Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Citizenship and Immigration Services. CNRA Provisions Applying U.S. Immigration Law to the CNMI

CNRA applied federal immigration laws to the CNMI beginning on  November 28, 2009, subject to a transition period that ends on December  31, 2014, and with key provisions affecting foreign workers, visitors, and  foreign investors. DHS Has Begun Implementing Border Control but Has Not Negotiated Solutions to Operational Challenges

DHS components CBP, ICE, and USCIS have each taken steps to secure  the border in the CNMI in accordance with CNRA. As a result, as of March  2010, ICE has transferred only 3 of 30 aliens with prior criminal records to  correctional facilities in Guam or Honolulu and released the other 27 on  their own recognizance. From November 28, 2009, to March 1, 2010, CBP officers working at the  Saipan and Rota airports processed 103,565 arriving travelers, granting  parole to 11,760 (11 percent). For calendar year 2009, USCIS processed 515 CNMI applications for  permanent residency and 50 CNMI applications for naturalization or  citizenship, more than doubling the number of interviews conducted for  applications for residency or citizenship from calendar year 2008,  according to data provided by USCIS officials. DHS Components Face Operational Challenges in the CNMI and Have Been Unable to Negotiate Solutions with the CNMI Government

			CBP Has Not Yet Finalized Long-Term Occupancy Agreements with the CNMI Government for Required Airport Space

The space that the CNMI government has provided for CBP operations at  the Saipan and Rota airports is inadequate to meet CBP’s basic facility  requirements, and the two parties have not yet concluded negotiations for  long-term occupancy agreements that would allow CBP to begin upgrading  the facilities. Direct access to the data will facilitate the processing of applications for  CNMI-only work permits and for CNMI-only nonimmigrant treaty investor  status. U.S. Agencies’ Implementation of CNRA Programs for Workers, Visitors, and Investors Is Incomplete

U.S. agencies have begun to implement CNRA for workers, visitors, and  investors, but key regulations are not final and, as a result, transition  programs to preserve access to foreign workers and for investors are not yet  available. DHS has established the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program but  did not include two countries, China and Russia, that the CNMI and Guam  consider key to their tourist industries. In May 2009, DHS officials informed Congress that the department  is reconsidering whether to include China and Russia in the Guam-CNMI  visa waiver program. Appendix I: Objective, Scope, and Methodology

In this report we describe (1) the steps that have been taken to establish  federal border control in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana  Islands (CNMI) and (2) the status of efforts to implement the Consolidated  Natural Resources Act of 2008 (CNRA) provisions with regard to workers,  visitors, and investors. To examine the  relationship between the CNMI and the United States, we reviewed the  CNMI-U.S. Covenant, the lawsuit between the CNMI and the United States  to overturn specific provisions of the CNRA, and the CNMI protocol for  implementing U.S. immigration law. We interviewed officials in  Washington, D.C., from U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)  components Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S.
Why GAO Did This Study

In May 2008, the United States enacted the Consolidated Natural Resources Act (CNRA), amending the United States' Covenant with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) to establish federal control of CNMI immigration in 2009, with several CNMI-specific provisions affecting foreign workers and investors during a transition. CNRA requires that GAO report on implementation of federal immigration law in the CNMI. This report describes the steps federal agencies have taken to (1) secure the border in the CNMI and (2) implement CNRA with regard to workers, visitors, and investors. GAO reviewed federal laws, regulations, and agency documents; met with U.S. and CNMI officials; and observed federal operations in the CNMI.

What GAO Found

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) components Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have each taken steps to secure the border in the CNMI in accordance with CNRA. From November 28, 2009, to March 1, 2010, CBP processed 103,565 arriving travelers at CNMI airports, and ICE processed 72 aliens for removal proceedings. In calendar year 2009, USCIS processed 515 CNMI applications for permanent U.S. residency and 50 CNMI applications for U.S. naturalization or citizenship. However, the DHS components face operational challenges and have been unable to negotiate solutions with the CNMI government. First, airport space available to CBP does not meet facility standards and CBP has not reached a long-term occupancy agreement with the CNMI. Second, ICE has not come to an agreement with the CNMI for access to detention space and as a result has transferred 3 of 30 aliens--convicted criminals under CNMI or U.S. law--to correctional facilities in Guam and Honolulu. Third, DHS efforts to gain direct access to the CNMI's immigration databases have been unsuccessful, hampering U.S. enforcement operations. DHS has begun to implement work permit and visa programs for foreign workers, visitors, and investors, but key regulations are not final and certain transition programs therefore remain unavailable. A lawsuit filed by the CNMI government challenging some provisions of the CNRA resulted in a court injunction delaying implementation of the CNMI-only transitional worker program until DHS considers public comments and issues a new rule. As a result this program is unavailable to employers as of May 1, 2010. DHS has established the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program. However, DHS did not include China and Russia, two countries that provide significant economic benefit to the CNMI. Currently, DHS allows nationals from these two countries into the CNMI temporarily without a visa under the DHS Secretary's parole authority. DHS is reconsidering whether to include these countries in the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program. Although DHS has proposed rules that apply temporary U.S. nonimmigrant treaty investor status to investors with CNMI foreign investor entry permits, the program is not yet available.