Saipan lawmakers and the Commonwealth Casino Commission (CCC) are divided over the legislator’s plans to increase the number of commissioners.

Marianas Variety reported that the Senate Gaming Committee is mulling on increasing the number of the members of the commission from five to seven through a new legislation. Sen. Justo Quitugua’s proposed Senate Bill 20-87 will require that the additional members to Carolinian and a woman.

Under the present setup, the CCC is composed of three members representing Saipan and representatives from Rota and Tinian. The commission is also all made up of men: Board Chairman Juan M. Sablan, Joseph Reyes, Alvaro Santos, Justin Manglona, and Martin San Nicolas.

Quitugua pointed out the legislation is needed in order to satisfy the constitutional mandate that every board or commission should have at least one member who is Carolinian and at least one female member. His proposal, however, was quickly opposed by the CCC’s board, saying that adding two more commissioners would cost the commission around $250,000.