In 2002, Senate Bill 13-11, also known as the Northern Mariana Islands National Guard Act, was proposed to the Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Legislature that established a militia for the Northern Mariana Islands. The bill was signed to law by Northern Mariana Islands governor Juan Babauta as Public Law 13-32 on November 25, 2002.[2] In 2003, the U.S. House of Representatives declined to authorize $275 million in funding for the creation of the proposed National Guard unit due to budget constraints and concerns over whether the Northern Mariana Islands could form such a unit given the commonwealth's population of roughly 50,000 (about one-third the population of Guam). In 2004, Gov. Babauta met with the adjutant general of the Guam National Guard to discuss the militia’s composition, organization, and other pertinent matters, including funding.[3]
On August 2, 2015, Typhoon Soudelor struck the Northern Mariana Islands as the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane, causing over $20 million in damage to the island of Saipan. On August 4, units of the Guam National Guard and the United States Coast Guard were deployed to assist in relief efforts. Del. Sablan renewed the call for a separate National Guard unit in the Northern Mariana Islands, later commenting, “We pray we never have to experience another disaster like Typhoon Soudelor. But if we do, we will be better prepared to respond if we have our own National Guard to call to service.”[5]
Feasibility study
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 mandated that the National Guard Bureau conduct a study regarding the feasibility of establishing a National Guard unit in the Northern Mariana Islands. Released in August 2015, the study concluded that a National Guard for the Northern Mariana Islands composed of two company-sized units (in addition to U.S. Army Reserve personnel already residing in Saipan) was feasible but required several major actions, including changes to the federal law that governs the National Guard.[6]