Creation of the CNMI ARRA (RECOVERY) OFFICE
On February 13, 2009, the United States Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act or ARRA) at the urging of President Obama, who signed it into law four days later. A direct response to the economic crisis, the Recovery Act has three immediate goals: create new jobs and save existing ones, spur economic activity and invest in long-term growth, and foster unprecedented levels of accountability and transparency in government spending.
Shortly after President Obama signed the Recovery Act into law, $97 million dollars was made available to the CNMI for various infrastructure and government service projects.
In early March 2009, the Secretary of Commerce together with the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and cabinet members pulled together various projects totaling over $600 million dollars. The projects were evaluated and ranked. Projects totaling up to $97 million dollars were then vetted. To date, the CNMI has received a total of $88 million dollars in award notifications.
The Secretary for the Department of Commerce in the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) was designated by the Honorable Benigno R. Fitial, Governor of the CNMI, as the CNMI’s Lead for all American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Affairs. This position throughout the nation is commonly known as the ARRA Czar.
Before the creation of the CNMI ARRA Office the CNMI ARRA State Lead handled all ARRA affairs which include oversight, administrative functions, and reporting. With this added responsibility, the CNMI ARRA State Lead enlisted the help of the Governor and Lt. Governor to create an oversight office.
The CNMI ARRA Office was set up specifically to support all agencies including autonomous agencies receiving ARRA funding and to encourage private sector participation in the ARRA projects. It is with the spirit of job creation and economic activity that the CNMI intends to ensure that all funds available under the ARRA are spent with accountability and transparency.