BILLS related to the gaming industry will now be assigned to the Senate Fiscal Affairs Committee, while measures pertaining to cannabis will be reviewed by the Senate Resources, Economic Development and Programs Committee.
Senate President Jude U. Hofschneider appointed Sen. Victor B. Hocog to chair Fiscal Affairs while Senate Vice President Justo Quitugua heads the REDP panel.
Victor Hocog
Senate Floor Leader Vinnie Sablan, who chaired Gaming and Cannabis in the previous Legislature, said both can now be addressed through Fiscal Affairs and REDP committees.
Sablan will chair Rules and Procedures as well as Public Utilities, Transportation, and Communications.
The vice chairman of the Senate Rules and Procedures Committee is Quitugua, and the members are Hocog and Hofschneider.
Judiciary, Government, Law, and Federal Relations will be chaired by Sen. Karl R. King-Nabors. The vice chair is Sablan and the members are Quitugua and Hocog.
Quitugua also chairs Health, Education, and Welfare while Sen. Frank Cruz will remain chairman of Executive Appointments and Government Investigations.
In the House of Representatives, cannabis issues will be reviewed by the Committee on Commerce and Tourism chaired by Rep. Denita Yangetmai.
In an interview, Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez said the cannabis industry “is pretty much operational — it’s just all about the regulations and administration.”
Two more House committees have been organized.
Education will be chaired by Rep. Leila Staffler. The vice chair is Rep. Sheila Babauta and the members are Reps. Donald Manglona, Edwin Propst, Denita Yangetmai, Floor Leader Ralph Yumul and House Minority Leader Ivan Blanco.
Judiciary and Governmental Operations is chaired by Rep. Celina Babauta with Vice Speaker Blas Jonathan Attao as vice chair. The members are Reps. Tina Sablan, Vicente Camacho, Richard Lizama and Donald Manglona.
Rep. Celina Babauta said they chose Attao to be the vice chair because the committee needs his institutional knowledge on matters pertaining to governmental operations. She said Attao has extensive experience in dealing with the legislative process and inter-governmental communications.
