Honorable Senators of I Mina' Trentai Ocho na Liheslaturan Guåhan:

Thank you for hearing Bill 351-38 on Tuesday, September 8, and Thursday, September 10, 2026. On Thursday, more than 150 educators and supporters filled the hearing room, and just as many submitted written testimony. They described spending their own money on their students, working after hours to keep clubs and organizations running, and holding second jobs to make ends meet. On behalf of the Guam Federation of Teachers, I ask that the Legislature give this bill an expedited pathway forward.

At the hearing, Department of Administration Director Edward Birn testified that there is a recommendation to adjust the Educator Pay Plan. Nearly two weeks have passed. The recommendation has not been released. No timeline has been announced. Educators still do not know when, or whether, their pay will change.

This lack of transparency on when raises happen is the reason Bill 351-38 is needed. Today, an adjustment to educator pay depends on a recommendation with no fixed schedule and no public record. The bill sets a clear timeline. It establishes when recommendations for increases should be made, so they reach the Legislature in time to be funded. Senators, educators, and the public would all know what to expect and when.

The bill does not compete with the recommendation Director Birn described. If that recommendation is ready and implemented, the bill still sets a pathway to 95% of the national average, reached in smaller increments from a higher starting point. If it is not ready, the bill ensures the work does not wait indefinitely. In both cases, the bill keeps educator pay tied to a competitive standard so it does not fall 20% behind the national average again.

Delay has a cost. Our teachers average $61,465, compared to a national average of $76,552. We opened this school year with 105 teacher vacancies, and as of the hearing, about 40 classrooms had no permanent teacher. Each year without a timeline is another year of losing educators to better-paying positions off-island.

GFT is not asking the Legislature to make Guam's teachers the highest paid in the nation. The bill sets the target at 95% of the national average, which is still below the average. Today our teachers earn about 80% of it. Based on the current national average of $76,552, the target would be about $72,700. That is a middle-of-the-road salary for a place where the cost of living is uniquely high. Most of what our families buy, from groceries to fuel to building materials, is shipped to the island, and those costs reach every household.

I respectfully ask that the committee report Bill 351-38 out promptly, that the bill keep October 1, 2027 as the date for the earliest increase, and that it be placed on the next session agenda. For employees who work under the General Pay Plan (GPP), we can set their effective date to October 1, 2028. GFT will work with the committee on any amendments needed to move the bill forward.

Thank you for your service to our island and for your consideration.

Respectfully,

Sanjay Sharma, PhD
Vice-President, Guam Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1581
(671) 735-4390