Flashback September 16, 1999-2003

[B]September 16, 1999

Murkowski pushes for federal takeover
[/B] Saying local immigration control in the Northern Marianas remains inadequate, U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) yesterday pushed legislation seeking extension of federal immigration laws to the islands. While acknowledging the package of labor and immigration reforms put in place by Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio’s administration, the senator believed these efforts still showed limitations in CNMI’s ability to handle these functions.

[B]SGMA appeal to Senate committee [/B]

Amid opposition to a planned federal takeover in the Northern Marianas, the Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association has asked the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources to look closely at the consequences of any legislative solution it may consider imposing in the CNMI. Even with a graduated reduction in foreign workforce as proposed under SB 1052, the CNMI loses not only management but control over its immediate economic future.

[B]Teno hopes for the best[/B]

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio said yesterday the government will make its specific comments on the provisions of S.1052 after U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Frank Murkowski asked them to do so during a hearing held in Washington D.C. He expressed relief, however, that Murkowski “is very sympathetic” to the conditions on the island and has acknowledged his administration’s efforts to reform local labor and immigration.

[B]September 16, 2002

NMC starts ball rolling to attract int’l students[/B]

Officials of the Northern Marianas College are set to meet this week with the Senate leadership, during which NMC president PhD. Kenneth Wright will present his proposal to make the college a springboard for Asian students who want to study in American colleges. The meeting is expected to result in the drafting of the necessary legislation that would provide the enabling mechanism for the project.

[B]American Red Cross launches Club 200[/B]

The American Red Cross formally launched Friday its 15th anniversary’s month-long Club 200 Carnivale fundraising event with no less than Gov. Juan N. Babauta and Lt. Governor Diego T. Benavente buying the first two raffle tickets during the ceremony. The event, according to organizers, will be held for three days from Oct. 11 to 13 at the American Memorial Park.

[B]Babauta hoped to get courtesy on Lemons’ resignation[/B]

Gov. Juan N. Babauta says he thought he would get “a little courtesy” from the Attorney General’s Office on the reported resignation of Chief Prosecutor Clyde Lemons Jr. In an interview, Babauta said he has not been officially notified by the AGO on the matter. “It’s a surprise to me,” he told reporters on Friday. Babauta said, though, that Lemons was not required to inform him directly about his decision, but he said, “ I’d think that perhaps a little courtesy would come.”

[B]September 16, 2003

Massive coral deaths on Anatahan[/B]

The volcanic eruption on Anatahan not only buried the island in ash and killed its vegetation but it also caused heavy sedimentation on the waters surrounding the island, resulting in massive coral deaths that have disturbed marine life. Federal and local scientists fear that the impact of ash sedimentation on Anatahan’s waters and its coral reefs would continue for many years.

[B]Educ materials now exempt from tax[/B]

Books, computers and assistive devices are now exempt from the 0.42 percent ad valorem tax levied on consumer goods, with the passage yesterday of a new law that excludes educational materials from this additional tax burden. Public information officer Peter A. Callaghan confirmed that acting Gov. Diego T. Benavente signed House Bill 13-284 into law yesterday-the deadline for executive action on the bill.