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Senate passes bill green-lighting renovation for Guma Hustisia
The Senate on Monday unanimously approved a House bill to allow the CNMI to fund renovations and expand Judicial Branch buildings through a loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
House Bill 19-126, HD2, HS1 will now be sent to Gov. Ralph DLG Torres for his action.
It authorizes the CNMI government to enter into a loan with the USDA for the refinancing of the Guma Hustisia loan and to renovate and expand judicial facilities on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota, and the Office of the Attorney General and the Public Defender’s Office.
The Senate committee on Fiscal Affairs recommended the bill’s passage in a committee report on Aug. 19.
The committee found that $4.5-million mortgage loan owed to the Settlement Fund has matured and has not been paid in full. The committee said current terms has the CNMI pay about $120,000 per month but the Judiciary only collects about $50,00 to $60,000 a month in court fines and fees to partially service the debt.
The committee noted that the Retirement Settlement Fund has proposed a refinancing plan to repay the loan over 10 years at 7.75 percent interest, but if the CNMI government enter into a loan with the USDA’s Rural Development program, the CNMI can pay-off the outstanding mortgage on the Guma Hustisia, and make necessary renovations and expansions on judicial buildings across the CNMI and on the attorney general and public defender officers,” at a fixed rate of 2.75 percent interest and free of pre-payment penalties.”
The Senate believes that the USDA loan payments can be less than the Judiciary’s monthly collections of $50,000 to $55,000.
The bill “presents a highly valuable solution in servicing the current mortgage…while at the same time significantly lowering the monthly payments and renovating the existing government facilities,” the committee said.
