I INTRODUCED Resolution 311-31, which outlines the Guam Legislature’s recommended uses of the more than $16 million in Compact Impact funds for fiscal year 2012. The United States Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs (DOI-OIA) awards these funds annually to be expended on uses as either the DOI-OIA or the governor of Guam sees fit. The governor must make the request for the funds and for what uses, and the DOI-OIA approves the request.

Resolution 311-31 recommended that the more than $16 million go to education, public safety, and public health services of the government of Guam, of which $7.1 million be earmarked for the School Leaseback Program for the Guam Department of Education (GDOE) and $4.8 million be earmarked for the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority. Both were awarded recently by the DOI-OIA. I was glad to hear the governor had similar intentions for these funds, as education and public health are always top priorities of this government.

What I do hope the governor agrees with as well is the recommendation to use approximately $3.2 million to renovate and repair the Luis P. Untalan Middle School. According to GDOE officials, approximately $3 million of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds are to be expended on Untalan Middle, with an additional $3 million to $3.5 million needed to completely rehabilitate the school campus.

This recommended use will not only return the Barrigada students to their new and improved home campus, it will also relieve the government from having to pay an additional $4 million to $6 million a year for the 50-year-old Tiyan barracks facility. These savings can go directly back into our school system or to other educational, public health and safety uses to improve learning and services for the children and people of Guam, instead of to a private company.

I would say a one-time $3.2 million recommended investment that saves our government $5 million to $6 million a year for the next 20 years is a great idea and I hope the governor continues to agree with the Guam Legislature’s recommendations as to the uses of the Compact Impact funds. Furthermore, with the passage of Bill 414-31, which authorizes the governor to issue its final $100 million bond, I hope that he uses his better judgment and prioritizes our Guam public school facilities, because tax refunds for tax year 2011 have been budgeted and the money to pay the refunds is being collected.

With Resolution 311-31 and Bill 414-31, the people of Guam become that much closer to resolving any impediments to providing an adequate education to our children. We must all remember that the education of our youth is paramount to taking positive steps toward an educated and skilled workforce and for a better Guam.

With this borrowing taking us to our maximum debt capacity, there are very few options to fix our schools. Schools must be repaired and rehabilitated with a portion of this latest bond proceeds, along with the ARRA funds and Compact funds. Years of putting off and deferring these repairs have finally caught up with the limited and inadequate resources for capital repairs and building. We need all the resources we can spare just to address the years of overcrowding and to make existing buildings safe.