Letter: Supporting Guam's veterans

Anthony “Tony” P. Chargualaf Jr.

Last week, the Guam legislature took up Bill 343-38, introduced by Sen. Therese Terlaje and co-sponsored by Sen. Sabina Perez, continuing their work on behalf of Guam’s veterans and military families. The bill provides greater clarity on who qualifies as a spouse or legal guardian for certain benefits available to veterans and their families.

These include waivers of driver’s license fees, waivers of annual vehicle registration fees available to qualifying disabled veterans and government

employment preferences that may extend to eligible spouses, surviving spouses and legal guardians.

By clarifying who qualifies and for how long, Bill 343 seeks to ensure these benefits reach the family members and caregivers they were intended to support.

As a veteran of the Guam Air National Guard and Mayor of Inalåhan, I welcome this continued attention to the needs of our veterans and their families.

Terlaje and Perez have demonstrated through their legislative work a willingness to turn that commitment into action.

Together, they introduced Resolution 204-38, calling on the federal government

to transfer approximately 15 acres of federal property to the government of

Guam and preserve the land for the future expansion of the Guam Veterans Cemetery and the neighboring Masso Reservoir Conservation Area and

Watershed. Planning now for the future needs of our veterans cemetery is a practical responsibility we owe to generations of veterans and their families.

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This work is not new. During the 34th Guam Legislature, Terlaje authored a series of laws aimed at finding veterans who may not be connected to the services available to them. Public Law 34-86 strengthened efforts to update

the Guam Veterans Registry so Veterans Affairs could better identify and reach Guam’s veteran population.

Public Law 34-93 required the Department of Revenue and Taxation to forward veterans’ DD-214 forms or other proof of veteran status collected through driver’s licenses and identification cards to Veterans Affairs to keep that registry current.

Public Law 34-130 brought those efforts directly into our villages, authorizing mayors to collect veteran information through residency forms and the annual

 census to help identify veterans and connect them with available services.

During the last legislative term, Terlaje was an author of Public Law 37-76, which appropriated $50,000 to the Guam Office of Veterans Affairs to support an island-wide Veterans Convention intended to connect Guam’s veterans with services, information, and resources.

These efforts have also been co-sponsored and supported by other Democratic senators, demonstrating our party’s commitment to supporting Guam’s veterans and their families.

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These are tangible actions. They concern whether veterans are identified and connected with services, whether veterans and their families can access benefits, and whether Guam is planning today for the long-term needs of those who served.

There is still much more work ahead. Our veterans deserve better access to

 health care, stronger assistance navigating federal benefits, support for their families, and persistent advocacy in Washington for services that too often remain difficult to access from Guam.

As a veteran myself, I believe respect for military service is demonstrated not only in what we say, but in how we care for those who served and the families who stood beside them. That responsibility belongs to all of us—veterans and civilians, Democrats and Republicans, and every person entrusted with public office. Terlaje's and Perez's records reflect a commitment to that responsibility through action.

Our veterans have done their duty for us. We must continue doing ours for them. 

Anthony “Tony” P. Chargualaf Jr. is the mayor of Inalåhan, chairman of the Democratic Party of Guam and a Guam Air National Guard veteran.

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