Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo, D-Guam and chairwoman of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, said the committee will weigh on the merits of arguments that the witnesses presented during the panel’s oversight hearing on May 19 [Wednesday local time] in the nation’s capital.
The hearing discussed the federalization law — U.S. P.L. 110-229 or the Consolidated and Natural Resources Act of 2008.
Three panels with three members each testified before the subcommittee.
The first panel included Guam Gov. Felix Camacho, Fitial and Guam Vice Speaker Benjamin J.F. Cruz.
Federal officials made up the second panel — Dr. David Gootnick, General Accountability Office’s director for International Affairs and Trade; Nikolau Pula, deputy assistant secretary for Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs; and Richard C. Barth, acting principal deputy assistant secretary for policy of the Department of Homeland Security.
The last panel is made up of representatives from the business community and the public — Jim Beighley, director of DFS Pacific Division; David Cohen, former Interior deputy secretary; and Jim Arenovski, president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce.
Necessary delay
Fitial said he doubts if DHS, the leading federal agency mandated to run the CNMI immigration system by Nov. 28, will be able to handle the job.
“The commonwealth is concerned that the Department of Homeland Security will not be ready to enforce Public Law 110-229 on Nov. 28, 2009. On that date the immigration laws of the commonwealth will be preempted by this federal law,” he said.
“I am asking this subcommittee to assist the commonwealth by examining critically the Department’s implementation policies and procedures to date. If an extension of the effective date of the law is required to ensure that the intent of the law is implemented fully and competently, then I urge the subcommittee to provide such relief,” he added.
He said DHS would need $97 million to carry out immigration changes in six ports of entry in the CNMI — one airport and seaport each on Saipan, Tinian and Rota — but the information reaching his office indicates the federal agency was only given $5 million.
CNMI Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, a member of the subcommittee, also raised questions about Homeland Security’s funding.
“The department has advised my office that it had approximately $5 million already budgeted…. I want to know where the $92 million would come from,” he said and stressed that the federalization law is good for all stakeholders if it’s done properly.
But Barth said $97 million is a multi-year projected spending that DHS needs to set up its network and offices in the CNMI.
He said for fiscal year 2010, DHS has sufficient funding for the job.
“In FY 2010, it is my understanding from our component units with DHS, that we will have sufficient funding from our base to be able to do what we need to do to implement the law,” he said during the question and answer portion of the hearing.
The DHS official said their office will have a total of 87 personnel in the CNMI and active recruitment is already ongoing.
Camacho said any changes in the CNMI’s political landscape are going to have an impact in Guam, particularly, the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program.
“We recognize the major hurdles that DHS has to address extending up a visa waiver program that will allow the inclusion of currently excluded countries while safeguarding our national security. Further, we are concerned that the completion of this task may not occur in a timely manner,” Camacho said.
“If so and in order to prevent irreparable harm to the CNMI, we recommend that the 180-day delay be extended yet again until DHS completes its task and provides the roadmap to achieve a security and visa processing objectives as intended by Congress,” he added.
Guam’s current visa waiver program allows citizens of 12 countries to enter the territory visa free for 15 days.
Pula also supported a delay but hinted that the final decision lies with the Obama administration.
Guest workers
By law, Interior is required to provide a report about the status of long-term guest workers in the commonwealth two years after the federalization law’s enactment
“The Department of the Interior, in conjunction with our interagency partners, is considering how best to collect the data and information necessary to complete this report,” said Pula. “Interior, therefore, requests that Congress extend the statutory date for the report on long-term foreign workers by one year to May 8, 2011.”
Fitial said this is a sensitive issue that should be deferred.
“The commonwealth suggests that future consideration of this issue be deferred until the report required under the law is submitted to Congress by the secretary of the Interior,” he said.
“By that time, the overall review of immigration policy promised by President Obama may well be underway. Such a review certainly will be addressing the claims of large groups of aliens in the United States for an improved status and it is in that context that we believe the commonwealth’s situation should be evaluated,” he added.
The Interior report should include information on the number of aliens residing in the commonwealth, their legal status under federal law, their length of residence in the CNMI, and the current and future requirements of the commonwealth economy for an alien workforce.
The Interior secretary’s report also must contain recommendations whether Congress should consider permitting these guest workers to apply for long-term status under U.S. immigration law.
