House okays hiring of lobby firm

The CNMI House of Representatives yesterday adopted a recommendation from its federal and foreign relations committee to hire a professional advocacy company in Washington D.C. to beef up Commonwealth’s lobbying efforts against federal takeover legislation.

Attempts by the federal government to extend American labor and immigration laws in the Northern Marianas gained grounds when the U.S. Senate passed S.1052 which seeks to enforce U.S. minimum wage and the Immigration and Naturalization Act in the islands.

The House committee on federal and foreign relations recommended the hiring of a lobbying firm in Washington D.C. following an oversight hearing on the Washington Resident Representative’s apparent failure to advance CNMI interest in the American capital as manifested by the passage of S.1052.

The committee, headed by chairman Rep. Norman Palacios, brushed off a recommendation from Washington Rep. Juan N. Babauta that the best way to prevent the passage of takeover legislation is to have the CNMI leaders submit testimonies to the U.S. congressional committees.

Mr. Palacios said the Tenorio Administration has already taken this tact which has been proven ineffective since the same strategy, which was used twice, failed to stop the U.S. Senate from passing S.1052, sponsored by Alaska Sen. Frank Murkowski.

“In addition, the committee learned that during the former Gov. Froilan Tenorio’s administration, a lobbying firm, Preston Gates, was hired to prevent the passage of this such legislation and has proven to be effective,” the committee said in a report.

Days before he flew to Washington D.C., Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio admitted the need to identify resources that will fund the hiring of professional lobbyists which will help strengthen CNMI efforts to stop intensified attempts by the U.S. Congress to extend federal labor and immigration laws in the islands.

According to the governor, discussions are now underway to tap the services of a professional advocacy firm in the U.S. to help the CNMI fight federal takeover moves by the Clinton Administration.

Six bills have already been filed before the US Congress that aim to extend federal authorities to the CNMI’s labor and immigration policies. One of them, filed by Sen. Murkowski, passed the Senate earlier this year.

Mr. Tenorio has recognized that the professional lobbying group previously contracted by the CNMI had been of significant help to the local government at the height of controversies regarding the reported labor abuse and immigration problems in the Northern Marianas.

At the same time, the governor urged members of the local business community to get their acts together and initiate a campaign that would help rebuild CNMI’s tarnished image.

The Saipan Chamber of Commerce has urged members of the business organization to consider ways in supporting the need to start a professional public relations campaign to redo the Commonwealth’s badly-tainted image.