Terlaje bill would require more accountability for nonprofits receiving government funds

Sen. Therese Terlaje wants more accountability for nonprofits that receive GovGuam funding, and she said a bill she's introduced will do just that. 

With nonprofit groups receiving millions of tax dollars, Terlaje's Bill 267 aims to increase reporting requirements for nonprofit organizations that receive funding from GovGuam.

And there are quite a few of them - 17 non-profits are receiving $640,000 from the Tourist Attraction Fund this year.

"The agencies are not holding the grants accountable and so when the audits come, they're not looking good and so it's really to show the agencies that they have to hold them accountable, otherwise they're accountable for distributing funds without doing what we're requiring them to do right now," she said. "Somebody has to be accountable."

Sen. Terlaje said audits have shown problems with the way non-profits use government grants.

Public Auditor BJ Cruz's audit of the Guam Cancer Trust Fund found "apparent violations or flaws on fund payouts" and cited conflict of interest issues with a grant recipient. Terlaje introduced a measure earlier intended to increase cancer trust fund monies going directly to patient care and services.

She says her Bill 267 strengthens existing requirements and will have consequences for nonprofits that skirt reporting requirements or misuse grant funds.

"It lists everything that these nonprofits need to report on a regular basis as to how they are expending the funds and so this bill will put some teeth into that law and say that if they don't report on this regular basis that their allotment can be reduced by the agency or the agency can terminate the contract," she said. 

Terlaje said the bill will also promote transparency.

"How the government's funds are being used by these nonprofits, so I think it would help to show everyone that is being put into this program or that program and just help us to decide if we like that use of funds or we don't," she said. "It's going to help us as a Legislature to determine that what we think we're putting this money there for - that's actually what it's being used for. That's the most important part."