Tinian Overrides Governor's Veto, Approves Stablecoin Bill

The Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific, has passed a bill allowing the small island of Tinian to issue a stablecoin, overriding a previous veto by Governor Arnold Palacios. The 20-member House voted 14-2 to overturn the governor's veto, which was initially issued on April 11. The bill permits the Tinian local government to grant licenses to internet casinos and includes provisions for the Tinian treasurer to issue, manage, and redeem a "Tinian Stable Token."

The territory's nine-member Senate had previously revived the bill on May 9, voting 7-1 to override the veto. This required a two-thirds majority in the House to pass. The bill was originally passed by a four-member Tinian delegation to the Marianas legislature on March 12 and sent to Governor Palacios.

Tinian, with a population of just over 2,000 residents, has a tourism-based economy. Its local government, the Municipality of Tinian and Aguiguan, is one of four municipalities in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The stablecoin, named the Marianas US Dollar (MUSD), will be backed by cash and US Treasury bills held in reserve by the Tinian Municipal Treasury. The Tinian government has chosen local tech services firm Marianas Rai Corporation as the exclusive infrastructure provider for MUSD, which will be launched on the eCash blockchain.

Governor Palacios had vetoed the bill citing several legal issues and potential unconstitutionality. He also expressed concerns that the bill would regulate an activity that could not be clearly restricted to Tinian and lacked necessary enforcement measures to counter illegal gambling. Despite these concerns, the House and Senate both voted to override the veto, indicating strong support for the bill among lawmakers.

Before the vote, lawmakers heard from the public and discussed the implications of overturning the governor's veto. Independent House floor leader Marissa Flores expressed concerns over the bill, while Marianas Rai Corp. co-founder and technology chief Vin Armani urged lawmakers to undo the veto, stating that the bill would attract significant investment and tax revenue from the crypto industry. Clyde Norita, a Marianas Rai Corp. director and local legal cannabis mogul, emphasized the dire state of the local economy and the potential benefits of the bill for the region.

Representative Flores, who voted against the override, acknowledged the region's financial needs but expressed discomfort with being forced to make decisions based on desperation. Others, such as Republican Representative Patrick San Nicolas, saw the bill as a way to pull the region out of an economic crisis and build a digital industry generating revenue from a licensed jurisdiction. The bill's passage positions Tinian to potentially become the first US public entity to issue a stablecoin, with a deadline of July to beat the state of Wyoming, which is also aiming to issue a stablecoin by then.