Sablan said the Legislature now has to give at least 72 hours public notice, with agendas, for official sessions and meetings.
Legislative action may also be made only during those open meetings.
“Actions taken during meeting that have not been properly noticed may be declared null and void,” said Sablan.
The Legislature now has to respond to citizen requests for public records within 10 days and will be subject to penalties for refusing those requests.
Sablan is pleased with the application of the law to the Legislature, saying more transparency and public participation in the legislative process should encourage more careful deliberation of public policies and promote the passage of thoughtful, well-researched legislation.
The law used to apply to the Legislature but lawmakers later passed a measure exempting them.
It was Sablan who spearheaded the Open Government Act popular initiative that made it to the Nov. 7 ballot and secured the required two-thirds majority of the votes cast.
Sablan, who run for the Senate but lost, said she is postponing her plans to go back to school in consideration of the CNMI’s current situation.
“I almost didn’t run for the Senate at all because I was seriously considering going back to school after completing my term in the House. But if there is anything that the Senate campaign did for me, it was that it made me realize that I want to be here, in the CNMI, at least a little while longer,” she said.
“This is such an important time for this community. We are at a crossroads in so many ways and on so many critical issues. Going back to school will always be an option for me personally, and eventually I would like to do so. But I’m not ready to leave just yet,” she added.
