By Emmanuel T. Erediano
emmanuel@mvariety.com
Variety News Staff
GOVERNOR David M. Apatang has voiced strong support for proposals that would make electronic signatures legally valid and replace the Hotel Occupation Tax with a Transient Accommodations Tax that reflects “the realities of today’s tourism market.”
Authored by Rep. Vincent “Kobre” Aldan, House Bill 24-62, or the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, seeks to give electronic signatures and records the same legal effect as their paper counterparts, lowering costs, widening access, and treating residents fairly regardless of where they live. This, Aldan said, would “enable a more robust digital economy in the Commonwealth.”
According to the author, H.B. 24-62 provides a way to navigate the modern economy through rules that bring order and predictability to digital transactions. By adopting the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, he said, the CNMI would place electronic signatures and records on firm legal ground and join the vast majority of U.S. jurisdictions that already have such laws in place.
Authored by Reps. Roy Ada and Julie Marie Ogo, H.B. 24-32 would repeal the Hotel Occupation Tax and establish a 15% Transient Accommodations Tax imposed on “every transient accommodations broker, travel agency, and tour packager that arranges transient accommodations at non-commissioned negotiated contract rates.”
In a letter sent Tuesday to House Speaker Edmund S. Villagomez and Senate President Karl King-Nabors, the governor said H.B. 24-62 “is a necessary and remedial step” to ensure the CNMI can present itself on par with other states and territories as a domicile for businesses.
The governor also asked lawmakers to make two amendments to H.B. 24-62. In its current form, he said, the measure would prevent digital signatures from being used on lease agreements. Considering that leases are a primary source of revenue for many families of Northern Marianas descent, Apatang said there should be fewer — not more — impediments to executing lease agreements between NMDs and lessees who may not be physically present to sign documents.
The governor also noted that H.B. 24-62 would require the Commerce secretary to promulgate regulations regarding digital signatures “for all Commonwealth agencies.” He said this provision is inefficient by design, as individual rulemaking authorities are already tasked with promulgating regulations for their respective agencies. In addition, he said the provision likely would not withstand a legal challenge. He urged lawmakers to remove those sections of the bill and allow existing rulemaking authorities to govern implementation.
As for H.B. 24-32, the governor said the measure would create a system allowing rental booking platforms such as Airbnb to efficiently and accurately collect taxes and remit them to the CNMI Treasury.
“Not only is this bill crucial for standardizing taxation across the tourism accommodation sector in the CNMI, it also provides a transparent source of data that both the legislative and executive branches can leverage to make prudent economic planning decisions regarding tourism,” the governor said, urging lawmakers to pass H.B. 24-32 in its current form.
Emmanuel “Arnold” Erediano has a bachelor of science degree in Journalism. He started his career as police beat reporter. Loves to cook. Eats death threats for breakfast.
