Commerce Secretary Michael Ada said they are aware that applying for a business license in the CNMI is very cumbersome, and this is why they are developing a grant application to implement the automation project.
“The difficulty and hassle of setting up business in the CNMI is created by bureaucratic inefficiencies, but the administration is pushing for automation to reduce costs and wait time and improve efficiencies,” Ada said on Wednesday during the Saipan Chamber of Commerce meeting at the Pacific Islands Club.
He said currently, an applicant has to go to the Finance Department, Zoning Office and to other agencies just to meet requirements.
“We have received comments and feedback that it’s very difficult to figure out who to talk to, when and for how long will the process of finally getting a business license take,” Ada said.
The automation of the licensing process is one of the upcoming initiatives of the Department of Commerce, he added.
“There has to be a way to make it easier and more convenient for businesspersons,” he said.
Automation will be more cost-efficient and convenient because we won’t need to have many people working on the process, Ada said.
Commerce wants the project implemented as soon as it gets the money for it.
“Automated licensing can simplify and ease the frustration of businesses,” Ada said.
He said with automated licensing process, they can send e-mails to businesses if their business licenses are going to expire.
Businesses can pay their bills online without having to drive all the way to the Finance Department.
“Increasing efficiency will make doing business in the CNMI easier and we need this,” Ada said.
One of the biggest challenges whenever companies do business with the government is the procurement process.
“It takes forever to get something procured and there has to be a way to make that process more efficient,” Ada said.
In other jurisdictions, procurement is not that big a problem because most of them work with automated systems, he added.
He said the other upcoming initiatives of Commerce include unemployment insurance, to keep money “floating in the economy during unemployment” and to accurately track unemployment figures; and health care reform with the participation of insurance carriers.
