Former Speaker Oscar C. Rasa, the group’s spokesman and adviser, said they want lawmakers to be accountable for their position regarding House Bill 16-86 which proposes to grant five-year work permits to qualified guest workers.
The H.B. 16-86 was introduced by Reps. Tina Sablan, Ind.-Saipan, Heinz S. Hofschneider, R-Saipan, Edward T. Salas, R-Saipan, and Victor B. Hocog, Ind.-Rota.
The House Committee on Judiciary and Government Operation chaired by Rep. Rosemond B. Santos, R-Saipan, has recommended that lawmakers shelve the bill since local immigration law will be federalized next year.
Rasa said their group has testified against the bill as it will “essentially marginalize people of NMI descent.”
“Given the circumstances and situation of our political, social, economic and educational problems we feel that the issue should be a federal issue,” he added.
Any attempt to change residency rules will be “counter-productive” to the local people’s interest, Rasa said.
Sablan has said that her bill will “stabilize the CNMI’s workforce and the business community and relieve the bureaucratic burdens that businesses must undergo with the current system of annual permit applications and renewals.”
