# Northern Mariana Islands HB 24-80: To Repeal and Re-Enact Public Law 24-14 to further Define and Identify General Revenues and approve revenues and resources of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as identified pursuant to Article III, Section 9 (a) of the CNMI Constitution, as amended, and 1 CMC Division 7, for Fiscal Year 2026 and make appropriations for the operations and activities of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, its agencies, instrumentalities, and independent programs, and to provide budget authority for government corporations for Fiscal Year 2026; and for other purposes. Northern Mariana Islands HB 24-80, To Repeal and Re-Enact Public Law 24-14 to further Define and Identify General Revenues and approve revenues and resources of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as identified pursuant to Article III, Section 9 (a) of the CNMI Constitution, as amended, and 1 CMC Division 7, for Fiscal Year 2026 and make appropriations for the operations and activities of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, its agencies, instrumentalities, and independent programs, and to provide budget authority for government corporations for Fiscal Year 2026; and for other purposes., is a 24th Northern Mariana Islands Legislature (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by John Paul Palacios Sablan (Independent); status enacted, last action 2025-12-23 (P.L. 24-20); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-80-24 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Northern Mariana Islands HB 24-80 - State: Northern Mariana Islands - Session: 24th Northern Mariana Islands Legislature (2025-2026) - Title: To Repeal and Re-Enact Public Law 24-14 to further Define and Identify General Revenues and approve revenues and resources of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as identified pursuant to Article III, Section 9 (a) of the CNMI Constitution, as amended, and 1 CMC Division 7, for Fiscal Year 2026 and make appropriations for the operations and activities of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, its agencies, instrumentalities, and independent programs, and to provide budget authority for government corporations for Fiscal Year 2026; and for other purposes. - Status: enacted - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2025-12-22 - Last action: 2025-12-23, P.L. 24-20 - Sponsor: John Paul Palacios Sablan (Independent) - Cosponsors: 0 - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 2 (23 yes, 1 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 45 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Retirees get dedicated pension payment funding: benefit, medium. Finance must reserve the remaining $2.49 million from the IPI settlement for fiscal year 2026 retiree payments. This supports the Commonwealth's 25% share of Settlement Fund payments. Any Office of Grants Management funding above $937,843 must also support the government's 25% pension obligation. T… - Families' Sun Bucks funding avoids cuts: benefit, medium. The Nutritional Assistance Program must set aside $160,000 for the 50% match for NAP Sun Bucks. The Sun Bucks program is exempt from austerity measures. The law does not specify household benefit amounts. - Former casino members get salary funding: benefit, medium. Finance must reserve $210,000 from the $2.7 million IPI settlement payment for former Commonwealth Casino members' unpaid salaries. Payments follow Schedule B's allocations. Individual payment amounts are not supplied here. - School competition travel and staff rewards: benefit, medium. Public schools reserve $400,000 for inter-island travel and lodging within the Commonwealth during School Year 2025–2026. It supports students, coaches, teachers, support staff, and chaperones in sports leagues and cultural and academic competitions. Eligible academic events include Moot Court and… - Schools must protect classrooms before administration: benefit, medium. Public schools must direct at least 96% of all funds to instruction. Teacher pay, instructional jobs, and essential student programs are protected until non-instructional administrative cost cuts are exhausted. Administrative and management staff must face furloughs or job cuts before school-assign… - Waste workers get overdue hazardous pay: benefit, medium. Solid Waste Management must pay $179,691 in overdue hazardous pay to covered workers on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. Payment comes from the Solid Waste Management Revolving Fund. The debt must be fully paid before that fund supports other programs. Individual workers' shares are not stated. - Workers get dedicated job training funding: benefit, medium. For fiscal year 2026, $1.3 million in Commonwealth Worker Fee Funds supports vocational education, apprenticeships, and training for U.S. workers. Programs must be provided by Commonwealth educational entities. Allocations are $780,000 for NMTech, $195,000 for Northern Marianas College, $52,000 for… - Government programs receive yearly operating funds: benefit, medium. The law provides about $152.21 million in General Revenues for October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026. Schedule A divides the money among government agencies and programs. Agencies receive monthly funding allotments. Programs needing one-time payments receive advance allotments, including scho… - Patients get medical referral travel support: benefit, low. The Health Network Program's inter-island and off-island referral services include stipends, airfare, and lodging for patients and escorts. The program must use $150,000 of its funding exclusively for inter-island medical referrals. The law does not state per-person support amounts. - Federal funding restores government work hours: benefit, low. Employees in fully federally funded positions return to an 80-hour schedule every two weeks. Partly federally funded positions also use that schedule when federal money covers the funding gap. The law does not state prior hours or individual pay changes. - Students get dedicated scholarship funding streams: benefit, low. The law directs $50,000 from the scholarship office's funding to the Professional Student Exchange Program. Elected officials' waived salaries must go to the Scholarship Trust Account. That money can be spent only on scholarships, without another appropriation or a fiscal-year deadline. Individual… - Courts gain budget flexibility and protection: benefit, low. Court leaders can adjust work schedules and opening hours to match available personnel and operating funds. During austerity measures, they can use available non-General Revenue funds, including revolving accounts, to restore reduced hours and operations. The Judicial Branch can move money between… - Government backs needed Marpi landfill closure: benefit, low. The CNMI Government must pledge its full faith and credit when needed to close Marpi Landfill Cells 1 and 2. This duty applies when the Appropriations Act causes a funding shortfall. The law states no dollar amount or household payment requirement. - Public properties can receive upkeep funding: benefit, low. The Department of Public Lands can spend up to $800,000 annually to maintain and secure properties under its control. Covered properties include designated parks, recreation areas, and the former Rota, Kanoa, and Marianas resorts and Tinian Dynasty. Spending requires a formal agreement with the Dep… - Agencies gain flexibility with revolving funds: benefit, low. During fiscal year 2026, agencies can use covered revolving accounts for staff, fuel, utilities, supplies, communications, and training travel. The law suspends certain spending and account-purpose limits, and the usual Section 501 transfer limits do not apply. Constitutional limits remain. Account… - Legislative offices gain protected spending flexibility: benefit, low. House and Senate members can receive a one-month advance from funds already appropriated to their offices. Members control their office subaccounts and can pay approved legislative travel and related expenses under House, Senate, or Bureau rules. The Legislative Bureau can freely move funds between… - Legislature gains protected funding and accounts: benefit, low. Each annual budget must provide the Legislature 9% of Governor-identified available funds or its prior-year appropriation, whichever is higher. The constitutional funding limit still applies. Each house has a $200,000 leadership account, with part divided equally among standing committees. A separa… - Mayors receive guaranteed hotel tax transfers: benefit, low. The Finance Secretary must transfer Hotel Occupancy Tax shares so each respective mayor receives at least $175,000 before fiscal year-end. Required quarterly transfers are $43,750. The money goes to municipal governments, not directly to households. - Passport office keeps additional operating money: benefit, low. For fiscal year 2026, the Passport Office must reserve at least $50,000 from General Revenue collections it receives. That money supports personnel and operations, in addition to its $96,485 Schedule A appropriation. - Tobacco settlement money protected for programs: benefit, low. The law allocates $541,597 in Tobacco Settlement Funds under a program and spending plan submitted to the Finance Secretary. The money cannot be shifted to other uses and is not limited to one fiscal year. This provision does not identify individual household payments. - Salary increase funds redirected to retirees: benefit, low. Realized funds intended for the salary increases described in Section 604(a) must instead support the 25% Retirees' Pension Benefit. The law does not state the amount available or any retiree's individual payment. - Selected education and health jobs exempted: benefit, low. During fiscal year 2026, selected workforce, education, and health jobs do not count toward the government's position ceiling. These include Workforce Investment Agency staff, substitute teachers, summer trainees, teacher aides, student-teacher trainees, and specified health professionals and instr… - Corporation registrar receives protected operating funds: benefit, low. The Registrar of Corporations Revolving Account must reserve $149,236 for personnel and $30,000 for operations from its collections. The Department of Commerce must include the specified jobs in its authorized position counts. The funding supports registrar operations, not direct business grants. - Some government workers lose recent raises: cost, medium. Employees with General Fund-paid salaries lose raises received after Public Law 24-14 took effect. Their pay returns to the original amounts under that law. The savings go toward the retirees' 25% pension benefit. The law does not state each worker's pay reduction. - Northern Islands mayor can establish fees: cost, low. The Northern Islands Mayor can set municipal fee rules, including fees for package tours, fishing, and hunting. The law itself sets no fee amounts; charges depend on rules establishing them. After a revolving fund is established, the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation locally approp… - Some government workers lose holiday extras: cost, low. Covered government employees required to work on non-federal Commonwealth legal holidays receive only their basic pay for those hours. They receive no extra holiday-leave-pay adjustment. Employees funded partly or fully with federal money are excluded from this rule. - Agencies face spending and contracting limits: cost, low. For fiscal year 2026, agencies receiving General Funds cannot exceed approved spending or position counts without a legislative joint resolution. Covered government contracts require the Finance Secretary to certify that lawful, sufficient funds have been appropriated. The contract certification ru… - Legislative staff hours and raises regulated: mixed, medium. The Legislative Bureau Director can restore staff's reduced work hours using available non-General Revenue funds. Salary adjustments for Bureau and Northern Marianas Youth Congress staff require an annual performance review. They also require consultation with the House Speaker and Senate President… - Utilities funded with protected agency payments: mixed, medium. For fiscal year 2026, the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation has about $102.50 million in spending authority and 572 positions. About $22.29 million covers personnel and $80.21 million covers operations. The Public Utilities Commission has $47,568: $47,097 for personnel, $471 for operations, and on… - Public healthcare gets a capped budget: mixed, medium. From October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026, the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation has about $141.15 million in spending authority. About $86.23 million covers personnel and $54.93 million covers operations, with 1,041 approved positions. Spending cannot exceed actual funds received or the a… - Government hiring freezes retain limited exceptions: mixed, low. The executive branch generally cannot fill new or vacant jobs. Exceptions include essential public-service jobs, including specified police and fire-service positions in each senatorial district. Other jobs deemed essential by the Governor require approval through a legislative joint resolution. Al… - Government sick leave donations count equally: mixed, low. Each donated sick-leave hour counts as one hour for Commonwealth government employees. The donor's and recipient's pay rates do not change that credit. Total donated sick leave cannot exceed 1,040 hours. - Medicaid technology jobs allow contract status: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, 12 Medicaid Enterprise Systems and Health Information Technology positions can become excepted-service contract positions. These positions are funded under ORG 11850400. The Medicaid Agency must request the change, and the Office of Personnel Management must agree. The law doe… - Public officials face salary funding limits: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, resident department heads in the First and Second Senatorial Districts receive $40,000 annually. Covered appointed officials and excepted-service employees keep salary amounts from the Governor's April 1, 2025 budget submission. Applicable budget and legal limits govern those… - Public safety pays detainee transport costs: mixed, low. The Department of Public Safety pays all costs of moving detainees between senatorial districts for court appearances. It also pays for transport needed for other legally required activities. The law states no dollar amount. - Dedicated program funding suspended for 2026: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, the law suspends listed funding set-asides for tobacco control, cancer care, group health insurance, and inspection overtime. It also affects technical education, tourism, foreign-worker fees, retirement funds, and the Developers Infrastructure Tax. Debt service and set-asides… - Economic development agency receives capped funds: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, the Commonwealth Economic Development Authority has about $1.46 million in spending authority and 13 positions. About $1.16 million covers personnel and $305,920 covers operations. Spending cannot exceed actual receipts or the approved budget, whichever is lower. The law does… - Governor and mayors can shift funds: mixed, low. The Governor can move up to 25% of covered executive-branch appropriations, and each district mayor has 25% transfer authority. The Governor's authority excludes legislative, judicial, legislative-delegation, and Section 604 funds. Including municipal entities requires the mayor's consent. Transfer… - Public auditor receives capped operating funds: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, the Office of the Public Auditor has about $1.73 million in spending authority and 17 positions. About $1.33 million covers personnel and $400,493 covers operations. Spending cannot exceed actual receipts or the approved budget, whichever is lower. - Public land trust receives additional money: mixed, low. The Department of Public Lands must transfer $4 million from its Holding Account to the land trust by October 15, 2025. This is in addition to other constitutional and statutory transfers. For fiscal year 2026, Marianas Public Land Trust has about $1.76 million in spending authority and six positio… - Tourism funded with new revenue redirection: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, Marianas Visitors Authority has about $7.09 million in spending authority and 31 positions. About $1.62 million covers personnel and $5.46 million covers operations; spending cannot exceed receipts or the approved budget. The Governor must identify outside-source funds and rep… - Ports receive a capped operating budget: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, Commonwealth Ports Authority has about $18.35 million in spending authority and 237 positions. About $6.71 million covers personnel and $11.64 million covers operations. Spending cannot exceed actual receipts or the approved budget, whichever is lower. This budget does not set… - Housing agency gets a capped budget: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, Northern Marianas Housing Corporation has about $7.94 million in spending authority and 67 positions. About $5.34 million covers personnel and $2.60 million covers operations. Spending cannot exceed actual receipts or the approved budget, whichever is lower. This operating bud… - College and technical school budgets capped: mixed, low. For fiscal year 2026, Northern Marianas College has about $15.21 million in spending authority and 166 positions. Its budget includes about $10.76 million for personnel and $4.45 million for operations. Northern Marianas Technical Institute has $920,944: $722,572 for personnel, $198,372 for operati… - Most vacant government jobs must close: mixed, low. Agencies must close positions when they become vacant, except positions covered by Section 602(b). Within 30 days, unused position funds move to agency operating expenses. An agency can request that the Legislature restore a position through a joint resolution. ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: John Paul Palacios Sablan (Independent), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-12-22 | House | Roll call on HB 24-80 | pass | 16 | 0 | | | 2025-12-22 | Senate | Roll call on HB 24-80 | pass | 7 | 1 | | ## Actions (5) - 2025-12-23: P.L. 24-20 (House) - 2025-12-22: Senate Final Reading — Passed (HS1) (Senate) - 2025-12-22: House Final Reading — Passed (HS1) (House) - 2025-12-22: House First Reading — Passed (HS1) (House) - 2025-12-22: Introduced (House) ## Bill text - HB 24-80, 2025-12-22: [PDF](https://www.cnmileg.net/documents/house/hse_bills/24/HB24-80.pdf) - P.L. 24-20, 2025-12-22: [PDF](https://www.cnmileg.net/documents/files/24TH%20UPDATE/PL%2024-20%20(HB%2024-80%20HS1%20Revised%20CNMI%20FY%202026%20Budget).pdf) ## Related bills - HB 24-108: To provide a Budget Plan of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for Fiscal Year 2027 and make appropriations for the operations and activities of… (enacted) - HLB 24-62: To appropriate $500,000.00 from revenues collected for the Third Senatorial District pursuant to Public Law 20-59; and for other purposes. (enacted) - SB 24-48: Establish a Division of Customs and Biosecurity within the DOF (enacted) - HB 24-84: To authorize the expenditure of $2,105,563.00 identified by the Governor as a surplus from Fiscal Year 2025 revenues that shall be appropriated by the Legislat… (enacted) - HB 24-74: To appropriate funds derived from trust interest income from the Marianas Public Land Trust towards payment of household allotments of Nutrition Assistance Pro… (enacted) - HB 24-63: To amend Title 4 sections 1991 to 1995 relating to the 3% construction tax on gross revenues derived from certain non-residential construction projects and to… (enacted) ## Sources - [HB 24-80 (PDF)](https://www.cnmileg.net/documents/house/hse_bills/24/HB24-80.pdf) - [P.L. 24-20 (PDF)](https://www.cnmileg.net/documents/files/24TH%20UPDATE/PL%2024-20%20(HB%2024-80%20HS1%20Revised%20CNMI%20FY%202026%20Budget).pdf) ## Related - [HB 24-108: To provide a Budget Plan of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands fo…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-108-24) - [HLB 24-62: To appropriate $500,000.00 from revenues collected for the Third Senatorial Dis…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HLB24-62-24) - [SB 24-48: Establish a Division of Customs and Biosecurity within the DOF](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-SB24-48-24) - [HB 24-84: To authorize the expenditure of $2,105,563.00 identified by the Governor as a s…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-84-24) - [HB 24-74: To appropriate funds derived from trust interest income from the Marianas Publi…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-74-24) - [HB 24-63: To amend Title 4 sections 1991 to 1995 relating to the 3% construction tax on g…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-63-24) - [Northern Mariana Islands bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/northern-mariana-islands/bills) - [Northern Mariana Islands state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/northern-mariana-islands) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MP-HB24-80-24 (as of 2026-10-12).