I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5550 

To provide certain requirements for labeling textile fiber products and for 

duty-free and quota-free treatment of products of, and to implement 

minimum wage and immigration requirements in, the Northern Mariana 

Islands, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 7, 2006 

Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California (for himself, Mr. SPRATT, Ms. SOLIS, Ms. 

PELOSI, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. UDALL of Colorado, Mr. CONYERS, Mrs. 

MCCARTHY, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. LANTOS, and Ms. DELAURO) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources, and 

in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of 

such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide certain requirements for labeling textile fiber 

products and for duty-free and quota-free treatment of 

products of, and to implement minimum wage and immigration requirements in, the Northern Mariana Islands, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘United States-Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas 

4 Human Dignity Act’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Amendments.

Sec. 3. Authority of Customs service to board ships. 

Sec. 4. Rate of wages for laborers and mechanics. 

Sec. 5. Economic diversification, job creation, and job training program. 

Sec. 6. Labor and human rights study; report. 

Sec. 7. Effect on other law. 

Sec. 8. Study and recommendations on immigration and national security 

vulnerabilities. 

7 SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS. 

8 The Joint Resolution entitled ‘‘Joint Resolution to 

9 approve the ‘Covenant To Establish a Commonwealth of 

10 the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the 

11 United States of America’, and for other purposes’’ ap12 proved March 24, 1976 (48 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), is 

13 amended by adding at the end the following new sections: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 7. LABELING OF MADE IN THE USA PRODUCTS. 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A product, including a textile 

16 fiber product, that leaves the territory of the Northern 

17 Mariana Islands for shipment to any place in the United 

18 States or abroad may not have a stamp, tag, label, or 

19 other means of identification or substitute therefor on or 

20 affixed to the product stating ‘Made in USA’ or otherwise 


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1 stating or implying that the product was made or assem2 bled in the United States unless— 

3 ‘‘(1) each individual providing direct labor in 

4 production of such product was paid a wage equal 

5 to or greater than the wage set by the Fair Labor 

6 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.); 

7 ‘‘(2) the product was produced or manufactured 

8 in compliance with all Federal laws relating to labor 

9 rights and working conditions, including, but not 

10 limited to, the National Labor Relations Act, the 

11 Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, and 

12 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; 

13 ‘‘(3) the factory or other business concern pro14 ducing or manufacturing the product does not em15 ploy individuals under conditions of indentured ser16 vitude. 

17 ‘‘(b) RESULT OF NONCOMPLIANCE REGARDING

18 ‘MADE IN THE USA’ PRODUCTS.—A textile fiber product, 

19 which is stamped, tagged, labeled, or otherwise identified 

20 in violation of subsection (a) shall be deemed to be willfully 

21 misbranded for purposes of the Textile Fiber Products 

22 Identification Act (15 U.S.C. 70 et seq.). 

23 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of the section: 

24 ‘‘(1) DIRECT LABOR.—The term ‘direct labor’ 

25 includes any work provided to prepare, assemble, 


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1 process, package, or transport a product, but does 

2 not include supervisory, management, security, or 

3 administrative work. 

4 ‘‘(2) INDENTURED SERVITUDE.—The term ‘in5 dentured servitude’ includes all labor for which an 

6 alien worker is in the Commonwealth of the North7 ern Mariana Islands solely by virtue of an employ8 ment contract with a specific and sole employer or 

9 ‘master’ who is in control of the duration of the stay 

10 of the indentured alien worker in the Commonwealth 

11 of the Northern Mariana Islands. If the worker dis12 pleases the employer/master, the contract is termi13 nated and the employee must leave the Common14 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 8. MINIMUM WAGE. 

16 ‘‘Section 503(c) of the foregoing Covenant shall be 

17 construed and applied as if it read as follows: 

18 ‘(c) The minimum wage provisions of the Fair Labor 

19 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.), shall apply 

20 to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 

21 except that— 

22 ‘(1) prior to January 1, 2007, the minimum 

23 wage rate applicable to the Commonwealth of the 

24 Northern Mariana Islands shall be $3.05 per hour; 


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1 ‘(2) between January 1, 2007 and December 

2 31, 2007 inclusive, the minimum wage rate applica3 ble to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

4 Islands shall be $3.60 per hour; 

5 ‘(3) between January 1, 2008 and December 

6 31, 2008 inclusive, the minimum wage rate applica7 ble to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

8 Islands shall be $4.15 per hour; 

9 ‘(4) on January 1, 2009 and at the beginning 

10 of every calendar year thereafter, the minimum wage 

11 rate applicable to the Commonwealth of the North12 ern Mariana Islands shall be increased from the pre13 vious wage by the lesser of $1.00 per hour or the 

14 amount needed to make the minimum wage rate ap15 plicable to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar16 iana Islands equal to the minimum wage rate set 

17 forth in section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards 

18 Act of 1938, until the minimum wage rate applicable 

19 to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is20 lands is equal to the minimum wage rate set forth 

21 in section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

22 of 1938; 

23 ‘(5) once the minimum wage applicable to the 

24 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands 

25 equals the minimum wage rate set forth in section 


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1 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, it 

2 shall increase as necessary to remain equal to the 

3 minimum wage rate set forth in such section.’. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 9. CONDITIONS FOR DUTY-FREE AND QUOTA-FREE 

5 TREATMENT. 

6 ‘‘(a) CONDITIONS.—A product of the Northern Mar7 iana Islands may not enter the customs territory of the 

8 United States duty-free or not subject to quota as the 

9 product of an insular possession, unless— 

10 ‘‘(1) each individual providing direct labor in 

11 production of the product was paid a wage equal to 

12 or greater than the wage set by the Fair Labor 

13 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.); 

14 ‘‘(2) the product was produced or manufactured 

15 in compliance with all Federal laws relating to labor 

16 rights and working conditions, including, but not 

17 limited to, the National Labor Relations Act, the 

18 Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, and 

19 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; 

20 ‘‘(3) the factory or other business concern pro21 ducing or manufacturing the product does not em22 ploy individuals under conditions of indentured ser23 vitude; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) the Commissioner of Customs has certified 

2 that the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is3 lands is taking adequate measures— 

4 ‘‘(A) to prevent unlawful transshipment of 

5 goods that is carried out by rerouting, false 

6 declaration concerning country or place of ori7 gin, falsification of documents, evasion of 

8 United States rules of origin, or any other 

9 means; and 

10 ‘‘(B) to prevent being used as a transit 

11 point for the shipment of goods in violation of 

12 any restriction on imports imposed under any 

13 provision of law or applicable trade agreement. 

14 ‘‘(b) PENALTIES AGAINST EXPORTERS.—If the 

15 President determines, based on sufficient evidence, that 

16 an exporter has willfully falsified information regarding 

17 the country of origin, manufacture, processing, or assem18 bly of a product of the Northern Mariana Islands for 

19 which duty-free or quota-free treatment is claimed, then 

20 the President shall deny to such exporter, and any succes21 sors of such exporter, for a period of 2 years, duty-free 

22 and quota-free treatment for such product. 

23 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section: 

24 ‘‘(1) DIRECT LABOR.—The term ‘direct labor’ 

25 includes any work provided to prepare, assemble, 


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1 process, package, or transport a product, but does 

2 not include supervisory, management, security, or 

3 administrative work. 

4 ‘‘(2) INDENTURED SERVITUDE.—The term ‘in5 dentured servitude’ includes all labor for which an 

6 alien worker is in the Commonwealth of the North7 ern Mariana Islands solely by virtue of an employ8 ment contract with a specific and sole employer or 

9 ‘master’ who is in control of the duration of the stay 

10 of the indentured alien worker in the Commonwealth 

11 of the Northern Mariana Islands. If the worker dis12 pleases the employer/master, the contract is termi13 nated and the employee must leave the Common14 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 10. APPLICABILITY OF IMMIGRATION LAWS. 

16 ‘‘Section 506 of the foregoing Covenant shall be con17 strued and applied as if it included at the end the fol18 lowing subsection: 

19 ‘(e)(1) The provisions of the Immigration and Na20 tionality Act shall apply to the Northern Mariana Islands 

21 as if the Northern Mariana Islands were a State (as de22 fined in section 101(a)(36) of such Act), and a part of 

23 the United States (as defined in section 101(a)(38) of 

24 such Act). Such Act shall supersede and replace all laws, 

25 provisions, or programs of the Commonwealth of the 


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1 Northern Mariana Islands relating to the admission and 

2 removal of aliens from the Northern Mariana Islands. 

3 ‘(2)(A) The Secretary of Homeland Security may ad4 just the status of an alien described in subparagraph (B) 

5 to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent resi6 dence if the alien— 

7 ‘(i) applies for such adjustment; 

8 ‘(ii) is physically present in the Commonwealth 

9 of the Northern Mariana Islands on the date such 

10 application is filed; 

11 ‘(iii) is admissible to the United States as an 

12 immigrant; 

13 ‘(iv) during the 5-year period preceding such 

14 application, has been and still is a person of good 

15 moral character; 

16 ‘(v) has not accepted or continued in unauthor17 ized employment in the Commonwealth of the 

18 Northern Mariana Islands prior to filing such appli19 cation, is not in unlawful immigration status on the 

20 date of filing such application, and has not failed 

21 (other than through no fault of the alien or for tech22 nical reasons) to maintain continuously a lawful sta23 tus since entry into the Commonwealth of the 

24 Northern Mariana Islands; and 


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1 ‘(vi) establishes to the satisfaction of the Sec2 retary that the denial of such application would re3 sult in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship 

4 to the alien. 

5 ‘(B) The benefits provided by subparagraph (A) shall 

6 apply to any alien who— 

7 ‘(i) during the 4-year period preceding the date 

8 of the enactment of the United States-Common9 wealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dignity 

10 Act, was continuously authorized by the Government 

11 of the Northern Mariana Islands (pursuant to the 

12 immigration laws of the Commonwealth of the 

13 Northern Mariana Islands) to enter into and remain 

14 temporarily in the Northern Mariana Islands in 

15 order to perform temporary service or labor in the 

16 Northern Mariana Islands; or 

17 ‘(ii) is the alien spouse or minor child of an 

18 alien described in clause (i). 

19 ‘(C) When an alien is granted the status of having 

20 been lawfully admitted for permanent residence pursuant 

21 to this paragraph, the Secretary of State shall not be re22 quired to reduce the number of immigrant visas author23 ized to be issued under the Immigration and Nationality 

24 Act and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall not be 

25 required to charge the alien any fee. 


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1 ‘(D) The definitions contained in the Immigration 

2 and Nationality Act shall apply in the administration of 

3 this paragraph. Nothing contained in this paragraph shall 

4 be held to repeal, amend, alter, modify, effect, or restrict 

5 the powers, duties, functions, or authority of the Secretary 

6 of Homeland Security in the administration and enforce7 ment of such Act or any other law relating to immigration, 

8 nationality, or naturalization. The fact that an alien may 

9 be eligible to be granted the status of having been lawfully 

10 admitted for permanent residence under this paragraph 

11 shall not preclude the alien from seeking such status 

12 under any other provision of law for which the alien may 

13 be eligible. 

14 ‘(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 

15 paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take effect after the expira16 tion of the 3-month period beginning on the date of the 

17 enactment of the United States-Commonwealth of the 

18 Northern Marianas Human Dignity Act. 

19 ‘(B) With respect to an alien who, on the day pre20 ceding the date of the enactment of the United States21 Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dignity 

22 Act, is authorized by the Government of the Northern 

23 Mariana Islands (pursuant to the immigration laws of the 

24 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) to enter 

25 into and remain temporarily in the Northern Mariana IsVerDate Aug 31 2005 22:05 Jun 09, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5550.IH H5550

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1 lands in order to perform temporary service or labor in 

2 the Northern Mariana Islands (and any relatives of the 

3 alien if such relatives were authorized to accompany or 

4 follow to join the alien)— 

5 ‘(i) paragraph (1) shall apply to the alien begin6 ning after the earlier of— 

7 ‘(I) the date on which such authorization 

8 expires (such authorization not being subject to 

9 extension or renewal by the Government of the 

10 Northern Mariana Islands after the expiration 

11 of the 3-month period beginning on the date of 

12 the enactment of the United States-Common13 wealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dig14 nity Act); 

15 ‘(II) the date that is 2 years after the date 

16 of the enactment of the United States-Common17 wealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dig18 nity Act; or 

19 ‘(III) the date on which the status of the 

20 alien is adjusted to that of an alien lawfully ad21 mitted for permanent residence under para22 graph (2); and 

23 ‘(ii) if otherwise eligible, the alien may apply for 

24 adjustment of status under paragraph (2) beginning 

25 on the effective date of such paragraph. 


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1 ‘(4) When deploying personnel to enforce the provi2 sions of this subsection, the Secretary of Homeland Secu3 rity shall coordinate with, and act in conjunction with, 

4 State and local law enforcement agencies to ensure that 

5 such deployment does not degrade or compromise the law 

6 enforcement capabilities and functions currently per7 formed by immigration officers.’.’’. 

8 SEC. 3. AUTHORITY OF CUSTOMS SERVICE TO BOARD 

9 SHIPS. 

10 Section 467 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

11 1467) is amended by striking ‘‘or the Virgin Islands,’’ 

12 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘, the Virgin Islands, 

13 or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,’’. 

14 SEC. 4. RATE OF WAGES FOR LABORERS AND MECHANICS. 

15 No Federal assistance of any kind, including funds 

16 made available through Acts of appropriation, may be 

17 used for or in relation to any project for construction, al18 teration, or repair (including painting and decorating) of 

19 public buildings or public works within the geographical 

20 limits of the Northern Mariana Islands and which requires 

21 or involves the employment of mechanics or laborers, un22 less the project is subject to a contract that contains the 

23 following: 

24 (1) A provision requiring that the minimum 

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1 ing on or in relation to the project shall be at a rate 

2 set by the Secretary of Labor that is not less than 

3 the minimum wage set forth in section 6 of the Fair 

4 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206). 

5 (2) A provision requiring the contractor or his 

6 subcontractor to pay all mechanics and laborers em7 ployed directly upon the site of the work, uncondi8 tionally and not less often than once a week, and 

9 without subsequent deduction or rebate on any ac10 count, the full amounts accrued at time of payment, 

11 computed at wage rates not less than those stated 

12 in the contract, regardless of any contractual rela13 tionship which may be alleged to exist between the 

14 contractor or subcontractor and such laborers and 

15 mechanics. 

16 (3) A provision requiring that the scale of 

17 wages to be paid shall be posted by the contractor 

18 in a prominent and easily accessible place at the site 

19 of the work in English and the predominant lan20 guage of each worker. 

21 (4) A provision requiring that there shall be 

22 withheld from the contractor so much of accrued 

23 payments as may be considered necessary by the 

24 contracting officer to pay to laborers and mechanics 

25 employed by the contractor or any subcontractor on 


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1 the work the difference between the rates of wages 

2 required by the contract to be paid laborers and me3 chanics on the work and the rates of wages received 

4 by such laborers and mechanics and not refunded to 

5 the contractor, subcontractors, or their agents. 

6 SEC. 5. ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION, JOB CREATION, AND 

7 JOB TRAINING PROGRAM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior, in 

9 consultation with the Secretaries of Commerce and Labor, 

10 shall develop a program of technical assistance, including 

11 recruitment and training, to aid employers in the Com12 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in securing 

13 employees from among United States authorized labor, in14 cluding lawfully admissible freely associated state citizen 

15 labor. 

16 (b) FUNDS AVAILABLE.—For each of the first 5 fis17 cal years beginning after the date of enactment of this 

18 Act, $500,000 shall be made available from funds appro19 priated to the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to Public 

20 Law 104–134 for the Federal-CNMI Immigration, Labor 

21 and Law Enforcement Initiative for the following activi22 ties: 

23 (1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR JOB DIVER24 SIFICATION.—Not less than $200,000 shall be avail25 able to reimburse the Secretary of Commerce for 


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1 providing additional technical assistance and other 

2 support to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar3 iana Islands to identify opportunities for and en4 courage diversification and growth of the Common5 wealth economy. The Secretary of Commerce shall 

6 consult with the Government of the Commonwealth 

7 of the Northern Mariana Islands, local businesses, 

8 the Secretary of the Interior, regional banks, and 

9 other experts in the local economy and shall assist 

10 in the development and implementation of a process 

11 to identify opportunities for and encourage diver12 sification and growth of the Commonwealth econ13 omy. All expenditures, other than for the costs of 

14 Federal personnel, shall require a non-Federal 

15 matching contribution of 50 percent and the Sec16 retary of Commerce shall provide a report on activi17 ties to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re18 sources and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

19 Senate and the Committee on Resources and the 

20 Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep21 resentatives by March 1 of each year. The Secretary 

22 of Commerce may supplement the funds provided 

23 under this section with other funds and resources 

24 available to the Secretary and shall undertake such 

25 other activities, pursuant to existing authorities of 


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1 the Department, as the Secretary decides will en2 courage diversification and growth of the Common3 wealth economy. 

4 (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR JOB TRAIN5 ING.—Not less than $300,000 shall be available to 

6 reimburse the Secretary of Labor for providing addi7 tional technical and other support to the Common8 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to train and 

9 actively recruit and hire persons authorized to work 

10 in the United States, including lawfully admissible 

11 freely associated state citizen labor, to fill employ12 ment vacancies in the Commonwealth of the North13 ern Mariana Islands. The Secretary of Labor shall 

14 consult with the Governor of the Commonwealth of 

15 the Northern Mariana Islands, local businesses, the 

16 College of the Northern Marianas, the Secretary of 

17 the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce and 

18 shall assist in the development and implementation 

19 of such a training program. All expenditures, other 

20 than for the costs of Federal personnel, shall require 

21 a non-Federal matching contribution of 50 percent 

22 and the Secretary of Labor shall provide a report on 

23 activities to the Committee on Energy and Natural 

24 Resources and the Committee on Appropriations of 

25 the Senate and the Committee on Resources and the 


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1 Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep2 resentatives by March 1 of each year. The Secretary 

3 of Labor may supplement the funds provided under 

4 this section with other funds and resources available 

5 to him and shall undertake such other activities, 

6 pursuant to existing authorities of the Department, 

7 as he decides will assist in such a training program 

8 in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is9 lands. 

10 SEC. 6. LABOR AND HUMAN RIGHTS STUDY; REPORT. 

11 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of the Interior shall con12 duct a study of the extent of human rights violations and 

13 labor rights violations in the Northern Mariana Islands, 

14 including the use of forced or indentured labor, and any 

15 efforts being taken by the Government of the United 

16 States or the Government of the Northern Mariana Island 

17 to address or prohibit such violations. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 

20 shall transmit to the Committee on Resources of the 

21 House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 

22 and Natural Resources of the Senate a report on the re23 sults of the study required by subsection (a). 

24 (c) CONSULTATION.—Appropriate Federal agencies, 

25 local government officials, law enforcement agencies, and 


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1 nongovernmental organizations active in instituting and 

2 protecting human and labor rights may be consulted when 

3 conducting the study and preparing the report required 

4 by this section. 

5 SEC. 7. EFFECT ON OTHER LAW. 

6 (a) TEXTILE FIBER PRODUCTS IDENTIFICATION

7 ACT.—The provisions of the amendments made by this 

8 Act shall be in addition to, but shall not otherwise modify, 

9 the requirements of the Textile Fiber Products Identifica10 tion Act (15 U.S.C. 70 et seq.). 

11 (b) TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION ACT OF

12 2000.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 

13 provisions of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 

14 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) shall apply in the Common15 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

16 SEC. 8. STUDY AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON IMMIGRATION 

17 AND NATIONAL SECURITY VULNERABILITIES. 

18 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of the Interior, in con19 sultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall 

20 conduct a study to determine security and immigration 

21 vulnerabilities in the Northern Mariana Islands. The study 

22 shall include a risk assessment of all ports of entry and 

23 critical infrastructure, an evaluation of the extent of orga24 nized crime in the Northern Mariana Islands, and an eval25 uation of whether and how to further incorporate the 


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1 Northern Mariana Islands into the Federal immigration 

2 and customs system. 

3 (b) REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later 

4 than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

5 the Secretary of the Interior shall transmit to the Com6 mittee on Homeland Security, the Committee on Re7 sources, and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House 

8 of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and 

9 Natural Resources, the Committee on Homeland Security 

10 and Governmental Affairs, and the Committee on the Ju11 diciary of the Senate a report on the results of the study 

12 required by subsection (a). The study shall identify and 

13 make recommendations regarding legislative, regulatory, 

14 and organizational changes necessary to improve coordina15 tion among the Federal and Commonwealth entities, to 

16 minimize the economic impact of the transition to Federal 

17 immigration law, and to enhance the security of the 

18 United States and the Commonwealth. 

19 (c) CONSULTATION.—Appropriate Federal agencies, 

20 local government officials, law enforcement agencies, and 

21 nongovernmental organizations with relevant expertise 

22 may be consulted when conducting the study and pre23 paring the report required by this section. 

Æ 


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