Feds to review Northern Marianas Islands economic activity
Members of the U.S. Government Accountability Office will be arriving in the CNMI either on Nov. 28 or the first week of December to assess the overall climate of economic development, especially on Saipan. GAO, also called the “congressional watchdog” is an agency that provides auditing, evaluation, and investigative services for Congress.
Saipan Chamber of Commerce president Velma Palacios, in their yesterday general membership meeting at the Hyatt Regency Saipan’s SandCastle, said they met with GAO officials last September when Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and SCC secretary Alex Sablan testified in an oversight hearing of the House Committee on Natural Resources.
“We’ve met with GAO, an agency of the U.S. Congress, when they began to review the CNMI’s U.S. labor market policies. GAO will begin this work in response to a statutory requirement and a request made by [Delegate Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan] and a ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,” said Palacios.
“[GAO is] mandated by Congress to conduct reviews on the impact of the minimum wage increase. And [Delegate Gregorio Sablan] also requested GAO to come here and a ranking House member to see firsthand the impact of the [CNMI-Only Transition Worker Nonimmigrant Visa] CW1 program because that is what we are focusing on right now.”
Read more: http://www.saipantribune.com/index.php/feds-review-nmi-economic-activity/