Senators get raises & retro-pay
The final implementation of the Hay study is complete, now including members of the Guam Legislature.
December 19, 2014Updated: December 19, 2014
By KUAM News
By KUAM News by Ken Quintanilla
Guam - While it's more than a week away until the bill removing senators from the Competitive Wage Act is heard, just like the executive branch and the cabinet members, senators were also given their retro pay as part of the Hay plan. The final implementation of the Hay study is complete and now that also includes members of the Guam Legislature.
Executive director Vince Arriola confirms that senators received their retro pay through direct deposit Thursday night. Arriola says because the retro pay was an unbudgeted item, it took looking within its current appropriation to find the funds, adding, "Concerned financially? A bit, but that's basically what we do, we run our own finances were, I still believe we're frugal, we're tight, we've had the same budget I believe for the last five years, the same amount, so we make it with what we got."
The total retro for the executive branch and the cabinet members is estimated around $880,000. The retro-pay for senators is estimated at around $400,000. The Legislature's budget is around $7.2 million. The payment comes just as close to two dozen people made their way to the Legislature as part of a sit-in protest against the salary raises.
Vice Speaker B.J. Cruz along with Senator Michael San Nicolas spoke with the group. The latter said, "Very clearly, the underlying message from the people was they didn't dispute whether or not people were working hard, but they did dispute whether or not it was the best use of money given all the needs our community has today and I very much agree with them."
San Nicolas says he encouraged the group to attend the public hearing on December 29 on Bill 436 introduced by Senator Frank Aguon Jr. The measure would remove senators from the Competitive Wage Act. In a release today, Aguon states that the retro pay to senators should have been withheld until such time action has been taken on his measure. He says, "Although Bill 436 did not explicitly prohibit retroactive payments to senators, implicitly creates one considering the intent of the bill."
San Nicolas in the meantime donated the entirety of his retro check - all $14,403.36, to Sanctuary. But while it appears the hay plan is complete, San Nicolas raises concern over whether other obligations still exist. "I've been getting various messages from various law enforcement offices, public safety officials saying that they're still pending payments, so there are outstanding obligations with respect to pay out that we need to reconcile," he said.
Police Chief Fred Bordallo tells KUAM News that 75% of the retro as it pertains to the 40% raise for law enforcement officers has been paid to GPD. He says the governor's finance team has assured that the funds are available to pay the remaining 25% and it's just about calculating the right amount. He says this would impact about 300 classified officers. As for the Guam Fire Department, Fire Captain Joey San Nicolas says they are up to date for the most part with the exception of overtime and specialty pay like night differential.
Guam - While it's more than a week away until the bill removing senators from the Competitive Wage Act is heard, just like the executive branch and the cabinet members, senators were also given their retro pay as part of the Hay plan. The final implementation of the Hay study is complete and now that also includes members of the Guam Legislature.
Executive director Vince Arriola confirms that senators received their retro pay through direct deposit Thursday night. Arriola says because the retro pay was an unbudgeted item, it took looking within its current appropriation to find the funds, adding, "Concerned financially? A bit, but that's basically what we do, we run our own finances were, I still believe we're frugal, we're tight, we've had the same budget I believe for the last five years, the same amount, so we make it with what we got."
The total retro for the executive branch and the cabinet members is estimated around $880,000. The retro-pay for senators is estimated at around $400,000. The Legislature's budget is around $7.2 million. The payment comes just as close to two dozen people made their way to the Legislature as part of a sit-in protest against the salary raises.
Vice Speaker B.J. Cruz along with Senator Michael San Nicolas spoke with the group. The latter said, "Very clearly, the underlying message from the people was they didn't dispute whether or not people were working hard, but they did dispute whether or not it was the best use of money given all the needs our community has today and I very much agree with them."
San Nicolas says he encouraged the group to attend the public hearing on December 29 on Bill 436 introduced by Senator Frank Aguon Jr. The measure would remove senators from the Competitive Wage Act. In a release today, Aguon states that the retro pay to senators should have been withheld until such time action has been taken on his measure. He says, "Although Bill 436 did not explicitly prohibit retroactive payments to senators, implicitly creates one considering the intent of the bill."
San Nicolas in the meantime donated the entirety of his retro check - all $14,403.36, to Sanctuary. But while it appears the hay plan is complete, San Nicolas raises concern over whether other obligations still exist. "I've been getting various messages from various law enforcement offices, public safety officials saying that they're still pending payments, so there are outstanding obligations with respect to pay out that we need to reconcile," he said.
Police Chief Fred Bordallo tells KUAM News that 75% of the retro as it pertains to the 40% raise for law enforcement officers has been paid to GPD. He says the governor's finance team has assured that the funds are available to pay the remaining 25% and it's just about calculating the right amount. He says this would impact about 300 classified officers. As for the Guam Fire Department, Fire Captain Joey San Nicolas says they are up to date for the most part with the exception of overtime and specialty pay like night differential.