, the creation of which was approved by the island’s voters last November.
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, said the new Rota industry has “great potentials.”
“And that’s probably why, all of a sudden, there’s a clash to claim authority over that industry,” he said.
When the Legislature passed Rep. Victor B. Hocog’s House Bill 16-1, the Rota Municipal Council described the measure as flawed and defective and urged the governor to veto it.
H.B. 16-1 will give the legislative delegation the power to appropriate casino revenues, an authority which belongs to the municipal council, according to its members.
The council said it may challenge the measure’s legality if Gov. Benigno R. Fitial signs it.
Palacios said he voted for the passage of H.B. 16-1 because “I believe the legislative delegation should have a stronger voice in appropriating funds from business taxes.”
But, he admitted, there’s a “legal quagmire” now regarding an apparent conflict between commonwealth law and a municipal ordinance.
Sen. Paul A. Manglona, R-Rota, earlier said that under the CNMI Constitution, only the Legislature has the sole authority to appropriate public funds.
But the Rota council members said the casino act authorized them to appropriate revenues from the new industry.
According to Palacios, the issue may be referred to the Attorney General’s Office.
He is convinced that the municipal council will challenge the legality of H.B. 16-1 in court.
Palacios believes that the real issue is “whether we still need to have municipal councils.”
The councils should be abolished because they only duplicate the functions of the legislative delegations, he said.
The 15th House, he added, passed a legislative initiative to abolish the municipal council. The Senate, however, did not act on the proposal, which still needed to be approved by the voters.
Palacios said he may re-introduce the legislative initiative, but this time, it will only propose the abolition of the Saipan council.
