He said the lawsuit will have no positive effect and will only force the CNMI government to use its scarce resources.
“I strongly feel that this lawsuit is not going anywhere and the CNMI is going to lose very badly,” Babauta said, adding that he is convinced that the federal court will “throw out the case.”
Babauta, however, favors suing the federal government — but over Compact-Impact funds.
“If there should be a lawsuit against the federal government at this time that would benefit us economically…it should be a lawsuit on Compact-Impact,” he said, referring to the federal aid that is supposed to be provided annually to states, territories and commonwealths that host migrants from Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia — Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap.
These independent nations have Compacts of Free Association with the U.S.
Babauta, who served as Washington representative from 1990 to 2002, said the CNMI will gain millions of dollars that will benefit the ailing economy if it secures the Compact-Impact monies that should have been provided to the commonwealth.
“I am confident that we can win this case easily…because Compact-Impact is a commitment of the U.S. Congress that has not been fulfilled by the responsible federal agencies,” Babauta said.
The CNMI, he added, has been getting “very little” Compact -Impact funds.
In fact, he said, for many years the CNMI didn’t get any or Compact-Impact aid.
He noted that the CNMI was getting $200,000 to $400,000 yearly in Compact-Impact funds, which increased to $5.1 million during his administration.
“I fought to increase it to $5.1 million,” he said. “Even at that level, $5.1 million is simply not enough…and in fact the amount is a token of what federal government actually owes us.”
He believes that federal government owes the CNMI $25 million to $30 million in Compact-Impact aid.
“If we ask the federal government to pay what is due us…that would be the right direction that will benefit this economy,” he said. “This is a failure on the part of the federal government to fulfill the mandate of the Compact laws.”
Urging the federal government to comply with its own law “would be the first thing I would do when I come in as governor again,” Babauta said.
Besides the Compact-Impact issue, he added, the CNMI should also address the contamination of the environment as a result of the federal government’s failure to clean what was left behind by the military on the islands.
“There’s much to be done, still, in Tanapag,” he said. “I strongly feel that the entire island of Tinian is also contaminated and the federal government has the responsibility to clean it up. We can compel them in a lawsuit to clean it up. In the end, it will not only help us in infusing federal dollars into the economy…but it will also make the islands a better place for tourists.”
