GAO to issue report on zeroing out CW permits

The U.S. Government Accountability Office will soon be issuing a report to the U.S. Congress on the CNMI-only transitional work permit program for foreign workers, particularly the impact of uncertainty related to two main issues: the federalization law’s requirement to zero out the number of CW permits by end-2014, and the provision allowing the transition period beyond Dec. 31, 2014.

GAO is the investigative arm of Congress.

It wants to understand the impact of the uncertainty of two pending decisions by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Labor on the CNMI economy and individual employers, and is asking the Saipan Chamber of Commerce for answers.

“The timing of these DHS and DOL decisions and exactly what the agencies’ plans are have not been presented to the public or CNMI stakeholders,” GAO said in a letter to the Saipan Chamber of Commerce in mid-May.

This week, GAO again asked the Chamber whether there are any further member responses to the questions that GAO earlier posed related to these two matters.

Richard Pierce, the Chamber’s executive director, said the Chamber has received some very valuable comments from its membership but again asks for any midnight hour communication to better illustrate the uncertainty felt by CNMI businesses, employers and employees, and potential employers in the CNMI.

Pierce said yesterday that the Chamber will advocate for an extension of the transition period.

Gov. Benigno R. Fitial, Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan (Ind-MP), and some lawmakers have made known their position on the issue, saying it’s a “foregone conclusion” that the CNMI will still need foreign workers for its economy beyond 2014.

Fitial, however, has yet to formally ask for an extension of the transition period.

DHS’ U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has begun granting CW permits to foreign workers.

As of April 17, 2012, USCIS has already approved 1,045 CW petitions consisting of 1,576 beneficiaries or foreign workers. This was out of 5,659 I-129 CW petitions received for 11,695 beneficiaries at the time.

GAO said DHS is also required by U.S. Public Law 110-229 to reduce the number of CW permits it issues to foreign workers to “zero” by the end of the transition period in 2014.

PL 110-229 placed CNMI immigration under federal control.

The new law allows U.S. Labor to extend the transition period beyond Dec. 31, 2014, if it thinks it is necessary to ensure an adequate number of workers are available to CNMI businesses.

Among GAO’s questions are: “How has the uncertainty on whether firms will continue to have access to foreign labor affected by the CNMI economy?” and “How has the uncertainty on whether you will continue to have access to foreign labor affected economy-wide investment?”

The other questions are: “How has the uncertainty on whether firms will continue to have access to foreign labor affected your firm’s business operations?” “How has the uncertainty on whether you will continue to have access to foreign labor affected your firm’s plans for further investment?” and “In the event your firm no longer has access to foreign labor, what will you do?”

Pierce asked members to submit additional responses to the Chamber as soon possible, so that these responses will be immediately sent to GAO.

In July 2011, GAO issued a report to Congress on the status of transition to federal immigration law. At the time, DHS had yet to issue final regulations on the CNMI-only transitional permit program for foreign workers. DHS issued the final rule in September 2011.