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‘Govt shortchanging NMC by $5.6M a year’
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Posted on Feb 11 2005
The government has been shortchanging Northern Marianas College for the past 10 years by failing to remit over $5.6 million in nonresident worker fees, as required by law.
Public Law 10-66 states that except for $725, 000 that should be reserved for other purposes, all fees collected from the issuance of alien work permits should be given to NMC to fund business, tourism, industrial or technical, or professional programs.
At $250 per permit, the government collects about $7.75 million annually from the 31,000 nonresident workers in the Commonwealth.
NMC president Tony Deleon Guerrero reported, however, that the college receives only an average of $1.4 million a year from P.L. 10-66 funds.
“We’re being shortchanged. A lot of funds that should be going to the college are being diverted to other agencies. Maybe, the Legislature should consider changing the law if its intent is not going to be followed,” Deleon Guerrero said.
NMC is planning to meet with the governor and the Legislature to discuss this matter, he added.
Passed in August 1997, P.L. 10-66 aims to strengthen training programs for residents in technical and professional fields.
The law requires that $75,000 be reserved for Tinian and another $75,000 be reserved for Rota for youth employment training programs on those islands.
In addition, $575,000 should be put aside for the Division of Labor for use in enforcing the provisions of the act and to help meet the financial requirement and added workload created by the provisions of the law.
The rest of the permit fees should be placed into the NMC Human Resources and Business Development Account, with $500,000 reserved for Work Experience Training Program for students and $450,000 for the NMC Business Development Center.
Previously, the alien work permit fee cost $225. The Department of Labor increased the amount by $25 when it adopted new alien labor rules and regulations in August last year.
