GOVERNOR Arnold I. Palacios on Tuesday signed into law House Bills 23-15 and H.B. 23-60.
Authored by Rep. Vicente C. Camacho, H.B. 23-15 is now Public Law 23-6, while H.B. 23-60, authored by Rep. Blas Jonathan Attao, is now P.L. 23-8.
P.L. 23-6 addresses public corruption by expanding and clarifying the offense of official misconduct and establishing felony and misdemeanor punishments against public servants who commit misconduct in public office. It imposes a 10-year prison term and a $50,000 fine on a public official who commits an illegal act under the color of office if the illegal act was a felony offense; two years imprisonment and $1,500 fine if the illegal act was a misdemeanor; and one-year imprisonment and $1,000 fine if the illegal act was not a criminal offense.
P.L. 23-8 reappropriates the remaining $881,987 of the $15 million exclusive casino license fee that Imperial Pacific International paid in 2018 to fund the Health Network Program, “provided that…$50,000 shall be reserved for inter-island medical referrals.”
For fiscal year 2024, the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. said it needs $9.66 million for the Health Network Program, excluding payroll.
Arnold I. Palacios
