By Sen. Judi Guthertz
For Variety

I Support the movement of the 8,000 Marines and their dependents to Guam, as well as planned increases in Army, Navy and Air Force activities. As a patriotic American and a devoted Guamanian, I believe we will welcome service personnel and dependents “home” with our noted hospitality, just as we welcome all visitors.
The increased military presence in Guam will contribute to our community and allow us to contribute as well, to America’s defense and to our country’s forward position in Asia. Guam is good, and our island will be good for the increased number of servicemen and women and their families, just as they will be good for us.
The EIS scoping meetings to be held out of concern for the large and rapid increase in the military presence in this area were originally scheduled for the Hilton Hotel during holy week, but were delayed because of storm warnings. Even before their very first scoping meeting, the Joint Guam Program Office has had to adjust to the realities of life here in Guam!
The first rescheduled meeting took place Tuesday night at the Yona Community Center, and the second meeting was in Dededo. Today and tomorrow in the CNMI, the meetings will continue. As is common when there is a major military buildup, the government must conduct a study to determine the impact. They will be looking at every aspect of the move and how it will affect Guam and the CNMI: physically, socially, environmentally, culturally and economically.
I am a co-sponsor of Senator Rory Respicio’s Bill 33, “AN ACT TO CREATE A COMMISSION ON COMMUNITY SUPPORT OF THE MILITARY MISSION IN GUAM.” This bill would replace the governor’s task force, which does not have the advantage of being created by law and can be abolished or changed at the governor’s whim.
This is the third time that Senator Respicio has introduced the bill. It’s unfortunate that the Legislature’s leadership has ignored the advantage of having a legally constituted framework from which to pursue our goals in Washington. In order to better coordinate our government’s message to the federal government, GovGuam should speak with one voice. I hope that common sense will prevail over politics and that we will pass this bill.
It’s not just GovGuam’s comments that the JGPO is seeking, they want input from every private citizen who has questions, comments and complaints. This planned military expansion will shape and affect our growth, development and history. For the future of the people of Guam, and to a large extent those in the CNMI, we should submit our concerns for every issue that could be affected in any way, and if our questions and statements are turned in on time, they will not be ignored.
I’ve been working on my preliminary list, and it includes 20 points covering everything from education, to alien labor, to Guam’s political status. Here are a few of my points:
• An integrated school system to end the practice of “separate but equal” school systems. It’s not right to have one well-funded system for the military and one poorly funded system for residents when we are all Americans.
• A fee of $1,000 per alien worker brought to Guam for construction labor. The funds would go toward training local residents to take over these jobs.
• A local preference to fill civil service, NEX, AAFES, DCA and DODEA jobs created because of the expansion. Local hires should receive the same benefits as off-island hires.
We should not ignore this opportunity to have our voices heard. We owe it to our community and ourselves.