A United Airlines aircraft comes in for a landing at the A.B. Won Pat International Airport on Feb. 4, 2024, in Tiyan.
HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Guam Delegate James Moylan has introduced federal legislation to add the route between Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as part of the Essential Air Services program, or EAS, a measure that the congressman says would reduce the cost of travel between the islands.
The measure is H.R. 9407, and it is cosponsored by CNMI Delegate Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation website, the EAS program was established to guarantee that small communities served by certified air carriers before the Airline Deregulation Act would maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service.
“(The department) is mandated to provide eligible EAS communities with access to the National Air Transportation System. This is generally accomplished by subsidizing two round trips a day with 30- to 50-seat aircraft, or additional frequencies with aircraft with nine-seat or fewer, usually to a large- or medium-hub airport,” the U.S. DOT website states.
A press release from Moylan’s office states that it costs nearly $500 for a round-trip ticket between Guam and the CNMI, and if EAS was applied, depending on the subsidy, a traveler could gain savings of a few hundred dollars.
“As Congress sets forth to entertain the fiscal year 2025 transportation appropriations bill, the funding of the EAS will be included in the measure. Our office has submitted amendments to not only increase this funding but also add the Guam-CNMI route to the program, hence the timing of the legislation. We have also reached out to the Defense Travel Agency to seek a report on the amount the Department of Defense spends annually on the flights between the two territories, as securing their support is paramount,” Moylan stated in the release.
This latest proposal follows another measure, also introduced by Moylan and cosponsored by Sablan, that seeks to create a special cabotage exemption for foreign carriers on Guam and the CNMI — H.R. 8786.
U.S. air cabotage law bars foreign civil aircraft from transporting persons, property or mail for compensation or hire within the U.S.
United Airlines is the only domestic carrier providing routes between Guam and the CNMI and between Guam and Hawaii, Moylan previously noted, adding that a special exemption would allow a foreign carrier to provide those services and create competition with pricing.
These proposals, H.R. 9407 and H.R. 8786, come as multiple online petitions have sought fairer prices for travel between the islands and from Guam to the U.S., and for United to reestablish its pet shipping service amid challenges getting pets off the islands and concerns about resulting impacts to the stray animal population.
But while Moylan touted H.R. 9407 to help reduce the cost of travel between Guam and the CNMI, his Democrat rival this election, Ginger Cruz, said the measure turned out to be “yet another example” of Moylan’s “‘show horse’ approach to governance.”
“Once again, Congressman Moylan is misleading the people of Guam. His proposed amendments to the Essential Air Service…program are nothing more than procedural tools, designed to give the appearance of action without delivering any real results. These amendments do not allocate any actual funding to the EAS program for Guam, nor do they change the underlying policy that would make Guam eligible for such subsidies. This is a classic case of marketing over substance – something we’ve seen repeatedly from Congressman Moylan,” Cruz stated in a release.
She added that “it’s clear” Guam is not eligible for EAS funding as long as it remains a hub for larger airlines like United. While the CNMI might be eligible, that would require collaboration with U.S. DOT and the Federal Aviation Administration, Cruz stated, adding that Moylan failed to take that step.
“If Congressman Moylan were truly serious about lowering airfare costs for Guam residents, he would have taken steps to address this issue in the FAA reauthorization bill that was signed into law earlier this year. Instead, he offers amendments that, while creating the illusion of effort, do nothing to advance the needs of our people. What’s more, his own party has been responsible for significant cuts to the EAS program, further limiting its effectiveness,” the Cruz release stated.
When asked for comment on Cruz’s response, Bobby Shringi, Moylan’s chief of staff, said Cruz’s comment was a political statement that did not warrant any substance and that she “does not understand how the legislative process works or how U.S. Congress operates.”
“Our efforts are to add the Guam-CNMI route to the EAS program, which would help subsidize the airfare costs. Simultaneously, we are attempting to increase that account via an amendment in the upcoming transportation appropriations measure. We may be going against a position of some in our party, but this issue is about our community and not politics,” Shringi said.
“We have been working with the office of Congressman (Gregorio) Kilili Sablan on this and the cabotage measure. I would rather heed the advice of the good congressman, who has served for nearly 16 years, over someone who has never served in a legislative capacity. Now, let’s hope Ginger does not derail our efforts,” Shringi added.
Cruz came out on top among the Democratic candidates for Guam’s delegate seat during the primary election. Moylan, the incumbent, went unchallenged on the Republican side. The two are now competing to see who will claim the delegate’s seat after the general election in November.
