When the numbers finally speak for themselves
ABOUT a year ago, the last thing one would expect the administration to acknowledge was the worsening state of the local economy. (Remember? “The State of the Commonwealth is getting better.”)
Not anymore. In his FY 2027 budget submission, the governor included his Revenue Council’s report, which, as far as similar reports go, is surprisingly upfront.
The CNMI, the report stated, “is widely classified as an economically distressed community. The long-term impacts of the 2015 and 2018 super typhoons, combined with the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed to one of the most significant economic downturns in the CNMI since the 1980s. The sustained decline in tourism has been associated with widespread business closures, population outmigration, and elevated levels of unemployment and underemployment. Additional effects include increases in crime, deterioration of commercial and residential infrastructure, reduced quality of key tourist areas, and declines in consumer spending and overall economic activity.”
There was a time when the administration went out of its way to “refute” news reports that many businesses were shutting down. Now, the Revenue Council has confirmed what everyone else already knew:
“The number of newly registered businesses and newly issued business licenses has declined steadily over the past five years. Although both the Business License Office and the Office of the Registrar of Corporations experienced a temporary increase in activity between 2021 and 2022, likely attributable to participation in the Boost Program, applications have decreased consistently from 2022 through 2025. During this period, the Business License Office recorded an approximate 47 percent decline in new license applications, while the Registrar of Corporations observed a reduction of roughly 37 percent in new registrations.”
For its first two years at the helm, the administration depicted tourism — the CNMI’s primary industry — as all but irrelevant and certainly not the top priority, instead advocating “long-term” solutions that included a deepening dependence on Uncle Sam. But as the Revenue Council’s report has pointed out, tourism remains the CNMI’s primary economic driver, stating that “immediate intervention is critical to maintain air service.” This includes urgent federal intervention in light of certain federal rules and policies that are hindering the industry’s recovery.
The administration had no mandate to pursue policies that are hostile to certain businesses, if not to growth itself. We are relieved that misinformed economic views are no longer the prevailing sentiment in the governor’s office, as clearly indicated in the Revenue Council report.
Half-strength economy, full-sized problems
ECONOMIC recovery requires an adequate workforce — a subject that was also discussed in the Governor’s Revenue Council report. It should be read and studied by government officials and politicians.
According to the report, between 2018 and 2024, “workforce composition shifted from roughly equal shares of U.S. and foreign workers to 68% U.S. workers. This change was not driven by an increase in local labor but rather by a sharp labor contraction in the overall workforce following Super Typhoon Yutu, the COVID-19 pandemic, and major private-sector closures.”
The report added, “FY 2025 data confirms that the CNMI labor market has not rebounded but instead stabilized at a reduced level of activity. While total job openings remain above 20,000, this level represents only about 50% of pre-pandemic demand seen in 2018.”
After a sharp decline during the pandemic, the report said, “job openings experienced a short-lived increase in FY 2023, followed by stagnation through FY 2024 and FY 2025. This pattern reflects not growth, but a prolonged plateau, indicating that the market has reached a structural ceiling.”
Rather than signaling expansion, the report added, “current job posting levels largely reflect employers’ efforts to maintain existing operations within ongoing workforce constraints. The data suggests a labor market that is stabilized but constrained, operating at half-strength with limited upward momentum. In contrast to this sustained but constrained level of job openings, business instability has increased. From FY 2024 to FY 2025, there was a rise in furloughs, reductions in force, and closures, including several long-standing CNMI employers. Reported notices increased from 18 in FY 2024 to 56 in FY 2025, representing an increase of 68%. This trend underscores that, despite steady job posting levels, businesses are not expanding but instead adjusting operations within a limited labor pool and a stagnant economic environment.”
What is to be done? We need specific and detailed answers from policymakers and the brave (deluded?) souls seeking elected office this year.
Zaldy Dandan is the recipient of the NMI Society of Professional Journalists’ Best in Editorial Writing Award and the NMI Humanities Award for Outstanding Contributions to Journalism. His four books are available on amazon.com/.
