[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 658-670]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



          NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS COVENANT IMPLEMENTATION ACT

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will now 
proceed to the consideration of S. 1052, which the clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1052) to implement further the Act (Public Law 
     94-241) approving the Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the 
     United States of America, and for other purposes.

  The Senate proceeded to consider the bill, which had been reported 
from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, with an amendment 
to strike all after the enacting clause and inserting in lieu thereof 
the following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND PURPOSE.

       (a) This Act may be cited as the ``Northern Mariana Islands 
     Covenant Implementation Act''.
       (b) Statement of Purpose.--In recognition of the need to 
     ensure uniform adherence to long-standing fundamental 
     immigration policies of the United States, it is the 
     intention of Congress in enacting this legislation--
       (1) to ensure effective immigration control by extending 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 
     1101 et seq.), in full to the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, with special provisions to allow for the 
     orderly phasing-out of the nonresident contract worker 
     program of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     and the orderly phasing-in of Federal responsibilities over 
     immigration in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands;
       (2) to minimize, to the greatest extent possible, potential 
     adverse effects this orderly phase-out might have on the 
     economy of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     by:
       (A) encouraging diversification and growth of the economy 
     of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     consistent with fundamental values underlying Federal 
     immigration policy;
       (B) recognizing local self-government, as provided for in 
     the Covenant to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States of 
     America through consultation with the Governor and other 
     elected officials of the Government of the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands by Federal agencies and by 
     considering the views and recommendations of such officials 
     in the implementation and enforcement of Federal law by 
     Federal agencies;
       (C) assisting the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands to achieve a progressively higher standard of living 
     for its citizens through the provision of technical and other 
     assistance;
       (D) providing opportunities for persons authorized to work 
     in the United States, including lawfully admissible freely 
     associated state citizen labor; and
       (E) ensuring the ability of the locally elected officials 
     by the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to make 
     fundamental policy decisions regarding the direction and pace 
     of the economic development and growth of the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands, consistent with the fundamental 
     national values underlying Federal immigration policy.

     SEC. 2. IMMIGRATION REFORM FOR THE COMMONWEALTH OF THE 
                   NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS.

       (a) Amendments to Act Approving the Covenant To Establish a 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political 
     Union With the United States of America.--Public Law 94-241 
     (90 Stat. 263), as amended, is further amended by adding at 
     the end thereof the following:

     ``SEC. 6. IMMIGRATION AND TRANSITION.

       ``(a) Application of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     and Establishment of a Transition Program.--Effective on the 
     first day of the first full month commencing one year after 
     the date of enactment of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     Covenant Implementation Act (hereafter the ``transition 
     program effective date''), the provisions of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) shall 
     apply to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands: 
     Provided, That there shall be a transition period ending 
     December 31, 2009 (except for subsection (d)(2)(I)), 
     following the transition program effective date, during which 
     the Attorney General of the United States (hereafter 
     ``Attorney General''), in consultation with the United States 
     Secretaries of State, Labor, and the Interior, shall 
     establish, administer, and enforce a transition program for 
     immigration to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands provided in subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), 
     and (j) of this section (hereafter the ``transition 
     program''). The transition program shall be implemented 
     pursuant to regulations to be promulgated as appropriate by 
     each agency having responsibilities under the transition 
     program.

[[Page 659]]

       ``(b) Exemption From Numerical Limitations for H-2B 
     Temporary Workers.--An alien, if otherwise qualified, may 
     seek admission to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands as a temporary worker under section 
     101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(B)) without regard to the 
     numerical limitations set forth in section 214(g) of such Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)).
       ``(c) Temporary Alien Workers.--The transition program 
     shall conform to the following requirements with respect to 
     temporary alien workers who would otherwise not be eligible 
     for nonimmigrant classification under the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act:
       ``(1) Aliens admitted under this subsection shall be 
     treated as nonimmigrants under section 101(a)(15) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)), 
     including the ability to apply, if otherwise eligible, for a 
     change of nonimmigrant classification under section 248 of 
     such Act (8 U.S.C. 1258), or adjustment of status, if 
     eligible therefor, under this section and section 245 of such 
     Act (8 U.S.C. 1255).
       ``(2)(A) The United States Secretary of Labor shall 
     establish, administer, and enforce a system for allocating 
     and determining the number, terms, and conditions of permits 
     to be issued to prospective employers for each temporary 
     alien worker who would not otherwise be eligible for 
     admission under the Immigration and Nationality Act. This 
     system shall provide for a reduction in the allocation of 
     permits for such workers on an annual basis, to zero, over a 
     period not to extend beyond December 31, 2009, and shall take 
     into account the number of petitions granted under subsection 
     (j). In no event shall a permit be valid beyond the 
     expiration of the transition period. This system may be based 
     on any reasonable method and criteria determined by the 
     United States Secretary of Labor to promote the maximum use 
     of, and to prevent adverse effects on wages and working 
     conditions of, persons authorized to work in the United 
     States, including lawfully admissible freely associated state 
     citizen labor, taking into consideration the objective of 
     providing as smooth a transition as possible to the full 
     application of federal law.
       ``(B) The United States Secretary of Labor is authorized to 
     establish and collect appropriate user fees for the purposes 
     of this section. Amounts collected pursuant to this section 
     shall be deposited in a special fund of the Treasury. Such 
     amounts shall be available, to the extent and in the amounts 
     as provided in advance in appropriations acts, for the 
     purposes of administering this section. Such amounts are 
     authorized to be appropriated to remain available until 
     expended.
       ``(3) The Attorney General shall set the conditions for 
     admission of nonimmigrant temporary alien workers under the 
     transition program, and the United States Secretary of State 
     shall authorize the issuance of nonimmigrant visas for aliens 
     to engage in employment only as authorized in this 
     subsection: Provided, That such visas shall not be valid for 
     admission to the United States, as defined in section 
     101(a)(38) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1101(a)(38)), except the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands. An alien admitted to the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands on the basis of such a nonimmigrant 
     visa shall be permitted to engage in employment only as 
     authorized pursuant to the transition program. No alien shall 
     be granted nonimmigrant classification or a visa under this 
     subsection unless the permit requirements established under 
     paragraph (2) have been met.
       ``(4) An alien admitted as a nonimmigrant pursuant to this 
     subsection shall be permitted to transfer between employers 
     in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands during 
     the period of such alien's authorized stay therein, without 
     advance permission of the employee's current or prior 
     employer, to the extent that such transfer is authorized by 
     the Attorney General in accordance with criteria established 
     by the Attorney General and the United States Secretary of 
     Labor.
       ``(d) Immigrants.--With the exception of immediate 
     relatives (as defined in section 201(b)(2) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151(b)(2)) and persons granted 
     an immigrant visa as provided in paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
     this subsection, no alien shall be granted initial admission 
     as a lawful permanent resident of the United States at a 
     port-of-entry in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands, or a port-of-entry in Guam for the purpose of 
     immigrating to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands.
       ``(1) Family-sponsored immigrant visas.--For any fiscal 
     year during which the transition program will be in effect, 
     the Attorney General, after consultation with the Governor 
     and the leadership of the Legislature of the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands, and in consultation with 
     appropriate federal agencies, may establish a specific number 
     of additional initial admissions as a family-sponsored 
     immigrant at a port-of-entry in the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, or at a port-of-entry in Guam for 
     the purpose of immigrating to the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, pursuant to sections 202 and 203(a) 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152 and 
     1153(a)).
       ``(2) Employment-based immigrant visas.--
       ``(A) If the Attorney General, after consultation with the 
     United States Secretary of Labor and the Governor and the 
     leadership of the Legislature of the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, finds that exceptional 
     circumstances exist with respect to the inability of 
     employers in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     to obtain sufficient work-authorized labor, the Attorney 
     General may establish a specific number of employment-based 
     immigrant visas to be made available during the following 
     fiscal year under section 203(b) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)). The labor certification 
     requirements of section 212(a)(5) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(5)) shall not 
     apply to an alien seeking immigration benefits under this 
     subsection.
       ``(B) Upon notification by the Attorney General that a 
     number has been established pursuant to subparagraph (A), the 
     United States Secretary of State may allocate up to that 
     number of visas without regard to the numerical limitations 
     set forth in sections 202 and 203(b)(3)(B) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152 and 1153(b)(3)(B)). Visa 
     numbers allocated under this paragraph shall be allocated 
     first from the number of visas available under section 
     203(b)(3) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(3)), or, if such visa 
     numbers are not available, from the number of visas available 
     under section 203(b)(5) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(5)).
       ``(C) Persons granted employment-based immigrant visas 
     under the transition program may be admitted initially at a 
     port-of-entry in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands, or at a port-of-entry in Guam for the purpose of 
     immigrating to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands, as lawful permanent residents of the United States. 
     Persons who would otherwise be eligible for lawful permanent 
     residence under the transition program, and who would 
     otherwise be eligible for an adjustment of status, may have 
     their status adjusted within the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands to that of an alien lawfully admitted for 
     permanent residence.
       ``(D) Any immigrant visa issued pursuant to this paragraph 
     shall be valid only for application for initial admission to 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The 
     admission of any alien pursuant to such an immigrant visa 
     shall be an admission for lawful permanent residence and 
     employment only in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands during the first five years after such admission. 
     Such admission shall not authorize residence or employment in 
     any other part of the United States during such five-year 
     period. An alien admitted for permanent residence pursuant to 
     this paragraph shall be issued appropriate documentation 
     identifying the person as having been admitted pursuant to 
     the terms and conditions of this transition program, and 
     shall be required to comply with a system for the 
     registration and reporting of aliens admitted for permanent 
     residence under the transition program, to be established by 
     the Attorney General, by regulation, consistent with the 
     Attorney General's authority under chapter 7 of title II of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1301-1306).
       ``(E) Nothing in this paragraph shall preclude an alien who 
     has obtained lawful permanent resident status pursuant to 
     this paragraph from applying, if otherwise eligible, under 
     this section and under the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     for an immigrant visa or admission as a lawful permanent 
     resident under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
       ``(F) Any alien admitted under this subsection, who 
     violates the provisions of this paragraph, or who is found 
     removable or inadmissible under section 237(a) (8 U.S.C. 
     1227(a)), or paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4)(A), (4)(B), (6), 
     (7), (8), (9), or (10) of section 212(a) (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)), 
     shall be removed from the United States pursuant to sections 
     235, 238, 239, 240, or 241 of the Immigration and Nationality 
     Act, as appropriate (8 U.S.C. 1225, 1228, 1229, 1230, and 
     1231).
       ``(G) The Attorney General may establish by regulation a 
     procedure by which an alien who has obtained lawful permanent 
     resident status pursuant to this paragraph may apply for a 
     waiver of the limiting terms and conditions of such status. 
     The Attorney General may grant the application for waiver, in 
     the discretion of the Attorney General, if--
       ``(i) the alien is not in removal proceedings;
       ``(ii) the alien has been a person of good moral character 
     for the preceding five years;
       ``(iii) the alien has not violated the terms and conditions 
     of the alien's permanent resident status; and
       ``(iv) the alien would suffer exceptional and extremely 
     unusual hardship were such limiting terms and conditions not 
     waived.
       ``(H) The limiting terms and conditions of an alien's 
     permanent residence set forth in this paragraph shall expire 
     at the end of five years after the alien's admission to the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as a permanent 
     resident. Following the expiration of such limiting terms and 
     conditions, the permanent resident alien may engage in any 
     lawful activity, including employment, anywhere in the United 
     States. Such an alien, if otherwise eligible for 
     naturalization, may count the five-year period in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands towards time in 
     the United States for purposes of meeting the residence 
     requirements of title III of the Immigration and Nationality 
     Act.
       ``(I) Special provision to ensure adequate employment in 
     the tourism industry after the transition period ends.--
       ``(i) During 2008, and in 2014 if a five year extension was 
     granted, the Attorney General and the United States Secretary 
     of Labor shall consult with the Governor of the Commonwealth 
     of the Northern Mariana Islands and tourism businesses in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern

[[Page 660]]

     Mariana Islands to ascertain the current and future labor 
     needs of the tourism industry in the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, and to determine whether a five-
     year extension of the provisions of this paragraph (d)(2) 
     would be necessary to ensure an adequate number of workers 
     for legitimate businesses in the tourism industry. For the 
     purpose of this section, a business shall not be considered 
     legitimate if it engages directly or indirectly in 
     prostitution or any activity that is illegal under Federal or 
     local law. The determination of whether a business is 
     legitimate and whether it is sufficiently related to the 
     tourism industry shall be made by the Attorney General in his 
     sole discretion and shall not be reviewable. If the Attorney 
     General after consultation with the United States Secretary 
     of Labor determines, in the Attorney General's sole and 
     unreviewable discretion, that such an extension is necessary 
     to ensure an adequate number of workers for legitimate 
     businesses in the tourism industry, the Attorney General 
     shall provide notice by publication in the Federal Register 
     that the provisions of this paragraph will be extended for a 
     five-year period with respect to the tourism industry only. 
     The Attorney General may authorize one further extension of 
     this paragraph with respect to the tourism industry in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands if, after the 
     Attorney General consults with the United States Secretary of 
     Labor and the Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, and local tourism businesses, the Attorney 
     General determines, in the Attorney General's sole 
     discretion, that a further extension is required to ensure an 
     adequate number of workers for legitimate businesses in the 
     tourism industry in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands. The determination as to whether a further extension 
     is required shall not be reviewable.
       ``(ii) The Attorney General, after consultation with the 
     Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     and the United States Secretary of Labor and the United 
     States Secretary of Commerce, may extend the provisions of 
     this paragraph (d)(2) to legitimate businesses in industries 
     outside the tourism industry for a single five year period if 
     the Attorney General, in the Attorney General's sole 
     discretion, concludes that such extension is necessary to 
     ensure an adequate number of workers in that industry and 
     that the industry is important to growth or diversification 
     of the local economy. The decision by the Attorney General 
     shall not be reviewable.
       ``(iii) In making his determination for the tourism 
     industry or for industries outside the tourism industry, the 
     Attorney General shall take into consideration the extent to 
     which a training and recruitment program has been implemented 
     to hire persons authorized to work in the United States, 
     including lawfully admissible freely associated state citizen 
     labor to work in such industry. The determination by the 
     Attorney General shall not be reviewable. No additional 
     extension beyond the initial five year period may be granted 
     for any industry outside the tourism industry or for the 
     tourism industry beyond a second extension. If an extension 
     is granted, the Attorney General shall submit a report to the 
     Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and 
     the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives 
     setting forth the reasons for the extension and whether he 
     believes authority for additional extensions should be 
     enacted.
       ``(e) Nonimmigrant Investor Visas.--
       ``(1) Notwithstanding the treaty requirements in section 
     101(a)(15)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(E)), the Attorney General may, upon the 
     application of the alien, classify an alien as a nonimmigrant 
     under section 101(a)(15)(E)(ii) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(E)(ii)) if the alien--
       ``(A) has been admitted to the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands in long-term investor status under the 
     immigration laws of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands before the transition program effective date;
       ``(B) has continuously maintained residence in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands under long-term 
     investor status;
       ``(C) is otherwise admissible; and
       ``(D) maintains the investment or investments that formed 
     the basis for such long-term investor status.
       ``(2) Within 180 days after the transition program 
     effective date, the Attorney General and the United States 
     Secretary of State shall jointly publish regulations in the 
     Federal Register to implement this subsection.
       ``(3) The Attorney General shall treat an alien who meets 
     the requirements of paragraph (1) as a nonimmigrant under 
     section 101(a)(15)(E)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality 
     Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(E)(ii) until the regulations 
     implementing this subsection are published.
       ``(f) Persons Lawfully Admitted Under the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands Immigration Law.--
       ``(1) No alien who is lawfully present in the Commonwealth 
     of the Northern Mariana Islands pursuant to the immigration 
     laws of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands on 
     the transition program effective date shall be removed from 
     the United States on the ground that such alien's presence in 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is in 
     violation of subparagraph 212(a)(6)(A) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act, as amended, until completion of the period 
     of the alien's admission under the immigration laws of the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the second 
     anniversary of the transition program effective date, 
     whichever comes first. Nothing in this subsection shall be 
     construed to prevent or limit the removal under subparagraph 
     212(a)(6)(A) of such an alien at any time, if the alien 
     entered the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     after the date of enactment of the Northern Mariana Islands 
     Covenant Implementation Act, and the Attorney General has 
     determined that the Government of the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands violated subsection (f) of such Act.
       ``(2) Any alien who is lawfully present and authorized to 
     be employed in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands pursuant to the immigration laws of the Commonwealth 
     of the Northern Mariana Islands on the transition program 
     effective date shall be considered authorized by the Attorney 
     General to be employed in the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands until the expiration of the alien's 
     employment authorization under the immigration laws of the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the second 
     anniversary of the transition program effective date, 
     whichever comes first.
       ``(g) Travel Restrictions for Certain Applicants for 
     Asylum.--Any alien admitted to the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands pursuant to the immigration laws of 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands or pursuant 
     to subsections (c) or (d) of this section who files an 
     application seeking asylum or withholding of removal in the 
     United States shall be required to remain in the Commonwealth 
     of the Northern Mariana Islands during the period of time the 
     application is being adjudicated or during any appeals filed 
     subsequent to such adjudication. An applicant for asylum or 
     withholding of removal who, during the time his application 
     is being adjudicated or during any appeals filed subsequent 
     to such adjudication, leaves the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands of his own will without prior authorization 
     by the Attorney General thereby abandons the application, 
     unless the Attorney General, in the exercise of the Attorney 
     General's sole discretion determines that the unauthorized 
     departure was for emergency reasons and prior authorization 
     was not practicable.
       ``(h) Effect on Other Laws.--The provisions of this section 
     and the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended by the 
     Northern Mariana Islands Covenant Implementation Act, shall, 
     on the transition program effective date, supersede and 
     replace all laws, provisions, or programs of the Commonwealth 
     of the Northern Mariana Islands relating to the admission of 
     aliens and the removal of aliens from the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands.
       ``(i) Accrual of Time for Purposes of Section 212(a)(9)(B) 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as Amended.--No time 
     that an alien is present in violation of the immigration laws 
     of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands shall by 
     reason of such violation be counted for purposes of the 
     ground of inadmissibility in section 212(a)(9)(B) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)(B)).
       ``(j) One-Time Grandfather Provision for Certain Long-Term 
     Employees.--
       ``(1) An alien may be granted an immigrant visa, or have 
     his or her status adjusted in the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands to that of an alien lawfully 
     admitted for permanent residence, without regard to the 
     numerical limitations set forth in sections 202 and 203(b) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 
     1152, 1153(b)), and subject to the limiting terms and 
     conditions of an alien's permanent residence set forth in 
     paragraphs (C) through (H) of subsection (d)(2), if:
       ``(A) the alien is employed directly by an employer in a 
     business that the Attorney General has determined is 
     legitimate;
       ``(B) the employer has filed a petition for classification 
     of the alien as an employment-based immigrant with the 
     Attorney General pursuant to section 204 of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act, as amended, not later than 180 days 
     following the transition program effective date;
       ``(C) the alien has been lawfully present in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and authorized 
     to be employed in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands for the five-year period immediately preceding the 
     filing of the petition;
       ``(D) the alien has been employed continuously in that 
     business by the petitioning employer for the 5-year period 
     immediately preceding the filing of the petition;
       ``(E) the alien continues to be employed in that business 
     by the petitioning employer at the time the immigrant visa is 
     granted or the alien's status is adjusted to permanent 
     resident;
       ``(F) the petitioner's business has a reasonable 
     expectation of generating sufficient revenue to continue to 
     employ the alien in that business for the succeeding five 
     years; and
       ``(G) the alien is otherwise eligible for admission to the 
     United States under the provisions of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1101, et seq.).
       ``(2) Visa numbers allocated under this subsection shall be 
     allocated first from the number of visas available under 
     paragraph 203(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 
     as amended (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(3)), or, if such visa numbers 
     are not available, from the number of visas available under 
     paragraph 203(b)(5) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(5)).
       ``(3) The labor certification requirements of section 
     212(a)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended 
     (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(5)) shall

[[Page 661]]

     not apply to an alien seeking immigration benefits under this 
     subsection.
       ``(4) The fact that an alien is the beneficiary of an 
     application for a preference status that was filed with the 
     Attorney General under section 204 of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1154) for the purpose 
     of obtaining benefits under this subsection, or has otherwise 
     sought permanent residence pursuant to this subsection, shall 
     not render the alien ineligible to obtain or maintain the 
     status of a nonimmigrant under this Act or the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act, as amended, if the alien is otherwise 
     eligible for such nonimmigrant status.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) Section 101(a) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is 
     amended:
       (A) in paragraph (36), by deleting ``and the Virgin Islands 
     of the United States.'' and substituting ``the Virgin Islands 
     of the United States, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands.'', and;
       (B) in paragraph (38), by deleting ``and the Virgin Islands 
     of the United States'' and substituting ``the Virgin Islands 
     of the United States, and the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands.''.
       (2) Section 212(l) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1182(l)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking ``stay on Guam'', and inserting ``stay on 
     Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands'',
       (ii) by inserting ``a total of '' after ``exceed'', and
       (iii) by striking the words ``after consultation with the 
     Governor of Guam,'' and inserting ``after respective 
     consultation with the Governor of Guam or the Governor of the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,'';
       (B) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``on Guam'', and 
     inserting ``on Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, respectively,'';
       (C) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``into Guam'', and 
     inserting ``into Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, respectively,''; and
       (D) in paragraph (3), by striking ``Government of Guam'' 
     and inserting ``Government of Guam or the Government of the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands''.
       (3) The amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     made by this subsection shall take effect on the first day of 
     the first full month commencing one year after the date of 
     enactment of the Northern Mariana Islands Covenant 
     Implementation Act.
       (c) Technical Assistance Program.--The United States 
     Secretaries of Interior and Labor, in consultation with the 
     Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     shall develop a program of technical assistance, including 
     recruitment and training, to aid employers in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in securing 
     employees from among United States authorized labor, 
     including lawfully admissible freely associated state citizen 
     labor. In addition, for the first five fiscal years following 
     the fiscal year when this section is enacted, $500,000 shall 
     be made available from funds appropriated to the Secretary of 
     the Interior pursuant to Public Law 104-134 for the Federal-
     CNMI Immigration, Labor and Law Enforcement Initiative for 
     the following activities:
       (1) $200,000 shall be available to reimburse the United 
     States Secretary of Commerce for providing additional 
     technical assistance and other support to the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands to identify opportunities for 
     and encourage diversification and growth of the Commonwealth 
     economy. The United States Secretary of Commerce shall 
     consult with the Government of the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, local businesses, the United States 
     Secretary of the Interior, regional banks, and other experts 
     in the local economy and shall assist in the development and 
     implementation of a process to identify opportunities for and 
     encourage diversification and growth of the Commonwealth 
     economy. All expenditures, other than for the costs of 
     Federal personnel, shall require a non-Federal matching 
     contribution of 50 percent and the United States Secretary of 
     Commerce shall provide a report on activities to the 
     Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee 
     on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Resources and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
     Representatives by March 1 of each year. The United States 
     Secretary of Commerce may supplement the funds provided under 
     this section with other funds and resources available to him 
     and shall undertake such other activities, pursuant to 
     existing authorities of the Department, as he decides will 
     encourage diversification and growth of the Commonwealth 
     economy. If the United States Secretary of Commerce concludes 
     that additional workers may be needed to achieve 
     diversification and growth of the Commonwealth economy, the 
     Secretary shall promptly notify the Attorney General and the 
     United States Secretary of Labor and shall also notify the 
     Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and 
     the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives of 
     his conclusion with an explanation of how many workers may be 
     needed, over what period of time such workers will be needed, 
     and what efforts are being undertaken to train and actively 
     recruit and hire persons authorized to work in the United 
     States, including lawfully admissible freely associated state 
     citizen labor to work in such businesses.
       (2) $300,000 shall be available to reimburse the United 
     States Secretary of Labor for providing additional technical 
     and other support to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands to train and actively recruit and hire persons 
     authorized to work in the United States, including lawfully 
     admissible freely associated state citizen labor, to fill 
     employment vacancies in the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands. The United States Secretary of Labor shall 
     consult with the Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, local businesses, the College of the 
     Northern Marianas, the United States Secretary of the 
     Interior and the United States Secretary of Commerce and 
     shall assist in the development and implementation of such a 
     training program. All expenditures, other than for the costs 
     of Federal personnel, shall require a non-Federal matching 
     contribution of 50 percent and the United States Secretary of 
     Labor shall provide a report on activities to the Committee 
     on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Resources 
     and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
     Representatives by March 1 of each year. The United States 
     Secretary of Labor may supplement the funds provided under 
     this section with other funds and resources available to him 
     and shall undertake such other activities, pursuant to 
     existing authorities of the Department, as he decides will 
     assist in such a training program in the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands.
       (d) Department of Justice and Department of Labor 
     Operations.--The Attorney General and the United States 
     Secretary of Labor are authorized to establish and maintain 
     Immigration and Naturalization Service, Executive Office for 
     Immigration Review, and United States Department of Labor 
     operations in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands for the purpose of performing their responsibilities 
     under the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, and 
     under the transition program. To the extent practicable and 
     consistent with the satisfactory performance of their 
     assigned responsibilities under applicable law, the United 
     States Departments of Justice and Labor shall recruit and 
     hire from among qualified applicants resident in the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for staffing 
     such operations.
       (e) Report to the Congress.--The President shall report to 
     the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and the 
     House Committee on Resources, within six months after the 
     fifth anniversary of the enactment of this Act, evaluating 
     the overall effect of the transition program and the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act on the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, and at other times as the President 
     deems appropriate. The report shall describe what efforts 
     have been undertaken to diversify and strengthen the local 
     economy, including, but not limited to, efforts to promote 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as a tourist 
     destination.
       (f) Limitation on Number of Alien Workers Prior to 
     Application of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as 
     Amended, and Establishment of the Transition Program.--During 
     the period between enactment of this Act and the effective 
     date of the transition program established under section 6 of 
     Public Law 94-241, as amended by this Act, the Government of 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands shall not 
     permit an increase in the total number of alien workers who 
     are present in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
     Islands on the date of enactment of this Act.
       (g) Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the 
     purposes of this section and of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act with respect to the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands.

  Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate 
proceed to S. 1052 for opening statements only.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, the legislation before the Senate will 
extend the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act to the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for 1 year after the date 
of enactment of the legislation.
  To minimize adverse effects on the local economy, a number of 
transition provisions have been incorporated in the legislation, 
including funding for technical assistance to diversify and strengthen 
the local economy of those islands. The transition period will end 
December 31, 2009, but the special provisions for employment--
employment-based visas--may be extended for legitimate businesses in 
the tourism industry for not to exceed two 5-year periods and for a 
single 5-year period for other legitimate business.
  I think it is reasonable to question how this situation arose. The 
Marianas was one district of the old United States Nation's Trust 
Territory of the Pacific islands, and the United States was the 
administrating authority. The residents of the Marianas wanted them to 
become a U.S. territory and obtain local government and U.S. 
citizenship

[[Page 662]]

similar to the neighboring island of Guam. Guam is the southern most of 
the Mariana Islands and was acquired from Spain back in 1898. The 
United States and local officials in the Marianas negotiated a covenant 
to establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in 
political union with the United States. That included all the islands, 
with the exception of Guam; specifically, Saipan, Tinian, and Rota.
  That covenant was approved overwhelmingly in a local United Nations-
observed plebiscite and then by this Congress in 1976. The early 
negotiations assumed the trusteeship would terminate for the Marianas. 
The agreement was approved and assumed the full extension of Federal 
immigration laws at the same time the United States sovereignty was 
extended to the area. When negotiations on other portions of the trust 
territory stalled and the United States decided not to seek piecemeal 
termination of the trusteeship, the Marianas justifiably wanted as much 
of the covenant implemented under the trusteeship as possible. The 
agreement was to implement these provisions of the covenant that were 
consistent with the continued status of the area under the trusteeship 
and defer those provisions that were tied to U.S. sovereignty. One of 
these provisions was Federal immigration law. That is what we are 
dealing with today.
  It was abundantly clear the United States could extend those laws as 
soon as the trusteeship was terminated. The report accompanying the 
joint resolution of approval noted only that we hoped we could include 
an ``adequate protective provision'' to deal with the concern in the 
Marianas that their islands could be overrun with immigration.
  Had we acted in 1986 to extend Federal immigration laws, we wouldn't 
be here today. The Marianas economy would not be so captive to the use 
of temporary contract workers and many of the abuses of workers would 
not have occurred. On the other hand, the level of prosperity on the 
islands might not be the same.
  What has happened in the Marianas? When the covenant was negotiated, 
all parties assumed economic development would occur around tourism and 
anticipated Department of Defense basing in Tinian and Saipan. That 
followed the pattern in Guam. Tourism did develop; the military 
activities did not.
  Others, however, noticed the unique combination of authorities and 
moved in to try and take advantage. Because the Marianas had control of 
immigration, it could set its own minimum wage and had the ability to 
import goods into the U.S. Customs territory without duty and labeled 
that it had been made in the United States, foreign garment 
operations--especially those from China--sought to locate in the 
Marianas.
  The difficulty of a small island population trying to effectively 
administer a comprehensive immigration system also led to other abuses 
in those taking advantage of the situation. Exploiters induced people 
in Bangladesh to pay enormous amounts of money to go to the Marianas 
where there were jobs. Other aliens arrived; some of them were not 
paid. Many alien workers were abused. The Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources heard testimony from a young lady who had been 
brought to Saipan as a minor, forced to perform in a club, and was used 
for prostitution. The Federal Government has brought a prosecution in 
that instance on several counts, including trafficking in human beings. 
This was occurring under the U.S. flag, and supposedly with the 
protections all U.S. citizens enjoy under our Constitution.
  I have a series of charts I will discuss in detail but in deference 
to my good friend, Senator Bingaman from New Mexico, the ranking member 
of the committee, I defer to him, and then perhaps he can defer back to 
me. I yield to my good friend and ranking member from New Mexico, 
Senator Bingaman.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I appreciate the chairman, Senator 
Murkowski, yielding.
  First, I compliment him and, of course, Senator Akaka, who is the 
moving force behind this legislation on the Democratic side. I think 
this legislation, S. 1052, is a very important and overdue piece of 
legislation.
  I know both Senator Akaka and Senator Murkowski have worked 
tirelessly and persistently to bring these issues to our attention. I 
compliment them on that. I will give a short statement, and then 
Senator Akaka will be managing the bill on the Democratic side. I am 
sure he has much more information to provide on the legislation.
  Both Senator Murkowski and Senator Akaka traveled to the Commonwealth 
of the Northern Mariana Islands and witnessed the problems there 
firsthand. I am very glad to join them as a cosponsor on this important 
piece of legislation. Our committee held several hearings over the 
years and established a record concerning the very serious problems 
that exist in the CNMI. Moreover, three successive administrations from 
both parties, beginning with the Reagan administration, have expressed 
concerns about the situation in the CNMI. Many problems have been 
identified, and they have been discussed over many years.
  However, clearly the central problem relates to this immigration 
issue. S. 1052 only addresses immigration. This bill represents a 
modest step toward implementing the reforms that are long overdue. The 
current immigration system, administered by the local government, is 
inconsistent with longstanding U.S. immigration policy in several 
respects. Let me just detail some of that.
  U.S. policy, first of all, does not allow the importation of 
temporary workers for permanent jobs. Second, it allows people coming 
into the United States for permanent jobs to have the opportunity to 
become participating members of society, including the right to vote 
and to be eligible for citizenship. Local CNMI immigration law not only 
allows large-scale use of temporary alien workers for permanent jobs, 
it also prohibits temporary alien workers from settling permanently in 
the CNMI and becoming U.S. citizens.
  The most disturbing result of the CNMI's current immigration system 
is the documented, consistent and even increasing human rights abuses 
which these alien workers suffer. Moreover, despite promises of the 
American dream, alien laborers coming to CNMI often sign contracts 
waiving rights and freedoms guaranteed to U.S. workers. These include 
the right to change employers, the right to participate in religious 
and political activities, and in some cases even the right to marriage.
  This bill before us is not a controversial bill. It should not be a 
controversial bill. It was reported from the Energy and Natural 
Resources Committee by a voice vote with no dissenting opinions 
expressed. Last Congress, the committee reported a similar bill. In 
order to address concerns by the local CNMI government that the bill 
will adversely affect their economy, the bill also contains many 
special provisions. Among these special provisions is one that requires 
the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of Labor to provide 
financial and technical assistance to help them diversify their economy 
and train local workers.
  I hope the Senate will act quickly and pass this bill. I again 
compliment Senator Akaka and Senator Murkowski for their leadership on 
this important matter.
  I yield the floor. I know at some point Senator Akaka wishes to speak 
to the matter as well.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
  Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I thank my good friend and colleague, 
the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources 
Committee, the Senator from New Mexico, for his comments and for his 
support.
  This legislation was reported unanimously by the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources. S. 1052, as reported by the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources, will extend the provisions of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
one year after the date of enactment of the legislation. To minimize 
adverse effects on the local economy, a number of transition provisions 
have been incorporated in the legislation. The transition period will 
end on December 31,

[[Page 663]]

2009, but the special provisions for employment based visas may be 
extended for legitimate businesses in the tourism industry for not to 
exceed two five-year periods and for a single five-year period for 
other legitimate businesses.
  This legislation is the result of several years work by the 
Committee, including a visit that I made to the Northern Marianas in 
February 1996. I was accompanied by Senator Akaka, who has cosponsored 
this legislation and was also a cosponsor of legislation that I 
introduced in the last Congress. This is bipartisan legislation that is 
long overdue. The administration would prefer a far more draconian 
approach with a minimum of transition and little economic or training 
assistance to the Northern Marianas. The Marianas, on the other hand, 
would prefer that we did nothing. I don't think that either approach is 
responsible.
  There are legitimate concerns by some in the Northern Marianas over 
what the effect of this legislation may be. We have tried to address 
those concerns, as I will describe later. For example, one of the ways 
that the Northern Marianas has tried to deal with the concern over 
alien workers remaining for indefinite periods without any political 
rights is to limit the time that any worker can remain in the Marianas. 
One effect of that approach, however, is to frustrate the ability of 
employers to recruit, train, and hire personnel. From experience, I can 
testify that the last thing any employer wants to do is commit 
resources to training individuals only to have them leave for other 
employment. It is far worse when the government says that your most 
valuable employees must not only leave your employ, but must also leave 
the country. Lynn Knight, the new president of the Saipan Chamber of 
Commerce, noted that she had one employee who had been with her firm 
for several years and would have to leave. Another skilled professional 
could remain since he was a U.S. citizen. Similar situations are likely 
in other businesses, and I would expect especially in the tourism 
industry. To deal with that problem, the committee has included a 
special provision (the new section 6(j) to the Covenant Act) that 
provides a one-time grandfather provision for long-term employees in 
legitimate businesses. The provision would allow employers to sponsor 
current employees who had been employed for five years. If the alien is 
otherwise eligible for admission to the United States, that employee 
may be granted an immigrant visa or have his status adjusted to a 
person lawfully admitted for permanent residence without regard to any 
numerical limitations in the Immigration Act.
  I mention this one provision to illustrate that the committee has 
tried its best to deal with any legitimate concerns with the 
legislation and, as in the case of Ms. Knight, problems with the 
current local laws. Unfortunately, obtaining specific comments and 
recommendations has not been the easiest task before the committee. 
While the Governor has been forthright, the tactics taken by others has 
been more to obstruct the legislation than to provide useful comments 
and suggestions. The Governor has lowered the tone of the debate on 
this issue, although his example has not been followed by others.
  I would refer my colleagues to the report of the committee on this 
legislation for a detailed history on how we arrived at this situation 
where the United States does not control the terms of entry to its 
shores, what that exemption turned into, and how we have dealt with 
legitimate concerns about the long overdue extension of federal 
legislation.
  In brief, however, in 1976, Congress approved a Covenant to Establish 
a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with 
the United States (PL 94-241). The Covenant formed the basis for the 
termination of the United Nations Trusteeship with respect to the 
Northern Mariana Islands. Termination occurred in 1986 for the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and for the Republic of 
the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. Prior to 
termination, those provisions of the Covenant that were consistent with 
continued status of the area as part of the Trust Territory were made 
applicable by the U.S. as Administering Authority. Other provisions 
(such as the extension of U.S. sovereignty) were not made applicable. 
Among those laws was the Immigration Act. Had the United States sought 
piece-meal termination of the trusteeship, as some advocated at the 
time, or if agreement with the other districts had not proved so 
elusive, the immigration laws of the United States would have been 
extended to the Northern Marianas as they applied to Guam. We would not 
be here today.
  The Covenant permitted a unique system in the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands under which the local government controlled 
immigration and minimum wage levels and also had the benefit of duty 
and quota free entry of manufactured goods under the provisions of 
General Note 3(a) of the Harmonized Tariff Schedules. My colleagues 
should be aware that these provisions are not subject to mutual consent 
and can be modified or repealed by the Congress. The section-by-section 
analysis of the committee report on the Covenant provides in part:

       Section 503.--This section deals with certain laws of the 
     United States which are not now applicable to the Northern 
     Mariana Islands and provides that they will remain 
     inapplicable except in the manner and to the extent that they 
     are made applicable by specific legislation enacted after the 
     termination of the Trusteeship. These laws are:
       The Immigration and Naturalization Laws (subsection (a)). 
     The reason this provision is included is to cope with the 
     problems which unrestricted immigration may impose upon small 
     island communities. Congress is aware of those problems. . . 
     . It may well be that these problems will have been solved by 
     the time of the termination of the Trusteeship Agreement and 
     that the Immigration and Nationality Act containing adequate 
     protective provisions can then be introduced to the Northern 
     Mariana Islands. . . .

  Until termination of the trusteeship, the United States possessed and 
exercised plenary power, including control over entry into the area. 
The committee anticipated that by the termination of the Trusteeship, 
the federal government would have found some way of preventing a large 
influx of persons into the Marianas, recognizing the constitutional 
limitations on restrictions on travel, and that we would extend federal 
immigration laws when we extended United States sovereignty over the 
area. We neglected to do so.
  Upon termination of the trusteeship, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
Mariana Islands became a territory of the United States and its 
residents became United States citizens. What transpired thereafter, 
however, was precisely what we sought to prevent. Because we had not 
enacted legislation extending federal immigration laws, however, 
persons were free to enter the Northern Marianas under local law. 
Although the population of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands was only 15,000 people in 1976 when the Covenant was approved, 
the population (July, 1999) is now estimated at 79,429. The rapid 
increase in population coincides with the assumption of immigration 
control by the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. According 
to the most recent statistical survey by the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands, in 1980, 78 percent of the Commonwealth of 
the Northern Mariana Islands population were U.S. citizens. That figure 
had declined to less than 47 percent by 1990 and by 1991, the 
percentage on Saipan, where most of the population resides, the figure 
was 42 percent.
  The majority of the population resides on Saipan, which is the 
economic and government center of the Commonwealth of the Northern 
Mariana Islands. The most recent statistics (March 1999) from the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands estimate the population of 
Saipan at 71,790. U.S. citizens are estimated at 30,154 of whom 24,710 
are Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands born. There are 41,636 
aliens of whom about 4,000 are from the freely associated states. By 
contrast, in 1980, non-U.S. citizen residents for the entire Northern 
Marianas totaled only 3,753 of whom 1,593 were citizens of the freely 
associated states and only 2,160 came from outside Micronesia. There is 
also a significant population of illegal

[[Page 664]]

aliens with estimates ranging from 3,000 to as high as 7,000 illegal 
aliens.
  Whatever the number, with the exception of those from Micronesia, 
none of these almost 40,000 persons entered under United States law and 
none has any of the rights of persons who legally enter the United 
States to work or reside.
  Repeated allegations of violations of applicable federal laws 
relating to worker health and safety, concerns with respect to 
immigration problems, including the admission of undesirable aliens, 
and reports of worker abuse, especially in the domestic and garment 
worker sectors, led to the inclusion of a $7 million set aside in 
appropriations in 1994 to support federal agency presence in the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and increased enforcement 
of federal laws.
  During the 104th Congress, the Senate passed S. 638, legislation 
reported by the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and supported 
by the administration. Concern over the effectiveness of the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands immigration laws and 
reports of the entry of organized criminal elements from Japan and 
China led the committee to include a provision to require the 
Commonwealth ``to cooperate in the identification and, if necessary, 
exclusion or deportation from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands of persons who represent security or law enforcement risks to 
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands or the United 
States.'' (Sec. 4 of S. 638) No action was taken by the House.
  In February, 1996, I visited the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands with Senator Akaka and met with local and federal officials. In 
addition, we inspected a garment factory and met with Bangladeshi 
security guards who had not been paid and who were living in 
substandard conditions. As a result of the meetings and continued 
expressions of concern over conditions, the committee held an oversight 
hearing on June 26, 1996. We were assured that conditions would 
improve.
  The U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform conducted a site visit to 
the Northern Marianas in July 1997 and issued a report which in general 
supported extension of immigration laws. The report found problems in 
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands ``ranging from 
bureaucratic inefficiencies to labor abuses to an unsustainable 
economic, social and political system that is antithetical to most 
American values'' but ``a willingness on the part of some Commonwealth 
of the Northern Mariana Islands officials and business leaders to 
address the various problems''.
  The report found that:
  The Department of Labor and Immigration ``does not have the capacity, 
nor is it likely to develop one, to prescreen applicants for entry 
prior to their arrival on Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
territory.'' This leads to the situation of the Bangladeshi workers who 
arrive and find there is no work as well as to the entry of those with 
criminal or other disqualifying records. Federal law enforcement 
officials are mentioned as not providing information to the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands due to concerns over 
security and corruption.
  The levels of immigration led to dependence on government employment 
or benefits for U.S. residents (since cheap foreign labor was available 
even for specialized trades such as accountants, doctors, and managers) 
and younger residents having to leave to find work. The report also 
noted that those on welfare could still hire domestics.
  The economy is unsustainable because there will be no advantage for 
the garment industry when the multi-fibre agreement comes into force in 
2005. My colleagues should note that the perception that the garment 
industry presence in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 
is temporary is also shared by others. In September 1997, the Bank of 
Hawaii concluded that the presence of the garment industry was a result 
of ``a unique and temporary comparative economic advantage'' and that 
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands should begin to plan 
for a ``transition to an exclusively tourism-driven economy''. The Bank 
of Hawaii repeated that conclusion in its October, 1999 report.
  Foreign workers are exploited with retaliation against protestors, 
failure of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands government 
to prosecute, unreliable bonding companies, exorbitant recruitment 
fees, suppression of basic freedoms, and flagrant abuses of household 
workers, agricultural workers, and bar girls.
  The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has entered into 
agreements with the Philippines and China over State objections dealing 
with trade and immigration.
  The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has no asylum policy 
or procedure placing the U.S. in violation of international 
obligations.
  The temporary guest worker for permanent jobs creates major policy 
problems as well as creating a two class system where the majority of 
workers are denied political and social rights. In the U.S. proper, 
such workers would be admitted for residence and could become citizens. 
Worse, the children of these workers are U.S. citizens. The children of 
foreign mothers now account for 16 percent of U.S. citizens.
  The presence of a large alien population in the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands is not simply a matter of local concern. 
Although temporary workers admitted into the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands may not enter the United States and their 
presence in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands does not 
constitute residence for the purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship, 
that is not true for their children. Persons born in the Commonwealth 
of the Northern Mariana Islands obtain U.S. citizenship by birth and 
eventually will be able to bring their immediate families into the 
United States. There is an increasing number of births to non-citizen 
mothers. In 1985, of 675 births, 260 were to non-citizen mothers. While 
the number of U.S. citizen mothers remained relatively constant, the 
number of non-citizen mothers increased to 581 by 1990, 701 in 1991, 
859 in 1992, and continued around 900-1000 with the exception of 1,409 
in 1996. For that year, total births were 1,890 with the percentage of 
U.S. citizen mothers at 25 percent. While some of the presumed non-
citizen mothers are likely to be married to Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands residents, others are not, and all entered 
outside of federal immigration laws. The result is that there is an 
increasing number of persons obtaining U.S. citizenship outside the 
boundaries of U.S. immigration and naturalization laws. There are also 
incidental effects on various federal programs, such as education, that 
the children and their immediate relatives will be eligible for.
  To the extent that the current Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands immigration system results in structural unemployment among 
resident U.S. citizens, there are also effects on federal programs 
providing assistance to the poor. In addition, in recent years, the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has doubled its public 
sector employment to absorb local workers. Public sector wages now 
represent the largest component of the local budget. Unless the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands takes action to develop or 
open private sector employment for U.S. residents, it will have a 
difficult time reducing its workforce. The recent downturn in the Asian 
economy has hit the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands hard 
and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is facing a 
significant deficit without the ability to trim its workforce. If 
layoffs are inevitable, it is likely that local and federal assistance 
costs will escalate.
  Concerns have also arisen over the use of the Northern Marianas for 
importation and transhipment of drugs. The June 17 Marianas Variety 
reported the Finance Department's Division of Customs to have 
confiscated over $2.5 million of crystal methamphetamine in 1998 with 
an increasing number of drug arrests. A related concern raised by the 
administration has been the ability of

[[Page 665]]

the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to exclude 
individuals, especially members of organized crime from Japan and 
China. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands does not have a 
data base to screen immigrants, and accomplishes most of its screening 
on arrival. The federal government, however, for those countries that 
require visas, does its screening in the foreign country. Federal law 
enforcement agencies have cited security concerns as a major impediment 
to sharing information with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands government.
  Mr. President, this is a situation that should never have been 
allowed to occur. This is not a matter of local self-government. The 
control of borders and the conditions for entry, work, residence, and 
citizenship in the United States are federal matters. No one should 
ever have expected the Northern Marianas to replicate the resources and 
capability of the federal government, and in fact we did not. As our 
committee noted in its report on the Covenant, by the time the 
Trusteeship ended, we anticipated that federal immigration laws would 
be extended. We didn't do that and permitted this situation to occur. 
With the exception of American Samoa, the federal government conducts 
those activities throughout the United States. We have allowed the 
creation of a country within a country where the majority of the 
workforce are denied political and civil rights.
  Neither do I accept the argument that economic development is 
inconsistent with the application of federal immigration laws. With the 
exception of American Samoa, all other areas of the United States are 
under federal immigration law. I can assure my colleagues that the 
constraints on economic development in Alaska are not found in federal 
immigration law. Neither has federal immigration law been an impediment 
to the development of economies in the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, or 
Guam. If those areas are not fully to the levels of Stateside 
economies, they are nonetheless all self-supporting without the need 
for annual appropriations for government support. The Northern Marianas 
has a tourism industry and the opportunity for it to expand. There are 
other opportunities that should be explored, and this legislation 
contains provisions to assist the Commonwealth government in exploring 
those options.
  Comments have been made that this legislation will destroy the 
garment industry. That is simply not true unless the industry is 
adverse to having workers who either are or could become United States 
citizens. In addition, even the Governor in his testimony said that the 
garment industry in Saipan was temporary and that they needed to begin 
to transit to a new economy. The Bank of Hawaii has twice cautioned 
that the peculiar circumstances that provide an economic advantage in 
the Marianas will disappear shortly. As the Governor stated, we need to 
begin the transition now. This legislation will have only a minor 
effect on the garment industry. The legislation does not go into effect 
for a year. All contract workers on island can remain for two years or 
the length of their contract, whichever is less. There is a program to 
provide permits for temporary alien workers that will gradually be 
reduced and eliminated by December 31, 2009. All of this extends well 
past the time that every legitimate analysis of the Marianas economy 
indicates that the garment industry will have relocated or severely 
contracted.
  Mr. President, I will list some of the changes that we made in this 
legislation to address concerns over the effect of the imposition of 
federal immigration laws. I have already mentioned the special 
grandfather provision included as a result of Lynn Knight's concern 
over the status of current employees. These concerns were raised by the 
Chamber of Commerce or the representatives of the Commonwealth 
government--the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of 
the House, and the Resident Representative.
  The legislation limited post-transition relief to only the hotel 
industry. That has been expanded to include not only legitimate 
businesses throughout the tourism industry, but all other legitimate 
businesses in the Commonwealth;
  A new statement of policy to guide implementation has been inserted 
that makes clear that the transition from a non-resident contract 
worker program is to be orderly and that potential adverse effects are 
to be minimized;
  An explicit recognition of local self-government has been added 
together with more detailed requirements for consultation with local 
officials and consideration of their views as well as a straightforward 
statement that fundamental policy decisions regarding the direction and 
pace of economic development and growth will be made by local officials 
and not dictated by the federal government;
  Although the legislation limits the ability of the Attorney General 
to provide additional extension of the temporary worker program to two 
five-year periods for legitimate businesses in the tourism industry and 
for a single five-year period for other legitimate businesses, it also 
requires the Attorney General to notify the Congress of the reasons for 
the extension and whether we should consider providing additional 
authority for further extensions;
  A detailed technical assistance program is included to assist in the 
transition and to broaden and strengthen the local economy. In addition 
to existing authorities and programs, the Secretary of Commerce is 
provided $200,000 in matching grants to assist in the development and 
implementation of a process to diversify and strengthen the local 
economy. The Secretary is to consult not only with local officials, but 
also with local businesses and regional banks and other experts. The 
Secretary of Labor is provided an additional $300,000 in matching 
grants to provide technical and other support for the training, 
recruitment, and hiring of persons authorized to work in the United 
States to fill jobs in the Commonwealth. In addition to local officials 
and businesses, the Secretary is to work with the College of the 
Northern Marianas and the Secretary of Commerce.
  A specific requirement has been included for the federal government 
to promote the Northern Marianas as a tourist destination.
  Numerous technical and other changes have been made in response to 
the comments that we received, mainly to ensure full and complete 
consultation with local officials as this legislation is implemented.
  I want the record to reflect that I believe that this Governor has 
attempted to deal with the allegations of worker abuse that have 
occurred in the Northern Marianas. I think the garment industry has 
also acted to improve conditions and practices, at least to minimum 
federal requirement. After all, that is an industry that shipped over 
$1 billion worth of garments into the United States customs territory 
last year. By virtue of the exemption from tariffs, they avoided over 
$200 million in tariffs. Cleaning up conditions is a minor price to pay 
for that subsidy. Not all problems, however, are capable of resolution. 
The system where workers are on temporary contract and subject to 
deportation creates a climate where abuse can occur. Since the workers 
have no right to remain in the Marianas, their ability to complain is 
limited. If they have significant recruitment or other fees to repay, 
they are effectively indentured.
  The ability of the Northern Marianas government to respond is also 
limited. In response to the exploitation of workers from Bangladesh who 
paid large recruitment fees for non-existent jobs, the Marianas could 
only ban the importation of workers from that area for those jobs. The 
exploiters simply moved to Nepal. When the Governor tried to limit 
workers from China to deal with repatriation problems, however, those 
industries relying on easy access to those workers quickly brought 
enough pressure to reverse the decision. Efforts to limit the number of 
alien workers become more and more difficult as the Marianas government 
becomes increasingly dependent on

[[Page 666]]

those businesses importing those workers for the revenues to provide 
jobs in the public sector.
  Asking the Northern Marianas government to assume and adequately 
implement and enforce an immigration program within the framework of 
federal policy is simply setting them up. A central element of federal 
policy is that permanent jobs are to be filled by permanent workers--
persons who may live and reside in the United States, and in the case 
of aliens, who have the ability to eventually become citizens and full 
members of the political, social, and economic community. The Marianas 
does not have that ability. If they allow foreign workers to remain 
indefinitely, local businesses--such as Lynn Knight's--will prosper. 
However the workers will not obtain civil and political rights. They 
may not become United States citizens and they can not enter any other 
part of the United States. They are trapped. If the Marianas responds, 
as it did, to limit the length of stay for those workers, then 
businesses suffer because they can not retain trained workers and the 
workers themselves suffer.
  This is a situation that should never have been allowed to occur. We 
allowed it to happen, partially through a misplaced idea that we were 
enhancing local self-government. We now need to act to formally bring 
the Northern Marianas under the federal system as a part of the United 
States. We need to let them devote their resources to local concerns 
rather than having them attempt to replicate federal responsibilities. 
We need to make the transition as smooth as possible and we need to act 
to strengthen and diversify the local economy. This legislation as 
reported unanimously from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 
will do that. It should be enacted promptly.
  Mr. President, the effort we are about to proceed with today is a 
result of a recognition that, indeed, there simply has to be a change 
in the immigration situation with regard to Saipan and the other 
islands of the Mariana Islands as a consequence of an effort that began 
many years ago to encourage development. But clearly the situation ran 
away with itself over a period of time when the immigration system just 
got beyond the management capability of the islands.
  I have had an opportunity to work with Senator Akaka on this 
legislation. I know how sensitive he is because a good deal of his 
constituency extends a little further out than the Hawaiian Islands 
into the CNMI. My constituency in Alaska does not quite extend that 
far. Nevertheless, as chairman of the committee, I have the 
responsibility to try to bring about corrective action. Through the 
efforts of Senator Akaka and his staff and with the help of Senator 
Bingaman and the professional staff of the committee, I think we have 
been able to achieve that in this legislation.
  With the concurrence of Senator Akaka, I will proceed with the 
charts. Senator Akaka is very prominent in some of the charts we are 
going to be presenting. In some cases I assume he has not seen these 
pictures yet. I am not suggesting either one of us is particularly 
photogenic, but we have living proof we were there on the ground and 
saw the situation as it really does exist.
  The first chart I am going to show is a little bit of what has 
happened over a period of time in the CNMI. It is a chart of population 
by citizenship.
  On the chart, the lower area is the growth in the number of U.S. 
citizens. That is in blue. You will see back in 1980 it was somewhere 
in the area of 14,000 or thereabouts. In the upper area is the growth 
in the number of aliens. Those aliens are primarily Chinese women 
coming in and working in the garment business. They come in under a 
contract for 2 or 3 years. Their living conditions leave a little bit 
to be desired, but I will go into that a little later.
  I do want my colleagues to understand, though, that as we look at the 
difference in the number of U.S. citizens over a period of time from 
1980 to 1999, the growth of that group is relatively modest. But if we 
look, from 1980 to 1999, at the growth in the number of non-U.S. 
citizens, we see phenomenal growth. That is a result of these workers 
coming in and working in sweatshops in a way we would certainly not 
allow anywhere in the United States.
  The population of the Mariana Islands, as I indicated, was about 
15,000 in 1976 when the covenant was approved. As of July 1999, that 
figure has now risen to close to 80,000, as the chart shows.
  In 1978, 78 percent of the population were U.S. citizens. By 1990, 
that figure went down to 47 percent. By 1999, in Saipan where most of 
the population resides, that figure was down to 42 percent.
  With the exception of about 4,000 residents from the freely 
associated states in Micronesia, there were over 41,000 aliens who 
entered this portion of the United States outside of our conventional 
Federal immigration laws because the immigration laws were controlled 
by the island.
  In February of 1996, Senator Akaka and I, accompanied by a very 
outstanding group of our professional staff who are with me today, went 
to visit the islands. Let me give you a little report on what we found. 
We were not looking for a situation that suggested the immigration was 
out of control. But in our visit there, and in followup on reports, we 
did find worker abuse and other problems associated with immigration 
and labor.
  We had an extensive and productive series of meetings during our 
brief visit. We had an opportunity to meet with the Governor. We were 
briefed by his various departments on how they were attempting to deal 
with this situation. We met with law enforcement officials and 
representatives from the Department of Labor and other agencies. We met 
with Federal District Court Judge Munson, a very capable Federal judge, 
and the U.S. attorneys for the area. We met with the leadership of the 
legislature. We met with various groups, including the Chamber of 
Commerce and others.
  We also visited around the island. We visited garment factories. We 
met with the workers who heard we were on the island and wanted to 
convey their concern. Without notice, we met with some of the 
Bangladeshi security guards. Let me show you what we saw.
  Here we are, actually visiting one of the garment factories.
  A picture cannot capture the atmosphere, but my colleagues can get 
some idea of the work. This is a pile of red, what we call gaucho 
sports shirts. There is quite a pile of them. On the next table, there 
is another pile. It goes right on down the line.
  These women, virtually without exception, are young women who have 
come over from China on a contract working at these sewing machines and 
putting these garments together. These are the general types of working 
conditions and the building.
  Behind this working area is their living quarters. The living 
quarters are pretty rough. We went into some of them. There are four to 
six women in one room. The beds look like little more than an enlarged 
children's crib. On the other hand, one has to wonder what kind of 
conditions they would ordinarily be living in in China. One has to bear 
that in mind.
  This gentleman in red--a different color T-shirt than the pile of 
shirts--is Senator Akaka. I am wearing a blue T-shirt. We were going 
through this factory.
  Notice that many of the women do not look up from their machines or 
even look at strangers, which surprised us. I assume they were told to 
work, keep their heads down, and mind their own business. Nevertheless, 
this gives some idea of what is inside one of the garment factories.
  There is a barbed wire fence around the barracks where the women 
live. It is certainly fair to say we would not want to live in those 
conditions. It was hot. There was air circulating.
  I have another picture. Obviously, I had a big dinner that day, so I 
will not reflect at any great length on that. These are the shirts that 
are going into various markets in the United States. The extraordinary 
thing I found is that right at the factory where the garments are put 
together, not only are

[[Page 667]]

the price tags put on but the encoded tag one finds on the garment at 
sale is put on. When we looked at these labels, we saw the May Company, 
we saw Hecht's, and a number of noted commercial department stores in 
the United States.
  We found they had a red dot on the other sale items on the garments 
made in Saipan. Not only are they tagged with the price and the store 
to which they are going, but this label says ``Made in America,'' and 
these are made in America because, clearly, Saipan is a territory of 
the United States. They go in duty free.
  Also, these are young women, and this has certain consequences for 
both the Mariana Islands and the U.S. Federal Government which I am 
going to mention shortly.
  What has attracted this industry, of course, is the availability of 
workers who come from China on a 3-year contract, and they work very 
hard. It is a piecemeal-type work. As a consequence, when their turn is 
to leave, why, there are others who are waiting to come in under 
contract as well.
  We tried to find out terms and conditions under which they were 
hired, but that is pretty difficult to do. There are those in China who 
recruit, if you will, and what they get paid to buy a Chinese woman who 
wants to come over and work is anybody's guess. There seems to be an 
unlimited supply as these women go back and, in many cases, of course, 
they have saved a good deal of the money they have made; others perhaps 
are not so lucky. In any event, we saw other exceptions that were not 
quite as pleasant.
  This is a picture of Senator Akaka and me in front of what really was 
a hovel. This is behind one of the major hotels, the Hyatt hotel. There 
were a series of shacks. This is a gentleman from Bangladesh. He was 
hired to be a security guard. We found an area where there was no 
water, no sewer, no electricity. They were heating inside on a kerosene 
stove. The concern he had is he had not been paid. He had been given 
checks by his employer, and those checks had been returned for 
nonsufficient funds. He had three checks.
  He said: What am I to do? I work, I am paid, but the checks are no 
good. I go to the Federal Government representatives on the island, and 
they are so burdened down with requests such as this that they can't do 
anything for me; I don't have enough money to go back to my country. 
What am I to do?
  These are people who, obviously, thought they were given an 
opportunity for a better lifestyle. Clearly, once they arrived there, 
they found themselves helpless.
  This is the exception, not the rule. But there are enough of the 
exceptions to suggest there is little means for these people to seek 
relief, to go to their employer, and get paid: Run the check through 
again next week and maybe there will be money to cover. That is a 
pretty tough set of circumstances under the American flag.
  I refer to another chart on the makeup of the CNMI population by 
citizenship. If one looks closely at the chart and the growth of 
populations in the Mariana Islands, one will note the growth rate for 
U.S. citizens began to rise in roughly 1990. The blue bar is U.S. 
citizens, and the red bar is the growth of non-U.S. citizens.
  There is a ready explanation. If my colleagues will recall, many of 
the alien contract workers are young women. I have another chart, and 
this is a chart on infant births. Again, if one looks at the blue from 
1985 to 1998, one sees the births by mothers' nationality. The blue 
represents U.S. citizens and the red is non-U.S. citizens. In 1985, of 
675 live births, 260 were to noncitizen mothers. While the number of 
citizen mothers remains fairly consistent, the number of noncitizen 
mothers rose to 581 in 1990, 701 in 1991, 859 in 1992, and then 
continues around 900 to 1,000 thereafter. The exception was 1996 when 
there were 1,409 recorded live births to noncitizen mothers. Fully 75 
percent of all births were to noncitizen mothers.
  One might ask: Why are you spending so much time on this statistic? 
For those who thought these alien contract workers were only temporary 
and only presented a challenge for the Northern Mariana Islands, 
reconsider for a moment because every one of these children is a U.S. 
citizen because that child was born in the United States. As a 
consequence, at some point in time, undoubtedly, they will come to the 
United States--either stay in the Mariana Islands or go back to China 
with the mother and then reenter the United States at a later time 
because that child is a U.S. citizen.
  That is a significant obligation that the United States picks up when 
it allows this type of immigration--young women coming into these 
sweatshops, working for a couple of years, and many of them becoming 
pregnant and those children becoming U.S. citizens. Some of the women 
are likely married to U.S. citizens.
  We do not know the circumstances of all, except for one fact, and 
that fact is that each of them entered on to U.S. soil outside of our 
immigration system. They did not come through our immigration system, 
but they became U.S. citizens anyway.
  I have another chart, and this is a chart of employment by private 
and public sectors. I think it is important that we recognize what we 
are looking at.
  What has this economic boom that has occurred on the islands and 
access to alien workers at low wages really meant? One thing it has 
meant is a steady growth in employment.
  I think this chart is illuminating. As you can see, in the public 
sector, virtually all the jobs have gone to U.S. citizens. This is the 
public sector in blue. What is the public sector? The public sector is 
government. That is where the U.S. citizens have found their jobs.
  Many of the aliens are in the medical and health field. But most of 
the private-sector jobs go to the aliens. The aliens, of course, are 
shown on the chart in red as non-U.S. citizens. That is where the 
growth has been in the private sector.
  You probably would not be surprised to know there is a significant 
difference in wages.
  The July 1999 data I have from the Marianas Department of Commerce 
provides mean-wage data for various sectors of the local economy.
  For nondurable goods manufacturing, mean wages were about $2.51 per 
hour in 1980, $2.94 in 1990, and $2.33 in 1995.
  For the same period, in restaurants, mean wages were $2.17 in 1980, 
$3.84 in 1990, and $3.80 in 1995.
  For the public sector, however, mean wages were $4.03 in 1980, $9.20 
in 1990, and $11.81 in 1995.
  You can see the variance, where the higher wages are in the public 
sector. What has happened is that the public sector has been forced to 
expand to provide jobs for local residents and increase the level of 
wages.
  The Governor, when we were over there, noted, and in his testimony 
later expressed, he was trying to trim the level of government but that 
it was difficult.
  Salaries and related expenses consume over half the budget of the 
Marianas. They have a carryover deficit of about $70 million, I might 
add. Even with the growth of the private sector to absorb local 
residents seeking employment, it is simply not enough.
  Let's look at Saipan's unemployment rate by citizenship. This chart 
shows the unemployment rate by citizenship from 1980. Again, the blue 
represents U.S. citizens. The red represents non-U.S. citizens. As you 
can see, in 1980, after approval of the covenant but before the 
trusteeship ended and the Marianas fully took over immigration, the 
unemployment rate for U.S. citizens was 3 percent.
  By 1990, as immigration began to accelerate and businesses found you 
could hire foreign labor on short-term contracts, the rate climbed to 
5.5 percent. By 1995, even with the significant expansion of the public 
sector, the rate soared to 13.3 percent.
  As you may recall, the use of alien workers was also rising. Now we 
have 12.6 percent unemployment.
  I do not know how the Governor plans to trim the public-sector 
workforce with that level of unemployment for U.S. citizens, but we 
wish him well. I know he is very serious about trying

[[Page 668]]

to deal with unemployment and the size of the government. This is one 
of the results, however, of the current immigration system.
  What Senator Akaka and I are proposing is legislation that is 
bipartisan. It has the support of the administration. As Senator 
Bingaman noted, it was reported out of the committee unanimously. We 
attempted to address every legitimate concern that the Governor, the 
Resident Representative, the Speaker of the House, and the President of 
the Senate from the Marianas raised.
  We also met with the business community and other leaders. 
Throughout, the general approach was to simply oppose the legislation. 
As a consequence, what we have done is try to make changes to deal with 
concerns that were raised by those I have mentioned.
  Let me briefly go through some of the changes that are in the 
committee amendment.
  First is the grandfathering for existing long-term workers.
  One criticism of the current situation in the Marianas is that 
workers can remain for extended periods--in effect, workers in 
permanent jobs--and therefore they have no political or civil rights.
  Unlike the United States, the Marianas cannot provide for workers to 
eventually become citizens and enter the community. To respond to that 
complaint, the Marianas have enacted laws to require all aliens to 
leave the Commonwealth after a certain timeframe.
  One effect of that approach, however, is to frustrate the ability of 
the employers to recruit, train, and hire personnel. From my 
experience, I can personally testify that the last thing any employer 
wants to do is commit resources to training individuals only to have 
them leave for other employment. It is far worse when the Government 
says your most valuable employees not only must leave your employ but 
must also leave the country as well.
  The president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, Lynn Knight, noted 
that she had one employee who had been with her firm for several years 
and would have to leave while another skilled professional could remain 
since he was a U.S. citizen. Similar situations are likely in other 
businesses, and I would expect especially in the tourism industry.
  To deal with that problem, the committee has included a special 
provision--this is the new section 6(j) to the Covenant Act--that 
provides a one-time grandfather provision for long-term employees in 
legitimate businesses. The provision would allow employers to sponsor 
current employees who have been employed for 5 years or more.
  If the alien is otherwise eligible for admission to the United 
States, that employee may be granted an immigrant visa or have his 
status adjusted to a person lawfully admitted for permanent residence 
without regard to any numerical limitations in the Immigration Act.
  This provision would ensure that for those businesses that have long-
term employees and want to retain them, this legislation would mean 
nothing more than their employees would obtain green cards and be 
authorized to work in the United States. I thank the chamber and Ms. 
Knight for highlighting this situation because I think this provision 
will go a long way to ease the transition for legitimate businesses.
  Briefly, I will list some of the other changes Senator Akaka and I 
made through the hearing process to try to address and accommodate the 
local concerns of the people there. One is that the legislation limited 
posttransition relief to only the hotel industry. That has been 
expanded to include not only legitimate businesses throughout the 
tourism industry but all other legitimate businesses in the 
Commonwealth as well.
  Further, a new statement of policy to guide implementation has been 
inserted that makes clear that the transition from a nonresident 
contract worker program is to be orderly and that potential adverse 
effects are to be minimized.
  An explicit recognition of local self-government has been added 
together with more detailed requirements for consultation with local 
officials and consideration of their views.
  We have included a straightforward statement, at the request of the 
Governor, that fundamental policy decisions regarding the direction and 
pace of economic development and growth will be made by local officials 
and not dictated by the Federal Government.
  Although the legislation limits the ability of the Attorney General 
to provide additional extension of the temporary worker program to two 
5-year periods for legitimate businesses in the tourism industry and 
for a single 5-year period for other legitimate businesses, it also 
requires the Attorney General to notify the Congress of the reasons for 
the extension and whether we should consider providing additional 
authority for further extensions.
  A detailed technical assistance program is included to assist in the 
transaction and to broaden and strengthen the local economy.
  In addition to existing authorities and programs, the Secretary of 
Commerce is provided $200,000 in matching grants to assist in the 
development and implementation of a process to diversify and strengthen 
the local economy. The Secretary is to consult not only with local 
officials but also with local businesses, regional banks, and other 
experts. Now the Secretary of Labor is involved. He is to provide an 
additional $300,000 in matching grants to provide technical and other 
support for the training, recruitment, and hiring of persons authorized 
to work in the United States to fill jobs in the Commonwealth. In 
addition to local officials and businesses, the Secretary is to work 
with the College of the Northern Marianas and the Secretary of 
Commerce.
  A specific requirement has been included for the Federal Government 
to promote the Northern Marianas as a tourist destination. The resident 
representative, Juan Babauta, was very forceful in advocating the need 
for assistance to diversify and strengthen the local economy and 
provide training for the workers even absent the legislation. Although 
he and other officials oppose the legislation, I thank him and the 
others for their concerns. I think they are well founded, and we have 
sought to try and deal with them.
  I am not going to go into all the reasons why this legislation is 
needed. I think they were fully laid out in the committee hearings and 
in our committee report. I do not ever want to see a situation where I 
have to convene a closed hearing and hear from a young lady who is 
forced to endure what this particular young lady, coming over from 
China, was forced to endure. The price of local control over Federal 
functions should not be measured in lost childhood and innocence.
  I am not fully happy with how determined Federal law enforcement 
personnel are, but I am encouraged by the inclusion of funding in their 
budgets for the first time because they have been working under 
extraordinary circumstances of inadequate funds.
  The General Counsel for the INS testified in strong support of this 
legislation. I appreciate the technical assistance of their personnel 
and the provisions and material they have provided us.
  It is probably appropriate to conclude with a few comments on the 
position of some in the opposition, including control over borders and 
the conditions to enter the United States, work and reside, and become 
a citizen. Some suggest these are matters of Federal, not local, law. 
Well, this is not a matter of local self-government. In fact, by 
requiring the Marianas to develop and implement an immigration system, 
we diverted important resources they could have dedicated to important 
matters of local concern, and seriously harmed local self-government.
  Neither do I nor others believe the Marianas cannot have a healthy 
and diversified economy under Federal immigration laws. They certainly 
can. The islands of the Marianas have the physical and human resources 
for tourism, as well as the geographic location for other activities 
and businesses. We have provided in this bill the training

[[Page 669]]

and other assistance we think the Marianas will need.
  Yes, there will be some changes, but in the long run, they will be 
for the better for all the residents of the Marianas, and we will not 
have under the U.S. flag the sweatshop conditions that exist there 
today. The only losers will be those who made their fortunes by 
exploiting the situation and exploiting the workers from China who live 
in conditions that are absolutely unsuitable and unacceptable under the 
American flag. It is not a healthy economy when employment is 13 
percent for local residents, and the only job opportunities seem to be 
in the area of local government. The current system is denying 
opportunities to the youth of the Marianas and will force them to leave 
home for Guam or other areas to obtain work.
  In conclusion, I particularly and personally thank Senator Akaka, who 
has been such a strong advocate of reform and has patiently worked with 
us to make this a better bill. I urge my colleagues to adopt the 
committee amendment and the legislation. Again, I recognize my good 
friend Senator Akaka, who is prepared to make an opening statement at 
this time.
  I yield the floor to Senator Akaka.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Hawaii.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I extend my appreciation to our chairman, 
Senator Murkowski, for all he has done. He has given an extraordinary 
and accurate and descriptive report of our visit to CNMI. I will follow 
with some remarks.
  At this time, I yield to my friend from Wisconsin, Senator Feingold, 
for his remarks, to be recognized after he has concluded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I rise today because I share the concern 
of many of my colleagues about the situation in the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands. I especially thank my colleagues from Alaska 
and Hawaii for their leadership, and I am very glad this legislation is 
before us. Allegations of human trafficking, grossly sub-standard 
working conditions, deceitful recruitment practices, even indentured 
servitude, must be taken seriously--particularly when these practices 
are alleged to occur on American soil.
  I also rise to highlight some very relevant issues about which I am 
deeply concerned. As we consider the case of the CNMI, we must 
recognize that there are other examples of this kind of international 
exploitation, and that such practices often find their roots in 
organized crime syndicates that span boundaries, and patterns of 
corruption that cross borders.
  In fact, according to a report issued by the nongovernmental 
organization, the Global Survival Network, on the situation in the 
CNMI,

       . . . organized crime groups from the People's Republic of 
     China, South Asia, and Japan reap large profits from human 
     trafficking. Chinese provincial government agencies 
     reportedly collude with Chinese traffickers by pocketing a 
     percentage of passport fees paid by Chinese immigrants. 
     Chinese criminal groups have moved part of their operations 
     to the CNMI, where they operate significant gambling and 
     money-lending operations. Japanese organized crime groups 
     also operate in Saipan, where they control a large part of 
     the sex tourism sector.

  Let this be a wake-up call for all of us--international crime is an 
increasingly disturbing problem, and it is not something that happens 
only in other parts of the world. This is an issue that I intend to 
work on in the months ahead.
  According to NGO estimates, between 1 million and 2 million women are 
trafficked each year for the purposes of forced prostitution, many of 
them from Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. In 
1998, the FBI indicated that, of the Russian crime cases they had 
investigated abroad, 55 percent involved fraud, 22 percent money 
laundering, and the rest murder, extortion, and the smuggling of 
people, arms, and drugs. These kinds of activities are global 
phenomenon, and the United States is not immune to these forces.
  Members of this body are all too familiar with the role of Colombian 
and Nigerian criminal organizations in the drug trade that casts a 
shadow over virtually every American community today--including my own 
hometown.
  We have all been alarmed by last year's revelations about the 
laundering of Russian money through U.S. banks. Recent reports indicate 
that Poland is overwhelmed in its efforts to combat money laundering 
schemes--many of which have an international component.
  In fact, some 170 Polish gangs have ties with criminal groups abroad. 
Too often, money-laundering schemes entail the buying-off of corrupt 
officials, creating a cycle of complicity that undermines the rule of 
law, stability, and the very legitimacy of government itself.
  Few would dispute the fact that corruption played a role in the Asian 
financial crisis of 1997 and 1998, or that it hampers political, 
social, and economic development throughout a region that I care deeply 
about--sub-Saharan Africa, a region where international crime and 
corruption often go hand-in-hand. The GAO has reported that Americans 
lose up to $2 billion per year to African-based white collar crime 
syndicates. In Angola and Sierra Leone, corruption fuels the trade in 
illicit diamonds, which in turn finances brutally violent conflicts. 
There can be no doubt that international crime and corruption are 
critical security issues and economic issues--but there can also be no 
doubt that they are human rights issues, and social development issues 
as well.
  These patterns will increasingly have an impact on the lives of 
Americans in this new century, and the manner in which we respond will 
determine, in part, the degree to which all people of all nations can 
achieve a better life in the years ahead.
  Mr. President, I intend to look more closely at these trends in 
international crime and corruption in the months ahead.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Collins). The Senator from Hawaii is 
recognized.
  Mr. AKAKA. Madam President, I thank my friend from the State of 
Wisconsin for his statement. I also thank him for saying what he felt 
about the CNMI.
  I express my gratitude to the majority leader for scheduling this 
bill today and also the Democratic leader for supporting it. I look 
forward to working out this bill with my friend, the chairman, Senator 
Murkowski.
  As we begin today's debate, I want to express my sincere thanks to 
the leadership of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources for 
their commitment to CNMI immigration reform. The Senator from Alaska, 
Chairman Murkowski, and the Senator from New Mexico, Senator Bingaman, 
understand that a great injustice is taking place far from the Nation's 
Capitol. That is why they have brought this legislation to the Senate 
floor. Their efforts prove that they live by the words of one of our 
Senate titans, Daniel Webster, who proclaimed justice the ``great 
interest of man on earth.''
  Perhaps some Senators, and many viewers who are watching these 
proceedings in the gallery or on television, are wondering, ``Why is 
the United States Senate--that great deliberative body in the world's 
strongest democracy--taking time from its busy schedule to debate 
legislation that affects a distant island community with a population 
of only 70,000 people?'' You might ask, ``Why don't we work on other 
important legislation, such as nuclear waste policy, judicial 
nominations, or health care for our armed forces?''
  The answer to these questions is that conditions in the Commonwealth 
of the Northern Mariana are an affront to democratic values. The answer 
is that the CNMI immigration system has sparked international protests 
from our Pacific allies.
  Immigration in the Commonwealth violates fundamental standards of 
morality and human decency. That's why we must pass the reform measure 
pending in the Senate.
  Chairman Murkowski is a longstanding champion of CNMI immigration 
reform.

[[Page 670]]

  He is the only Senator in recent memory to visit the Commonwealth, 
where he witnessed the profound problems caused by their local 
immigration law.
  I doubt that many of my colleagues know very much about the CNMI, a 
U.S. Island territory located 1,500 miles south of Tokyo.
  Those Senators who are familiar with the territory have probably read 
the growing number of articles on the immigration and labor abuse in 
the Commonwealth. Yet only Chairman Murkowski has visited the islands 
to get a first-hand understanding of their problems. I joined him on 
his tour of the CNMI in February of 1996.
  The statement that was made by the chairman on what we saw there, as 
I said, is accurate and very descriptive. It was a shame to see that a 
part of the United States is living under those conditions.
  The legislation before us won't correct all of the Commonwealth's 
problems, but it will address the most significant concern, immigration 
abuse. Chairman Murkowski is a man of the Pacific who understands the 
need to have an immigration policy that reflects America values.
  The states we represent, Alaska and Hawaii, are closest to our 
Pacific neighbors, and we recognize the need to respond to problems 
that generate strong protests from other Pacific nations. I am honored 
to join him as a cosponsor of S. 1052, legislation to reform 
immigration abuses in the CNMI.
  When the CNMI became a U.S. commonwealth in 1976, Congress granted it 
local control over immigration at the request of island leaders. This 
means that the Immigration and Nationality Act does not apply in the 
CNMI. We now know this decision was a great mistake.
  Using its immigration authority, the Commonwealth has created a 
plantation economy that relies upon wholesale importation of low-paid, 
short-term indentured workers. Indentured servitude, a practice 
outlawed in the United States over 100 years ago, had resurfaced in the 
CNMI.
  Foreign workers pay up to $7,000 to employers or middlemen for the 
right to a job in the CNMI. When they finally reach the Commonwealth, 
they are assigned to tedious, low paying work for long hours with 
little or no time off. At night they are locked in prison-like 
barracks.
  If they complain, they are subject to immediate deportation at the 
whim of their employer.
  Some arrive in the islands only to find that they were victims of an 
employment scam. There are no jobs waiting for them, and no way to work 
off their bondage debt.
  Concern about the CNMI's longstanding immigration problems has 
historically been bipartisan. In fact, officials in the Reagan 
administration first sounded the alarm about the run-away immigration 
policies that the Commonwealth adopted.
  The administration of every President in the past 16 years--the 
Reagan, Bush, and Clinton administrations--has consistently criticized 
the Commonwealth's immigration policy.
  Bipartisan studies have also condemned CNMI Immigration.
  The Commission on Immigration Reform called the CNMI system of 
immigration and indentured labor ``antithetical to American values.'' 
According to the Commission, no democratic society has an immigration 
policy like the CNMI.
  The closest equivalent is Kuwait, where foreign workers constitute a 
majority of the workforce and suffer harsh and discriminatory treatment 
by the citizen population.
  For this reason, the CNMI has also become an international 
embarrassment for the United States.
  We have received complaints from the Philippines, Nepal, Sri Lanka, 
and Bangladesh about immigration abuse and the treatment of workers. 
The failure of the Commonwealth to reform its immigration system has 
seriously tarnished our image in the region.
  Concerns about the CNMI are not new. Perhaps we should be criticized 
for not acting sooner. Yet, despite a 14-year effort by the Reagan, 
Bush, and Clinton administrations to persuade the CNMI to correct 
immigration problems, the problems persist.
  After 14 years of waiting for the Commonwealth to implement reform, 
it is time for Congress to act. Statistics on Commonwealth immigration 
provide compelling evidence of the need for reform.
  Twenty years ago, the CNMI had a population of 15,000 citizens and 
2,000 alien workers.
  Today, the citizen population stands at 28,000, but the alien worker 
population has mushroomed to 42,000. That's a 2,000 percent increase.
  The Immigration and Naturalization Service reports that the CNMI has 
no reliable records of aliens entering the Commonwealth, how long they 
remain, and when, if ever, they depart. One CNMI official testified 
that they have ``no effective control'' over immigration in their 
islands.
  The CNMI shares the American flag, but it does not share our 
immigration system. When the Commonwealth became a territory of the 
United States, we allowed them to write their own immigration laws.
  After twenty years of experience, the CNMI immigration experiment has 
failed.
  Conditions in the CNMI prompt the question whether the U.S. should 
operate a unified immigration system, or whether a U.S. territory 
should be allowed to establish laws in conflict with national 
immigration policy.
  Common sense tells us that a unified system is the only answer. If 
Puerto Rico, or Hawaii, or Arizona, or Oklahoma could write their own 
immigration laws--and give work visas to foreigners--our national 
immigration system would be in chaos.
  America is one country. We need a uniform immigration system, not one 
system for the 50 states and another system for one of our territories.
  I don't represent the CNMI, but the Commonwealth is Hawaii's 
backyard. I speak as a friend and neighbor when I say that this policy 
cannot continue. The CNMI system of indentured immigrant labor is 
morally wrong, and violates basic democratic principles.
  We hope that our colleagues will hear our voices and will join us in 
passing S. 1052.
  I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning 
business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________