{"id":400361,"date":"2023-10-30T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-30T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=400361"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"2024-to-2032-reasonable-time-for-IPI-to-pay-62M-casino-license-fees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/2024-to-2032-reasonable-time-for-IPI-to-pay-62M-casino-license-fees\/","title":{"rendered":"\u20182024 to 2032 reasonable time for IPI to pay $62M casino license fees\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Commonwealth Casino Commission board chair Edward C. DeLeon Guerrero proposed that the period from Aug. 12, 2024, to Aug. 12, 2032, is a \u201creasonable\u201d period of time for Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC to pay the CNMI government its outstanding annual casino license fees, now amounting to $62 million.<\/p>\n

The annual casino license fee is $15.5 million each year from 2020 to 2023. The annual casino regulatory fee is $3.1 million, or a total of $12.6 million from October 2020 to October 2023.<\/p>\n

DeLeon Guerrero presented his position during the CCC board\u2019s meeting last Thursday, for the CCC board\u2019s consideration regarding what constitutes a \u201creasonable\u201d period of time.<\/p>\n

The CNMI Supreme Court\u2019s Aug. 25, 2023, decision in CCC\u2019s case against IPI asks the commission to establish a reasonable period of time for IPI to pay the 2020, 2021, and 2022 annual license fees.<\/p>\n

DeLeon Guerrero said the payments are in equal installments of an additional $5.1 million each year such that those fees are in paid in full by Aug. 1, 2032.<\/p>\n

He said this payment would be in addition to payment of the outstanding 2020, 2021, and 2022 casino regulatory fees.<\/p>\n

Finally, the chairman said, this is in addition to the 2023 annual license fee and 2023 casino regulatory fee that accrued after the end of the COVID-19 force majeure event as recognized by IPI\u2019s counsel and therefore remain due and payable at this time.<\/p>\n

He noted that while IPI makes much of its inability to raise funds to pay the outstanding obligation while its casino license is suspended, payment of its outstanding obligation in full is not required to lift the suspension order.<\/p>\n

DeLeon Guerrero said that, while he has attempted unsuccessfully to negotiate a global settlement with IPI on various terms, reaching a settlement is not necessary for lifting the suspension.<\/p>\n

Rather, he said, the suspension order by its terms as upheld by the CNMI Supreme Court, conditions lifting the suspension on payment of the 2020 casino regulatory fee, payment of penalties, and compliance with the terms of CCC order 2020-003 (requiring a payroll reserve) and of CCC order 2020-004.<\/p>\n

CCC order 2020-003 required IPI to have a payroll reserve, while CCC order 2020-004 required IPI to pay court-ordered judgments and other aged debts and certification that IPI has the ability to fully construct the initial gaming facility.<\/p>\n

DeLeon Guerrero said IPI\u2019s satisfaction of those obligations as upheld by the CNMI Supreme Court is a necessary step for it to resume gaming activity and to avoid further revocation proceeding based on its continued non-compliance with those obligations.<\/p>\n

He noted that the CNMI Supreme Court\u2019s ruling recognized the applicability of a force majeure defense of IPI\u2019s obligation to pay its annual license fees.<\/p>\n

The high court found that IPI met its burden to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that COVID-19 was the proximate cause for its nonpayment of the annual license fee.<\/p>\n

The high court ruled that the force majeure provision in the casino license agreement protects IPI from default in the event of force majeure, but this protection does not have the effect of excusing IPI\u2019s payment obligations.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court said IPI\u2019s obligation to make the annual license fee payment each year accrues every year IPI continues as the exclusive licensee.<\/p>\n

DeLeon Guerrero said the high court then concluded that the annual license fees for 2020 and the following years have accrued and continue to accrue, and CCC must now decide on a reasonable deadline for IPI to pay them.<\/p>\n

Because the 2023 annual license fee accrued after the end of the force majeure event, it was due on Aug. 12, 2023, he added.<\/p>\n

Therefore there is no need for the CCC to determine a reasonable deadline for IPI to pay the 2023 annual license fee amount, he said.<\/p>\n

With respect to the casino regulatory fee, DeLeon Guerrero said, there is no need for the commission to determine a reasonable deadline to pay the 2020 casino regulatory fee amount as force majeure does not excuse IPI\u2019s failure to pay it at that time.<\/p>\n

Regarding penalties imposed by the CCC, DeLeon Guerrero said the high court\u2019s decision upholding $5 million in penalties means those penalties were due as required by CCC order No. 2021-002, therefore there is no need for the CCC to determine a reasonable deadline for IPI to pay the penalty amount.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Commonwealth Casino Commission board chair Edward C. DeLeon Guerrero, left, talks with Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC manager\/director Howyo Chi during a break in the CCC board\u2019s monthly meeting at the Springs Plaza Building in Gualo Rai last Thursday morning.<\/p>\n

-FERDIE DE LA TORRE
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Commonwealth Casino Commission board chair Edward C. DeLeon Guerrero proposed that the period from Aug….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-400361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400361","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=400361"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400361\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=400361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=400361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=400361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}