HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — An amendment to change the funding source for Bill 173-37 failed to pass Thursday afternoon, falling just one vote short of the eight needed to push through.
Bill 173 is the measure seeking to extend the long running energy credit program another three months, from October through December. As introduced, the bill would take $15.8 million from fiscal year 2023 general fund excess to support the extension.
However, lawmakers appropriated all fiscal 2023 excess to the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority through a recently enacted bailout measure, now known as Public Law 37-43.
Following a lengthy discussion with government finance officials Thursday, Speaker Therese Terlaje, the author of Bill 173, proposed changing the bill’s funding source from fiscal 2023 general fund excess to simply “the general fund.”
The speaker reasoned that funding should still be available from the Rainy Day fund, in addition to some funding from a Medicaid reimbursement.
Sen. Joanne Brown objected to Terlaje’s amendment.
“I do have concerns if we’re just going to say general fund. We’re back to where we used to be. And it doesn’t matter whether money’s there or not, we’re just going to pass legislation to say, ‘Well, just take it out of the general fund. Dump it on the governor.’ I’m no great fan of the governor … but at the other end, I don’t know that we’re being responsible. I mean, do we have the money available to actually continue this program?” Brown said.
Only seven senators voted to pass Terlaje’s amendment, the speaker included. Terlaje pleaded with her colleagues to reconsider, stating that there is “concrete” funding available to support extending the energy credit program.
“We passed out the typhoon report earlier. I just want to show my colleagues that there’s a balance on there of $29 million. That’s unspent. There’s no special fund for Typhoon Mawar. This is just money that’s set aside. And as (the Bureau of Budget and Management Research) testified, $16 million of that $29 million unspent set aside was from Medicaid (reimbursements),” Terlaje said.
“So, I’m just asking my colleagues to please reconsider that that Medicaid money is available. It’s concrete, it’s there and it’s unspent. And they also have the Rainy Day fund completely available to them … So again, the cash is available. So, I really beg my colleagues to reconsider,” the speaker added.
A second vote didn’t fair any better, with only six senators siding with Terlaje to pass the amendment.
But instead of rising out of the Committee of the Whole, where the Legislature had been discussing Bill 173, Terlaje motioned to suspend discussions for the day. Lawmakers are expected to return today at 10 a.m.
In this file photo, customers are seen lining up at the Guam Power Authority and Guam Waterworks Authority satellite office at the Julale Shopping Center in Hagåtña on June 20, 2022.
