Pacific Magazine > Daily News

Gov Says He May Still Sue Washington

By Agnes E. Donato on Saipan
Friday: May 09, 2008

Northern Marianas Gov. Benigno R. Fitial is not ruling out a lawsuit against the U.S. government over the imminent federal takeover of the commonwealth's immigration.

President George W. Bush today signed into law a bill that federalizes labor and immigration in the Northern Marianas and grants the commonwealth a non-voting delegate in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Fitial said he will continue to consult with local lawmakers, the private sector, and other interested parties “about our options going forward.”

The governor in his State of the Commonwealth address last week said he had not made up its mind on how to proceed with immigration federalization, which his administration had strongly opposed. One of the options he cited is to sue the U.S. government. The other two are to help draft the implementing regulations and to seek amendments to the new law.

In a three-page statement issued today, the governor reiterated his arguments against having Washington control the Northern Marianas' labor and immigration.

“The passage of S. 2739, the CNMI federal takeover bill imposing unprecedented immigration and labor controls, represents the end of an era for the people and government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,” Fitial said.

He said that local control of labor and immigration policies was vital in developing the Northern Marianas' economy in the 1980s and 1990s, and in creating what he described as a higher standard of living for the locals and foreign workers living in the island group.

“I had hoped to continue using these sound economic tools to orchestrate an economic recovery for the CNMI, and I deeply regret that recently passed federal legislation may impede our local government's ability to orchestrate an economic recover based on sound economic incentives and competitive free market policies,” Fitial said.

U.S. immigration will apply to the Northern Marianas on June 1, 2009. In the next year, the five federal agencies named in the federalization measure will work with the local government in drafting the regulations to implement the new law.

Meantime, local labor and immigration laws will remain in effect. Employers are now prohibited from bringing in more foreign workers than leave the islands.

The Consolidated Resources Act, which includes the Northern Marianas provisions, also calls for a November 2008 election for the CNMI’s first delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives.