FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (August 10, 2021 – Hagåtña, Guam) Speaker Therese Terlaje has issued the following statement regarding RISE payments:

“The Governor has clearly had the authority to remove impediments to making RISE payments and had the ARP funds in the bank since May but failed to deliver the money to those in need.

Today, the Governor said they are still working on an application after seven months and won’t release the funds until September. It is a mockery of the real suffering and needs in our community and flagrant disregard for the truth that she held the funds this long without a legitimate reason yet started spending it for other purposes.

It is ironic that the Governor is alleging the motivation in passing legislation was about recognition and headlines then immediately took credit for pumping $1.2 Billion into the economy when that came from the federal government.

We sent two bills with two options to remove any perceived impediments on the RISE payments. All the Governor has to do is pick one and stop the games.”