by John Davis, KUAM NewsFriday, May 09, 2008 Subscribe to John's newsfeed
Guam's governor says while there may not be money in the General Fund to make the $7.9 million payment by June 1 to cover the local government's streetlights debt, he does say raising the island's Motor Vehicle Registration Fee by $72 through the 'AAA' process would help for the future. "If the senators refuse to increase the amount of funding and keep it at the level it is," said Felix Camacho, "Then we will pay for the amount of streetlights that we can afford and hopefully distribute it evenly among all the villages."The governor adds if the Guam Legislature continues to go down the same path, not addressing the shortage of the streetlight funding source, then residents will continue to bear the burden for the government's shortfalls. "As they (Legislature) continue to adhere to their campaign promise that they will not raise taxes and they will not raise fees, well OK, they'll live up to their promise, but the people of Guam will continue to suffer."The Mayor's Council and the governor sent a letter to the Consolidated Commission on Utilities and the Guam Power Authority Thursday, requesting the disconnection be delayed until after the school year is out. The CCU maintained their firm stance on the streetlight issue, stating they would still begin disconnections on Monday, but they were willing to take safety issues regarding intersections and bus stops into consideration.