General Information
In July 1982, The Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) began operating a capped block grant program, called the Nutrition Assistance Program (NAP).
The Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Island group includes the major islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Rota.
The CNMI NAP block grant is authorized by Public Law 96-597. NAP is separate from SNAP.
Funding Structure and Participation Levels
CNMI’s block grant pays for 100% of benefits to eligible participants and administrative costs. The current block grant for fiscal year 2026 is $53,150,144.13. The NAP program must set eligibility and benefit levels to stay within the fixed block grant amount. As a result, an increase in NAP participation may result in the decrease of NAP benefits. On average, NAP serves nearly 5,300 participants monthly.
Program Administration and Operations
CNMI’s Department of Community and Cultural Affairs (DCCA) administers the program. We provide oversight for NAP, similar to our role of providing oversight for states’ and territories’ administration of SNAP.
CNMI designs its own set of program rules for its NAP. We approve these rules through an annual Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
Program Specific Components
NAP eligibility criteria are similar to SNAP; however, the maximum income and benefit levels are lower. The block grant also allows CNMI to design a program tailored to their unique cultural, social, and economic circumstances. For example, 30% of each allotment consists of coupons earmarked for the purchase of local commodities to provide work incentives, develop self-sufficiency, and stimulate economic development and local food production. These local commodities include food and nonfood items such as fishing equipment, garden supplies, and livestock.
NAP benefits are provided through an electric benefits transfer (EBT) card. CNMI NAP and SNAP benefits are not interoperable, meaning it is not possible for a CNMI coupon EBT card to be used outside of CNMI.