The members, by a 14-0 vote, passed Youth Congress Bill 10-04, introduced by Youth Sen. Nicole Sonia Castro, to propose amendments to Public Law 8-27.
Under that law, Precincts 1 and 3 as well as Northern Marianas College each elect three youth senators.
Last year, only two of NMC’s slots were filled because of the lack of interested candidates.
In the precincts, voting turnout was only 12 percent, Castro said.
In contrast, she added, public high schools on Saipan each have over 700 students yet are represented by only one youth senator.
Castro said her bill will “ensure better representation of the youth of the CNMI by allocating seats to schools with larger enrollment and population and taking from the precincts which have shown modest constituents and registered voters.”
She wants the next Youth Congress to have one member each from Precincts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Each private and public high school with a student population of 20 or more will have one youth senator.
Each private and public high school with more than 300 students will have one additional youth senator for every 300 students.
NMC will only have one youth senator.
The Youth Congress has 23 seats that are up for grabs each year.
Outgoing Youth Congress Speaker Anita Hofschneider on Saturday said they are counting on the Legislature’s “positive action.”
Bills passed by the Youth Congress are submitted to the Legislature for its consideration.
