IN DECEMBER 2011, income tax refunds were paid from the Business Privilege Tax Bonds through a collective effort between the Guam Legislature and the Governor’s Office, with healthy and democratic debate that centered on concerns from the Legislature on whether the government could afford the debt service payments that would go into effect after the governor’s term in office is long gone. It would have been irresponsible to the people of Guam to not discuss effects of an $18 million increase in long-term debt payments.

The governor forgets that two years earlier, I proposed and we borrowed $113 million to pay your past-due tax refunds. Maybe it was because he and the now-lieutenant governor voted no and said we should not borrow to pay your refunds. Only two years later, when it was his proposal to borrow, I again voted yes to pay you your past-due refunds, even if it was his proposal. The taxpayers of Guam received over $198 million in income tax refunds. We now owe $127.6 million in tax refunds as of December 2011, according to the Public Auditor, which includes tax year 2011 refunds.

The Legislature budgeted about $127 million for refunds for the period January 2012 through September 2012. This is to be paid from current collection of revenues, which the governor estimated; and he said he is accurate in estimating revenues. This means the governor has absolutely no excuse for not paying income tax refunds that were budgeted by the Guam Legislature, using his revenue estimates.

So which public laws cover the refunds to be paid for tax years 2010 and 2011?

1.) Public Law 31-77 budgets $105 million for refunds, in FY2012; 2.) Public Law 31-77 also budgets $4.5 million for refunds from the reimbursement the government will receive from its overpayment to Calvo’s SelectCare in FY2011; 3.) Public Law 31-76 budgets over $35 million from the Additional Child Tax Credit cash reimbursement the government will receive from the United States Treasury; and 4.) Public Law 31-126 budgets $1.5 million from Section 30 funds for refunds.

These is cash that is not part of the governor’s revenues and is separate and apart from government operational funding, so it can be directly deposited into the Income Tax Refund Trust Account and used to pay your refunds, without affecting government operations.

In total, this amount almost equals the $127 million of refunds owed to taxpayers that should be paid by September 2012 without having to borrow $100 million and pay an additional $160 million in interest over 30 years.

We need to use the government’s final borrowing power to renovate, repair, rehabilitate, reconstruct, and maintain our public schools. The Sodexo Facilities Capital Action Plan identified over $139 million in needed repairs and maintenance of our schools – without having to move students. We saw that the governor ordered Public Health to close schools even if they were deemed safe and sanitary a few months ago. Since we only have about $45 million of ARRA money, we need to find the balance to repair the schools.

I ask that the students, teachers, administrators, parents, grandparents, and all the people of Guam to join me in pursuing the repair, renovation, rehabilitation, reconstruction and maintenance of our public schools on Guam. Join me in holding the governor accountable for the promises he made to remain current in paying refunds with his revenue projections and accept no excuse for not paying refunds.

Let’s use our last remaining borrowing capacity to invest in our children and their future.