Atalig, Castro subpoenaed over CNMI's BOOST program

Over in the CNMI, Secretary of Finance David Atalig and the governor's chief of staff former Guam Sen. Wil Castro received their subpoenas issued by a joint legislative committee seeking detailed information about the BOOST program.
The program, funded by American Rescue Plan federal funds, is meant to assist local businesses and non-profits. House Democrats are questioning the timing of the program, some describing it as "vote buying" ahead of Friday's gubernatorial runoff election. The subpoenas "command" Atalig and Castro to respond by Nov. 29 with information related to BOOST, including its recipients, contracts, regulations, names of the review panel, all sources of funding, and copies of business licenses issue from May 2022 for applicants.
BOOST stands for "Building Optimism, Opportunity, and Stability Together. Lawmakers also issued separate subpoenas for agency leaders involved to testify before them in mid-December. Governor Ralph Torres has denied allegations of vote buying.