The Vertical Launching System site at North Field, Andersen Air Force Bas on April 16, 2025.
Photo by William J. Busby III/U.S. Navy/The Guam Daily Post
HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — The Missile Defense Agency and U.S. Army recently issued a record of decision, or ROD, to proceed with the 360-degree Enhanced Integrated Air and Missile Defense System, or EIAMDS, for Guam.
EIAMDS components would be positioned on 16 sites on Department of Defense land across Guam, and site preparation could begin later this year, but the Pacific Center for Island Security, a Guam-based think tank, said many projects are already underway.
“Several of the components of the system are in Guam for testing. The Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) is likely to have already been sent to Guam for testing, and another component, the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense System (LTAMDS) arrived last month. Guam will be a laboratory for capabilities of new equipment while the system is developed,” PCIS told The Guam Daily Post Tuesday.
Moreover, contractors for infrastructure, such as a command center, have already been awarded, PCIS added.
“The proposed FY2026 (National Defense Authorization Act) offered by the House (of Representatives) Armed Services Committee has just over $500 million in incremental funding for ongoing projects related to the EIAMDS. The Senate Armed Services Committee has just over $600 million in proposed incremental funding and ‘Defense of Guam’ (DOG) procurement (likely defense contractor systems),” PCIS stated.
“Action on the two separate NDAA measures is expected this week in Washington, with a final conference version expected later in the year. At the present time it does not appear that there are any new EIAMDS projects proposed for funding in FY26,” the group added.
Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero and Lt. Gov. Josh Tenorio commented on the ROD for the EIAMDS, expressing concern that cumulative impacts from the project and other military actions on Guam aren’t being addressed. The governor also disagreed with the decision not to convene the Economic Adjustment Committee, which she asked to be included in the ROD.
PCIS stated that the EAC provides a basis for the Defense Economic Adjustment Program, which is meant to help those affected by DOD actions respond to changes resulting from those actions. Not convening the EAC for the EIAMDS would ignore significant impacts on the civilian community, according to PCIS.
Guam has received funding resulting from an EAC in the past, so convening the committee shouldn’t be unexpected, the group said, adding that an announcement of an EAC in the EIAMDS case is likely forthcoming.
Lt. Gen. Heath Collins, the MDA director, told the governor and lieutenant governor that working through Joint Region Marianas and the Civil-Military Coordination Council would be sufficient at this time, but an evaluation will be done on whether an EAC is necessary in the future.
However, even if an EAC convenes, the process won’t address everything, according to PCIS.
“For example, in the case of the EIAMDS, the impacts are more than just the civilian community infrastructure. One of the well-known deficiencies of EIAMDS plan is addressing military housing requirements. These requirements are well known to the military but have not been funded. It is also significant that both the Final EIS and the ROD have failed the transparency test with respect to existing studies on the Guam housing crisis,” the group stated.
PCIS made note of the EIAMDS report commissioned from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, which hasn’t been made publicly available.
“In not addressing the requirement for housing military personnel related to this project or providing a roadmap for planning and funding, the probability that military housing requirements will continue to be pushed to the civilian community is very real. The lack of transparency around this issue — when information is readily available to the U.S. (DOD) — is an affront to Guam, who will likely bear continuing pressure on our housing market,” PCIS stated.
The EIAMDS would ultimately see about 2,300 permanent personnel and their dependents, plus 44 contractors, living on Guam beginning in 2031, with about 20% needing off-base housing. The ROD for the project states that DOD is reviewing the housing issue holistically and plans to address EIAMDS housing needs before dependents arrive in 2031.
Leon Guerrero and Tenorio have asked for a follow-up EIS on life support and housing facilities, but Collins said the appropriate National Environmental Policy Act analyses will be prepared as required.
PCIS added that the EAC process also won’t address the major, long-term and significant impacts on Guam’s environmental resources identified in the final EIS for the missile defense system.
The group had heavily criticized the final EIS over several issues.
The group said Tuesday that, ultimately, all the pressure on Guam’s community resulting from the project “will not result in security for the community.”
PCIS’ concerns include capability limitations of the EIAMDS, a lack of planning to shelter civilians or for food resiliency in case of conflict, and that the EIS process hasn’t addressed the impact on Guam in a situation where the EIAMDS is used.