Torres not keen on issuing gas vouchers

Despite the recent passage of Senate Joint Resolution 22-08 that supports a $500 gas voucher program, it now appears that the request will perish once it reaches the desk of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres after he openly stated that he would rather issue relief in the form of stimulus cards instead of gas vouchers because more people would benefit that way.

During a press briefing last week, Torres said he still leaning toward issuing stimulus cards instead of gas vouchers because there are a lot of people who don’t own cars and wouldn’t benefit from such a program.

“The gas voucher is not something I am looking into only because I believe the stimulus card is good for everybody. If you have a car, I understand that you need gas. But if given stimulus cards, these cards can also be used for gas and others can use it for other necessities like food and other means,” Torres explained.

Currently, Torres said the administration is working in conjunction with the Department of Finance on issuing another round of stimulus cards.

“We are looking at the numbers again. We are looking into [another round of stimulus cards] with the secretary of Finance. We are working on trying to close gaps and improve on the challenges we had during the first round of stimulus card distributions. But there will be a stimulus similar to what we had the first time where everyone benefits from it and it can be utilized at any vendor in the CNMI,” Torres said.

One of the main problems the administration aims to fix in the event that stimulus cards are disbursed once more was the lack of information.

“A lot of folks did not understand that even if you’re not working, as long as you file your taxes, you’re able to receive the stimulus. Those are the gaps we are trying to fill, educating the community. And, of course, technical challenges that we had, like mailing,” he said.

During a House session last week, 16 members of the House of Representatives voted “yes” to Senate Joint Resolution 22-08 in support of a $500 gas voucher program, with one abstention.

Joint Resolution 22-08 asks Torres and Finance Secretary David Atalig to provide financial assistance to meet the increased fuel costs in the CNMI by implementing a $500 fuel voucher program.

The resolution states that the CNMI needs this assistance because of the many hardships the community has faced in the last few years.

“This legislative body recognizes that there are many hardships in which the people of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are faced with, and additionally, the citizens have endured an abundance of physical, emotional, and financial constraints as a result of the evolving global pandemic that is associated with the COVID-19 virus; and in addition to the various hardships imposed by economic turmoil caused by the global pandemic, the NMI residents face substantial increases in fuel prices,” the resolution states.