by Sabrina Salas Matanane

Guam - Representatives from the Joint Guam Program Office met with Senator Frank Aguon, Jr. and his committee, which oversees the military buildup. A roundtable meeting was held to bring the 32nd Guam Legislature up to speed with the latest on the Marines relocation from Okinawa to Guam. Joint Guam Program Office director Captain Philip Old provided an update on the SEIS process, which is slated for a Final Record of Decision two years from now. The Supplemental EIS is being conducted for alternative locations for the Marines live fire training range and cantonment and housing areas. Lawmakers in the meantime asked several questions including the status of the Department of Defense submitting a master plan to Congress. As we reported the plan is one of the requirements in the National Defense Authorization Act in order for funding to be released for the realignment.

Captain Old said, "I know that those discussions are ongoing back in the dc office and with the marine corps and with the secretary of defense's office on how to proceed forward with the requirements that are in the NDAA and in particular with the master plan because the master plan includes more than just Guam it also includes Hawaii that are going to be relocated there it's a hard question to answer it's a great question unfortunately I don't have a very good answer for you."

The Record of Decision is due out in early 2015.