Торговая палата Гуама запускает проект «Прозеритет» для оценки программ кандидатов перед выборами 2026 года

The Guam Chamber of Commerce is rolling out a 60-day initiative ahead of the 2026 General Election to ask candidates and elected leaders what they will do, when they will do it, and how Guam will measure the results. The Chamber’s “Project Prosperity” is a five-year plan that outlines five priorities and 10 questions centered on bettering Guam’s workforce and economy, government accountability, diversifying the island’s revenue markets, cost of living, and investment in the future. “Guam has an extraordinary opportunity in front of us, but that opportunity is not the same as prosperity,” said Chamber chairman Ed Untalan on Wednesday. “Prosperity is what remains. What remains, hopefully, [is] good jobs, stronger families, affordable living, capable local businesses, and a government that delivers.” Untalan reiterated the importance of this coming election for the private sector. Earlier this month, lawmakers advanced the fiscal year 2027 budget bill with the long-pushed-for 4% Business Privilege Tax rollback attached. The chairman said it isn’t a victory for the Chamber, but evidence that it can move public policy forward. “We can advocate firmly, that we can work across differences and still make progress, because we’ve got a long long road ahead of us,” he said. A 4,580-job gap Untalan said that while headlines point to the many jobs that have been created, several industries are facing job losses. The Chamber looked at Bureau of Labor and Statistics data from March 2019 to March 2026. Since March 2019, private jobs are up 2,510, but at the same time construction jobs boomed upwards by up to 7,090. “Outside of construction, and this is the important thing that we have to understand, is that private payroll jobs fell from 44,300 to 39,720,” he explained. That’s a difference of 4,580. This decrease impacts several Guam industries. “Services are down about 1,900 jobs, retail is down about 1,300 jobs, transportation/utilities are down 960 jobs, financial and insurance down 250, wholesale and trade is down 160, and within the hotel and lodging, we’re talking about probably 1,600 jobs,” Untalan said. The “fledgling private sector” is being clouded by the construction boom, though Untalan said it is welcomed. But what it does highlight is that the civilian economy on Guam has not fully recovered. “This room represents over 40,000 jobs and that’s why every public policy decision has to include how it affects our jobs and that’s very important,” he told the Chamber membership. On Guam, there’s 586 establishments who employ more than 20 people. Those establishments account for 75.3% of annual payroll is paid by those establishments or an average annual payroll of $2.27 million per establishment according to Untalan. So, what happens when one closes? “How many small businesses will it take to make up the loss of a large company like Duty Free,” Untalan opined. “It’s going to roughly take 50 small businesses of six employees or less to be able to make up 300 jobs.” The Gen Z and Millennial key voting block Guam Young Professionals Be Influential chairwoman Hillary Acfalle said public policy impacts nearly everything young professionals — those between the ages of 18-years-old to 38-years-old — care about. “Housing affordability, cost of living, job opportunities, education, infrastructure, health care, and economic growth,” she said. “These are not abstract political issues, they’re life issues and young voters care deeply about them.” The Gen Z and Millennials are a key voting block she said, which could mean thousands of voters that could make a difference in an election. In 2024, the Guam Election Commission recorded 23,571 voters between the ages of 18 to 38. Only 28.8% participated in that year’s election. For those older than 39-years-old, GEC recorded 38,527 registered voters with a voter participation of 61%. “Many young people believe their voice does not matter,” Acfalle said. “Reaching even a portion of these thousands of additional young voices into the decision shaping Guam’s future.”