The Supreme Court of Guam has ruled that the governor has authority under the Organic Act to establish hospitals and public health services and that the Attorney General cannot use local law to block the expenditure of federal funds for a new hospital project, Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero announced Friday.
According to the governor's office, the court held that the Attorney General "cannot use 5 GCA § 5150 as a veto power that prevents the Governor from expending federal funds to establish a hospital," and that disputes over executive authority must instead be resolved through judicial review.
"This ruling is clear, decisive, and confirms what we have maintained from the very beginning: the law does not give any Attorney General the power to unilaterally block a Governor from building a hospital with federal funds," Leon Guerrero said.
The governor said the ruling vindicated her administration's legal position but came at a cost in lost time. "Unfortunately, being right does not give us back the time that was wasted," she said, adding that delays had "placed federal funding at risk and reduced the amount of time available to put those funds to work for the people of Guam."
Leon Guerrero also criticized Republican legislative leaders, saying they chose inaction while the matter moved through the courts, and raised what she called an election-year question of whether the Legislature and Attorney General would be held accountable.
The governor said her administration is focused on moving forward and maximizing the federal funding that can still be invested in a modern hospital.
Attorney General Douglas B. Moylan, who is not a party to the Governor's Declaratory Judgement case said, "The issues addressed remain before the U.S. District Court of Guam."