Welcome to the Office of the Governor of Guam

November 12, 2009
 
Governor Felix P. Camacho issued the following statement regarding the death of Agat Vice-Mayor Jesus B. Chaco:
 
“I am saddened by the passing of Vice-Mayor Jesus B. Chaco. His commitment and dedication to serving our island, especially the village of Agat, will always be remembered. On behalf of Lieutenant Governor Michael W. Cruz, M.D., we ask the people of Guam to pray for his wife Virginia, and the entire Chaco family, during this difficult time. I have ordered all government agencies to fly flags at half-staff until the day of interment for Vice-Mayor Chaco.”
 

A press conference for the Invasive Species Task Force Launch will be held from 2-3 p.m. tomorrow in the small conference room at Adelup. All media are invited to attend.

Modernization of seaport and expansion of Guam roadways with ARRA funds are focus of discussion with DOT
 
November 6, 2009
 
Washington, D.C. – Governor Felix P. Camacho today met with the secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Ray LaHood, to discuss the use of funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 for the island’s seaport and airport expansions and local roadway infrastructure improvements.
 
“Without the expansion of our transportation systems, we cannot expect to grow commerce in the Western Pacific,” said Gov. Camacho. “Secretary LaHood was well-informed of our infrastructure needs, especially related to ensuring a successful Guam Military Buildup Program.”
 
The one-hour meeting touched on the use of federal dollars to modernize the Port Authority of Guam (PAG). Gov. Camacho asked for favorable consideration for approximately $50 million in discretionary funding from Secretary LaHood to begin the multi-phase expansion at Guam’s seaport and asked him to advocate for Guam with the secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, for approval of a $50 million direct loan to the PAG.
 
The U.S. Maritime Administration, a DOT agency, has spent the past year assisting the PAG in using federal funds for planning and engineering projects at Apra Harbor to gain the designation as a strategic port by the Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command. Gov. Camacho remarked that Secretary LaHood was well-versed on the issues surrounding the DOT funding for the PAG projects and the impacts the decision will have on other federal programs being leveraged to assist in this effort.
 
“Our seaport is our lifeline to the rest of the world, and Secretary LaHood recognized the impacts the DOT funding will have on serving Guam and Micronesia,” said Gov. Camacho. “I stressed that his approval on DOT funding is critical to the Port’s modernization and will ensure growth and expansion in an important industry.”
 
Gov. Camacho said that Secretary LaHood praised the efforts of the Guam Department of Public Works (DPW) for its timely submission for applications related to DOT’s portion of ARRA projects. DPW was the first in the United States to submit projects for consideration under the ARRA law. ARRA-related road construction, mass transit expansion, and airport upgrades are to begin in the first quarter of 2010.
 
“DPW has changed the perception of Guam by this accomplishment and has turned heads in the right direction with all the other executive branch agencies,” said Gov. Camacho. “We will further define what DPW and other government of Guam agencies will bring to national decision makers and ensure as an administration that we protect the livelihoods of all our residents.”

HR 3940-To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to extend grants and other assistance to facilitate a political status public education program for the people of Guam

Testimony presented to the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, U.S. House of Representatives

Madam Chairwoman and members of the Committee, thank you for this opportunity to participate in his hearing on the introduction of legislation that seeks to clarify the authority of the Secretary of the Interior in allowing him to extend technical assistance to our island to facilitate a political status public education program for the people of Guam.

Guam’s political status has been an issue of substantive debate in every decade since the 1930s. The People of Guam through its commission on self-determination held four referenda on the subject of our political status. Though a commonwealth document was drafted, ratified by the people of Guam and introduced in Congress four different times from 1989 to 1997; the document was never reported out of its Congressional Committee.

Since then, Guam and its tourism based economy have survived super typhoons, earthquakes, the bursting of the Asian economic bubble, a SARS epidemic, the turmoil in our nation’s economy, and the H1N1 influenza virus. Each of these challenges has forced the government of Guam to meet our mandate of basic services amid a climate of ever dwindling financial resources.  As this committee knows too well, governing amid tough economic times requires that we set priorities and make tough fiscal decisions.  

Though the move of U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam will usher in a new era of economic prosperity for the people of Guam, much of the Guam Military Buildup Program’s initial requirements will mandate a significant commitment of local resources – resources we presently do not have.  This is why HR 3940 is so vital to our self-determination effort.

OEA and Interior urge federal consideration of funding for Guam’s buildup priorities
 
November 5, 2009
 
Orlando, Fla. - Governor Felix P. Camacho met with 15 federal agency principals to discuss the military buildup on Guam, the challenges facing the island in response to the buildup, the need for partnerships, and the roles of stakeholders during the 2009 Defense Community Conference.
 
“My job is to ensure that in the end, the integration of this project into the fabric of our community will make Guam a better place. That is why I am here today - to expand the partnership we created with the Department of Defense to now more effectively include the other agencies of the federal government that we need assistance from,” said Gov. Camacho.
 
The 2009 Defense Community Conference, convened by the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA), included leaders from the U.S. departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Interior, Labor, Transportation, and Defense, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency and the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.
 
Officials discussed Gov. Camacho’s Prioritized Capital Improvement Project (CIP) Fiscal Year 2010 listing, which federal officials reviewed at the request of the OEA.  Interior echoed the request and further encouraged agencies to consider how Gov. Camacho’s priorities can be addressed under their current programmatic funding.
 
The continuation of these high-level meetings for Guam was encouraged by Interior officials and other federal leaders who noted that the Obama Administration has elevated the Guam Buildup and that responses from various federal agencies to the governor’s Prioritized FY2010 listing are already taking place.
 
“We have completed our infrastructural plans, and we need to implement those plans. However, without the means to do so, we will not succeed,” said Gov. Camacho. “Just in shear population impacts, consider how each of your communities would contend with an expansion in population of nearly one-third in four years.”
 
Gov. Camacho seized the opportunity to express concern regarding U.S. EPA’s required secondary water treatment and the potential negative impact it would have to the island.
 
During the conference, Labor and Education department officials expressed commitment to capacity building and enhancement within Guam’s agency programs.
 
“The people of Guam are committed to making this process work, but we simply do not have the capacity to realize what is necessary on our own. We are seeking the expertise of those here today to help us find a way to make this enormous undertaking work for Guam and the military,” said Gov. Camacho. “This process must be balanced and fair.”