HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Lawmakers voted to pass another, historically high $1.1 billion budget for the government of Guam on Wednesday evening.
The budget passed in a vote split nine to six along party lines, marking the second year in a row that lawmakers have passed a highly divisive budget. It’s now headed to Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero’s desk for review.
Republican Sens. Frank Blas Jr., Joanne Brown, Chris Duenas, Tom Fisher, Jesse Lujan, and Telo Taitague voted against the measure.
Democrat Sens. Chris Barnett, William Parkinson, Sabina Perez, Roy Quinata, Joe San Agustin, Dwayne San Nicolas, Amanda Shelton, Speaker Therese Terlaje and Vice Speaker Tina Muña Barnes voted in favor of the measure.
All told, the budget for fiscal year 2024 comes in at around $146 million more than the current fiscal year budget.
The lack of unanimous buy in was expected, with Republican senators hours before the vote taking major issue with the bill using potential excess revenue to fund a number of government agencies and programs. Republicans wanted that pot of money to be used at the Guam Memorial Hospital
Hours before passage of the upcoming fiscal budget act wrapped up Wednesday, GOP senators teamed up to take a shot at their Democratic colleagues’ use of the taxes and fees that GovGuam is raking in at higher-than-expected levels.
“The Republican caucus is taking a stand against the appropriation of excess budget revenues to fund frivolous pet projects and special salary increases for favored agencies and offices. They urge the people of Guam to pay close attention to the many budget provisions that utilize unaudited excess revenues from years past as a funding source for political agendas,” a release from the caucus stated.
Though the six Republican lawmakers did not have the support to stop passage of the fiscal 2024 budget act, and its various spending provisions, Sen. Jesse Lujan said the GOP will continue to push to get excess cash in the hands of hospital leadership.
Lujan led the caucus Wednesday morning introduced standalone legislation to divert all remaining excess revenue from fiscal years 2022 and 2023 towards paying off the hospital’s debts and fixing its infrastructure.
Total surplus revenue from fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023 could amount to around $61 million, based on estimates during the weeks-long budget negotiations at the Guam Congress Building. Some $45 million in excess revenue from fiscal 2022 is awaiting confirmation from the GovGuam-wide audit, while another extra $16 million is anticipated on Sept. 31 from fiscal 2023.
But lawmakers during budget talks have tapped into tens of millions of that money to fund various projects, from a pay raise for University of Guam faculty to a new recruit cycle of corrections officers and firefighters.
Legislative Office of Finance and Budget Director Stephen Guerrero on Tuesday night said lawmakers already set aside $15 million from the fiscal 2022 pot. Shortly after that, the budget act was amended to take $3.6 million from fiscal 2022 surplus to pay the Department of Corrections bill to GMH and another $10 million from fiscal 2023 to give to the school system.
Though amendments tapping into the funding have primarily been put forth by Democrats, Republican lawmakers have supported, or at least declined to object to, a number of extra spending provisions. GOP senators have consistently decried the historic $1.1 billion budget throughout the debate process.
Lujan called this year’s budget talks “hocus-pocus.”
“We’re dishing out money that’s un-audited at this point, you know. I mean, they’re trying to we’re up to, I think, in excess of $22 million in expenditures from (fiscal) 2022 excess funds,” he told the Post.
Lawmakers were rushing to spend “Monopoly money” while the needs at the Guam Memorial Hospital were real, he said.
Lujan, who recently toured GMH, read through a number of complaints he had received from residents detailing a daily struggle at the hospital — lack of air-conditioning, leaky roofs and mold in the aftermath of Typhoon Mawar.
With the hospital behind on vendor payments by about $30 million, and facing a busted chiller system, possible mold infestation and a still unreplaced electrical panel, GMH’s current immediate needs could amount to as much as $50 million, Lujan said.
He said it’s unclear how much excess revenue GovGuam would have after fiscal 2023’s audit is completed in the coming months or weeks, “but let’s prioritize the hospital.”
Democrats respond
Several Democrat senators pushed back on the session floor at the GOP’s characterization of spending.
Democrat Majority Leader Sen. Amanda Shelton said senators had come together to prioritize the needs of the community.
“I want to thank our colleagues for thinking about the fishermen and the co-op and the food sustainability for our community, and thinking about the safety of our community,” she said. “I want to thank our colleagues for supporting a supplemental increase to the cost of living allowance for our retirees, all very good and important ‘pet’ projects, priorities that we are setting for the people of Guam.”
Sen. Chris Barnett was less diplomatic in his objections.
“Let’s talk about pet projects. Giving the Guam Department of Education $10 million, supporting the increased enrollment in the charter schools? These are not pet projects. These are real needs of our education system. … I’m glad we got these needs addressed.”
Sen. William Parkinson said he took offense.
“I can’t think of anybody who would think that funding a cycle of firefighters and DOC guards is something we could consider a pet project.”
Senators vote on an amendment during budget discussions Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023, in the Session Hall of the Guam Congress Building in Hagåtña.
