FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (September 23, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Two bills including Guam as a nuclear fallout downwinder in the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) were introduced in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on September 22, 2021. The original RECA legislation covered those affected by nuclear fallout during atmospheric testing in Nevada and the Marshall Islands, and the new bills introduced in Congress amend it to expand eligibility and improve compensation and benefits.

The original RECA legislation, signed in 1990, did not include Guam as a “downwinder” or area affected by nuclear fallout. Mr. Robert N. Celestial, President of the Pacific Association of Radiation Survivors (PARS) and others gave written and oral testimony in 2004 to the Board on Radiation Effects Research (BRER) Committee to address Guam’s RECA eligibility. Celestial’s testimony, in conjunction with other testimonies like those provided by Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo, Dr. Chris Perez, and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Charles Bert Schreiber convinced the BRER Committee to conclude in 2005 that Guam residents did receive measurable fallout during the period of U.S. nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific from 1946 to 1962.

S. 2798 was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) with eight co-sponsors. The House of Representatives bill was introduced by Representative Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM) and 14 co-sponsors including Guam’s Delegate Michael F.Q. San Nicolas. The bills would extend coverage to claimants in Guam for the Pacific test sites; increase RECA awards for “downwinders” from $50,000 to $150,000; provide coverage for additional forms of cancer; and extend the claims filing period for 19 more years.

Specifically, the new bills provide those persons present in Guam for at least one year from 1946 to 1962 and were diagnosed with cancer are eligible for $150,000 compensation and medical benefits under RECA. The cancer diagnoses eligible under RECA include:

• leukemia (excluding chronic lymphocytic leukemia)
• multiple myeloma
• lymphoma (other than Hodgkin’s disease), and primary cancers of the:
• thyroid
• male or female breast
• esophagus
• stomach
• pharynx
• small intestine
• pancreas
• bile ducts
• gallbladder
• salivary gland
• urinary bladder
• brain
• colon
• ovary
• liver (except if cirrhosis or hepatitis B is indicated), and
• lung.

According to incidence data reported from Guam to the Pacific Regional Central Cancer Registry between 2007 and 2018, seven of the top ten adult cancers on Guam are compensable under RECA.

“I want to thank Senator Crapo, Senator Luján, Representative Leger Fernández, and their co-sponsors, including Guam’s own Delegate Michael F. Q. San Nicolas for introducing their legislation in support of adding Guam as a RECA downwinder,” stated Speaker Terlaje. “This legislation is important for securing the justified compensation and benefits our island radiation survivors need. The $150,000 for each cancer patient or survivor will help offset the exorbitant costs of treatment in Guam and improve our island’s overall access to healthcare opportunities.”

Speaker Terlaje plans to introduce a resolution this week that expresses the 36^th Guam Legislature’s support of both Congressional bills to recognize and provide benefits for Guam radiation survivors.

Speaker Terlaje also wants to extend her thanks to PARS for their work in getting the new bills introduced: “For over 20 years PARS has put forth education campaigns, solicited community input to tell the stories of Guam radiation survivors, and show our island’s support for RECA. Un dungkulu na Si Yu’us Ma’åse’ to PARS President Robert Celestial and PARS members, past and present who helped make Guam’s inclusion in these new RECA bills possible.”

Copy of Senate bill (taken from Senator Crapo Press Release)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (September 21, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Speaker Therese Terlaje, Legislature Oversight Chairperson on Health, and senators, held a Virtual Roundtable with Administrator Lillian Posadas, as well as board trustees, administrative and medical personnel of the Guam Memorial Hospital. The discussion provided an overview of GMHA’s strategic plan, COVID-19 response efforts, financial posture, and efforts to achieve financial stability, CMS and regulatory compliance, and capital infrastructure progress and plans.

During the roundtable, Speaker Terlaje noted that it was good to hear that GMHA received $26.5 million in federal grants and $7.2 million in ARP funding for FY 2021. GMHA updated the Committee that the Electronic Health Records System is 72% complete, that A&E designs were complete for many of the HVAC upgrades and the hospital roof, and shared progress on improvements to the Telemedicine program.  However, the Electronic Health Records system project has been temporarily put on hold while staff is working to handle the surge of patients.

In addition, Dr. Joleen Aguon, Associate Administrator of Clinical Services, clarified the Regeneron policy noting that a majority of their supply is going to the Guam Regional Medical City transfusion clinic and that the limited space in the GMH emergency room hinders the public hospital’s ability to expand its clinic and treatment capacity.

The Legislature Oversight Chair on Health urged the board for more transparency on CMS reporting and COVID details that help the community recognize symptoms and act swiftly to get medical help as needed.

Speaker Terlaje closed by thanking GMHA and urged continued updates for the people of Guam and stated “It’s very important we continue to work together to foster confidence in our public hospital, confidence in our plans moving forward, and confidence in our response to COVID.”

This is Public Health’s Data/ Surveillance Update on Recent COVID-19 Mortality as of 9/20/2021.

Notable data they share include:

62% of recent deaths were DOA or “dead on arrival”

71% of recent deaths tested positive on the same day they died (or immediately afterward), implying neither they nor anyone else knew they were infected

50% of DOA deaths had known co-morbidities, with the other 50% not having enough information to report

60% of non-DOA deaths had known co-morbidities

This means that getting tested is important and we need to alert island residents with known co-morbidities of the danger they face if they contract COVID-19.

In order to make informed decisions, we need to be informed of the data.

In Public Health’s latest COVID-19 Data/ Surveillance 2021 Update, the report states that “within the last month, there have been 3,748 positive COVID-19 cases, with 607 of these cases were children ages 0-11 or 16.2% . . . Among the cases ages 0- 11 years, 194 reported being exposed in their household (32%) and 43 reported being exposed in their community (7%) respectively.”

We need more data like these moving forward to keep our community leaders and members updated.

Here’s the entire report:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (September 11, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam)  

Now that the FY 2022 budget has lapsed into law, it is time for the administration to implement the priorities in the $937 million budget set forth by the Legislature. This budget was constructed with no information from the administration regarding how $600 million in American Rescue Plan funds will be used to move our island forward during this pandemic and supplement the FY 2022 budget. 

Regardless, a successful budget requires continuous oversight and transparency, adherence to the law and spending priorities contained in the law, and critical checks and balances for the benefit of the people of Guam. Adjusting the FY 2021 budget to ensure all revenues are accounted for and appropriated for tax refunds is a crucial addition to the FY 2022 Budget Act. All budgets are based on projections and need to be adjusted throughout the year so that it is responsible and responsive to agencies’ needs and critical services for the community. 

The FY22 budget bill as passed prioritizes current FY 2021 revenues for tax refunds, including money received from Section 30 and other taxes, in contrast to the reduction of the general fund amount presented for refunds in the initial FY22 Substitute Bill and its further reduction on the floor. I want the people’s money returned to them now when they need it. It is the Legislature that has mandated through budgets that refunds are a priority and the Legislature should not go back on that policy now especially with all of the federal funds the administration is currently holding and the additional funds it is expecting. We should pay refunds faster with what we can control and no longer hold on to people’s refunds. There is no excuse to lag behind other jurisdictions in returning the people’s money to them.

Critical services can continue without interruption now that the budget bill is law. We must now address the urgent needs this budget cannot address and ensure fairness and transparency for the additional $600 million that Guam is holding in the bank and the millions more that Guam is expecting from the federal government to aid and recover the people of Guam.

Attached below is a Freedom of Information Act request received on September 7, 2021 and the Speaker’s response that was sent on September 8, 2021.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (August 31, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Speaker Therese Terlaje has issued the following statement in support of Bill 55-36 (COR) As substituted by the Committee on General Government Operations, Appropriations, and Housing; and amended in the Committee of the Whole – AN ACT MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE OPERATIONS OF THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH OF THE GOVERNMENT OF GUAM FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2022, MAKING OTHER APPROPRIATIONS, AND ESTABLISHING MISCELLANEOUS AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS:

“After weighing out the pros and cons, I have voted in favor of the FY22 Budget.

In an historic setting precedent, the FY 2022 budget adds $20 million to the FY 2021 provision for tax refunds and the cash will allow refunds to be paid faster and for DRT to catch up on outstanding refunds from prior years. With the help of my colleagues, Senators Sabina Perez, Telo Taitague, Joanne Brown, Vicente “Tony” Ada, Jose “Pedo” Terlaje, Clynt Ridgell, and Frank Blas Jr., I was able to pass an amendment that would capture $20 million in revenues above what was projected for 2021 and place them in a lockbox for tax refunds still outstanding for 2020 and prior years. The budget bill, with this amendment, ensures that additional revenues collected in FY 2021 are used only to pay back tax refunds.

It is my hope that this will signal a change in the culture of prioritizing tax refunds owed to the people of Guam rather than continuing the status quo practice of spending next year’s cash for prior year returns and beginning every fiscal year in the red.

In addition, the budget contains provisions as follows:

·       Provides for pay studies for teacher and law enforcement to be completed within months

·       Ensures scholarships are prioritized to entice students to enter fields with long standing shortages like healthcare, education, and social work. 

·       Allows for small agencies to continue to operate at the same levels

·       Dedicates all highway fund balances for additional roads as I started several years ago

·       Continues to allow agencies with critical needs to hire retirees so that we can fill teacher shortages, nurse shortages, social worker shortages

·       Directs savings from bond refinancing in FY22 toward food banks to address the continuing needs of struggling families

·       Provides funding for stray dog issue that threatens village safety

However, some of the larger agencies like DPHSS and GMH will be relying on federal funds this year but we have been assured that they are entitled to those funds already under laws passed by Congress.  We have also been assured that the Governor has promised to cover any shortfalls for critical healthcare agencies with ARP Funds.

The FY22 Budget attempts to take the expected new earned income tax reimbursements and set those aside for a new hospital and other uses but I added provisions that I hope will allow Department of Revenue and Taxation the flexibility to enter into an agreement with the federal government to lock those funds directly for refunds as necessary.

This will be my fifth budget since I have been in office that is conservative, and will hopefully result in a surplus instead of a deficit. With an unprecedented amount set aside for tax refunds and a more conscious approach toward budgeting for the government of Guam, it is my hope, that by example, I will continue to lay the foundation for a shift in culture to more fiscal responsibility.

The Legislature has done the best it could with the information available to us, even though the plan for $600 million in ARP funds has still not been shared by the administration. I sincerely hope the plan will be shared with the people of Guam shortly so we can have a complete picture of how this budget and ARP funds will move our economy forward, improve government services and provide needed assistance and relief to our community.

The annual fiscal budget is the single most important policy document for the government of Guam and the key responsibility of I Liheslaturan Guåhan.  But a successful budget requires continuous oversight and transparency, adherence to the law and spending priorities contained in the law, and critical checks and balances for the benefit of the people of Guam.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (August 30, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Speaker Therese M. Terlaje’s fourth attempt to pay the people of Guam their tax refunds faster passed on the session floor this weekend.

GovGuam owes $23 M in processed returns awaiting payment for 2020 and previous years, according to the July refund report. There are also 6,800 returns from 2020 that have not been processed, which could mean another $20 M owed. The budget bill prior to her amendment provided only $74 M for tax refunds in FY 22 even though BBMR asked during the Committee of the Whole for an increase in the tax refund provision to at least $87 M to ensure there is enough cash to pay out the tax year 2021 EITC tax refunds and non-EITC tax refunds on top of the 2020 amounts. Instead of increasing the tax provision for refunds, the Legislature earlier last week decreased the current budget bill’s tax refund provision to $67.9 M, an amount far less than needed to pay back the people of Guam. Ninety-five million dollars was set aside in FY 21 for tax, EITC tax, and non-EITC tax refunds.

Speaker Terlaje, with the help of some of her colleagues Senators Sabina Perez, Telo Taitague, Joanne Brown, Vicente “Tony” Ada, Jose “Pedo” Terlaje, Clynt Ridgell, and Frank Blas Jr., passed an amendment to immediately set aside additional funds from FY 21 revenues to offset the reduction to $67.9 M in FY 22.

Current tracking of FY 21 General Fund revenues as of July 31st shows a surplus of $22.3 M, with only 2 months unaccounted for left in the fiscal year. When there are higher revenues collected than the adopted amount in the Budget Act at the end of the fiscal year, the administration has controlled where those funds go despite prior attempts by the Legislature to direct those funds to the hospital and refunds. Speaker Terlaje believes that those funds should be controlled by the people of Guam, so she proffered an amendment on the session floor Saturday night to adjust the adopted FY 21 amount for Withholding Tax Revenue and deposit the additional cash into a trust for tax refunds.

Speaker Terlaje advocated for her amendment by saying, “Now is the time to secure this year’s potential surplus and dedicate it to refunds, especially because the Governor said she will cover pandemic-related shortfalls next fiscal year with ARP funds. We’ve already taken other lapsed funds and refinancing savings from FY 21 and given them to agencies for the upcoming year. This is just another one of the Legislature’s creative efforts to give cash back to the people the government owes.”

The amendment specifically increased the FY 21 Withholding Taxes Revenue by $20 M, an increase justified with current CRER tracking being $34 M over the expected amount and the overall surplus of all revenues estimated to be $22.3 M. The amendment also secured that the additional $20 M be deposited in the Income Tax Refund Efficient Payment Trust Fund before October, making sure that the money goes only towards tax refunds.

“People are facing great need. The legislature can control those potential funds without harm to any government agencies and help provide for all taxpayers and get their refunds faster,” stated Speaker Terlaje.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (August 27, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Speaker Therese M. Terlaje tried to pass an amendment this afternoon to improve operations for Guam’s State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) by increasing its budget by $110,000 but received little support from her colleagues on the session floor. This year’s proposed allocation for SHPO was approximately $50,000 less than FY 2021, despite the division repeatedly requesting $400,000 more for six additional positions. 

“All I am trying to do with this amendment to the budget is get SHPO back up to their FY 21 budget and allocate an additional $60,000 more to them,” said Speaker Terlaje. “I’ve attended past hearings where we called SHPO out for not enforcing the way they should be, why we aren’t getting their reports like we should be, why the public can’t be notified of the human remains they are discovering on military construction sites like they should be.  They continue to tell us that it’s because they are understaffed. This extra allocation is not enough to fund another needed position for their division, but it will give them a fighting chance at preserving our island’s resources better.” 

The amendment to increase funding by $110,000 to the SHPO failed with only 5 votes in favor from Senators Sabina Perez, Joanne Brown, Telo Taitague, and Christopher Duenas.  The nine senators who voted against the increase were Senators Amanda Shelton, Telena Nelson, Joe San Agustin, James Moylan, Tony Ada, Frank Blas Jr., Mary Torres, Pedo Terlaje, and Clynt Ridgell. 

The Speaker subsequently introduced another amendment to bring SHPO’s budget back to its FY 21 allocation. This amendment passed, bringing the division’s budget to at least status quo. 

“This was the Legislature’s opportunity to prioritize the protection of our history and culture by increasing the SHPO’s capacity to protect our historic and cultural sites.  More resources are needed especially when precious cultural artifacts and human remains continue to be discovered and removed as a result of the increasing number of federal and local projects undergoing construction at this time,” stated Speaker Terlaje.