Feds OK 180-day delay
Thursday, 02 April 2009 00:00 By Gemma Q. Casas - Variety News Staff
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U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered to delay until Nov. 28 the mandated June 1st U.S. takeover on the islands’ border security and immigration system giving relief to local officials, employers and some foreign workers who are worried about uncertainties on the transition phase.
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Marie Thérèse Sebrechts, regional media manager of the department, said Napolitano reached the decision upon consultation with the secretaries of the departments of Labor, Interior and State, the U.S. attorney general and Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.
“As a result of the secretary’s decision the existing CNMI immigration laws will continue to apply until November 28, 2009. Additionally, the implementation of Customs and Border Protection’s interim final rule establishing a joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, that was scheduled to begin on June 1, 2009, also will be delayed until Nov. 28, 2009 and the existing Guam VWP will continue to operate until that date,” she said in a statement.
The delay also means the estimated more than 16,000 foreign workers here can still exit and enter the islands using their valid Northern Marianas labor permits within the next six months.
Under the federalization law, once the U.S. administers the islands immigration system international airlines will not board anymore foreign workers bound here unless they have a U.S. visa.
They will also not be allowed to work here unless they have the appropriate U.S. employment visa.
Relieved and thankful
The governor and CNMI Delegate to the U.S. Congress Gregorio Sablan separately asked Napolitano for the delay citing grave economic concerns over the possible negative impact of a hastily administered federal immigration system.
The tourism-based economy of the CNMI is driven by foreign workers whose employment contracts are based on locally-issued labor permits.
Once the DHS takes over the administration of the immigration system here, all foreign workers will be treated as transitional guest workers and must eventually be employed under the soon to be introduced federal guest worker program.
Fitial thanked Napolitano and others who strongly lobbied Washington for the delay.
“Today, I join many people in our community in expressing thanks and gratitude to Janet Napolitano, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for agreeing to delay the implementation of federal immigration rules for the CNMI,” said the governor in a special press conference held yesterday.
He added that he’s grateful for the federal government and other individuals who strongly lobbied for the delay taking into account the negative impact of the move on the islands’ fragile tourism-based economy.
He also expressed hope the six-month delay will give the CNMI more time to bargain for more rights under the federalization law.
He expressed hope the delay would enable local and federal authorities to ensure the smooth transition phase of handing down the control of the islands’ immigration system to the DHS.
He also stressed the time at hand would enable the CNMI to host more tourists from Russia and China.
“My hope is that this six-month delay will give Homeland Security additional time to put in place the necessary equipment, personnel and systems in the CNMI so that we can continue to welcome Chinese and Russian tourists without a single day of lapse. We have been hosting these tourists for more than a decade without any problems and they are a vital part of our tourism industry,” the governor said.
Sablan, for his part, said he’s glad Napolitano granted their delay request.
“I am glad to finally have the secretary’s decision,” said Sablan in a statement. “We now know with certainty that the transition to federal immigration will begin on Nov. 28, 2009. As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay. The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough reason to do it right.”
Assistant Secretary for Policy Richard Barth delivered Napolitano’s decision to Sablan and Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo.
Time for more talks
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, said they expect the six-month period to be marked by continued dialogues between the CNMI and federal officials.
He said local businesses want assurance they will continue to have the labor force they need.
“There are other concerns that were not clear. It appeared that they [federal authorities time] have a final rule already. We have a little concern with that because nobody in the commonwealth made comments on that and so the only way to do this is to delay and make sure that unified requests will be taken into consideration,” the speaker told the Variety.
Rep. Ray N. Yumul, R-Saipan and the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said the delay should give local and federal authorities time to further study possible loopholes on the yet to be drafted regulations to ensure the smooth transition phase.
House Floor Leader Joseph N. Camacho, R-Saipan, added, the delay would let stakeholders in the federalization law “iron-out unintended consequences in a mutually agreeable positions.”
He said many people would be affected in the proposed changes like foreign workers, their employers, foreign investors, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, foreign students and the islands economic future.
Phillip Mendiola-Long, president and chairman of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, said the DHS made the right decision.
“The chamber frankly did not see it possible to implement P.L. 110-229 in the time frame available because DHS had not completed regulations for the CNMI Transitional Worker Program, they had not completed regulations for existing CNMI foreign investor transitions or created the new foreign investor policy, they had not established regulations for Immediate Relatives and they had not established regulations regarding prevailing wage rates,” he said in an email to the Variety.
“With all of these pending and uncompleted regulatory issues, it would not have been prudent for the federal agency to create policy and regulations in haste just to meet a time deadline,” he added.
Tinian is being developed as a major casino hub in the Pacific. The industry is expected to generate both local and international employment.
Taotao Tano leader Greg Cruz, on the other hand, said the delay will not change things at all as the islands’ immigration system would still be handed down to DHS before the year is over.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” he said.
He added: “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it’s just aggravating the situation.”
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SaipanFox - Who is he? |2009-04-01 19:41:30
What does Kalili know about the federal government. If John Oliver was elected, 110-229 would
already have been repealed. Kalili, on the other hand, is trying to take credit for the hard work
of our Great and Benevolent Leader in Governor Ben Fitial.
Our Great Governor will bring in daily
Asiana flights from Japan, Russia, China and Korea once he is reelected to another term. He will
bring in economic development like we saw when the garment industry was here. The casino industry
in Tinian will prosper and bring in more money than the stimulus.
In Our Great Leader Governor
Ben Fitial we TRUST.
Showing posts with label Gov. Fitial. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gov. Fitial. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Thursday, April 02, 2009
DHS grants 180-day delay
By Kristi Eaton
Reporter
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano They asked for it and they got it.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday announced the June 1 start date to the federalization law will be delayed by 180 days-the maximum amount allowed by law-until Nov. 28, 2009.
The extension means the CNMI will continue to administer its own immigration system until Nov. 28. The proposed joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, which excludes the emerging Chinese and Russian markets, will also not go into effect until Nov. 28. Guam's own visa program will operate until Nov. 28.
The move comes after Gov. Benigno Fitial, CNMI Rep. Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan, CNMI government officials and agencies, lawmakers, and businesses asked for a delay. Guam Gov. Felix Camacho, Guam Rep. Madeleine Bordallo, and the Guam Legislature also voiced their desire to push back six months the implementation of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act, which extends the U.S. immigration system to the CNMI. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus supported a delay as well.
According to a DHS statement issued yesterday, “Under the CNRA, the Secretary of DHS has the sole authority to delay the June 1, 2009, transition date to U.S. immigration law up to 180 days, after consultation with the secretaries of Labor, Interior and State, the attorney general, and the governor of the CNMI. The Secretary has determined based upon those consultations that it is advisable to exercise that authority fully.”
At a news briefing yesterday, Fitial thanked Napolitano for delaying the enactment of Public Law 110-229.
“I am very grateful to the federal government for acknowledging the serious economic concerns we have raised regarding the implementation of this sweeping new federal immigration law,” the governor said.
DHS Assistant Secretary Richard Barth delivered Napolitano's decision to Bordallo and Sablan yesterday on Capitol Hill.
“As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay,” Sablan said in a statement. “The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough time to do it right.”
Regulations
As the June 1 date neared, many questions over the implementation remained unanswered.
The delay will allow DHS to draft and release the remaining regulations relating to the law, and allow for enough time for the public to comment. The proposed Visa Waiver Program is the only regulation that has been released for public comment, and it has received opposition from many in the CNMI community. The final rule has not been released.
Regulations relating to foreign workers, investors, students and retirees have not yet been released for comment, something that Rep. Diego Benavente, the chairman of the House's Committee on U.S. and Foreign Relations, said has led to a climate of uncertainty in the Commonwealth.
“While everyone realized it will happen at some point, I think people need a little bit more time to understand and prepare for that,” the representative said.
Rep. Sablan said he hopes the delay will allow Homeland Security more time to consider specific populations in the CNMI that will be greatly impacted if the regulations are not carefully written. As it is right now, some legal residents of the Commonwealth who do not have a valid U.S. visa will not be able to re-enter the CNMI if they must leave for a medical emergency or other reason. He asked DHS to create regulations allowing any legal resident to leave and re-enter without the need for a new U.S. visa. Moreover, Sablan is asking DHS to make the visa process more affordable for families with both U.S. citizen and non-U.S. citizen members.
“Visas applications are expensive and they require that families earn at least 125 percent of the federal poverty level,” he noted in the statement, adding that he hopes Napolitano will use her authority to make the process more affordable.
“I am hopeful that now that the new Obama Administration is settling in, we will be able to get down to the nitty-gritty of writing these regulations,” the congressman said. “It's been almost a year since the law was enacted. It's time that we start clearing away all the uncertainty that exists without clear regulations.”
Another reason Sablan asked for a delay is because there has been no money appropriated for border controls. One of the reasons that China and Russia were recently left out of the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver program, Sablan noted, is that DHS believed border security was not adequate at this time.
“But this costs money. And no money has been appropriated by Congress to set up the NMI borders,” he said in February. “So it makes sense for me to work in Congress to get the needed funds for fiscal year 2010 and have DHS complete the buildup of the entry points after Oct. 1, when the fiscal year begins and new money could be available.”
Lawsuit still on
When asked if the extension would have any effect on the lawsuit the CNMI has filed against DHS and U.S. Department of Labor, Fitial said: “I don't think so. I think that this lawsuit has its own place and this extension will provide all the necessary work that needs to be done to improve the implementation and enforcement of the new immigration law.”
The CNMI sued the federal agencies in September to halt the implementation of PL 110-229. A preliminary injunction seeking to stop DHS and DOL from taking over the local labor system was also filed in November. The case currently pending in U.S. District Court
Benavente said he hopes the lawsuit will be cleared so the CNMI can work with the federal agencies over the next several months.
Fitial has not been in communication with DHS about regulations, but Howard Willens, special legal counsel to the governor who is representing the CNMI in the lawsuit, said Commonwealth representatives have taken part in discussions at all levels with Homeland Security.
“There has been open and full discussions between representatives of the Commonwealth and representatives of DHS, in respect to all outstanding issues,” Willens said.
One such representative is Lynn Knight, chairperson for the Commonwealth Economic Development Commission. Knight is currently stationed in Washington D.C. to work on the federalization law and other economic development issues.
“We have had numerous meetings with the Department of Homeland Security over the past two months and they are listening to the CNMI's concerns. They're also reading all of the comments that individuals have taken the time to submit on the DHS website, so it's definitely worth the time and effort to comment,” Knight said in a statement.
Willens said the CNMI anticipated an extension might be granted but it was made clear in the lawsuit's briefs that that does not effect the Commonwealth's entitlement to a preliminary injunction. Each party-the CNMI and the federal government-will probably submit a short statement about the extension, Willens said.
CNMI Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat said the 180-day extension would not impact the department. The department is pleased about the delay, but she said she is optimistic the judge will find in favor of the CNMI's preliminary injunction.
Judge Paul L. Friedman has taken the lawsuit and preliminary injunction under advisement.
Fitial said the CNMI will begin to prepare for the implementation of the federalization law once a decision on the lawsuit and preliminary injunction is announced.
“We will do what we need to do after the result of the lawsuit comes out, because we don't want to be doing something that we may not have to do after all,” he said, adding that the judge is aware of the deadline and should make a decision soon.
No benefit
Some people said they believe the delay is simply postponing the inevitable, with no noticeable benefit to be gained.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” said Taotao Tano president Gregorio Cruz Jr. “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it's just aggravating the situation.”
A delay wasn't expected, Wendy Doromal said in an e-mail, but unfortunately, the federal government was not ready.
Doromal, a human rights advocate who has been outspoken about her support for the law, said she was hoping the extension would not be granted.
“My concern is that a delay will allow more time for the anti-federalization administration to scheme and manipulate at the expense of the foreign contract workers who will continue to be under the dysfunctional local labor system,” she said. “Perhaps a delay will give us more time to convince Congress to grant the foreign contract workers and foreign parents of U.S. citizen children a pathway to citizenship. That's what I will continue to work on.”
Money and jobs
The extension means more money coming in and more money going out for the CNMI government, which will affect both the Fiscal Year 2009 and Fiscal Year 2010 budgets.
Six more months of the Russia and China markets could mean more than $100 million coming into the CNMI, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority. Nonresident worker fees will also becoming in for six more months, an additional $2.5 to $3 million in revenue to the CNMI.
But both fiscal year budgets did not include appropriations for the local immigration division. The FY 2009 budget stops appropriating money to the agency on May 31, the day before the law was to go into effect and federal employees were to take over. The FY 2010 budget proposal, which the administration was preparing to turn into the Legislature yesterday, did not include funding for the local immigration division or include the revenue that could be seen from six more months of visa-free travel.
Fitial said the administration is making provisions to the budget.
CNMI Immigration director Melvin Grey yesterday said it is business as usual in the division. Sixty-one employees will be able to keep their jobs for another six months, but “we'll have to face it again in six months.”
DHS grants 180-day delay
By Kristi Eaton
Reporter
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano They asked for it and they got it.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday announced the June 1 start date to the federalization law will be delayed by 180 days-the maximum amount allowed by law-until Nov. 28, 2009.
The extension means the CNMI will continue to administer its own immigration system until Nov. 28. The proposed joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, which excludes the emerging Chinese and Russian markets, will also not go into effect until Nov. 28. Guam's own visa program will operate until Nov. 28.
The move comes after Gov. Benigno Fitial, CNMI Rep. Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan, CNMI government officials and agencies, lawmakers, and businesses asked for a delay. Guam Gov. Felix Camacho, Guam Rep. Madeleine Bordallo, and the Guam Legislature also voiced their desire to push back six months the implementation of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act, which extends the U.S. immigration system to the CNMI. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus supported a delay as well.
According to a DHS statement issued yesterday, “Under the CNRA, the Secretary of DHS has the sole authority to delay the June 1, 2009, transition date to U.S. immigration law up to 180 days, after consultation with the secretaries of Labor, Interior and State, the attorney general, and the governor of the CNMI. The Secretary has determined based upon those consultations that it is advisable to exercise that authority fully.”
At a news briefing yesterday, Fitial thanked Napolitano for delaying the enactment of Public Law 110-229.
“I am very grateful to the federal government for acknowledging the serious economic concerns we have raised regarding the implementation of this sweeping new federal immigration law,” the governor said.
DHS Assistant Secretary Richard Barth delivered Napolitano's decision to Bordallo and Sablan yesterday on Capitol Hill.
“As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay,” Sablan said in a statement. “The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough time to do it right.”
Regulations
As the June 1 date neared, many questions over the implementation remained unanswered.
The delay will allow DHS to draft and release the remaining regulations relating to the law, and allow for enough time for the public to comment. The proposed Visa Waiver Program is the only regulation that has been released for public comment, and it has received opposition from many in the CNMI community. The final rule has not been released.
Regulations relating to foreign workers, investors, students and retirees have not yet been released for comment, something that Rep. Diego Benavente, the chairman of the House's Committee on U.S. and Foreign Relations, said has led to a climate of uncertainty in the Commonwealth.
“While everyone realized it will happen at some point, I think people need a little bit more time to understand and prepare for that,” the representative said.
Rep. Sablan said he hopes the delay will allow Homeland Security more time to consider specific populations in the CNMI that will be greatly impacted if the regulations are not carefully written. As it is right now, some legal residents of the Commonwealth who do not have a valid U.S. visa will not be able to re-enter the CNMI if they must leave for a medical emergency or other reason. He asked DHS to create regulations allowing any legal resident to leave and re-enter without the need for a new U.S. visa. Moreover, Sablan is asking DHS to make the visa process more affordable for families with both U.S. citizen and non-U.S. citizen members.
“Visas applications are expensive and they require that families earn at least 125 percent of the federal poverty level,” he noted in the statement, adding that he hopes Napolitano will use her authority to make the process more affordable.
“I am hopeful that now that the new Obama Administration is settling in, we will be able to get down to the nitty-gritty of writing these regulations,” the congressman said. “It's been almost a year since the law was enacted. It's time that we start clearing away all the uncertainty that exists without clear regulations.”
Another reason Sablan asked for a delay is because there has been no money appropriated for border controls. One of the reasons that China and Russia were recently left out of the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver program, Sablan noted, is that DHS believed border security was not adequate at this time.
“But this costs money. And no money has been appropriated by Congress to set up the NMI borders,” he said in February. “So it makes sense for me to work in Congress to get the needed funds for fiscal year 2010 and have DHS complete the buildup of the entry points after Oct. 1, when the fiscal year begins and new money could be available.”
Lawsuit still on
When asked if the extension would have any effect on the lawsuit the CNMI has filed against DHS and U.S. Department of Labor, Fitial said: “I don't think so. I think that this lawsuit has its own place and this extension will provide all the necessary work that needs to be done to improve the implementation and enforcement of the new immigration law.”
The CNMI sued the federal agencies in September to halt the implementation of PL 110-229. A preliminary injunction seeking to stop DHS and DOL from taking over the local labor system was also filed in November. The case currently pending in U.S. District Court
Benavente said he hopes the lawsuit will be cleared so the CNMI can work with the federal agencies over the next several months.
Fitial has not been in communication with DHS about regulations, but Howard Willens, special legal counsel to the governor who is representing the CNMI in the lawsuit, said Commonwealth representatives have taken part in discussions at all levels with Homeland Security.
“There has been open and full discussions between representatives of the Commonwealth and representatives of DHS, in respect to all outstanding issues,” Willens said.
One such representative is Lynn Knight, chairperson for the Commonwealth Economic Development Commission. Knight is currently stationed in Washington D.C. to work on the federalization law and other economic development issues.
“We have had numerous meetings with the Department of Homeland Security over the past two months and they are listening to the CNMI's concerns. They're also reading all of the comments that individuals have taken the time to submit on the DHS website, so it's definitely worth the time and effort to comment,” Knight said in a statement.
Willens said the CNMI anticipated an extension might be granted but it was made clear in the lawsuit's briefs that that does not effect the Commonwealth's entitlement to a preliminary injunction. Each party-the CNMI and the federal government-will probably submit a short statement about the extension, Willens said.
CNMI Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat said the 180-day extension would not impact the department. The department is pleased about the delay, but she said she is optimistic the judge will find in favor of the CNMI's preliminary injunction.
Judge Paul L. Friedman has taken the lawsuit and preliminary injunction under advisement.
Fitial said the CNMI will begin to prepare for the implementation of the federalization law once a decision on the lawsuit and preliminary injunction is announced.
“We will do what we need to do after the result of the lawsuit comes out, because we don't want to be doing something that we may not have to do after all,” he said, adding that the judge is aware of the deadline and should make a decision soon.
No benefit
Some people said they believe the delay is simply postponing the inevitable, with no noticeable benefit to be gained.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” said Taotao Tano president Gregorio Cruz Jr. “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it's just aggravating the situation.”
A delay wasn't expected, Wendy Doromal said in an e-mail, but unfortunately, the federal government was not ready.
Doromal, a human rights advocate who has been outspoken about her support for the law, said she was hoping the extension would not be granted.
“My concern is that a delay will allow more time for the anti-federalization administration to scheme and manipulate at the expense of the foreign contract workers who will continue to be under the dysfunctional local labor system,” she said. “Perhaps a delay will give us more time to convince Congress to grant the foreign contract workers and foreign parents of U.S. citizen children a pathway to citizenship. That's what I will continue to work on.”
Money and jobs
The extension means more money coming in and more money going out for the CNMI government, which will affect both the Fiscal Year 2009 and Fiscal Year 2010 budgets.
Six more months of the Russia and China markets could mean more than $100 million coming into the CNMI, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority. Nonresident worker fees will also becoming in for six more months, an additional $2.5 to $3 million in revenue to the CNMI.
But both fiscal year budgets did not include appropriations for the local immigration division. The FY 2009 budget stops appropriating money to the agency on May 31, the day before the law was to go into effect and federal employees were to take over. The FY 2010 budget proposal, which the administration was preparing to turn into the Legislature yesterday, did not include funding for the local immigration division or include the revenue that could be seen from six more months of visa-free travel.
Fitial said the administration is making provisions to the budget.
CNMI Immigration director Melvin Grey yesterday said it is business as usual in the division. Sixty-one employees will be able to keep their jobs for another six months, but “we'll have to face it again in six months.”
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