HANMI assails taxes in paper

The Hotel Association of Northern Mariana Islands has submitted to the legislature an eight-point proposal that will help revitalize the Northern Marianas economy which include investment promotion and ensuring government efficiency.

In a position paper submitted to House Speaker Diego T. Benavente and Senate President Paul Manglona, HANMI said the CNMI government must reduce instead of increasing the taxes on businessmen on the island to help them compete and survive amid the economic crisis.

“As a community, we must seek ways to stimulate job creation and reinvestment, this cannot be accomplished in an environment of increasing taxes,” said HANMI.

The hotel association also said the government must not mandate new employee benefits on businesses. It said a study can be carried out to balance the needs of the community and businesses.

“Well intentioned and well meaning mandates often unnecessarily increase the cost of doing business and the cost of government and reduce our competitiveness,” HANMI said. The hoteliers noted the need to create a business-friendly environment which would allow investors to compete with businesses in the region. New tourism facility investment should be encouraged to attract a wider market base.

Furthermore, HANMI said there is a need to create long term and stable investment policies that are geared towards the CNMI’s needs.

Improving government efficiency will also help the Northern Marianas to prosper. The association said there is a need to find ways to use the CNMI resources through technology and help eliminate unnecessary activities by combining functions.

In the government’s partnership with the private sector, the association noted the importance of having a mutual consensus and not to dictate or force the other.

The plan to make the CNMI a retirement home can be made successful by allowing long term residency immigration status, exemption on personal excise taxes, allowing foreign medical caretaker and practitioner.

Promotion

In building the demand for the Northern Marianas as a tourist destination, the hotel executives believe that a long range tourism master plan should be developed.

HANMI supports a dedicated source of public moneys for the brand and image advertising of the CNMI at an internationally competitive level. Such funds should be used to emphasize the diversity of the Mariana Islands and the tourism product. “Emphasis must be placed on keeping the core markets healthy and developing new markets anticipated to provide visitors well into the 21st Century,” said HANMI.

Since the Marianas Visitors Authority handles the marketing of the Northern Marianas, the tourism agency should have a comprehensive plan and develop measures of effectiveness in order to ensure accountability for the use of funds.

The three main islands — Saipan, Tinian and Rota — have distinct characteristics and offer various opportunities as tourist destinations. HANMI believes that these islands should receive a stable and equitable level of funding support from the central government without imposing new taxes.

Improvements in resort areas which include upgrading of existing room inventory, creating more open space, restoring and maintaining historical sites and visitor attractions must be undertaken. Special attention, HANMI said, needs to be given to improve traffic flow throughout the CNMI.

The association strongly supports enforcement of existing litter laws. It said public and private programs that educate the public on the existing litter laws must be encouraged.