Reports from American Samoa say it's unlikely that the governor's plan to introduce a guest worker permit will be in place by the start of the new year.
The plan was to help the two canneries stabilise employee numbers during the holidays.
The governor had planned on introducing legislation to implement the guest worker program during the last Fono session but this did not happen.
When asked about the status of the proposal, the governor said that he has discussed the matter with the Attorney General, but they have not arrived at a final legal position on whether or not the guest worker permits can be implemented under existing laws.
He says the administration is prepared to propose a statute to the next session of the Legislature which is to be convened in January.
