TITLE 1: GOVERNMENT
DIVISION 2: EXECUTIVE BRANCH
§ 2453. Department of Commerce: Duties. The Department of Commerce shall have the following powers and duties: (a) To be responsible for the stimulation, encouragement and regulation of private investment, including foreign investment; (b) To establish policies and procedures and administer laws regarding employment and labor practices in the private sector; (c) To establish policies and procedures and administer laws regarding commercial fishing, maritime resources and agricultural resources; (d) To license and regulate businesses engaged in the construction trade and to license businesses which are not otherwise licensed or regulated by any other department, agency, instrumentality, or law of the Commonwealth. Except as otherwise provided by law, the Department of Commerce shall not issue or cause to be issued any business license for the purpose of garment manufacturing or for commercial farming or fishing as defined in 3 CMC § 4331(e) and no such business license shall be issued for the purpose of feeding one’s employees who are not members of one’s own household; provided, that licenses may issue for aquaculture, mariculture, and hydroponic agriculture activities in which the business has $2,000,000 or more in business capital or assets in the Commonwealth. Renewal of any valid business license existing on September 15, 1996 is not affected by this amendment. (e) To collect, tabulate, publicize and analyze statistical data needed for development programs and plan implementation; (f) To do any and all things necessary to stimulate economic growth in the private sector. Source: PL 1-8, tit. 1, ch. 9, § 3, modified; amended by PL 10-9, § 2; PL 10-44, § 4; EO 94-3. Commission Comment: PL 10-44, § 4, that amended subsection (d) of this section, took effect February 7, 1997. With respect to the reference to the “Department of Commerce and Labor,” see Executive Order 94-3 (effective August 23, 1994), reorganizing the executive branch, changing agency names and official titles, and effecting other changes, set forth in the Commission comment to 1 CMC § 2001; see also the comment to 1 CMC § 2451. Executive Order 97-03, which was signed on November 13, 1997, transferred the subject duty of the Attorney General set forth in 1 CMC § 2153(b) and related duties and responsibilities of the Registrar of Corporations (set forth in 4 CMC §§ 4201-4204) to the Department of Commerce. As of March 31, 2003, no transfers had taken place. EO 97-03 also called for the addition of a new subsection to 1 CMC § 2453 stating, “To administer laws regarding the registration of corporations and businesses and maintenance [of] all records and documents related thereto.”