Tenorio, Covenant-Saipan, has yet to read the entire House Bill 17-254, but noted that it deals with an immigration issue.
Introduced by Speaker Eli D. Cabrera, R-Saipan, H.B. 17-254 will impose a $1,000 to $5,000 fine on employers who hire illegal aliens. It also seeks to revoke their business license.
Tenorio, a former governor, said the federal government is very sensitive when it comes to immigration affairs. CNMI immigration is now under federal control.
In an interview, Cabrera said his bill will help ensure jobs for eligible U.S. workers.
He noted that employers of close to 12,000 nonresidents applied for a transitional worker visa, which means that private sector employers “seemed to have ignored the close to 4,000 U.S. workers who applied for jobs” during the job fairs conducted separately by the Department of Commerce and Department of Labor recently.
There are U.S. workers, he added, who were not hired because they “barely” missed meeting the qualifications for positions that included that of a dishwasher.
This, he said, is unfair for U.S workers who have been looking for jobs.
Cabrera said his bill will prevent employees from hiring unauthorized or undocumented nonresidents.
