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Guam governor OKs using CNMI driver’s license beyond 30 days
Qualified CNMI residents’ licenses would be valid in Guam for up to a year
CNMI residents with qualified driver’s license and are staying in Guam for an extended time may now be eligible to drive a car beyond the initial 30 days.
In a letter addressed to Guam Sen. William Castro, Guam Revenue and Taxation director John P. Camacho said that he has secured the go-signal of Guam Gov. Eddie B. Calvo to waive the 30-day validity for CNMI residents that are holding qualified driver’s licenses and extending the validity for up to one year—if that person is currently on the way to securing a Guam driver’s license.
“The waiver shall be made for an initial six months and extended for another six months, provided that the driver has provided evidence that he or she is enrolled in a graduated driver’s education program,” said Camacho in the letter.
“The waiver shall only be effective upon the presentation of a valid unexpired CNMI driver’s license, the signing of an affidavit of having held a valid CNMI driver’s license for at least two years, and upon issuance of a certificate of waiver signed by the director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation.”
That waiver expires on Dec. 31, 2017, or until Guam Bill 123-34—the CNMI-Guam reciprocity agreement that allows CNMI residents to drive on Guam highways using a valid CNMI drivers license—becomes law.
A bill that mirrors the intent to establish a Guam-CNMI driver’s license agreement that allows Guam residents holding valid Guam driver’s licenses to drive on CNMI highways, or House Bill 20-91, was introduced to the House on June 27, 2017 and is authored by Rep. Ivan A. Blanco (R-Saipan).
Both Guam Bill 123-34 and HB 20-91 have obtained the support of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres.
“While we look forward to the passage of Senator Castro’s bill and our reciprocity bill at the House, I am extremely pleased to have learned that Governor Calvo has taken the first step, in good faith, to issue a waiver of reprieve for our CNMI residents,” said Torres.
“I cannot say thank you enough to Governor Calvo, his administration, Speaker Benjamin J.F Cruz, and members of the Guam Legislature,” he added.
Blanco, who was also appreciative of Calvo’s gesture, said the Guam legislation is great for CNMI residents “who continue to hold together [Guam and CNMI] familial and historic bonds.”
