NMI: bill seeks to put casino commissioners on part-time pay
Senator Paul A Manglona has introduced a bill that aims to reduce the salaries of Commonwealth Casino Commission members.
Northern Mariana Islands.- Senator Paul A Manglona has introduced a bill that seeks to put members of the Commonwealth Casino Commission on part-time pay. The regulator has suspended its activities due to a lack of funds, but members are still receiving full-time salaries.
Presenting the bill in a legislative session, Manglona noted that the CCC pays each commissioner $65,000 – a total of $325,000 each fiscal year. The bill aims to replace annual compensation with compensation based on meetings to alleviate the financial strain.
Manglona stressed that once the casino industry returns, compensation can be re-evaluated. The CCC faced a serious budget crisis after the islands’ only casino, run by Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) in Saipain, was temporarily closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020.
The CCC’s sole source of revenue for its operations was IPI’s annual casino regulatory fee of $3.15m, which has not been remitted since 2020. The government has given the CCC a $1 budget.
