The Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Casino Commission (CNMI) has informed Finance Secretary Tracy B. Norita that the central government owes them $291,666, despite a recent allocation of $250,000 designated for back pay.
According to Public Law 24-1, which outlines the revised fiscal year 2025 budget, the $250,000 is meant to cover the annual salaries of the commissioners for 2023, the Marianas Variety reported.
Commission Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero, Vice Chairman Rafael S. Demapan, Commissioner Mario Taitano, and former Commissioners Ramon S. Dela Cruz and Martin Mendiola are each set to receive $44,583. Thomas A. Manglona, who joined the commission in October 2024, will receive $27,083.
Dela Cruz and Mendiola’s terms expired last year. In a letter to Norita, Demapan highlighted that casino commissioners are entitled to an annual salary of $65,000. He noted that the back pay provided under P.L. 24-1 covers only 69 percent of what is owed.
Demapan stated that for 2023, each commissioner was due $65,000, but they will only receive $44,583, leaving a balance of $20,416 per commissioner.
