The position of the Commonwealth Zoning Board and Office regarding House Bill No. 17-115, otherwise cited as the “Repeal of the Saipan Zoning Law Act of 2010,” is that this law would be a serious detriment to the CNMI as a whole and especially the island of Saipan. House Bill No. 17-115 is an attempt to resurrect HLB No. 17-1 (Saipan Zoning Law of 2008 Suspension Act) that was previously filed in the House. The language of HB No. 17-115 is nearly identical to HLB No. 17-1 (Saipan Zoning Law of 2008 Suspension Act). The justification for HLB No. 17-1 (Saipan Zoning Law of 2008 Suspension Act) and HB No. 17-115 is that
Local businesses and zoning clients are still and presently encountering issues relating to implementation of the zoning regulations that appear to have been unintended. These unintended effects have proven to be detrimental to local businesses and thus to the commonwealth in general….
The Zoning Board and Office would respectfully point out that the zoning process is operating more efficiently than at any time since the inception of the law in February 2008. It takes time to implement a new system. Under the direction of the Zoning Office’s new administrator, a number of processes have been streamlined. The number of application forms has been drastically reduced. Internal processes of evaluating land-use cases are being modified so that applicants will have their cases reviewed as quickly as possible. Land-use review in the office is now more interactive with the applicant, and the office’s intent is to communicate quickly and clearly with applicants so that they are aware of what needs to be done to comply with the Saipan Zoning Law.
To better coordinate with other agencies, our new zoning administrator has established a “pre-application meeting” within the Zoning Office. The “pre-application meeting” is a “one-stop” meeting whereby new applicants can explain their development projects to zoning staff as well as representatives from the other permitting agencies. Each representative is then able to explain the agency’s relevant requirements. New applicants leave the meeting with a clear understanding as to what they will need to provide to the CNMI agencies. The Zoning Office also is now helping applicants to make concurrent submissions, when possible, to multiple departments to move projects forward more expeditiously.
Moreover, although the bill indicates that the repeal is intended to help businesses, it is unclear how businesses will benefit from a lack of zoning. In its public comments on HLB No. 17-1 (Saipan Zoning Law of 2008 Suspension Act), the Saipan Chamber of Commerce made its position very clear. The majority of businesses on Saipan favor fair and sound zoning practices. Investors are more willing to come to Saipan if they are assured consistent development principles. The long-term benefits of orderly growth and quality development will always exceed the short-term monetary gains made by a few private individuals who wish to operate without standards.
House Bill No. 17-115 also states that
[T]he purpose of this legislation is to repeal the entire Zoning Code until the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation addresses the unintended consequences of zoning by proposing a new and simplified Saipan Zoning that is feasible for the island of Saipan.
The Zoning Board and Office are already actively revising the Zoning Law. We will propose a number of substantial text amendments. These changes to the Zoning Law will be made available for public comment and review before the Zoning Board and Office presents them to the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation, or SNILD, for its review.
The Saipan Zoning Law of 2007 was enacted after the SNILD recognized that its prior suspension did not serve the interests of the community. Undoubtedly, there will always be members of our community who will be dissatisfied with the rules and regulations that we must enforce in order to advance the good of the CNMI, and especially Saipan as a whole, but a continuing cycle of enacting and suspending the zoning laws is to no one’s benefit. Repealing Public Law 6-32 (The Zoning Code of the CNMI), Public Law 7-41 and Public Law 8-10 is poor public policy and unnecessary. Accordingly, we ask for your support in rejecting this bill and any similar bills abolishing zoning. We are always more than willing to work with the Legislature to improve the current zoning law.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on House Bill No. 17-115, and if you should have any questions or require additional information, please do not hesitate to contact the Zoning Board.
HERMINIA M. FUSCO
Chairwoman
Commonwealth Zoning Board
