Sablan, in a telephone interview yesterday said the U.S. House’s panel’s favorable action on H.R. 1466 is an important development.
His bill will grant CNMI-only status to certain nonresidents. It will not grant them U.S. citizenship or U.S. permanent residency.
The 47-member U.S. House Natural Resources Committee approved on Wednesday H.R. 1466, which has received bipartisan support on Capitol Hill.
Sablan said the committee agreed by unanimous consent to send the measure to the House floor for passage.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial who testified against the measure, “is hopeful that the full body [of the U.S. House of Representatives] will reject the legislation in consideration of concerns of the local government and the indigenous community.”
But some CNMI lawmakers said they are happy about the progress of H.R. 1466.
Sen. Juan M. Ayuyu, Ind.-Rota, said H.R.1466 will allow some of the nonresident contract workers to stay in the CNMI.
Ayuyu said “our foreign workers play a major role in so many sections in our government especially those involving technical positions like engineers and mechanics.”
Under Sablan’s bill, Ayuyu said skilled nonresident workers who are married to U.S. citizens and have children here will be allowed to continue to share their knowledge and technical skills with the CNMI.
“I commend the U.S. House committee and I hope that it will be passed by the U.S. House and I hope the U.S. Senate will also feel the importance of the bill,” Ayuyu said.
“In all aspects the people [affected by the] bill play an important part in our community — we are all humans and everybody deserves a better status in life to move forward,” he added.
Senate President Paul A. Manglona, Ind.-Rota, said it is good news to hear that H.R. 1466 now goes to the U.S. House floor.
“We thank Kilili who has always been sensitive with regard to U.S. citizen children and those married to U.S. citizens,” he said.
H.R. 1466, he added, “attempts to address uncertainties and we are very happy it is moving forward.”
Sablan, he said, “will do a good job in doing all he can to get this out of the U.S. House, into the Senate and on the desk of the president.”
Manglona said the CNMI Senate continues to ask Sablan to also consider those long-term guest workers who are not covered by H.R. 1466.
“As you know this was the subject of public hearings conducted last year and early this year we presented our report. We are still hopeful that they would address those guest workers also,” he said.
Rep. Stanley T. Torres, Ind.-Saipan, said he hopes Sablan’s measure will go through the full U.S. House and the Senate.
“I, too, feel that non-resident parents of U.S. citizen children deserve a better status,” Torres said.
He added that if these parents cannot get green cards, at least they can be allowed to stay here so they can continue to work and take care of their children, especially those who are still very young.
“It’s humanitarian in nature,” Torres said, referring to H.R. 1466.
The measure is for persons born in the NMI between 1974 and 1978, those given permanent resident status under CNMI law, the immediate family members of U.S. citizens — spouses and parents.
They can remain in the Northern Marianas until they can adjust their status under U.S. immigration law.
Only persons who entered the NMI legally and remain legally present qualify under the bill. No amnesty will be provided to anyone who does not have legal status.
