Four major Guam groups call for federalization delay

aFour major business and tourism groups in Guam have called for a 180-day delay in the start of transition to federal immigration system in the CNMI and to include Chinese and Russian tourists in the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program, until additional security measures are put in place.

By June 1, CNMI immigration will be under federal control unless the start of the transition period is delayed.

Chinese and Russian tourists will be required to secure a U.S. visa for entry into the CNMI and Guam by June 1.

In separate filings, the Guam Chamber of Commerce, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Guam, the Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association, and the Guam Visitors Bureau expressed support to the CNMI government’s request for a delay.

David B. Tydingco, chairman of the board of the Guam Visitors Bureau, and GVB general manager Gerald S.A. Perez said the bureau “strongly supports the Marianas Visitors Authority’s recommendation to delay the start of the transition period for 180 days, and until the installation of the additional layered security measures are in place.”

Tydingco and Perez said this delay in the transition period will prevent an immediate and catastrophic blow to the CNMI’s economy, and allow time for U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the CNMI to secure the resources needed to establish an electronic visa processing infrastructure.

The delay, they said, will also give ample time for DHS to stand up additional personnel and administrative support to carry out its expanded responsibilities, and provide adequate time to clarify, put in place and disseminate specific details associated with enhanced security requirements.

“GVB shares CNMI concerns that the rules significantly understate the potential economic loss from a reduction in Chinese and Russian visitors,” Tydingco and Perez said.

GVB and the three other groups are among the 35 entities that have so far submitted formal comments to DHS’ interim final rule establishing U.S. ports of entry in the CNMI and implementing the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program.

March 17 is the deadline for filing comments.

“We support seeking out the China visitor market and join the Guam Visitors Bureau and the Marianas Visitors Bureau in requesting a delay in the start of the transition period until the required additional measures are in place and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has completed the work necessary to add China and Russia to the visa waiver program,” Guam Chamber of Commerce board chair Frank J. Campillo and president Reina A. Leddy wrote DHS.

Because Guam is the closest U.S. destination to China, just four to five hours by commercial jet, the Guam Chamber of Commerce officials said the country may be a viable second leg for Guam’s tourism economy, which is currently dominated by Japanese visitors comprising 80 percent of the market.

It also said that tourism and leisure travel can be an integral part of the United States’ expanding peaceful engagement with China.

“But the regulatory framework to facilitate this engagement starts with a more balanced and realistic policy that safeguards our security while promoting self-sufficiency in our small insular economies,” the Guam Chamber of Commerce added.

George Lai, president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Guam, said “to protect the best interest of all citizens of Guam and the CNMI,” the start of federalization in the CNMI must be delayed “until the full completion of additional required security measures are firmly in place.”

The delay, it added, would also give DHS time to complete work necessary to add China to the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program.

“At this time of profound economic challenges which Guam and the CNMI face, a careful consideration of the economic benefits through the diversification of tourism market must be a high priority,” said Lai.

Jeffrey Schweizer, chairman of the board of the Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association, and GHRA president Mary P. Torre, said “at a minimum, the GHRA recommends the delay of the start of the transition period for 180 days as allowed under section 702(b) of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act and the immediate installation of the additional layered security measures required.”