House will hear out Micronesians on bill

Micronesians who will be impacted by a proposed legislation restricting their stay in the CNMI are welcome to testify at a public hearing scheduled by the House of Representatives next week in efforts to get various views on the plan to change the open migration policy.

Local legislators also vowed to forge ahead with the measure despite attempts by the federal government to step in and withhold any CNMI action in light of forthcoming new U.S. regulations on the entry of nationals from the Freely Associated States into its territories.

Rep. Melvin Faisao, sponsor of House Bill 11-294 and chair of the Federal and Foreign Relations Committee, said inputs from FAS citizens residing on the island will assist in the drafting of their report to be submitted to the legislative body.

“Since their future is at stake here, the committee wants to know what they think of the measure and how it will effect their stay in the CNMI,” he told in an interview yesterday.

House Majority Floor leader Ana S. Teregeyo, a member of the panel, echoed the need to gather public views on the proposal as government agencies have expressed their overwhelming support for the bill which has been pending since last year.

The measure is the first attempt of the CNMI government to restrict the migration of FAS citizens into the island due to their impact on local infrastructure and public funds.

This will also help address failure by Washington to reimburse the cost of hosting thousands of families from neighboring islands as provided under the Compact Agreement forged between the United States and the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and Marshalls over a decade ago that has allowed their citizens to migrate freely into U.S. soil.

Because of the anticipated repercussion of a drastic change in the policy, the local legislature has asked several government agencies, such as the Public School System and the housing authority as well as the Commonwealth Health Center, to comment on the proposal before tackling the bill.

According to Teregeyo, the hearing intends to draw participation of the residents, including Micronesians residing here, to provide the “pros and cons” on the issue.

“It is a matter of providing the community at large to come in and comment on habitual residents,” she said, adding other town meetings are set for Tinian and Rota within the next few weeks.

Teregeyo likewise shrugged off appeal from Office of Insular Affairs Allen P. Stayman to suspend action on the legislation pending implementation by the federal government of a new set of regulations that will restrict the FAS migration.

“We can go ahead without waiting for the federal regulations,” the representative explained. “By the time they come out with the new policy, our proposal hopefully will deal with whatever recommendations they have.”

Under Faisao’s proposal, a mechanism will be set up by the island government to limit the stay of FAS citizens on the CNMI to those habitual residents who are either employed or attending school full-time.

According to lawmakers, this is necessary to lessen their impact on local resources as they are provided financial assistance while they take up residency here — a situation compounded by inability by Washington to reimburse the expenditures despite its earlier pledges.