Senate committee holds confirmation hearing for Matthew C. Mosca as NMHC board nominee

The Senate Standing Committee on Executive Appointments and Government Investigations held a public hearing Sept. 17, 2025, at the Tinian Courthouse in San Jose Village to consider Governor David M. Apatang’s nomination of Matthew C. Mosca to the Northern Marianas Housing Corporation (NMHC) board of directors to represent the Second Senatorial District.

In introductory remarks, Jean Paul B. Regis, the governor’s special assistant who represented the administration at the hearing, said the governor and lieutenant governor “placed their complete trust and confidence in Mr. Mosca’s ability to serve” and introduced Mosca to the committee and public. Mosca told the committee he is prepared “to work with the executive director and the rest of the board members” to identify problems in NMHC programs and make it “easier for people to apply.”

Why it matters: The hearing brought local officials, the NMHC corporate director and residents to the same session to press for clarity about federal recovery grants, Section 8 vouchers, homestead opportunities and construction costs on Tinian and neighboring islands. Committee members asked detailed questions about NMHC program capacity and timelines for disaster-recovery funds, while residents and local leaders urged quick action to convert available housing and to prioritize Tinian projects.

Committee business and testimony

Chairman Francisco Q. Cruz convened the hearing and the committee adopted the meeting agenda by unanimous voice vote. The committee took oral testimony from the governor’s representative and the nominee, and allowed supporting statements from the acting mayor of Tinian and the NMHC corporate director. The committee clerk reported four written letters of support had been received in advance and that no written testimony in opposition had been submitted.

Joseph E. Santos, acting mayor of Tinian and Aguigan, told the committee he strongly supports Mosca’s confirmation and cited Mosca’s long service in public safety and emergency management, including leadership of Tinian’s COVID-19 task force. Jeannie P. Mufnas, corporate director for the Northern Marianas Housing Corporation, described Mosca as “community focused” and said NMHC “runs and operates close to $300,000,000, about 90% of that being grant funding,” and that the agency has a staff capacity approaching 100 employees.

Public comment and written support

Two residents, Jose M. Dela Cruz and Rosita King Audan, delivered oral statements in support of Mosca. Dela Cruz said Mosca has “a wonderful individual” record and urged expedited confirmation so the appointee can begin assisting residents. The committee clerk listed written support from Mayor Edwin P. Audon of Tinian, Teresita A. Santos, Jose P. Kiosci and Richard S. Velazaro.

Substantive questions and committee concerns

Committee members pressed NMHC leadership and the nominee on several recurring issues: the availability and condition of Section 8 units, the possibility of converting long-vacant NMHC units into homestead opportunities, timelines for administering CDBG-DR (Community Development Block Grant—Disaster Recovery) funds, and the status of USDA rural-housing (Farmer’s Home) agreements.

- Voucher and unit counts: Committee discussion and NMHC answers indicated roughly 30 multifamily units on Rota (about 14 offline for habitability), about 28 units on Tinian (with occupancy reported for some programs), and more than 100 vouchers in Saipan; the NMHC representative said the agency administers multiple Section 8 program types and reported an island-wide total on the order of several hundred vouchers.

- CDBG-DR timing and scope: Senators urged NMHC to prioritize projects tied to disaster-recovery grants that funded housing and infrastructure after the typhoon. Committee members emphasized that 2026 is an important year for spending and urged close coordination among NMHC, local mayors and grant managers.

- Construction costs and labor: Multiple senators raised rising construction costs and a local labor shortage as barriers to new housing. One senator suggested exploring workforce-development or prison-workforce models to lower construction costs; another proposed a program to renovate otherwise vacant island homes so they could be returned to rental or homestead use.

- USDA Farmers Home and VA loans: NMHC reported an active but not-yet-implemented Memorandum of Agreement with USDA for a small initial allocation of homes (the agency said five homes under an initial agreement, working to expand the number). Committee members and the NMHC representative also discussed VA loan administrative costs veterans face when pursuing housing, including an underwriting-related administrative fee cited by NMHC as roughly $3,000.

Nominee’s stated priorities

Matthew C. Mosca, introduced as a senior policy adviser in the mayor’s office and a longtime Tinian resident, told the committee his initial priorities, if confirmed, would include reviewing NMHC program guidelines to make applications more accessible, working with the executive director and board to identify administrative obstacles, and helping to locate funding that would increase housing availability for Tinian residents.

Actions and next steps

The hearing record shows the committee took public testimony and acknowledged written support; no committee confirmation vote was recorded in the hearing transcript. The committee closed public comment and adjourned the hearing by a voice vote.

The committee indicated the hearing record—oral testimonies and written letters—would be forwarded with the committee’s recommendation to the full Senate for consideration. The committee did not announce a final recommendation or a scheduled vote on the nomination during the session.

What to watch next

Committee members repeatedly asked NMHC and the nominee to return with more detailed program data, including precise voucher counts by island, a timeline for spending CDBG-DR funds, and proposals to address construction-cost inflation. Committee members also asked NMHC to examine opportunities to bring vacant or offline units back into service and to coordinate with the Department of Public Lands and USDA on homestead and rural-housing options.

Closing

The committee concluded the public hearing after recording oral and written testimony. Because the transcript does not include a confirmation vote, the nomination remains pending referral to the full Senate for final action.