Senate committee holds public hearing for appointees to Commonwealth Economic Incentive Authority

Saipan — The Senate Standing Committee on Executive Appointments and Government Investigations held a public hearing Sept. 18 for two governorial nominees to the Commonwealth Economic Incentive Authority, David Berger and Tina Azavan, who were introduced by Jean Paul B. Regis, special assistant to the governor. The hearing, held at about 9:45 a.m. in the Senate Chamber at the Hon. Supe Ram Nas Memorial Building, included questions from senators and remarks from business leaders; the committee did not take a confirmation vote during the session.

The hearing matters because the authority — created by what is now called the Commonwealth Economic Incentive Act (Public Law 12-20) — is the statutory vehicle to offer tax and other incentives to attract investment and diversify the CNMI economy. Vin Armani, president of the Trade Council of the Marianas, told senators the law requires a private-sector majority on the board and noted the nominees were selected from names submitted by a qualifying chamber of commerce. Armani reminded the committee the law’s legislative findings call for “aggressive actions to broaden the CNMI’s economic base through diversification.”

David M. Berger, introduced as a nominee representing the private sector, described himself as a long-time resident and certified public accountant licensed in Guam and the CNMI. “I’m honored to be nominated… I’ve been here in the CNMI for 35 years,” Berger said, noting his background in auditing, tax returns and consulting and his intent to help the commonwealth prosper.

Tina Azavan, introduced as a nominee and described by Regis as a tax attorney with a master of laws in taxation and a juris doctor from the University of Baltimore School of Law, said she recently moved to the CNMI and called the territory “my home, ultimately. I’ve never felt more at home anywhere in the world, honestly.” She said she aimed to bring an outside perspective while working with local knowledge and offered immediate priorities including comparative policy research and active marketing to target industries.

Committee members and witnesses focused on several recurring policy themes. Azavan urged modernization and marketing: she recommended digitizing business formation and licensing so entrepreneurs and remote workers can form entities online, and she recommended marketing the CNMI to remote workers and “digital nomads” as a near-term source of taxable income. Berger and other speakers proposed tax-law changes and regulatory fixes to attract investment; Berger suggested reforming the gross revenue tax (BGRT) so monthly filings reflect net monthly gains rather than taxing each sale, an approach he said would better attract financial-services firms and wealth-management operations.

Witnesses identified potential target industries and incentives: attracting low–labor‑intensity, high‑capital firms with low environmental impact; promoting manufacturing that sources parts from Asia for North American markets; encouraging wealth-management and investment‑firm activity by offering competitive tax treatment; and, contingent on federal legal changes, exploring opportunities in commercial cannabis cultivation for export. Several speakers also urged coordination between the authority and existing programs such as the qualifying-certificate (QC) process administered through commerce, and stressed the need to fund an executive director and staff so the authority can actively market the CNMI.

Vin Armani told the committee the Trade Council supplied the names used by the governor in making the nominations and read sections of the 2000 law’s findings as the statutory basis for the authority’s mission. He also reported the Trade Council and his Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors support seating the nominees so the authority can begin operations.

Committee staff recorded one written letter of support for Tina Azavan from PK Daigo, president of the Marianas Business Network; no written testimony in opposition was received. Public comment at the hearing was opened and no members of the gallery delivered testimony.

Senators sought clarifications about nominees’ ties to the community and near-term plans. Floor Leader Paul A. Manglona and other members asked Azavan about how long she had lived in the CNMI and about local business activity; Azavan said she moved in May 2024, that she had established a local business in the previous weeks, and that she maintains a Maryland law practice that handles tax clients while working remotely. Senators also pressed Berger and Azavan on how the authority’s work would differ from or coordinate with existing incentive programs and with the Division of Commerce’s QC process; both nominees said they expect coordination and planned to analyze differences and complementarities.

Committee business included a roll call showing five members present and one excused, a motion to adopt the hearing agenda (motion seconded and carried), and the administration of an oath to the two nominees. The committee chair, Senator Francisco Kilcruz, said written and oral testimony will be included in the committee’s recommendation report to the full Senate for consideration of confirmation or rejection. The committee adjourned without a confirmation vote.

The hearing produced specific, attributable proposals and study items rather than final board decisions: the nominees and witnesses emphasized (1) a need to identify and fund a full‑time executive director and staff for the authority, (2) comparative research into models used by other jurisdictions, (3) digitization of business registration and permitting processes, (4) targeted marketing to defined industry associations, and (5) consideration of statutory and tax‑filing reforms such as BGRT adjustments to improve competitiveness. The committee did not adopt or reject any nominee at this session; further action will follow when the committee forwards its report to the full Senate.