HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — The governor’s office announced that Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero approved a 24% adjustment in the government of Guam Attorney Pay Plan, with the hope of addressing the attorney shortage throughout the government of Guam, particularly in key agencies such as the Public Defender Services Corp. and the Office of Attorney General.
“I am particularly concerned with the mass exodus of attorneys at the Office of Attorney General. This shortage not only hurts the government’s ability to prosecute criminals but also slows down the procurement process and the approval of contracts across the government of Guam. Delays in these operations can have far-reaching consequences for the efficient operation of government,” Leon Guerrero stated in a press release, adding that there is an urgent need to “bolster the legal workforce” in various departments.
Krystal Paco-San Agustin, the governor’s spokesperson, cited Department of Administration Director Edward Birn in stating that for line agencies, including the OAG, funds for the pay increase will have to be found for fiscal year 2024 and incorporated into the budget for fiscal 2025. Component units will have to incorporate the pay increase into their budgets, Paco-San Agustin added, again referring to Birn.
The OAG, the largest law firm on Guam, will need at least $3 million more for the adjustment, according to Attorney General Douglas Moylan. PDSC Executive Director Stephen Hattori said his office would need about $124,000 more, which includes raises at the Alternate Public Defender division and Civil Law Center.
Outside the governor’s approval of the Attorney Pay Plan update, past legislative actions authorized pay raises at the PDSC and OAG. The fiscal 2023 budget act funded a 6% pay increase for non-law enforcement personnel at the PDSC and APD for that fiscal year, which also applied to attorneys at the OAG.
However, prosecutors were also granted a 15% pay differential.
The fiscal 2024 budget act maintained the 6% pay increase for attorneys at the offices and authorized the governor to conduct a study on the government’s Attorney Pay Plan.
In October 2023, the PDSC board signed off on a 15% raise for lawyers at the PDSC and APD. According to The Guam Daily Post files, the 15% increase was made to include the 6% already authorized by the Legislature.
DOA recommended a 24% adjustment for the Attorney Pay Plan. For an attorney I position, which had a starting salary of $50,825, the adjustment would change the starting salary to $63,023.
The 24% adjustments recommendation was made notwithstanding any differentials for attorneys currently in effect.
“Upon implementation, no employee should receive more than a 24% pay adjustment including any statutory pay differentials authorized by current law. A cap of 24% on total adjusted salary is therefore proposed,” DOA recommended to the governor.
Statutory differentials should be rescinded at the implementation of the pay plan adjustment, DOA stated.
“These should have been considered a temporary measure and should be replaced by the recommendations in this request. This would avoid a compounding effect that would exist should this recommendation be approved in fiscal year 2024,” DOA added.
But the department also stated that continuing assessments should be conducted to determine whether additional differentials need to be proposed to aid in the recruitment and retention of attorneys at all relevant organizations.
“I support pay parity above all else. The idea that a prosecutor gets paid more than a public defender with equal experience is unfair. But I’m happy that government attorneys as a whole are recognized as a group deserving of receiving an increase comparable to what the rest of GovGuam received. The size of the increase was based partly on national averages but also in recognition of the 15% differential prosecutors receive,” Hattori told the Post.
“Now that balance has been restored, perhaps the differential can be eliminated, otherwise a new round of increases in an attempt to restore pay equity could erupt,” he added.
Sarah Elmore-Hernandez, director of policy, planning and community relations at the Judiciary of Guam, stated the Judicial Council will be discussing the DOA pay adjustment recommendation.
“Our entire justice system relies on the dedicated work of lawyers. For several years, judiciary attorneys were among the lowest paid in the government of Guam – prompting (the) Judicial Council to adjust our pay plan in October when the Legislature appropriated funds for the increase. To prevent a disparity from happening again, (the) Council will discuss DOA’s recommended adjustment at its next meeting. We thank the governor and Legislature for recognizing the need to provide competitive compensation and hope this brings us one step closer to retaining Guam’s legal talent,” Elmore-Hernandez stated.
Douglas Moylan
Lou Leon Guerrero
