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Saipan Mayor’s Office investigating collection of marriage license fees
Saipan Mayor Marian Deleon Guerrero Tudela said her office is investigating reports of fees being collected for marriage certificates at the Saipan Mayor’s Office.
The mayor’s office alleged collection of excessive marriage fees came to light after a person who requested anonymity called the Saipan Tribune and reported the concern.
The anonymous source said before the late mayor Donald Glenn Flores’ untimely passing, a staff from the Saipan Mayor’s Office had already been collecting the marriage fees and this had been happening for quite a while.
The source said on May 30 a Chinese couple came to the mayor’s office and told one of the staff that they were there to give payment for the fees.
The same source said last Friday another couple came in and complained about the same issue after they had seen the sign up on the mayor’s office claiming, “They paid the said staff $100.”
Saipan Tribune tried to get comments from Tudela and the mayor’s special adviser, Henry Hofschneider, but both told Saipan Tribune that they have nothing to discuss at the moment because they are still looking into the matter.
Tudela’s office did confirm earlier that it had been receiving similar reports and she told Saipan Tribune that she is very concerned and wants it to be looked into.
According to Hofschneider and Tudela, the mayor’s office does not receive payment nor collects payment and that the entire marriage licensing process is done by the Division of Treasury located at the Guma Hustisia in Susupe.
