MPLT wants AMP Trust Fund included in planned 902 talks

The Marianas Public Land Trust has requested Gov. Arnold I. Palacios to include the American Memorial Park Trust Fund in the planned Covenant Section 902 discussions with the U.S. government.

MPLT chair Phillip Mendiola-Long said in a recent letter to Palacios that the inclusion of the AMP Fund in the 902 talks with the U.S. would allow for a robust exploration of the possibilities for the use of the AMP Fund income for particular projects that benefit the communities.

The AMP Fund invests the funds to benefit the development and maintenance of the American Memorial Park on Saipan.

Mendiola-Long said the loan against the Park Fund distributions resulted in the development of the Visitor Center at the American Memorial Park, which is an incredible facility today.

He underscored the need for such discussion with the U.S. Department of the Interior and National Park Service representatives to reconfirm or recalibrate the development and maintenance of the American Memorial Park for the next generation of visitors and patrons.

Mendiola-Long said the AMP Fund Investment Policy Statement is presently focused on growing the fund as the NPS has indicated that growing the funds from the investments allows for greater sums for larger projects at American Memorial Park.

For the trustees, the chairman said, they remain excited to see the continued development of American Memorial Park on Saipan and the planned NPS development on Rota and perhaps Tinian in the coming years.

Mendiola-Long said MPLT and its trustees are ready and willing to work with Palacios’ 902 Team to provide a white paper and background discussion for the conferences with the U.S.

“We believe that the Section 902 discussions are the proper and fitting venue for reviewing the AMP Funds and the potential projects at American Memorial Park,” he said.

Palacios earlier stated that he wants to put together a 902 Team composed of representatives from the Legislature, Judiciary, business or private sector, and community.

The Covenant that created the relationship between the CNMI and the U.S. provides for the 902 talks every 10 years—if either government calls for it to consult on issues affecting their relationship.

Last Oct. 24, the Senate unanimously adopted a Senate resolution introduced by Senate president Edith E. DeLeon Guerrero (D-Saipan) to ask U.S. President Joe Biden and Palacios to consult on a number of subjects, as provided in Section 902 of the Covenant. The House of Representatives subsequently adopted the resolution.