THE Marianas Visitors Authority did not receive the $15 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds for the reopening of the Japan market through a travel bubble program that was launched in September last year.
This was revealed by MVA board acting Chair Gloria Cavanagh and board member Ivan Quichocho on Wednesday in a meeting with the chair of the Senate Committee on Resources, Economic Development and Programs, Senate Floor Leader Corina L. Magofna, and the chair of the Senate Federal Relations Committee, Sen. Paul A. Manglona.
The senators asked about, among other things, the $15 million in ARPA funds that the Torres administration allocated to MVA for the reopening of the Japan market.
Quichocho said the $15 million was supposed to be remitted to them by the Department of Finance.
He said then-Finance Secretary David DLG Atalig always told them, “Yes, we’re going to transmit it,” but, Quichocho added, “they never did.”
He said the MVA board had voted to allocate $8.6 million of the ARPA funds as “revenue guarantee” for United Airlines, MVA’s partner in reopening the Japan tourism market.
He said MVA had plans for the rest of the $15 million, “but we kind of stopped, pending the receipt of the funds….”
Manglona asked, “So that [money] has been set aside?”
Cavanagh answered, “We have not received the ARPA funding for Japan.”
Quichocho said, “We are losing the momentum,” referring to the reopening of the Japan tourism market.
“Once we get the funds, we can recommit and re-push. And Japan is not a market that responds quickly. It takes time. We saw that in the September and October numbers. It took us time to get that momentum going. The lack of funding is causing us to lose that momentum,” he reiterated, adding that “we need that money.”
Cavanagh told the senators, “We are not spending anything on anything right now.”
Sen. Paul A. Manglona and Senate Floor Leader Corina Magofna listen during a joint committee meeting with Marianas Visitors Authority officials on Wednesday in the Senate chamber. Also in photo are senior legislative assistant Jolyn Duenas-Tagabuel and Senate legal counsel Antonette Villagomez.
