(NMHC) — THE $300,000 in annual amusement license fee collections that House Local Bill 23-36 would reappropriate for the medical referral program and Kagman infrastructure projects should stay with the Northern Marianas Housing Corp. loan program, NMHC Corporate Director Jesse S. Palacios told the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation.
The $300,000 is Saipan’s share of amusement license fee collections that Public Law 20-59 allotted for a “Capital Building Trust Fund,” specifically for the future construction of new residences for the governor and lt. governor.
On June 15, 2020, then-Gov. Ralph DLG Torres signed Saipan Local Law 21-13, appropriating the fund for NMHC’s home loan program. But he also asked the Legislature to ensure that 25% of the amount “is sequestered until more clarity is provided concerning the constitutional question of whether part of these fees should be paid to the Public School System.”
H.L.B. 23-36, authored by Rep. Angelo Camacho, proposes to reappropriate the amount as follows:
• $60,000 for the payment of outstanding medical referral obligations to Saipan Employment Agency & Services Inc.; and
• $240,000 for the anti-skid surfacing of Chacha Road in Kagman I, and a ponding basin in Kagman III.
In his letter to the delegation chairman, Rep. John Paul P. Sablan, Palacios said NMHC acknowledges the pressing need to address outstanding obligations and enhance infrastructure.
But he said the $300,000 amusement fund is seed money for NMHC’s rental and home loan program, which is “a unique local opportunity to contribute to our community by providing decent, safe, and sanitary housing.”
He said the $300,000 could “potentially make a substantial difference for families aspiring to become first-time homeowners or for existing homeowners in need of critical home repairs to make their homes typhoon-proof.”
Palacios said NMHC also envisions utilizing the money to collaborate with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in a loan program that would allow NMHC to assist “a broader spectrum of applicants, enabling them to build, acquire, or rehabilitate their homes.”
Original article: https://www.mvariety.com/news/local/nmhc-says-300k-is-for-loan-program/article_90a9a75a-ad21-11ee-8e6e-c35e7cf69acc.html