

Legal Assistance
Definitions. Where they appear in this Act the following terms have the following meanings:
​
(a) “Qualifying Certificate”. A “Qualifying Certificate”
is a contract valid for a given period of time, executed by the Governor upon recommendation of the Commonwealth Development Authority Board, between the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Beneficiary, which has qualified for certain tax rebates or tax abatements or for both in return for development, expansion or renovation of a desirable business activity
(b) “Beneficiary”. The recipient of a Qualifying Certificate shall be known as a “Beneficiary”.
(c) “Board” shall mean the Board of Directors of the Commonwealth Development Authority, unless the context indicates otherwise.
(d) “Certificate of Compliance”. A certificate issued by the commonwealth Development Authority that a Beneficiary has complied with the terms and conditions of the Qualifying Certificate for the previous year.
(e) “Capital Investment” shall mean:
(1) the actual money invested in the project, excluding interest on any loan, for:
(i) the acquisition of any estate land, including improvements thereon, if any, within the Commonwealth;
(ii) cost of construction;
(iii) start-up costs to include the following:
(A) furniture and fixtures;
(B) salaries and miscellaneous personnel costs;
(C) machinery;
(D) equipment;
(E) inventory;
(F) supplies and other expenses incurred in the development of the activity under
a Qualifying Certificate;
(2) any funds paid to or in-kind contribution transferred to and accepted by the government as a public benefit contribution.
(f) “Expansion” shall mean the extent or amount by which a building, project or activity is increased in dimension, size, volume, capacity or an increase in the number of locations or branches from which the Beneficiary conducts business.
In no event, however, shall an event or a collection of events or action that was intended to qualify as an expansion be deemed an expansion if it does not result in a corresponding increase in commercial revenues, products or services, and employment that can be attributed to the purported expansion. The renovation of an existing building, project or activity does not qualify as an expansion except as provided in subsection (g) of this section.
(g) “Renovation” shall mean the modernization, reconstruction, remodeling, upgrading or substantial improvement of an existing building, project or activity which substantially increases the commercial potential of the building, project or activity.