Senator Jesse A. Lujan warned Guam Visitors Bureau management that the Legislature will not support additional major tourism financing, including another Hotel Occupancy Tax bond, without significant reforms, even as new data show a sharp rise in visitor arrivals late last year.
Speaking at the GVB Board of Directors meeting, Lujan said lawmakers previously took a “gamble” by backing a $10 million investment intended to restore visitor arrivals, stabilize Tumon and support small businesses, but said the results have not met public expectations.
“When the Legislature supported the $10 million investment to bring visitors back, I sold my colleagues on a gamble,” Lujan said. “That has not happened.”
He criticized what he described as a pattern of excuses tied to global conditions, pointing to “shifting timelines, and lowered expectations,” while businesses continue to close.
Lujan said, “Every destination faces challenges and uncertainty. The difference is whether leadership performs.”
He said there is “no appetite, none,” in the Legislature for approving another HOT bond or additional major funding under the current management structure. “If you couldn’t deliver on $10 million, then you have absolutely no credibility asking for $70 million,” he said.
His remarks came as GVB released new arrival statistics showing strong growth in November and early December 2025. Total arrivals in November reached 70,731, a 30.4% increase from 2024. Arrivals for the first half of December totaled 42,492, up 48.3% from the same period last year.
The gains were driven largely by the Korea and Japan markets, both of which posted double-digit increases.
“Guam’s tourism reset continues to show encouraging momentum,” said GVB President and CEO Régine Biscoe Lee.
Despite the improved numbers, Lujan said increased arrivals alone are not enough to justify more funding without meaningful changes in leadership and governance.
“The Legislature is not here to bankroll poor execution,” he said.