one point, the traffic fees that were supposed to be given to DPS were diverted to support this particular source of income for the courts. Now, DPS needs resources and its time that this Justice Center Fund be reversed, and the funds appropriated for this be given back to its original receiver which is DPS,” she said in a previous House session.

“I sincerely hope that the courts figure out a way to support their justice center fund because I will work and advocate for the funds that were meant for DPS, be given back to DPS. I want to make that very clear. The people deserve to remain safe and if these funds are going to be the cause and root of this, then the only way to fix this injustice is to give it back. DPS has suffered 15 years without these funds because it was diverted to the courts to support their extravagant building,” Flores added.

While Flores understands where the Judiciary is coming from, as these funds have long been used for the establishment and maintenance of NMI courthouses, she believes there are other sources of funds that the Judiciary can tap into.

“There are many courts that have been established, and there are grants that support these courts. So just as everybody else is assigned to look for grants, find money elsewhere, I’m pretty sure the court can also continue and apply for these grants. While the [Judiciary] made it very clear that monies will also be used to construct a new courthouse on Tinian, and make improvements to the Rota courthouse, while that’s very nice, I still think it’s due time that they figure out ways to support the extravagance of a courthouse,” she said.

The bill, having passed the committee, will be discussed in the next House session where it may or may not make its way to the Senate for approval.

Last month, Chief Justice Alexandro C. Castro wrote to Senate President Edith DeLeon Guerrero (D-Saipan) and House Speaker Edmund Villagomez (Ind-Saipan) expressing concerns regarding current funds available in the Justice Center Fund

“Additionally, Section 707© of the House Budget Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2025 remits $641,011 to the Second Senatorial District from the current funds available in the Justice Center Fund, and the remaining funds to the Department of Public Safety,” he said.

The chief justice asks that the Legislature maintain the removal of the language that remits the funds in this account to DPS and the Second Senatorial District.

“However, the Senate Committee on Fiscal Affairs has removed this language. The Judiciary respectfully asks that the removal of this language be maintained in the fiscal year 2025 budget. In recent years, the Judiciary has established treatment courts such as Drug Court and Mental Health Court Docket and is in the process of exploring the creation of a Veterans Court. The evolving needs of these treatment courts demand more space, which the Justice Center Fund can support. Importantly, the funds in this revolving account are not limited to Saipan and the Judicial Branch; they will also be used to construct a new courthouse on the island of Tinian, as well as make improvements to the Rota Centron Hustisia, and to support the construction of new facilities for the Executive Branch’s Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Public Defender,” said Castro.

Ultimately, if these funds are remitted and depleted, Castro says it is unclear when, if ever, important court initiatives can move forward.