Public Law 115-218 Workforce Act of 2018

H. R. 5956

One Hundred Fifteenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT T H E S E C O N D S E S S I O N
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the third day of January, two thousand and eighteen

An Act
To incentivize the hiring of United States workers in the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Northern Mariana Islands U.S.
Workforce Act of 2018’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to increase the percentage of United States workers
(as defined in section 6(i) of the Joint Resolution entitled ‘‘A
Joint Resolution to approve the ‘Covenant To Establish a
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political
Union with the United States of America’, and for other purposes’’ (48 U.S.C. 1806)) in the total workforce of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, while maintaining
the minimum number of workers who are not United States
workers to meet the changing demands of the Northern Mariana Islands’ economy;
(2) to encourage the hiring of United States workers into
such workforce; and
(3) to ensure that no United States worker—
(A) is at a competitive disadvantage for employment
compared to a worker who is not a United States worker;
or
(B) is displaced by a worker who is not a United
States worker.
SEC. 3. TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6 of the Joint Resolution entitled
‘‘A Joint Resolution to approve the ‘Covenant To Establish a
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union
with the United States of America’, and for other purposes’’ (48
U.S.C. 1806) is amended—
(1) in subsection (a)—
(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘2019’’ and inserting
‘‘2029’’; and
(B) by amending paragraph (6) to read as follows:
‘‘(6) FEES FOR TRAINING UNITED STATES WORKERS.—
‘‘(A) SUPPLEMENTAL FEE.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In addition to fees imposed
pursuant to section 286(m) of the Immigration and

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Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(m)) to recover the full
costs of adjudication services, the Secretary shall
impose an annual supplemental fee of $200 per nonimmigrant worker on each prospective employer who
is issued a permit under subsection (d)(3) during the
transition program. A prospective employer that is
issued a permit with a validity period of longer than
1 year shall pay the fee for each year of requested
validity at the time the permit is requested.
‘‘(ii) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—Beginning in fiscal
year 2020, the Secretary, through notice in the Federal
Register, may annually adjust the supplemental fee
imposed under clause (i) by a percentage equal to
the annual change in the Consumer Price Index for
All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics.
‘‘(iii) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts collected pursuant
to clause (i) shall be deposited into the Treasury of
the Commonwealth Government for the sole and exclusive purpose of funding vocational education,
apprenticeships, or other training programs for United
States workers.
‘‘(iv) FRAUD PREVENTION AND DETECTION FEE.—In
addition to the fees described in clause (i), the Secretary—
‘‘(I) shall impose, on each prospective employer
filing a petition under this subsection for one or
more nonimmigrant workers, a $50 fraud prevention and detection fee; and
‘‘(II) shall deposit and use the fees collected
under subclause (I) for the sole purpose of preventing and detecting immigration benefit fraud
in the Northern Mariana Islands, in accordance
with section 286(v)(2)(B) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(v)(2)(B)).
‘‘(B) PLAN FOR THE EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS.—Not later
than 120 days before the first day of fiscal year 2020,
and annually thereafter, the Governor of the Commonwealth Government shall submit to the Secretary of
Labor—
‘‘(i) a plan for the expenditures of amounts deposited under subparagraph (A)(iii);
‘‘(ii) a projection of the effectiveness of such
expenditures in the placement of United States
workers into jobs held by non-United States workers;
and
‘‘(iii) a report on the changes in employment of
United States workers attributable to expenditures of
such amounts during the previous year.
‘‘(C) DETERMINATION AND REPORT.—Not later than 120
days after receiving each expenditure plan under subparagraph (B)(i), the Secretary of Labor shall—
‘‘(i) issue a determination on the plan; and
‘‘(ii) submit a report to Congress that describes
the effectiveness of the Commonwealth Government
at meeting the goals set forth in such plan.

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‘‘(D) PAYMENT RESTRICTION.—Payments may not be
made in a fiscal year from amounts deposited under
subparagraph (A)(iii) before the Secretary of Labor has
approved the expenditure plan submitted under subparagraph (B)(i) for that fiscal year.’’;
(2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) REPORT.—Not later than December 1, 2027, the Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources of the Senate, the Committee on the
Judiciary of the Senate, the Committee on Natural Resources
of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on the
Judiciary of the House of Representatives that—
‘‘(A) projects the number of asylum claims the Secretary anticipates following the termination of the transition period; and
‘‘(B) describes the efforts of the Secretary to ensure
appropriate interdiction efforts, provide for appropriate
treatment of asylum seekers, and prepare to accept and
adjudicate asylum claims in the Commonwealth.’’;
(3) in subsection (d)—
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (5) as
paragraphs (3) through (6), respectively;
(B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
‘‘(2) PROTECTION FOR UNITED STATES WORKERS.—
‘‘(A) TEMPORARY LABOR CERTIFICATION.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Beginning with petitions filed
with employment start dates in fiscal year 2020, a
petition to import a nonimmigrant worker under this
subsection may not be approved by the Secretary
unless the petitioner has applied to the Secretary of
Labor for a temporary labor certification confirming
that—
‘‘(I) there are not sufficient United States
workers in the Commonwealth who are able,
willing, qualified, and available at the time and
place needed to perform the services or labor
involved in the petition; and
‘‘(II) employment of the nonimmigrant worker
will not adversely affect the wages and working
conditions of similarly employed United States
workers.
‘‘(ii) PETITION.—After receiving a temporary labor
certification under clause (i), a prospective employer
may submit a petition to the Secretary for a Commonwealth Only Transitional Worker permit on behalf of
the nonimmigrant worker.
‘‘(B) PREVAILING WAGE SURVEY.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In order to effectuate the
requirement for a temporary labor certification under
subparagraph (A)(i), the Secretary of Labor shall use,
or make available to employers, an occupational wage
survey conducted by the Governor that the Secretary
of Labor has determined meets the statistical standards for determining prevailing wages in the Commonwealth on an annual basis.
‘‘(ii) ALTERNATIVE METHOD FOR DETERMINING THE
PREVAILING WAGE.—In the absence of an occupational

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wage survey approved by the Secretary of Labor under
clause (i), the prevailing wage for an occupation in
the Commonwealth shall be the arithmetic mean of
the wages of workers similarly employed in the territory of Guam according to the wage component of
the Occupational Employment Statistics Survey conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
‘‘(C) MINIMUM WAGE.—An employer shall pay each
Commonwealth Only Transitional Worker a wage that is
not less than the greater of—
‘‘(i) the statutory minimum wage in the Commonwealth;
‘‘(ii) the Federal minimum wage; or
‘‘(iii) the prevailing wage in the Commonwealth
for the occupation in which the worker is employed.’’;
(C) by amending paragraph (3), as redesignated, to
read as follows:
‘‘(3) PERMITS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish,
administer, and enforce a system for allocating and determining terms and conditions of permits to be issued to
prospective employers for each nonimmigrant worker
described in this subsection who would not otherwise be
eligible for admission under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
‘‘(B) NUMERICAL CAP.—The number of permits issued
under subparagraph (A) may not exceed—
‘‘(i) 13,000 for fiscal year 2019;
‘‘(ii) 12,500 for fiscal year 2020;
‘‘(iii) 12,000 for fiscal year 2021;
‘‘(iv) 11,500 for fiscal year 2022;
‘‘(v) 11,000 for fiscal year 2023;
‘‘(vi) 10,000 for fiscal year 2024;
‘‘(vii) 9,000 for fiscal year 2025;
‘‘(viii) 8,000 for fiscal year 2026;
‘‘(ix) 7,000 for fiscal year 2027;
‘‘(x) 6,000 for fiscal year 2028;
‘‘(xi) 5,000 for fiscal year 2029; and
‘‘(xii) 1,000 for the first quarter of fiscal year 2030.
‘‘(C) REPORTS REGARDING THE PERCENTAGE OF UNITED
STATES WORKERS.—
‘‘(i) BY GOVERNOR.—Not later than 60 days before
the end of each calendar year, the Governor shall
submit a report to the Secretary that identifies the
ratio between United States workers and other workers
in the Commonwealth’s workforce based on income
tax filings with the Commonwealth for the tax year.
‘‘(ii) BY GAO.—Not later than December 31, 2019,
and biennially thereafter, the Comptroller General of
the United States shall submit a report to the Chair
and Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy
and Natural Resources of the Senate, the Chair and
Ranking Member of the Committee on Natural
Resources of the House of Representatives, the Chair
and Ranking Member of the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the

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Chair and Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives that identifies the ratio between United States
workers and other workers in the Commonwealth’s
workforce during each of the previous 5 calendar years.
‘‘(D) PETITION; ISSUANCE OF PERMITS.—
‘‘(i) SUBMISSION.—A prospective employer may
submit a petition for a permit under this paragraph
not earlier than—
‘‘(I) 120 days before the date on which the
prospective employer needs the beneficiary’s services; or
‘‘(II) if the petition is for the renewal of an
existing permit, not earlier than 180 days before
the expiration of such permit.
‘‘(ii) EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION.—The Secretary
shall establish a system for each employer of a
Commonwealth Only Transitional Worker to submit
a semiannual report to the Secretary and the Secretary
of Labor that provides evidence to verify the continuing
employment and payment of such worker under the
terms and conditions set forth in the permit petition
that the employer filed on behalf of such worker.
‘‘(iii) REVOCATION.—
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in the Secretary’s discretion, may revoke a permit approved
under this paragraph for good cause, including
if—
‘‘(aa) the employer fails to maintain the
continuous employment of the subject worker,
fails to pay the subject worker, fails to timely
file a semiannual report required under this
paragraph, commits any other violation of the
terms and conditions of employment, or otherwise ceases to operate as a legitimate business
(as defined in clause (iv)(II));
‘‘(bb) the beneficiary of such petition does
not apply for admission to the Commonwealth
by the date that is 10 days after the period
of petition validity begins, if the employer has
requested consular processing; or
‘‘(cc) the employer fails to provide a
former, current, or prospective Commonwealth
Only Transitional Worker, not later than 21
business days after receiving a written request
from such worker, with the original (or a certified copy of the original) of all petitions,
notices, and other written communication
related to the worker (other than sensitive
financial or proprietary information of the
employer, which may be redacted) that has
been exchanged between the employer and the
Department of Labor, the Department of
Homeland Security, or any other Federal
agency or department.
‘‘(II) REALLOCATION OF REVOKED PETITION.—
Notwithstanding subparagraph (C), for each

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permit revoked under subclause (I) in a fiscal year,
an additional permit shall be made available for
use in the subsequent fiscal year.
‘‘(iv) LEGITIMATE BUSINESS.—
‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—A permit may not be
approved for a prospective employer that is not
a legitimate business.
‘‘(II) DEFINED TERM.—In this clause, the term
‘legitimate business’ means a real, active, and operating commercial or entrepreneurial undertaking
that the Secretary, in the Secretary’s sole discretion, determines—
‘‘(aa) produces services or goods for profit,
or is a governmental, charitable, or other validly recognized nonprofit entity;
‘‘(bb) meets applicable legal requirements
for doing business in the Commonwealth;
‘‘(cc) has substantially complied with wage
and hour laws, occupational safety and health
requirements, and all other Federal, Commonwealth, and local requirements related to
employment during the preceding 5 years;
‘‘(dd) does not directly or indirectly engage
in, or knowingly benefit from, prostitution,
human trafficking, or any other activity that
is illegal under Federal, Commonwealth, or
local law;
‘‘(ee) is a participant in good standing in
the E-Verify program;
‘‘(ff) does not have, as an owner, investor,
manager, operator, or person meaningfully
involved with the undertaking, any individual
who has been the owner, investor, manager,
operator, or otherwise meaningfully involved
with an undertaking that does not comply with
item (cc) or (dd), or is the agent of such an
individual; and
‘‘(gg) is not a successor in interest to an
undertaking that does not comply with item
(cc) or (dd).
‘‘(v) CONSTRUCTION OCCUPATIONS.—A permit for
Construction and Extraction Occupations (as defined
by the Department of Labor as Standard Occupational
Classification Group 47–0000) may not be issued for
any worker other than a worker described in paragraph
(7)(B).’’;
(D) in paragraph (4), as redesignated, by inserting
‘‘or to Guam for the purpose of transit only’’ after ‘‘except
admission to the Commonwealth’’;
(E) in paragraph (5), as redesignated, by adding at
the end the following: ‘‘Approval of a petition filed by
the new employer with a start date within the same fiscal
year as the current permit shall not count against the
numerical limitation for that period.’’; and
(F) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(7) REQUIREMENT TO REMAIN OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED
STATES.—

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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph
(B)—
‘‘(i) a permit for a Commonwealth Only Transitional Worker—
‘‘(I) shall remain valid for a period that may
not exceed 1 year; and
‘‘(II) may be renewed for not more than two
consecutive, 1-year periods; and
‘‘(ii) at the expiration of the second renewal period,
an alien may not again be eligible for such a permit
until after the alien has remained outside of the United
States for a continuous period of at least 30 days
prior to the submission of a renewal petition on their
behalf.
‘‘(B) LONG-TERM WORKERS.—An alien who was
admitted to the Commonwealth as a Commonwealth Only
Transitional Worker during fiscal year 2015, and during
every subsequent fiscal year beginning before the date
of the enactment of the Northern Mariana Islands U.S.
Workforce Act of 2018, may receive a permit for a Commonwealth Only Transitional Worker that is valid for a period
that may not exceed 3 years and may be renewed for
additional 3-year periods during the transition period. A
permit issued under this subparagraph shall be counted
toward the numerical cap for each fiscal year within the
period of petition validity.’’; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) COMMONWEALTH.—The term ‘Commonwealth’ means
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
‘‘(2) COMMONWEALTH ONLY TRANSITION WORKER.—The term
‘Commonwealth Only Transition Worker’ means an alien who
has been admitted into the Commonwealth under the transition
program and is eligible for a permit under subsection (d)(3).
‘‘(3) GOVERNOR.—The term ‘Governor’ means the Governor
of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
‘‘(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary
of Homeland Security.
‘‘(5) TAX YEAR.—The term ‘tax year’ means the fiscal year
immediately preceding the current fiscal year.
‘‘(6) UNITED STATES WORKER.—The term ‘United States
worker’ means any worker who is—
‘‘(A) a citizen or national of the United States;
‘‘(B) an alien who has been lawfully admitted for
permanent residence; or
‘‘(C) a citizen of the Republic of the Marshall Islands,
the Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of
Palau (known collectively as the ‘Freely Associated States’)
who has been lawfully admitted to the United States pursuant to—
‘‘(i) section 141 of the Compact of Free Association
between the Government of the United States and
the Governments of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia (48 U.S.C. 1921 note); or
‘‘(ii) section 141 of the Compact of Free Association
between the United States and the Government of
Palau (48 U.S.C. 1931 note).’’.

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(b) RULEMAKING.—
(1) SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY.—Notwithstanding
the requirements under section 553(b) of title 5, United States
Code, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall publish in
the Federal Register, not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, an interim final rule that specifies
how the Secretary intends to implement the amendments made
by subsection (a) that relate to the responsibilities of the Secretary.
(2) SECRETARY OF LABOR.—Notwithstanding the requirements under section 553(b) of title 5, United States Code,
the Secretary of Labor shall publish in the Federal Register,
not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act, an interim final rule that specifies how the Secretary
intends to implement the amendments made by subsection
(a) that relate to the responsibilities of the Secretary.
(3) RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE GOVERNOR.—In developing
the interim final rules under paragraphs (1) and (2), the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of Labor—
(A) shall each consider, in good faith, any written
public recommendations regarding the implementation of
this Act that are submitted by the Governor of the
Commonwealth not later than 60 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act; and
(B) may include provisions in such rule that are responsive to any recommendation of the Governor that is not
inconsistent with this Act, including a recommendation
to reserve a number of permits each year for occupational
categories necessary to maintain public health or safety
in the Commonwealth.
(c) DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—
Not later than October 1, 2019, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit a report to Congress that
describes the fulfillment of the Department of the Interior’s responsibilities to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands—
(1) to identify opportunities for economic growth and diversification;
(2) to provide assistance in recruiting, training, and hiring
United States workers; and
(3) to provide such other technical assistance and consultation as outlined in section 702(e) of the Consolidated Natural
Resources Act of 2008 (48 U.S.C. 1807).
(d) OUTREACH AND TRAINING.—Not later than 120 days after
the date on which the Secretary of Labor publishes an interim
final rule in the Federal Register in accordance with subsection
(b)(2), the Secretary shall conduct outreach and training in the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for employers
and workers on the foreign labor certification process set forth
in section 6 of the Joint Resolution entitled ‘‘A Joint Resolution
to approve the ‘Covenant To Establish a Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States
of America’, and for other purposes’’, as amended by subsection
(b), including the minimum wage requirement set forth in subsection (d)(2)(C) of such section.
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as specifically otherwise provided,
this Act and the amendments made by this Act—

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(A) shall take effect on the date of the enactment
of this Act; and
(B) shall apply to petitions for Commonwealth Only
Transitional Workers filed on or after such date.
(2) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY.—
The Secretary of Homeland Security, in the Secretary’s discretion, may delay the effective date of any provision of this
Act relating to Commonwealth Only Transition Workers until
the effective date of the interim final rule described in subsection (b), except for provisions providing annual numerical
caps for such workers.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.