By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Variety News Staff

SENATORS would get a 25 percent pay cut for six months if the Legislature passes a bill urging members of the policymaking body “to lead by example in trimming costs during bleak financial times.”
Bill 85, if enacted into law, will be in effect from April 1 to Sept. 30 of this year. About $13,300 would be taken from each senator’s annual salary of $55,000.
Sen. Adolpho Palacios Sr., D-Ordot/Chalan Pago, author of the bill, said the temporary salary reduction proposal could save the government $170,000 this fiscal year.
Palacios said if the Legislature is looking for areas where the government can cut costs, senators should start the process in their own backyard.
“We want the executive branch and the judiciary to engage in cost-cutting measures, but I don’t think we should spare ourselves. We should lead by example. I want to lead by example,” Palacios said, seeking to outdo the governor’s proposed 10 percent salary cuts for Cabinet officials
Gov. Felix P. Camacho’s revised budget proposal calls for 2.5 percent funding cuts for all agencies. Palacios said the governor’s proposed reduction rate would result in about $103,000 in savings at the Legislature, but the people who would be most affected are the regular employees.
“If we reduce the senators’ salaries, then we wouldn’t have to touch the salaries of our employees. They are here working every day. They should not suffer the salary cuts. We should be the ones making the sacrifices,” Palacios said.
He recalled that the 27th Legislature adopted the same salary cut scheme for nine months when the government of Guam was cash-strapped in fiscal year 2003.
Sen. Rory Respicio, D-Agana Heights, who authored the pay cut proposal in the 27th Legislature, said GovGuam managed to save $11,000 a month for nine months when senators took a 27 percent reduction.
In its introduction stage, however, Bill 85 got a lukewarm response from senators. Some support the bill, but others have misgivings.
“It’s fine with me. No problem with me, given the financial condition that we have,” Speaker Mark Forbes, R-Sinajana, said.
Respicio, however, said Palacios’ proposed reduction rate should apply to all elected officials.
“Why should it be 25 percent for senators and a different rate for others? I don’t oppose Sen. Palacios’ bill, but if that bill goes into effect, it should trigger the same cuts for all elected officials,” Respicio said.
Sen. Frank Blas Jr., R-Yona, is not too excited about the pay cut proposal either. “We might as well convert the Legislature into a part-time body. We still have a full time Legislature. We’re working full-time, why should we get a part-time salary?” Blas asked.
Sen. Tina Muna Barnes, D-Mangilao, supports Bill 85, saying “no one should be exempted from salary cuts.”
“If our regular employees are taking a beating, we the senators should take the beating, too,” Barnes said.
Barnes, however, said the government should not stop at cutting costs through pay reductions.
“We should look at the whole picture. We can continue to implement pay cuts but it will never be enough until we raise more revenues and adopt more cost containment measures,” Barnes said.
Barnes urged the governor to raise more revenues by exercising his authority to increase government service fees.
Minority Leader Judi Won Pat, D-Maloloj, said she doesn’t mind sharing the burden of the pay cuts “until such time that the government finances are stable again.”
Nevertheless, she said, the governor’s office should take the lead in trimming the costs of government.
Won Pat said the governor should revisit the 40 percent pay raise for government officials that he implemented toward the end of his first administration.
“If officials and employees of the governor’s office are taking a 20 percent cut as proposed by the governor, they won’t feel much of a loss because they still have the extra 20 percent from the last raise they got,” Won Pat said, suggesting that the governor roll back the salary rates to the level prior to the raise.
Won Pat said the cost cutting has been taking its toll on the Legislature for many years. “We reduced the number of senators from 21 to 15. The Legislature is always setting the example, but nobody is following the lead,” she said.