Attorney General Investigative Subpoenas Bill

At a glance

• What: S.B. 24-53 would prohibit the Office of the Attorney General from issuing criminal investigative subpoenas, or adopting regulations to do so, unless explicitly authorized by CNMI law or a judicial officer.
• Where it stands: The Judiciary, Government and Law committee recommended passage as written (Standing Committee Report 24-80); the Senate passed it 6-0 on August 14, 2026. House action is not in the record.
• Disagreement: A speaker from the Attorney General's office, in an individual capacity, asked the Senate to table the bill and work with the office instead.

Public comment

• The speaker called investigative subpoenas a standard law enforcement tool used in every state and territory, said the Attorney General had already adopted regulations with protections for people, and argued that requiring a warrant forces prosecutors to file charges before gathering evidence.
• He acknowledged the Senate's concern about overreach and asked that the bill be sent back to committee for a collaborative rewrite.
• The Senate did not discuss the bill on the floor and passed it unchanged.

Sources

• Senate Journal, August 14, 2026 (Eighth Special Session, SJ 24-31): https://cnmileg.net/documents/senate/journal/24/1589.pdf

Log

2026-08-14 - CNMI Senate

Report 24-80 adopted by voice vote; S.B. 24-53 passed 6-0 (Calvo, Hofschneider, Magofna, D. Manglona, P. Manglona, King-Nabors yes; Babauta, Castro, Cruz absent and excused).