releases: http://sablan.house.gov/transition-period-may-be-extended-2019
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| http://sablan.house.gov/transition-period-may-be-extended-2019 | Transition period may be extended up to 2019 | 2013-12-23 | 2013 | 2013-12 | Independent | Senate | MP | Gregorio Sablan | S001177 | sablan.house.gov | legacy | THERE could be a stop-gap measure that will prevent the exodus of nonresident workers next year as the U.S. Congress considers extending the transitional period up to 2019. U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan on Friday announced that the transition extension, which is included in S. 1237 or the omnibus territories bill, could be granted until 2019 with the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approving the bill. “The current Commonwealth-only worker and investor programs would be extended until the end of 2019 under the terms of an omnibus territories bill approved by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in Washington today. The number of foreign workers in the Northern Mariana Islands would still have to be reduced every year, however, and zeroed-out by December 31, 2019. The 184 foreign investors, who established businesses in the Northern Marianas prior to 2009 and who now hold Commonwealth-only visas, would be allowed to stay in business, also until the end of 2019. Both the worker and investor programs are presently scheduled to end completely in twelve months,” according to Sablan’s newsletter. He said U.S. Senate bill was introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, on June 27, 2013. Sablan expressed concern about the potential impact to the CNMI economy if extension were not granted next year following the expiration of the transitional worker program on Dec. 31, 2014. “Foreign workers now hold about 10,000 jobs in the NMI, but only 1,742 local workers are registered with the Commonwealth employment services office as looking for work. Even if every local worker took a job, we would still be 8,000 short. Businesses would close. Investors would take their money elsewhere. The cost of electricity and other basics would rise, because we would have fewer consumers in our economy. And tax revenues would drop, making it harder for the Commonwealth to pay government employees and retirees,” his e-newsletter also stated. Sablan conveyed his gratitude to Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Oregon and his Republican counterpart Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. “I very much appreciate this bipartisan recognition that it is impossible to fill the 10,000 jobs now held by foreign workers with U.S. workers by the end of next year,” Sablan said. It was at Sablan’s request that Wyden and Murkowski introduced S 1237. In July, Sablan, co-sponsors Congresswomen Madeleine Z. Bordallo, D-Guam, and Donna M. Christensen, D-Virgin Islands, and Congressman Eni F.V. Faleomavaega, D-American Samoa, introduced a companion bill in the U.S. House of Representatives, H.R. 2200. Sablan said the omnibus bill is an effort to get territorial issues considered outside of partisan political concerns and enacted without being dependent on larger legislation. He said, “Having a bill dealing solely and specifically with insular area issues is a pattern I want to establish and maintain in every Congress.” Sablan is hopeful that the bill will be passed by the Senate in early 2014 so they can move the bill through their process. In the Northern Marianas, the business community has been looking to the announcement of the extension period so they can make critical business decisions. Based on the last available statistics, from Oct. 7, 2011 through Nov. 19, there were 10,594 workers whose I-129CW petitions were approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. In an earlier interview with Variety, Hyatt Regency Saipan director of finance Yosh Gabaldon and HR director Josephine Mesta said they are in favor of the extension “at this point.” Hyatt, a preferred employer by many applicants in the tourism industry, admitted that the transition period to federal control of labor and immigration has been difficult as it has been for other companies in the private sector. Mesta said it has been tough for both the management and the employees. Gabaldon said there is not enough labor on the island to sustain all the companies. Current economic activity needs more workers Tan Holdings President Jerry Tan, whose company owns Asia Pacific Hotels Inc. including Fiesta Resort Saipan, Kanoa Resort and Century Hotel, told Variety in a recent interview, “The local workforce is not enough to fill the void if we were to lose 12,000 skilled workers.” The current economic activity, he said, dictates that the Northern Marianas keeps the skilled nonresident workers and continue to hire U.S. workers. “There is still a need for some of the skilled workforce that is not available right now on the island,” he said. Tan said his company joins all jobs fairs on the island in their pursuit of hiring local workers. “In every job fair that the government sets up, we try to recruit as many local workers as possible.” Even then, he said, they still find a need for some skilled workers not available on island right now. Tan told Variety that they renew workers based on the need of the operation and not just for the sake of renewing. He also said it is not only based on how many local workers they are able to hire. “We are doing both. We join every job fair. We try to recruit as many local workers as possible. Whatever void the local workers cannot fulfill then we have to rely on the CW workers.” he said. But the decision to retain these workers is based on the economic activity and projected growth in tourist arrivals. “So if we want to maintain today’s [economic] activity, if we want to keep up and grow the tourism industry, the need for labor pool is going to be greater,” he said. Of late, the Marianas Visitors Authority stated there is shortage of hotel rooms in the Northern Marianas, touting resurgent tourist arrivals. Riding on the heels of this uptick in tourist arrivals, Tan said he sees more hotels opening up. “Based on today’s economic activity and based on the expected growth, we also expect and hope that more hotels will open up,” he said. The shortage of rooms is choking the growth of the tourism industry at this time. Tan said the hotel shortage is “limiting how much growth you can have in tourism.” He said there is a need to open up Palms Resort which has been closed since 2010. “There is a need for more hotels,” he added. If Palms Resort were to open, it will need around 200 workers. “We are hoping the existing hotels will expand,” he said in response to the need for more rooms. With the projected growth in tourism, Tan said, hotels are a labor intensive operatiosn. He said this is not just about the labor pool of today. “Everybody agrees that we want to see more tourists to come in. In order for more tourists come in, we need more flights. For more flights, we need more rooms. When you have more rooms, you need more workers,” he said. He also said, “If you want to grow and for the economic growth to continue, then the need for workers will only increase.” For Tan, policy decisions “are not only based on today’s activity.” He said it goes well into the future. “If you are looking at how to grow this economy, how to expand the tourism industry we are looking at the next three to five years,” he said. https://www.mvariety.com/cnmi/cnmi-news/local/61534-transition-period-may-be-extended-up-to-2019 | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |