Palacios said House Bill 17-27, which he sponsored, aims to cater to visitors arriving in the CNMI in the late hours of the evening or in early hours of the morning.
“Many of these visitors come to be entertained and have a good time during their vacation. The Legislature finds that business hours for the selling of alcoholic beverages and the business hours for places of entertainment are cut short and not catering to visitors who will be spending their money in the commonwealth,” said Palacios, R-Saipan.
He said many stores sell alcoholic beverages pass the cutoff hour of 10 p.m. due to lack of enforcement.
“Due to the illegal selling of alcoholic beverages, the CNMI is losing out in collections that can be used for resources during these times of economic hardship that the CNMI is in,” the lawmaker said.
