News Release

September 5th, 2025   “We Can and Must Do Both: Fund GMH and Deliver BPT Relief”

TUMON, GUAM – The Guam Travel & Tourism Association (GTTA) joins the broader business community in strongly opposing the Governor’s veto of the FY2026 budget and the continued insistence that the Business Privilege Tax (BPT) remain at 5% “for GMH.”

The people of Guam have already faithfully remitted the higher BPT despite declining revenues, job losses, and persistent commercial closures throughout the years of this so-called “temporary” tax increase from 4% to 5%. In that time, businesses and families alike have struggled under its weight, tour operators, hoteliers, restaurants, retailers, and transport providers, all part of Guam’s largest industry: tourism. Behind every company are people; workers, families, and entrepreneurs striving to make an honest living and keep Guam’s economy alive.

To now claim that GMH’s future depends on keeping the BPT at 5% is both misleading and unfair. For nearly a decade, not a single dollar of the elevated BPT was safeguarded by law for GMH. The attempt to hold long-overdue tax relief hostage under the banner of hospital funding confuses the public and undermines confidence in government budgeting.

GTTA underscores that funding GMH is essential. Our members, employees, and visitors all rely on quality healthcare. But GMH must be funded lawfully, transparently, and with safeguards to ensure every dollar reaches the hospital. At the same time, rolling back the BPT is not a “giveaway.” It is overdue relief that helps stabilize prices, sustain jobs, and encourage new investment. It is a critical lifeline for Guam’s fragile economy.

We can and must do both, Guam deserves a stable and responsibly funded hospital, and our working families and businesses deserve the long-promised restoration of the BPT. These are not competing goals; they are both necessary for Guam’s future.”
The Guam Travel & Tourism Association calls on Senators to override the Governor’s veto, restore BPT relief, and enact transparent, accountable funding for GMH.
GTTA remains confident that island leadership and key decision makers have the capacity to forge solutions to meet urgent needs in both our health and commercial sectors.

END OF RELEASE