Congress quietly expands foreign worker program in U.S. territory through 2039
H.R. 9787 — Northern Mariana Islands Labor Stabilization Act · Filed by Kimberlyn King-Hinds (R-MP) · Introduced Jul 20, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill extends and modifies the Northern Mariana Islands' temporary foreign worker program (the 'labor stabilization program') through at least 2039, allowing the federal government to admit foreign workers to fill jobs in the territory when U.S. workers are unavailable. It increases the annual cap on permits to 15,000, adds 3,000 extra permits for construction jobs, aligns the territory's labor certification process with Guam's rules, and creates a pathway for certain long-term foreign workers already in the territory to remain for up to 3-year periods. The bill also imposes a $150 fee on employers filing petitions and allows the program to be extended in 10-year increments if labor shortages persist.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is to extend and expand a temporary foreign worker program for the Northern Mariana Islands, with modifications to caps, wage floors, and eligibility criteria. It is not a commemorative, vanity, or purely deregulatory measure—it is a substantive labor-market intervention.
What the text implies
- The bill grants the Secretary of Labor broad discretion to extend the program in 10-year increments based on subjective 'labor needs' determinations, potentially locking the territory into a long-term reliance on foreign workers with minimal congressional oversight.
- The prevailing wage requirement is set at 75% of the federal prevailing wage or minimum wage (whichever is greater), which may be below actual market wages and could depress compensation for U.S. workers and residents in the territory.
The full analysis lists 5 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
employers in the Northern Mariana Islands (construction, hospitality, service sectors); DHS (enforcement fee revenue); foreign workers (access to employment in the territory)