Marianas Visitors Authority chair Marian Aldan Pierce presides over a board meeting on Thursday.
Photo by Bryan Manabat
âBecause we did not get an approval from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the application was resubmitted,â Iakopo said, adding that the new tentative date is Feb. 5.
âWe hope to hear back from CDC as soon as possible,â she told the MVA board members.
MVAâs proposed travel bubble with South Korea will require visitors to get tested and undergo quarantine.
The board on Thursday also discussed the possibility of including Japan in the travel bubble.
Present in the board meeting were chair Marian Aldan-Pierce, vice chair Gloria Cavanagh, board members Christopher Nelson, Ivan Quichocho, Warren Villagomez, Thomas Liu, and Viola Alepuyo.
A girl pounds mochi at the Paseo De Marianas on Dec. 28 2020.
Contributed photo
Due to travel restrictions that have shut down the local tourism industry, the Marianas Visitors Authority cancelled its annual âChristmas in the Marianasâ program, which included the mochi-pounding event.
But the Japanese Society of the Northern Marianas decided to hold the event nonetheless in collaboration with PDM Promoters and the Japan Consulate, said Hiroko Tajima, acting chairwoman of the Japanese Society of the Northern Marianas.
Children check out the takeuma, the Japanese walking stilts.
Contributed photo
Tajima said mochi or rice cakes were served in three different flavors: red beans, soybeans with sugar, and soy sauce with seaweed.
GOVERNOR Ralph DLG Torres last week informed the Legislature that the CNMI government overspent by $133.1 million in fiscal year 2020, which ended on Sept. 30, 2020.
Of this amount, he said $85 million âwas a direct result of the Covid-19 threat and mitigation efforts applied to keep the Commonwealth as safe as possible from the spread of the virus.â
But 75% to 90% of the $85 million is expected to be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the governor said.
As for $29 million of the deficit, the governor said it âwas attributed to expenses and obligations incurred prior to the implementation of across-the-board budget reductionâ: $10 million was the cost of medical referrals during the fiscal year and $9 million âwas expended to supplement Group Health and Life Insurance coverage for retirees.â