According to a summary of the “Annual Federal Expenditure Data for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands” released by the Guam Department of Labor, the CNMI received $151,900 in direct loan assistance in 1996.
In 1997, this was doubled.
In 1998, the U.S. provided $12,858,573 in direct loan assistance to CNMI. In 1999, an additional $1,192,564 was provided.
Money for loans kept coming to the CNMI year after year.
In 2003, the U.S. provided the CNMI $11,415,600 for loans.
The loan assistance, however, dropped to $133,736 in 2008 and plunged to a record low of $21,000 in 2009.
The Commonwealth Development Authority, the CNMI government’s lending institution, provides direct or bank-guaranteed loans to residents. CDA’s capital came mainly from the federal government.
The delinquency rate among CDA borrowers reached record high a few years ago prompting the agency to impose a moratorium on its direct loan program.
With the economic crisis causing hardship among its borrowers, CDA has since adopted a new policy allowing them to readjust the terms of their loan payments and maturity to ease their burden.
