THE Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation on Wednesday passed the final version of House Bill 22-28 to amend the controversial local law that doubled the electronic gaming license fee.
All the 17 members present voted to pass House Floor Leader Ralph N. Yumul’s House Local Bill 22-28, which now goes to the desk of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres.
Senate Vice President Justo Quitugua, Reps. Tina Sablan, Sheila Babauta and Yumul were excused.
House Local Bill 22-28 was a product of a series of discussions between the delegation’s gaming committee and the officials of e-gaming firms MP Holdings LLC, which operates Saipan Vegas in Chalan Kiya, and Mariana Entertainment LLC, which owns Club 88 in Garapan. The committee also considered comments from the Office of the Attorney General.
Prior to the roll call vote, the gaming committee chair, Rep. Edwin Propst offered floor amendments to “enhance and clarify” the title of the measure: “To amend Saipan Local Law 22-6, Section 101(a) to restructure the local license fee imposed on all poker amusement machines located within e-gaming facilities or hotels and electronic gaming devices as defined in Title 6 Section 3154 (a)(4) and 6 CMC Section 3156(b), located within the Third Senatorial District.”
This language was also inserted in Section 101 of the bill, imposing “an annual local license fee on all poker amusement machines located within e-gaming facilities or hotels, electronic gaming machines, or electronic table games as defined in 6 CMC Section 3154 (a)(4), and also on such machines and games situated in a hotel pursuant to 6 CMC Section 3156 (b), within the Third Senatorial District, equal to $2,000 per machine.”
S.L.L. 22-6 was passed by the Saipan delegation without holding a public hearing and was signed into law by Gov. Ralph DLG Torres in August 2021.
Citing the law’s “harsh effects,” the two remaining e-gaming businesses on island said they may have to shut down their operations and put their employees out of work amid an economic downturn and the Covid-19 pandemic.
MP Holdings and Marianas Entertainment also sued the government and sought a temporary restraining order from the court.
For his part, Superior Court Judge Kenneth L. Govendo “strongly encouraged” lawmakers and the e-gaming operators to “discuss it and see if there’s room for compromise before returning to the court.”
Recently, MP Holdings General Manager Bart Jackson expressed support for House Bill 22-28, saying it was a “well-thought-out” measure.
He thanked the delegation, saying it “has been very receptive to the comments and concerns of the operators throughout the process.”
Propst, for his part, thanked Jackson, Attorney General Edward Manibusan, Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang and Northern Islands Mayor Vicente Santos Jr. for submitting comments.
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