The commonwealth is familiar territory to Murkowski whose father, then-Sen. Frank Murkowski, chaired the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
During his tenure, Sen. Frank Murkowski was a source of assistance for the CNMI in the U.S. Senate.
Since succeeding her father, Sen. Lisa Murkowski continues to keep a keen eye on the islands.
Fitial sought her insights and assistance in addressing the challenges in the CNMI resulting from the implementation of U.S. Public Law 110-229, or the CNRA.
The governor pointed out that there exists a “climate of uncertainty” for both investors and foreign workers due largely to the lack of final regulations yet to be implemented by the Department of Homeland Security.
“Investors don’t want to move forward with many of their plans until they can see a sense of certainty in terms of rules and regulations,” said Fitial. “I’m very concerned that the longer we wait, the CNMI will lose out on such investments.”
Sen. Lisa Murkowski indicated that the concerns of the commonwealth are legitimate and of great significance to the welfare of its people.
She said she will continue to be an advocate for the islands in the U.S. Senate.
Murkowski recently grabbed national attention when she secured a historic reelection victory as a write-in candidate. If plans push through, the senator from Alaska will soon add another feat to her history — a visit to the Northern Marianas.
Fitial and Murkowski have a standing agreement that they will both visit each other’s home state.
In their meeting, Murkowski formally invited Fitial to be a guest speaker at the upcoming 2011 Renewable Energy Fair in Anchorage, Alaska set to be held in August.
She accepted Fitial’s invitation and announced that she plans to visit the islands next year in either February or March.
