Guam's 'Buildup & Beyond' Forum: A Fit Foray Into Impacts, Benefits & Challenges
Written by Jeff Marchesseault, Guam News Factor Staff Writer
Friday, 20 November 2009 20:12
GUAM - On Friday a two-day conference called The Military Buildup And Beyond: The Guam Perspective wrappred up at the Legislature. Hosted by Buildup Committee Chair Senator Judi Guthertz and the University of Guam, the free-admission conference was designed to empower local voices and perspectives on how the civilian community will be impacted, benefited, and challenged by the armed forces expansion.
Reality Check
The conference sounds the alarm that Guam needs to wake up and be alert as the buildup planning process winds down and massive construction begins. If Guam's local leaders and everyday citizens hope to be heard and helped, they must identify whatever they might find amiss with military planning, organize with one voice, and state their case for quality-of-life benefits. Those benefits include equal access to quality utilities and economic opportunity, an outdoor environment worth enjoying, and enough funding to sustain the social safety net as the population increases.
That process starts this weekend. On Friday, the Department of Defense posted online a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) spelling out how the land and coastal resources will be utilized for expanded regional defense purposes. Hard copies of the multi-volume DEIS will be available in local mayors' offices, libraries and even a shopping mall this weekend.
Hopes are high for quality outcomes. But a history of mutual mistrust and mismanagement has many local residents on the lookout for shortcomings to the DEIS.
The Compact-Impact Conundrum
An emotionally charged example of federal-territorial relations gone amok is the sticky issue of Compact-Impact reimbursement. Senator Frank Blas, Jr. has fought long and hard with the Federal Government to pay what he calls 'the the bare-minimum $400 million' in outstanding, un-reimbursed costs borne by GovGuam in hosting migrants from small, rural Pacific island nations.
The nations of these FAS citizens (citizens of Freely Associated States) bear benefit-laden Compacts of Free Association with the United States, including uninhibited resettlement rights to U.S. jurisdictions for their citizens. Perhaps ironically, the arrangement includes certain defense rights for the United States in the FAS region, according to Wikipedia.
Guam has traditionally been a favorite destination of FAS migrants. This is owing to its proximity to FAS states such as the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands; it is also due to Guam's cultural similarities to the FAS region; and to Guam's relatively robust economic and educational opportunities compared to those available in the less-populous, less-developed Freely Associated States.
The large-scale migration of FAS citizens has become a costly burden for Guam's infrastructure, public healthcare, and social institutions -- especially in light of slack reimbursements from a U.S. government that allows the migration to continue unfettered. And yet even the small federal funding Guam does receive for FAS absorption isn't entirely safe from reprogramming.
An Unwelcome Surprise
In a strange twist of fate, on Friday morning it was learned that the Department of the Interior had authorized Governor Felix Camacho to loan $5 million of Guam's paltry $16.8 million in annual Compact reimbursements to the Guam Department of Education at a time when that money has already been spoken for. The deal had been hammered out by Interior Assistant Secretary for Insular Affairs Tony Babauta and Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo, reportedly without Governor Camacho's input.
Knowing that the limited reimbursement funding was programmed to underwrite capital improvements and social services -- and that he could expect no guarantee of timely repayment from Guam DOE, Governor Camacho rightly turned the arrangement down.
Through a pattern of financial mismanagement, the local school system has lost its control over the funding it receives from U.S. DOE. That authority won't be restored until a third-party administrator is appointed to manage the school system's federal funds.
A Bigger Perspective
Blas is fighting a worthy war for reimbursement. And despite financial mismanagement by school system administrators, Guam's public school students, including those from the FAS, deserve consistent financing for the federal programs that educate them. But it will take better overall financial management by the likes of Guam DOE and consistently unwasteful budgetary responsibility on the part of the Legislature to repair Guam's credibility with the U.S. government.
This is important because the federal system has the means and the know-how, if not the attention span, to get things done for players with mutual interests -- not only in democratic freedom -- but in the price of accountability that must be paid for this ideal.
Although the U.S. Government may not be entirely accountable with regard to Compact-Impact reimbursements to the Territory, the United States is arguably the world's most benificent nation. It is also inarguably the world's most powerful. Benificence and power go hand in hand and enable the U.S. to pick and choose what it wants to prioritize.
Insofar as a generous hegemon prefers to deal with players that have something valuable to offer in return, it behoves Guam to get its priorities straight and its house in order as the Department of Defense prepares to break ground on its $15 billion buildup this summer.
Michael Rudolph contributed to this analysis.
Showing posts with label Military Build up and Beyond; The Guam perspective.. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Military Build up and Beyond; The Guam perspective.. Show all posts
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Conference details Guam's military buildup
Conference details Guam's military buildup
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 11:13 PM PST
by Nick Delgado
The 2009 Island Conference on Public Administration: The Military Buildup and Beyond kicked off at the Guam Legislature today with key officials providing their input on how they feel the relocation of U.S. Marines will impact the island. It's a conference that drew hundreds of both on- and off-island guests in hopes to find a true understanding of what this buildup really means for those both inside and outside the gate.
Hinasson Taotao Guahan ("The Guam perspective") started with a key address by Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roger Natsuhara, who announced, "I encourage all of us to be creative in our thinking. Listen to each other and be ready to work together in order to be successful in our One Guam approach. This would require cooperation from agencies across the federal government."
Natsuhara says the Department of Defense is working hard in the nation's capitol to help bring great results to this buildup. Chairperson of the Committee on the Military Buildup Senator Judi Guthertz (D) says this conference differs from the previous military forums, as it does not focus on economic or contractual opportunities.
She told KUAM News, "This conference is focusing on those subjects that are of interests to the civilian community here, in terms of the lives they lead and how the build up may change their lives."
Guthertz says this conference shines light on public safety and health issues. Guthertz also hopes to identify what the public's major concerns so that Guam's unique identity she says does not drastically change.
Local businessman Leo Macaraeg says the forum was very informative, noting, "The question is: are we ready for that? To receive this additional population that will be staying permanently on this island."
Then there's the group who attended today's conference but are not in favor of the buildup, such as local resident Tony Artero. "I hope that when I do turn in my comments, someone would reckon that we are going and doing the wrong thing. We're going about it wrong and we're heading into a worst possible scenario for Guam. That's the way I see it," he shared.
However, Natsuhara says he will continue to work with both local and federal leaders as they remain committed to doing whatever it takes to make the realignment a success. "By working with you and your leaders and partnership with the federal government," the official stated, "I know we can continue to make Guam a great place to live for all of its residents."
The conference continues tomorrow in the Legislature's Session Hall in Hagatna.
Posted: Nov 18, 2009 11:13 PM PST
by Nick Delgado
The 2009 Island Conference on Public Administration: The Military Buildup and Beyond kicked off at the Guam Legislature today with key officials providing their input on how they feel the relocation of U.S. Marines will impact the island. It's a conference that drew hundreds of both on- and off-island guests in hopes to find a true understanding of what this buildup really means for those both inside and outside the gate.
Hinasson Taotao Guahan ("The Guam perspective") started with a key address by Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roger Natsuhara, who announced, "I encourage all of us to be creative in our thinking. Listen to each other and be ready to work together in order to be successful in our One Guam approach. This would require cooperation from agencies across the federal government."
Natsuhara says the Department of Defense is working hard in the nation's capitol to help bring great results to this buildup. Chairperson of the Committee on the Military Buildup Senator Judi Guthertz (D) says this conference differs from the previous military forums, as it does not focus on economic or contractual opportunities.
She told KUAM News, "This conference is focusing on those subjects that are of interests to the civilian community here, in terms of the lives they lead and how the build up may change their lives."
Guthertz says this conference shines light on public safety and health issues. Guthertz also hopes to identify what the public's major concerns so that Guam's unique identity she says does not drastically change.
Local businessman Leo Macaraeg says the forum was very informative, noting, "The question is: are we ready for that? To receive this additional population that will be staying permanently on this island."
Then there's the group who attended today's conference but are not in favor of the buildup, such as local resident Tony Artero. "I hope that when I do turn in my comments, someone would reckon that we are going and doing the wrong thing. We're going about it wrong and we're heading into a worst possible scenario for Guam. That's the way I see it," he shared.
However, Natsuhara says he will continue to work with both local and federal leaders as they remain committed to doing whatever it takes to make the realignment a success. "By working with you and your leaders and partnership with the federal government," the official stated, "I know we can continue to make Guam a great place to live for all of its residents."
The conference continues tomorrow in the Legislature's Session Hall in Hagatna.
'One Guam, whole government': Local-federal partnerships lead to improvements to infrastructure
'One Guam, whole government': Local-federal partnerships lead to improvements to infrastructure
By Dionesis Tamondong • Pacific Daily News • November 20, 2009
The local and federal governments must continue their "one Guam" approach to make sure the military buildup is done right and benefits everyone involved, a high-ranking federal official said yesterday.
Roger Natsuhara, acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment, was the keynote speaker at yesterday's legislative conference on the buildup.
The two-day conference, "The Military Buildup and Beyond: the Guam Perspective," continues today at the Legislature.
Natsuhara gave examples of how partnerships between the local and federal government have led to hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for buildup-related projects and improvements to local infrastructure and facilities.
And more of those partnerships must be forged and strengthened to help Guam prepare for the anticipated population increase, expansion of military facilities, the demand on the island's roads and utilities, and the related economic, social and cultural impacts.
"Throughout all of this, I want to make it clear that we are committed to a 'one Guam, whole government' approach," Natsuhara said. "This realignment should be beneficial to all of us. By working together across the federal, local governments, we can assure that it will be."
Acting Speaker Rory Respicio said he was pleased to hear Natsuhara support a "one Guam community" concept.
"Our conference is being held to point out and discuss the effects the buildup will have on our civilian community," Respicio said. "It's good to know that the federal government, and especially the Department of Defense, has recognized the need for people on both sides of the fence to receive benefits from the buildup."
Natsuhara plays a critical role in deciding what military projects will be approved and where facilities will be built.
Starting tomorrow, residents will have a chance to view the draft Environmental Impact Statement, which provides a detailed account of how Guam's community will be affected by the changes caused by the buildup.
Natsuhara urged the public to review the report and give input during the 90-day comment period.
"It's important that we continue to receive your input so that as DOD continues to refine our plans, we'll continue to find ways to minimize our impact," he said.
Several public hearings will be held in January for people to ask questions about the EIS study and for comments to be officially recorded.
Gov. Felix Camacho, in his opening address, talked about balancing the needs of the military buildup and the island community.
"Though the buildup offers our island great opportunity, these opportunities will only be as great as our ability to capitalize on them," he said, referring to the need to ensure the buildup is done right. "Doing it right means that our people will not be asked to trade the values that make Guam unique for the opportunities that make Guam prosperous. We seek balance."
By Dionesis Tamondong • Pacific Daily News • November 20, 2009
The local and federal governments must continue their "one Guam" approach to make sure the military buildup is done right and benefits everyone involved, a high-ranking federal official said yesterday.
Roger Natsuhara, acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment, was the keynote speaker at yesterday's legislative conference on the buildup.
The two-day conference, "The Military Buildup and Beyond: the Guam Perspective," continues today at the Legislature.
Natsuhara gave examples of how partnerships between the local and federal government have led to hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for buildup-related projects and improvements to local infrastructure and facilities.
And more of those partnerships must be forged and strengthened to help Guam prepare for the anticipated population increase, expansion of military facilities, the demand on the island's roads and utilities, and the related economic, social and cultural impacts.
"Throughout all of this, I want to make it clear that we are committed to a 'one Guam, whole government' approach," Natsuhara said. "This realignment should be beneficial to all of us. By working together across the federal, local governments, we can assure that it will be."
Acting Speaker Rory Respicio said he was pleased to hear Natsuhara support a "one Guam community" concept.
"Our conference is being held to point out and discuss the effects the buildup will have on our civilian community," Respicio said. "It's good to know that the federal government, and especially the Department of Defense, has recognized the need for people on both sides of the fence to receive benefits from the buildup."
Natsuhara plays a critical role in deciding what military projects will be approved and where facilities will be built.
Starting tomorrow, residents will have a chance to view the draft Environmental Impact Statement, which provides a detailed account of how Guam's community will be affected by the changes caused by the buildup.
Natsuhara urged the public to review the report and give input during the 90-day comment period.
"It's important that we continue to receive your input so that as DOD continues to refine our plans, we'll continue to find ways to minimize our impact," he said.
Several public hearings will be held in January for people to ask questions about the EIS study and for comments to be officially recorded.
Gov. Felix Camacho, in his opening address, talked about balancing the needs of the military buildup and the island community.
"Though the buildup offers our island great opportunity, these opportunities will only be as great as our ability to capitalize on them," he said, referring to the need to ensure the buildup is done right. "Doing it right means that our people will not be asked to trade the values that make Guam unique for the opportunities that make Guam prosperous. We seek balance."
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
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