AG seeks $365K appropriation to pay what is owed investigators

by Mindy Aguon

Guam - The Attorney General's Office is asking the Guam Legislature for assistance in providing the funding to pay what is owed to 17 investigators employed at the Department of Law. Attorney General Leonardo Rapadas says the office was informed that they would need to identify their own funding to give the retro-pay.  Rapadas says he isn't sure why there's a distinction since the office was always allocated separately but employees have been paid.

He explained, "We believe there should be parity among law enforcement and it just seems unfair that our investigators were kept out just for whatever technical reasons that they were thinking about but like we said our whole office was paid the merit retroactively."

The AG's Office needs a $365,000 appropriation to pay what is owed to its investigators.  Rapadas is asking that if the full amount cannot be given that lawmakers appropriate half of that amount and remove the transfer restriction provision of this fiscal year's budget law placed on the office's personnel salary and benefits categories.