Saipan casino bill passes House of Representatives

Speaker Froilan C. Tenorio's House Bill 17-55, House Substitute 1 passed on a 10-6 vote with three abstentions. His substitute bill increases the share of casino gaming revenue for Rota and Tinian, from only 2.5 % each to 25 % each. Saipan will get 50 %.

House minority leader Diego T. Benavente said Tenorio is “selling” the casino bill to Rota and Tinian senators by giving their islands a bigger portion of earnings from casino operation. Representative Frank Dela Cruz said the speaker did his job in making sure it will get the senators' vote. Besides, Senate floor leader Pete P. Reyes, who was in the House chamber to watch the proceeding, told Saipan Tribune that the bill will “get killed in the Senate.”

Reyes introduced a resolution opposing casinos on Saipan. The Senate adopted the resolution. “Shame on them,” said former representative Tina Sablan, right after the bill passed around 5pm on Capital Hill. Sablan asked House members at the beginning of the session not to act on the bill until at least the Commerce and Tourism Committee issues a report on the measure. “If you must act today, please vote no,” she told them.

She said just like many in the community, she wants Saipan to stay a beautiful, peaceful tropical place and not another Macau or Las Vegas. Benavente, for his part, said investing more on the CNMI's remaining industry-tourism-will have the same effect as the revenue to be generated by allowing casinos on Saipan.

Unlike the budget bill the House passed last week, the casino bill didn't evoke shouting matches and frayed tempers and everyone who wanted to speak out against or in support of the measure was heard. 

Tenorio knew all along that either one of his two casino bills has the vote in the House.
“This will be the most important legislation you will have to vote on in your lifetime so make sure you are in the right side,” he said, eliciting laughter among most of the members and others present in the House chamber.

Benavente also knew even before the session began that Tenorio's bill would muster enough votes to pass. However, the minority bloc succeeded in inserting a provision prohibiting the governor, lawmakers, other government officials and their immediate family from having direct financial interest from casino operations.

Tenorio initially said there is already a law that prohibits government officials from having direct interests in private enterprises. But Representative Joseph Deleon Guerrero said he wants an “express language in the bill” that says so. “I'm not going to vote on this bill. I think the writing is on the wall where this bill is going to go. .But I want a provision in this bill that says no one in this decision-making body will have financial interest in the casino operations,” he said.

Tenorio, during the session, made a case for his bill several times. He said allowing casino operation on Saipan is the only option left to keep the economy from further recession. He called on minority members to choose to prevent joblessness and four-day workweek by voting on his bill. His bill seeks to set aside the business gross revenue tax collected from casinos to go into the Retirement Fund, while casino gambling revenue is set aside for Saipan, Tinian and Rota.

Republicans and Covenant members debated on the pros and cons of the bill until it was almost 5pm. The voting on the bill came at 4:55pm. The votes crossed party lines. It had ten positive votes, six negative votes and three abstentions.

Tenorio has another casino bill, HB 17-56, but the House did not act on it yesterday. Representative Edmund Villagomez's Commerce and Tourism Committee held public hearings on the Saipan casino bill but the panel has yet to issue a committee report.

In the November 3, 2007 elections, Saipan voters who voted “no” to the Saipan casino initiative outnumbered the “yes” votes, 4,721 to 3,492. The “no” to casino prevailed in all Saipan districts. At that time, Rota voters approved an initiative to establish a casino industry on the island. One investor has so far applied for and was granted a conditional license to operate a casino on Rota.

On Tinian, only Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino has been in operation since 1998. Tenorio said during the session that Tinian Dynasty is “ready to be shut down.”

Kyle Calabrese, executive director of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, who was at the House session, said the Chamber has not taken a position on the casino bill. He said some Chamber members earlier met with the Commerce and Tourism Committee to make some suggestions on how to improve the bill. The Chamber is the largest business group in the CNMI with some 150 members.