1st NMI bill in Congress gets strong support

[B]WASHINGTON, D.C.[/B]—The first bill introduced by the first Northern Mariana Islands representative in Congress took its first step toward passage Wednesday (Thursday on Saipan) at the first hearing of the new Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans, and Wildlife.

H.R. 934, authored by Delegate Gregorio “Kilili” C. Sablan, conveys to the Commonwealth the submerged lands surrounding each of the Northern Mariana Islands out to three miles from the coastline.

In 2005, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the CNMI did not own the submerged lands. The ruling angered many people in the Marianas, who believed the court was wrong.

Correcting the submerged land problem is high on Sablan’s agenda in Congress for the Marianas.

The bill is moving quickly through the legislative process—it was only introduced on Feb. 10—and was broadly supported at the hearing. Both the chair of the Subcommittee, Madeleine Z. Bordallo (D-GU) and one of the panel’s senior Republicans, Jeff Flake (AZ), are original co-sponsors.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Sablan spoke eloquently about the importance of the ocean to the people of the CNMI.

“The ocean surrounding our islands has been our highway for centuries; the ocean is what brought us to our islands. It provides our people sustenance. It heals us in many ways. It is always there for recreation. It is an important part of our economy. It is our only true natural resource.

“The ocean is so important to us that our very legends are all based upon some lesson about the ocean. Our own anthem speaks about the islands in the middle of a vast ocean. Our flag is set on a field of blue that signifies the ocean. Our connection to the ocean is almost entirely encompassing,” Sablan told the audience packed in the hearing room, including 18 Close Up students from the CNMI.

Sablan acknowledged that because of the importance of the oceans surrounding the islands, it was widely believed that submerged lands rightfully belonged to the people of the Northern Marianas.

And he said that control of three miles was only the first step, not the final step.

He also reminded the audience that what was important was not ownership, but rather benefiting from the ocean resources.

“I can envision a future,” Sablan said “when ownership will not be an issue because the people on our islands will have the lion’s share of all benefits from submerged lands and oceans surrounding us from as far north as Maug and as far south as Luta.”

Testifying before the Subcommittee were the governors of the three U.S. Pacific islands: American Samoa, Guam, and NMI. All three supported Kilili’s bill.

Officials of the Western Pacific Regional Fisheries Council and the U.S. Department of the Interior also voiced support for H.R. 934 at the hearing.

The hearing on H.R. 934 was the first one Bordallo has conducted as chair of the newly formed subcommittee. In the previous Congress there were separate subcommittees for Insular Affairs and for Oceans and Fisheries.

Besides Bordallo, Democrats Eni F.V. Faleomavaega (AS), Donna Christensen (US VI), and Carol Shea-Porter (NH) also attended the hearing. Ranking Member Henry Brown (SC) led the Republicans, who included Doc Hastings (WA), Flake, and Robert Wittman (VA). (PR)