By Emmanuel T. Erediano
[email protected]
Variety News Staff
BY withdrawing the application for exemption from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s order that limits scheduled air service between the U.S. and China, the Commonwealth Ports Authority can now participate in the continuation of the Covenant Section 902 consultations later this week.
On Tuesday, the CPA Board of Directors voted to withdraw the application that CPA, through its U.S.-based attorneys, filed in September 2023 to exempt the CNMI from Part 213 of the USDOT’s order.
Present at the meeting were CPA Board Chairman Bart Jackson, Vice Chairman Antonio Cabrera, and board member Eusebio “Bill” Manglona. Board members Dolores Kiyoshi and Carlene Sablan attended the board meeting via videoconference.
Annex VI of the U.S.-China bilateral agreement exempts the CNMI from flight frequency limitations between the U.S. and China. The USDOT order limits the number of weekly round-trip passenger flights between the U.S. and China to 24 effective Oct. 29, 2023. The CPA’s application for exemption seeks only USDOT’s confirmation of “what is already expressly authorized” under Annex VI.
The granting of the exemption would significantly further the public interest and is necessary to prevent the CNMI’s economy from spiraling further downward, according to the exemption application.
Air service between China and the CNMI is among the issues included in the ongoing 902 talks that Gov. David M. Apatang is spearheading, with support from U.S. Delegate to Congress Kimberly King Hinds and representatives from the CNMI’s private sector.
According to Jackson, CPA was previously not included in the 902 consultations’ working committee on tourism because of the presence of CPA’s application for exemption. Now that it has been withdrawn, the chairman said, he and Executive Director Esther Ada can now participate.
“Now that this application is going to be withdrawn, CPA has now been invited to participate in the 902 talks as part of the negotiating group. Previously, we were not included because of the presence of this application. And now this application is being withdrawn, the executive director and I were asked to participate in the 902 talks later this week,” Jackson said.
In the 2023 application for exemption from the order, CPA asked USDOT to recognize that it is in the public interest to address the dire economic situation faced by the CNMI and issue the exemption. CPA told USDOT that air service to the CNMI under Annex VI of the U.S.-China agreement will have no impact on the competitive relationship between U.S. airlines and Chinese airlines in the overall U.S. market.
Emmanuel “Arnold” Erediano has a bachelor of science degree in Journalism. He started his career as police beat reporter. Loves to cook. Eats death threats for breakfast.
