Committee holds bill reallocating auto-occupancy taxes to parks and recreation; seeks MBA, mayors for accounting

The Fiscal Affairs Committee debated House Bill 24-09 HD1, which would reallocate a portion of the auto-occupancy (hotel/occupancy) tax received by the Marianas Visitors Authority (MBA) to the Division of Parks and Recreation to support beautification and tourist-site maintenance.

Senator Castro described on-site problems at tourism locations (boarded restrooms at Suicide Cliff; rotten decking at Calavera Cave) and commended Parks and Rec staff for recent fixes, but said equitable access across municipalities must be ensured. Floor Leader Donald Monlonia and others questioned whether existing municipal allocations (statutory $300,000 per district) are being spent as intended and called for reports from mayors. The chair proposed adding a reporting requirement and limiting permitted uses: the $40,000 allocation would be provided to DPR for beautification only and subject to annual reporting to the presiding officer and the Ways and Means committee.

Counsel pointed to bill language designating the fund "non-lapsing" and said a clearly defined special revenue fund could be exempt from the constitutional 25% education set-aside. Members agreed to hold the bill, call in MBA and municipal mayors for a follow-up meeting, and draft amendments clarifying allocation percentages among Saipan, Rota and Tinian and adding reporting and investment provisions.

The committee did not vote on the bill; staff were directed to prioritize clarifying language and to invite MBA and the municipal mayors to the next committee session.