Governor's Office calls California Federal Meetings an 'Unprecedented' opportunity

The cost for a 28-member Guam delegation made up of senior Government of Guam officials traveling to California to meet with more than 100 federal officials is still being compiled, according to the governor's office, which called the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation meetings "unprecedented."

The governor's Communications Director John Ryan said the total cost is still being compiled because the delegation includes multiple line and autonomous agencies with different accounting processes.

Ryan said the cost will be provided once accounting is complete, noting that participating in the federal engagement "is a serious investment in what Guam is trying to achieve."

In a separate release, the governor's office said the OLDCC meetings at Hawthorne Plaza in San Francisco are "high-stakes talks" focused on managing Guam's "massive military expansion and solidifying its indispensable role in Pacific defense."

According to Acting Gov. Josh Tenorio, the location of the meetings was determined by federal partners.

"While agencies from Guam will talk specifics about healthcare, utilities, roads, telecommunications-cyber security, Governor Leon Guerrero will tie it all together for federal officials across federal agencies outside the military, who may not yet understand the magnitude of the investment underway here," the governor's office said.

According to Adelup, Leon Guerrero will in part stress to federal officials:

"Some of the pressures discussed today would have developed over time as Guam grew. But not at this pace, not at this scale, and not with this concentration. The buildup has accelerated the timetable. Guam will carry its share. But a community of our size simply cannot finance, through its tax base alone, a $5 billion necessity—and we certainly can’t do it with the speed required to support a national defense mission of this magnitude.”

Ryan called it a "rare opportunity" for Guam to make its case directly to federal agencies and officials.

"The individual working sessions required local agency leaders and technical experts responsible for those projects to be there. The real measure is the result for Guam," Ryan said. "We already know how Washington works: if you are not in the room when these decisions are being shaped, you cannot expect Guam’s interests to carry the day. Passing up an opportunity of this magnitude would have been a far greater failure.”

As the delegation prepares to meet with federal partners, the governor's office said it has learned that an earlier trade and development mission to Taiwan led by the governor six months ago has resulted in "dividends."

"China Airlines says it is eyeing a return to charter service to Guam in less than a year and potential regularly scheduled service after," the governor's office said.

Leon Guerrero said, "When we met with China Airlines Chairman Kao and Taiwan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Lin Chia-lung in Taipei earlier this year, we laid out a clear roadmap for charter service transitioning to scheduled flights.”

According to the governor's office, Starlux Airlines is also considering a possible transition to regularly scheduled service between Taiwan and Guam after two years of "sold out" charter flights.

“Taiwan is a growing market for Guam,” Tenorio said. “Our close working relationship with the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office is paying off both in the tourism space and in sectors as diverse as hydroponic farming, health, education and renewables.”

According to Adelup, the A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority has also discussed the "eventual execution" of a sister airport relationship with Taoyuan International Airport Corporation.

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