But Bill Wicker, communications director of the committee, at the same time expressed confidence that the federal court in Washington, D.C. will uphold the law.
“P.L. 110-229 has the flexibility needed to properly balance federal immigration and security concerns with the needs of the local economy, and there is confidence that the court will uphold the law,” he told Variety.
U.S. lawmakers said the CNMI federalization law will allow the islands to retain access to foreign labor without jeopardizing national security.
It also includes a provision creating a CNMI congressional delegate seat.
“There is a concern that this suit will interfere with the ability of federal officials to work closely with CNMI officials to develop regulations which best balance federal and CNMI concerns,” said Wicker in an e-mail to Variety.
Federal authorities are expected to communicate again with CNMI officials regarding the implementing regulations ahead of the April 2009 deadline to publish them in the Federal Register.
On Sept. 12, the Washington office of Jenner & Block law firm filed a complaint for declaratory judgment and injunctive relief on behalf of the Fitial administration.
The complaint aims to stop the implementation of the federalization law on June 1, 2009.
Consent Decree
Sen. Maria T. Pangelinan, D-Saipan, said she still supports the federalization law but there are certain things recently brought up that have convinced her to “partially agree” that there is a need to file the lawsuit.
Pangelinan said the governor’s lawsuit is not challenging the imposition of federal immigration law on the islands.
“I understand that the governor is trying to save our right to self-government,” she said.
She said at issue are the federalization law’s labor provisions which the governor opposes.
If the court agrees with the governor, the CNMI border control will still be federalized but labor provisions, such as the issuance of permits to employers and workers as well as labor fee revenues, will remain under local control, Pangelinan said.
She said a “consent decree” may be issued by the court specifying which provisions of the federalization law will be applied to the CNMI.
The Fitial administration is spending $50,000 a month to retain Jenner & Block.
After the Legislature rejected his pleas for public funds, the governor said he will not use “funds for public services” to finance the lawsuit.
Pangelinan, the chairwoman of the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee, said they do not know who is paying Jenner & Block.
She said there are no legal fees proposed within the fiscal year 2009 CNMI budget bill.
The Fitial administration expects the federal court to act on the lawsuit within eight months or before June 1, 2009.
Attorneys David W. DeBruin and Sharmila Sohoni of Jenner & Block argued that the CNMI will have difficulty attracting American workers because the per capita income on the islands is too low compared to the U.S.
In 2004, CNMI government data showed that the islands’ annual per capital income was $6,178, or 18.7 percent of the U.S. per capita of $33,123.
The lawyers said the federalization law “supplants local decision-making with respect to economic development by entrusting local control over the commonwealth economy to a web of federal bureaucracy.”
