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Thank you
It was truly a relief to see the governor veto the bill to expand gambling in the community. I can remember when I was asked by then-bishop Camacho to help the church with fighting the casino and we won the first two battles but we still ended up with a casino. I am no longer against the casino because it is here now and we just have to deal with it but to expand gambling in the community is something that I hoped would not happen, especially after they just stated getting the poker machines out.
I must express my sincere thanks to Bishop Ryan for his statement in the North Star and the governor for vetoing the bill. I also want to thank the Saipan delegation for the noble effort to try and provide more funding for the scholarships because the scholarships are important and indeed a big part of the financial support needed for many of our students seeking degrees off-island.
I would like to offer this possible solution, given that the marijuana bill is now with the House of Representatives. Maybe the Saipan delegation should look at the marijuana bill before it is voted upon and see if they can secure some funding from the two industries (cannabis and hemp cultivation and manufacturing of products) that the bill creates. I believe that, instead of trying to get a few crumbs for scholarships through the expansion of gambling or from the exiting casino, you can get an entire cake from the new cannabis and hemp industries. In fact, if the bill follows the suggestions I made, there will be anywhere from $9 million to $12 million available just for the start-up of these two industries, so the money will be there. You just need to try and secure a place in line for the funding, which will all be separate from the regular local budget.
All the money from the marijuana industry will require a “separate budgeting process” as these monies must be collected, housed, and distributed separately from other government funding. Now is the time for the Saipan delegation to act or it could be an uphill battle once the bill becomes law. I hope this will help to solve the scholarship funding challenge for the Saipan delegation.
Ambrose M. Bennett
Kagman, Saipan
