SAIPAN — The Commonwealth Cannabis Commission is being stripped of its powers and effectively shut down under a new executive order from Gov. David M. Apatang, which transfers all cannabis regulatory authority to the Alcohol Beverage and Tobacco Control Division (ABTCD) of the Department of Commerce.
Executive Order 2025-005, signed November 18, 2025, cites the governor’s constitutional authority to reorganize executive agencies “for efficient administration” and describes the move as a response to “trying economic times” and the need to consolidate duplicative instrumentalities.
In the order, Apatang notes that as of July 31, 2025, the Cannabis Commission reported fiscal year-to-date excise and surtax collections of $113,880.33, well below the Commonwealth’s liability for compensation owed to the five commissioners, each earning $55,000 a year.
Under Section 1(a) of the order, all duties and responsibilities of the Commonwealth Cannabis Commission under Title 4, Division 5, Chapter 21 of the Commonwealth Code are transferred to the ABTCD, which was originally created under Public Law 11-75 to regulate alcohol and tobacco.
Because the Commission is “divested…of any statutory duties or responsibilities,” the order states that the commissioners “no longer owe duties within the meaning of NMI Const. Article III, Section 21” and that their terms are “terminated for cause.”
The Commission’s managing director and other staff, except for the commissioners, are transferred to the Department of Commerce and will continue their work under the supervision of the Secretary of Commerce or designee as employees of the ABTCD.
The executive order keeps the existing cannabis statutes and regulations in place but rewrites who is in charge: references to the Cannabis Commission now mean the ABTCD, and references to commissioners now mean the Secretary of Commerce.
The order must be submitted to the Legislature and will become effective 60 days after submission unless modified or disapproved by a majority of members in each house.
