I Mina'trenta Na Liheslaturan Gudhan and FEDERAL, Foreign & MICRONESIAN Affairs THIRTIETH GUAM Legislature
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SENATOR RORY J. RESPICIO MAJORITY LEADER CHAIRMAN I Mina'Trenta na Liheslaturan Guahan CoMMITTEE oN RuLES, NATURAL RESOURCES AND FEDERAL, FOREIGN &: MICRONESIAN AFFAIRS THIRTIETH GUAM LEGISLATURE May 26,2009 The Honorable Judith T. Won Pat, Ed.D. Speaker I Mina'Trenta Na Liheslaturan Guahan \v 155 Hesler Place I.J Hagatfia, Guam 96910 (;}' RE: Committee Report- Bill No. 49 (COR) Dear Speaker Won Pat: The Committee on Rules, Natural Resources, and Federal, Foreign & Micronesian Affairs, to which was referred Bill No. 49 (COR), sponsored by Vice Speaker Benjamin J.F. Cruz- An act to repeal and re-enact Sections §1105 of Chapter 1, Title 2, and §5101 of Chapter 5, Title 3, and §6103 of Chapter 6, Title 3, of the Guam Code Annotated and to amend Sections §7105 of Chapter 7, Title 3, and §16301 (e) Article 3 of Chapter 16, Title 3, of the Guam Code Annotated, relative to amending the term of office from two years to four years and to provide for staggered terms for members of the Guam Legislature," hereby reports out said legislation with the recommendation [D fA{~ . Committee votes are as follows: J_ TO PASS I NOT TO PASS :2 TO REPORT OUT ONLY TO ABSTAIN TO PLACE IN INACTIVE FILE Very Truly Yours, Ro~ Chairperson 155 Hesler Place • Hagatiia, Guam 96910 • (671)472-7679 • Fax: (671)472-3547 • [email protected] SENATORRORYJ. RESPICIO MAJORITY LEADER CHAIRMAN I MinaTrenta na Liheslaturan Gudhan CoMMITTEE oN RuLEs, NATURAL RESouRcES AND FEDERAL, FoREIGN &: MicRONESIAN AFFAIRS THIRTIETH GUAM LEGISLATURE May 26,2009 MEMORANDUM To: All Members Committee on Rules, Natural Resources, and Federal, Foreign & Micronesian Affairs From: Senator Rory J. Respicio ~ Committee Chairperson / Subject: Committee Report- Bill No. 49 (COR) Transmitted herewith for your consideration is the report on Bill No. 49 (COR). This report includes the following: • Committee Voting Sheet • Committee Report Narrative • A copy of SubBill No. 49 (COR) • A copy of Bill No. 49 (COR) • Public Hearing Sign-in Sheet • Notices of Public Hearing Please take the appropriate action on the attached voting sheet. Your attention to this matter is greatly appreciated. Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you. 155 Hesler Place • Hagatfia, Guam 96910 • (671)472-7679 • Fax: (671)472-3547 • [email protected] SENATOR RORY J. RESPICIO MAJORilY LEADER CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON RULES CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES I MINA TRENTA NA LIHESLATURAN GUAHAN & FEDERAL, FOREIGN & MICRONESIAN AFFAIRS THIRTIETH GUAM LEGISLATURE COMMITTEE VOTING SHEET Bill No. 49 (COR) (B.J.F. Cruz) - An act to repeal and re-enact Sections §1105 of Chapter 1, Title 2, and §5101 of Chapter 5, Title 3, and §6103 of Chapter 6, Title 3, of the Guam Code Annotated and to amend Sections §7105 of Chapter 7, Title 3, and §16301 (e) Article 3 of Chapter 16, Title 3, of the Guam Code Annotated, relative to amending the term of office from two years to four years and to provide for staggered terms for members of the Guam Legislature. SIGNATURE TO PASS NOT TO TO REPORT ABSTAIN TO PLACE PASS OUT ONLY DUE TO IN POTENTIAL INACTIVE CONFLICT FILE SENATOR RORY J. RESPICIO Chairperson ~ ~ SENATOR JUDITH P. GUTHERTZ Vice-Chairperson ~ ~ SPEAKER JUDITH T. WON PAT, Ed,D. ( Member ~ ~/ VICE-SPEAKER BENJAMIN J.F. CRUZ Member ""'"' ~ LEGISLATIVE SECRETARY \ "~ TINA ROSE MUNA BARNES / Member SENATOR THOMAS C. ADA "'~ Member / ~ / SENATOR FRANK B. AGUON, JR. c.. :://Jc)_ v~~ Member 'C~Aft 'V // SENATOR ADOLPHO B. PAL~.cibS Member nx/vtC; ~}. v- SENATOR VICENTE C. PANGELIN"'AN£ /' Member / 111 / / SENATOR MATT RECTOR Member ( /~/ I SENATOR FRANK F. BLAS, JR. \_ Minority Member _J1Y SENATOR JAMES V. ESPALDON Minority Member 155 Hesler Place • Hagat:fia, Guam 96910 • (671)472-7679 • Fax: (671)472-3547 • [email protected] COMMITTEE REPORT Bill No. 049 (COR) Introduced By Senator B.J.F. CRUZ AN ACT TO REPEAL AND RE-ENACT SECTIONS $1105 OF CHAPTER 1, TITLE 2, AND $5101 OF CHAPTER 5, TITLE 3, AND $6103 OF CHAPTER 6, TITLE 3, OF THE GUAM CODE ANNOTATED AND TO AMEND SECTIONS $7105 OF CHAPTER 7, TITLE 3, AND $16301 (e) ARTICLE 3 OF CHAPTER 16, TITLE 3, OF THE GUAM CODE ANNOTATED, RELATIVE TO AMENDING THE TERM OF OFFICE FROM TWO YEARS TO FOUR YEARS AND TO PROVIDE FOR STAGGERED TERMS FOR MEMBERS OF THE GUAM LEGISLATURE. A public hearing was conducted by the Committee on Rules, Natural Resources & Federal, Foreign and Micronesian Affairs in the Legislature's Public Hearing Room on April 16, 2009 on Bill No. 049 (COR). Committee Chairperson Senator Rory J. Respicio called the hearing to order at 9 a.m. Oral testimony was presented by Mr. Julian Janssen who said that Bill No. 049 (COR) was not a good idea. He favored extending Senatorial terms to four years but opposed staggered terms for members of the Legislature. He suggested instead that a constitution for Guam would be a better approach. Mr. Janssen said that staggering the terms of Senators, with eight being selected during Gubernatorial election years and seven being selected in the off years, would result in a drop-off of public interest during off-year elections, especially since fewer seats would be available. Mr. Janssen also suggested moving from at-large elections to district elections. Sen. Guthertz said that districting was tried in the past and struck down by the court because one-man, one-vote didn't work. She noted problems in district elections for the former Territorial Board of Education. She said that the population shifts frequently, and that it would always be difficult to accurately pinpoint village representation. Sen. Guthertz said she was delegate to Guam's Constitutional Convention and that one of the proposals for the constitution, which came from the late Dr. Antonio Yamashita, was to do what Bill No. 049 (COR) would do. The main idea was to divert attention of Senators from elections to public policy. Sen. Guthertz acknowledged the difficulty in facing elections every other year. She said that the bill could help in shifting the focus of the government to one that was more long-term, because elections every two years is too short for long range planning. Sen. Guthertz disagreed with Janssen's claim that having just seven seats in an election was a disincentive to voters. She said that there was always a lot of interest even in non-gubernatorial election years. Sen. Aguon complemented Mr. Janssen for speaking out, and said that extending terms makes a lot of sense, but for those not sitting in the position it might not always make sense. He said that the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Public Auditor and Attorney General all served four year terms. Mayors and Vice Mayors also serve four years, so perhaps senators should as well. He said that Senators would have to decide if the public should decide the issue or if the Senators themselves should do it. Sen. Aguon pointed out that Guam's voter turnout is double the turnout across the country. People of Guam take politics seriously, so there should be no concern with a disincentive to voters. Sen. Palacios commented that he shared the observation of the Bill's author about the concentration of work in the first year of the term is the nature of every elective position, especially those running for re-election. He said this didn't mean that people cannot work during election years, But it was the nature of the competition and there are so many distractions when running for office. He said he was in support of extending terms because he is generally in support of three years of concentrated time working on issues. Mr. Janssen said he agreed in extending the term of office but didn't agree in staggering terms. There being no further testimony presented, Chairperson Respicio declared Bill No. 049 (COR) was publicly heard and that written and electronic testimony would be accepted for ten working days following the hearing. FINDINGS: The Committee on Rules, Natural Resources and Federal, Foreign & Micronesian Affairs finds that it agrees that a constitution for Guam defining the terms for members of the Legislature would be the best solution to lengthen Senatorial terms, but it is a long-term solution and cannot be addressed by local legislation. The Committee disagrees that having only seven Senatorial seats available in an off-year election would result in a large drop-off in public interest. There is a generally high turnout of Guam voters even in off-year elections, and because Mayors and Vice Mayors are also elected in off-years, public interest continues to be high. RECOMMENDATION: The Committee on Rules, Natural Resources and Federal, Foreign & Micronesian Affairs recommends the following amendment to Bill No. 049 (COR): 1. Implementation of the provisions of Bill No. 049 (COR) shall commence with the General Election of 2012 instead of 2010, to prevent Senators from possibly extending their own terms in office. The Committee on Rules, Natural Resources and Federal, Foreign & Micronesian Affairs hereby reports out Bill No. 049 (COR) with the recommendation to do pass as amended. Attached are the following supporting documents: 1. Public hearing notification sent to all media and posted on the Guam Legislature's web site 2. Sign-in sheet(s) submitted at public hearing 3. Testimony and evidence submitted at public hearing 4. Voting sheet 5. Bill No. 049 (COR) as amended SENATORRORYJ. RESPICIO MAJORITY LEADER ~ CHAIRMAN I Mina~Trent-a na Liheslat-uran Guahan CoMMITTEE oN RuLES, NATURAL REsouRcEs AND FEDERAL, FoREIGN &: MICRONESIAN AFF.AJRS THIRTIETH GUAM LEGISLATURE PUBLIC HEARING SIGN-IN SHEET Thursday, April 16, 2009 BILL NO.