De Lugo Ditional Reports to the Congressional to the Department of the Interior Those in the US Mainland

ananas CVariety{l Micronesia’s Leading Newspaper Since 1972 Congress restricts funds THE NORTHERN Marianas, un monitoring of CNMI efforts to re Interior after submission of project joint resolution which will be pre monwealth. der the so-called Covenant section duce dependence on alien work plans to the House Committee on pared by the two congressional The report must also determine 702 agreement, sought $22 mil ers. Natural Resources and Senate committees after considering a whether the prevailing wages are lion from the federal government The compromise, under the Fis Committee on Energy and Natural capital improvement projects plan. kept low by the local immigration to finance capital improvement cal Year 1994 Budget Reconcilia Resources. The plan, which must be ap policy and assess whether the wage projects in fiscal year 1994. tion Bill, is the farthest the com No disbursement will be made proved by the CNMI Legislature, rate in the CNMI gives local indus Instead, the House Committee mittee could go, according to Vir to the CNMI unless it submits ad will be submitted by the governor tries competitive advantage over on Natural Resources adopted on gin Islands Delegate Ron de Lugo ditional reports to the congressional to the Department of the Interior those in the US mainland. Wednesday a compromise legisla who prepared the bill together with committees and a joint resolution which, in turn, will submit it to the • The US attorney general will tion to give the CNMI $3 million Rep. George Miller, committee has been adopted expressing Con congressional committees with his assess whether CNMI immigra for the American Memorial Park chairman. gress’ consent. recommendations. tion laws are appropriate in light of in Garapan. The compromise bill reiterates Thecommitteeapproved the$98 The bill also calls for the sub its labor needs, whether the CNMI The remaining $19 million will availability of the $27 million in million federal grants in the re mission of the following reports to has taken steps to reduce depen be placed in a special trust account interest earnings from the 1986- maining six years (1994-2000), as the House and Senate committees dence on temporary alien workers by the secretary of the Interior and 1992 Covenant funds when the provided in the 702 agreement prior to deliberations on the fiscal and the extent to which the CNMI will be used for capital improve Northern Marianas meets its com signed on Dec. 17,1992 between year 1995 budget: is relying on alien workers to meet ment projects in American Samoa, mitment to charge utility custom representatives of the B ush admin • The secretary of Labor, after its permanent labor needs. Guam, Palau, Virgin Islands and ers the full cost of services. istration and the CNMI govern consultation with the CNMI gov The attorney general must also the CNMI. The bill imposes tougherrequire- ment. ernment, will submitareport which report on the political and civil The committee, chaired by Rep ments on the CNMI in availing of The bill requires the CNMI to assesses whether the minimum rights of the alien population as resentative George Miller, also part of the $19 million allocated comply with the matching provi wage policies of the CNMI are compared to the resident popula approved the $98 million federal for the insular areas. American sions of the agreement. sufficient for the maintenance of tion. grants for the CNMI for the six- Samoa, Guam, Palau and the Vir The bill provides that federal the minimum standard of living In addition, the comptroller gen year period beginning Oct. 1,1994 gin Islands may get part of the grants for fiscal years 1995 to 2000 for health, efficiency and general eral must submit a report to Con- but with strict conditions, such as money from the secretary of the will be determined by Congress by well-being of workers in the Com continued on page 10 House rejects De Lugo: Strongest 4-year limit possible message for foreigners THE HOUSE of Representatives THE NATURAL Resources Committee has adopted tough con yesterday rejected a Senate pro ditions for the $98 million federal grants for the Northern Marianas posal to retain the four-year limit of in fiscal years 1995 to 2000 to persuade the CNMI to solve its stay of non-resident workers. labor, tax and other problems. During yesterday’s session the “Competing special interests and those who really want to lower housepassed the Senate pro continue the status quo will, in the end, fail to make changes posal to increase the minimum unless the federal government sends the strongest possible mes wage but replaced the wage rate sage,” said Virgin Islands Delegate Ron de Lugo. schedule with the House’s original De Lugo, who chairs the Subcommittee on Insular and Interna 30-cent yearly raise. tional Affairs, is the chief author of the Fiscal Year 1994 Budget House Bill 8-140, which was Reconciliation Bill which includes the proposed $120 million earlier passed by the Senate with an federal assistance to the CNMI for the next seven years. amendment to limit the number of ’ The bill authorized only $3 million for fiscal year 1994 out of years non-resident workers can stay the $22 million sought by the CNMI. The other $19 million will in the Northern Marianas, was re be held in a trust account for capital improvement projects in jected by the House. Guam, Palau, Virgin Islands and the CNMI. As a result, both legislative The remaining $98 million will be subject to further legislation houses must meet in conference by Congress and other conditions set under the bill, such as strict committee to seek a compromise monitoring of CNMI’s compliance with audit recommendations on the proposal. and assessment of alien labor and immigration policies. The lower house virtually re In his statement before the adoption of the bill, de Lugo said the placed Senate Bill 8-146 with federal commitment of financial assistance under the Covenant House Bill 8-197. The Senate bill had been fulfilled but the Northern Marianas has not done enough proposes to increase the minimum to justify further assistance. wage from $2.15 to $2.65 per hour While the.$120 million proposed funding package for the next upon enactment and further to $3 seven years provided for equal matching from the CNMI, “it has per hour after two years. not officially committed to do so yet,” de Lugo said. The House bill proposes a yearly He said he and Rep. George Miller, chairman of the Natural increase of 30 cents in the basic Resources Committee, “have not been convinced that some local rate, startingat $2.45, untilitreaches leaders agree with the need to change policies beyond their desire $4.25 per hour, the current wage that we commit to the proposed $ 1 2 0 million.” rate in the US mainland. The bill is “The most fundamental reason is that the Marianas is not yet based on recommendations of a doing all it should - and can - itself to meet its needs,” de Lugo task force formed by Governor said. Lorenzo I. Guerrero, For example, he said higher wage-eamers, businesses and During yesterday’ssession, Rep investors paid $49 million less in income taxes in 1991 than they resentative Francisco Camacho would have under the federal rates that the Covenant providedfor initiated an amendment to insert and other insular areas use. the House bill’s wage rate provi De Lugo also criticized the Commonwealth’s dependence on sions in SB 8-146. The amended alien labor, particularly in the garment industry. He said garment bill was passed. As aresult of the House’s action, REPRESENTATIVE Pete P. Reyes (standing) with Rep. Stanley T. continued on page 10 SB 8-146 will go back to the Sen Torres during yesterday's session. ______________________ ate. (RHA) 2-MARIANAS VARIETY NEWS AND VffiWS-FRIDAY-MAY 14.1993 Money brings cruel dilemma to Pacific islands MONEY is the most important “Guam and the Northern change taking place in the Pacific. Marianas are evidence of the speed It has also brought about a cruel and the intensity of change that dilemma for people of Pacific is tourism, the great development lands. hope of the Pacific, can bring,” “It is hard to exaggerate the im Hezel said. pact of a cash economy cm Pacific Forotherislandnations, support islandsocieties-Butacasheconcxny comes through export oflabor.Tte stands in sharp contrast with the people of Kiribati have been work traditional land-based system that ing in Nauru, and Samoans have was once the foundation of every left in great numbers to find work society in the Pacific,” Francis X. in the US and New Zealand. Hezel, S J, said in an article entitled Micronesians have turned up in “Culture in Crisis: Trends in the Guam and Saipan. An estimated Pacific Today” published in The 6,000 people from the Federated Micronesian Counselor this month. States of Micronesia are now liv When the island states began ing in Guam, joining some 2,000 going independent in the late six Palauans who have been migrating ties, Hezel said they committed to the island since the early fifties. themselves to a Western economic There were about 1,800 FSM citi system, which meant the conver zens and 1,600 Palauans in the sion of the traditional land-based Northern Marianas as as 1990. economy into a cash economy. Money means power, and indi 1ST FLOOR SHOP 103 “Money becomes the measure viduals who have achieved promi SAN ROQUE, SAIPAN of growth and the goal is to encour nence and wealth through business TEL. 322-5636 age as many people as possible to or government are now called the participate in the casli economy,” “new elite,” reducing the influence Hezel said.

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