Flashback Aug. 24, 2000-2002

Govt expects growth in excise tax collection[/B]

The increased vigilance against unscrupulous customs personnel and the slow recovery of the islands’ tourism industry are beginning to bear good fruits for the CNMI government, which expects significant growth in excise tax collection this year. In fact, the CNMI Customs Division has projected that excise taxes collected from Northern Marianas-bound luxury items will exceed the $24 million level registered during the last year. In the period covering the first 10 months of fiscal year 2000, the Customs Division has already collected over $23 million in excise taxes imposed in several categories of Saipan-bound items.
[B] Bill on tax breaks likely to get Senate’s endorsement[/B]

Senate Vice President Thomas P. Villagomez expressed support for legislation that will grant tax breaks to investors in tourism and high technology industries, noting the need to boost the islands’ economy. A House measure proposing a tax incentive program for the two economic sectors is pending in the Senate, and Mr. Villagomez said he favors such proposal. “The Senate will be looking into the legislation, but personally I’m ready to support it,” he said in an interview yesterday. Key players of the local tourism industry had met with members of the upper house where the issue of tax incentives for investors was discussed.

DOF: No money from tobacco deal yet[/B]

Acting Finance Secretary Robert Schrack denied that the Department of Finance has already received the second tranche of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, saying that what they have at the moment is $4,000—not $1 million as reportedly claimed by the Attorney General’s Office. Schrack also denied the allegation of AGO consumer counsel David Lochabay that the tobacco trust fund does not exist, saying that since the passage of Public Law 12-44, Finance has already set up a separate account that will receive the ensuing tranches of the tobacco settlement fund.
[B] Fitial backs entry of new college[/B]

House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial is upbeat on educational opportunities that may be available to local students through the proposed establishment of another post-secondary learning institution in the CNMI. Fitial has thrown his support to the proposal offered by a group of South Korean educators to put up an educational facility in the Northern Marianas. The Speaker met with the Pacific Island University officials headed by Jun Choon Won who disclosed plans to provide college and university courses on the islands.
[B] Aug. 24, 2002

Teachers Institute to tackle ancient history[/B]

Dr. Koji Lum, a geneticist and professor at Tokyo Women’s Medical University in Japan, will be the guest speaker at the second session of the 2002 Teachers Institute to be held today, Aug. 24. The Teachers Institute is an annual program co-sponsored by the NMI Council for the Humanities, the Public School System, and the Northern Marianas College. It is intended to provide teachers with a detailed overview of Northern Marianas history and culture. The second session will focus on ancient history of the Northern Marianas and trace the origins of its indigenous people. Dr. Lum will present a summary of his genetic research that utilizes mitochondrial DNA to assess patterns of relationships among human populations in the Pacific region. Mitochondrial DNA has become a standard tool for geneticists and allows a researcher to easily estimate the relative time since two individuals shared a common mother.
[B] Fund investments drop to $302M[/B]

As expected, the stock market bloodbath last month wiped out considerable gains made by international investments of the NMI Retirement Fund since 9-11, posting a 6.24-percent decline in July when compared to the previous month. The market value of the Fund’s international exposures last month came in at $302.96 million, down from June’s $323.14 million or a loss of $20.18 million. This is the fourth straight month that the market value of the Fund’s international investments have been dropping but what is staggering is that July’s $302.96 million is even much lower than the $312 million that was posted just after the Sept. 11 attacks.