NMBAC: This is good legislation

The Northern Marianas Business Alliance Corp. is pleased with the proposal that would extend the CNMI-Only Transitional Worker program for another 10 years.

According to NMBAC chair Alex Sablan, the NMBAC is happy with the several issues that the NMI U.S. Workforce Act (now H.R. 4869) would resolve.

“It’s not everything that everybody wanted but it is absolutely a cross-section of issues that needed to be identified, how we transition going forward, [and] the additional years we need to truly try to get more U.S citizens and our own locals back from the mainland into our community,” he said. “This is very good legislation.”

Sablan raised these matters at the 3rd Annual Impact Meeting of the Commonwealth Advocates for Recovery Efforts at the Office of the Governor’s conference room yesterday. Sablan also chairs the CARE board.

Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the legislation on Jan. 20. Among other proposals, it gives the Marianas access to foreign labor for another 10 years and continues the trend to increase the number of local workers.

Alex Sablan said the goal now is to just keep the economy’s improvement going at a steady clip.

“Our economy is improving. We want to keep the momentum going. We believe that if the momentum is continued, salaries would rise [and] we would be able to attract more and more individuals [to come] back home because things are improving,” he said.

The proposed 10-year extension of the visa program would only stabilize the economy further, according to Alex Sablan.

“Every time we get to a certain point, we get a glitch like the deadline. …This 10 years will give us the momentum, the stability, to keep investors’ confidence in place, to keep people invested in the idea of returning home and so we’re thankful,” he said.

NMBAC is also grateful for the provision that resolves the ghost permit issues.

“We love that provision because it has the ability for [employers] to reutilize a CW visa and not lose it for the fiscal year,” Alex Sablan said.

According to him, the NMBAC brought the provision to the table because visas were being applied for, approved, and not used.

“What was occurring was people were applying for the visa but not necessarily bringing the individual in, so that CW was burned for the year. There was no individual but the CW was provided for that particular company,” he said.

The proposed legislation allows for the visa to be revoked and reused if it is not used within 60 days.

“If a visa is not utilized within 60 days of its application and acceptance through the processing center, then it will be burned and returned back into the pool, or that the employer who has somebody that has to leave early within their contract period, be also be able to put that permit back into the pile and be able to renew for someone else to replace that so that a valuable human resource to our economy is not wasted,” he said.

Alex Sablan said the NMBAC would support Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and Delegate Sablan when the legislation is discussed at the committee level in Congress.

“We’re going to support the governor and our delegate. They will be on the panel and will be testifying on behalf of the Commonwealth… We are looking at somewhere around 23 individuals from the business community traveling along with the Tinian delegation, some individuals from the Rota delegation, and the Saipan delegation,” he said.