Vice Speaker Therese M. Terlaje, along with Senators Tommy Morrison, Dennis G. Rodriguez Jr, Wil Castro, Fernando Esteves, Joe S. San Agustin and Louise B. Muna have teamed up to introduce Bill 131-34 (LS) which proposes to restrict additional revenues from the from the Guam Highway Fund for village road repair in fiscal year 2018.
It's not hard to see why this is a bi-partisan group of lawmakers, since village streets are laced with holes that sometimes grow to rival the Grand Canyon in depth and breadth. Hitting one of them square on with tires is guaranteed to enrage voters or non-voters. Heavy rainstorms also temporarily camouflage the holes and wash out the coral sometimes used as a 'temporary' fix.
During a Department of Public Works oversight hearing, it was revealed that DPW has plans to reveal 19 village roads using approximately $2.8 million appropriated from the 2018 budget and $2 million from the office of the governor. These 19 roads are part of 114 village streets island mayors and DPW say need to be repaired.
DPW expects to have $3.5 million in unappropriated highway revenues and Vice Speaker Terlaje and her co-sponsors want these funds dedicated to this work.