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HAGATNA, GUAM – The Guam Chamber of Commerce firmly opposes the Governor’s decision to veto the Legislature’s budget while insisting the Business Privilege Tax (BPT) remain at 5% “for GMH." For eight consecutive fiscal years -since the 2018 hike - GovGuam kept BPT at 5%. In all that time, not a single dollar was statutorily protected as a dedicated set-aside for Guam Memorial Hospital. To now claim the BPT must remain at 5% is not sound budgeting - it is an insult to the thousands of employers and working families who have shouldered the elevated tax year after year.
The facts on the ground are impossible to ignore. After eight years of a higher BPT, our public outcomes are deteriorating: our schools are in shambles, our parks are dirty, and community pools remain closed or non-operational. Along Marine Corps Drive, rows of empty commercial buildings stand as a stark, daily reminder of how hard Guam’s private sector is fighting simply to survive. These realities expose the failure of using a blanket tax as a substitute for discipline, transparency, and priority-setting.
It is deeply concerning and difficult to reconcile that GMH is being invoked as a political tool today when, just months ago, GMH’s access to roughly $10 million in ARP funds was thrown into controversy and effectively lost to the hospital after reprogramming disputes, while the administration insisted otherwise. At the same time, Guam’s Department of Education has faced significant federal funding losses and risks, underscoring chronic management problems that no permanent 5% BPT can fix. The pattern is plain: when government fails to prioritize, the public pays twice - once at the register and again in broken services.
The Chamber’s position is firm. GMH must be funded - fully, lawfully, and
transparently - but BPT relief must proceed. Rolling the BPT back toward 4% is not a “giveaway”; it is long-overdue relief that helps stabilize prices, keep doors open, and preserve jobs across our island. We reject any effort to hold tax relief hostage to cover for years of budgeting without safeguards.
We urge every business owner, employee, and taxpayer to contact your Senators immediately and demand an override of the Governor’s veto. Tell them to restore BPT relief now and insist on transparent, accountable appropriations for GMH that cannot be reprogrammed. Phone, email, and visit their offices—make your voice heard and insist that Guam get both: a stable, responsibly funded hospital and a tax policy that supports families, jobs, and investment.
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September 5, 2025
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