Legislative Findings and Intent

(a)I Liheslatura recognizes that the Qualifying Certificate program of the Guam Economic Development Authority (the Authority) was conceived as an economic incentive tool to entice investors into Guam. In use for over two decades, it has had substantial positive impact upon the economic development of Guam, mainly in the tourist industry.

(b)I Liheslatura finds that, today, new hotel construction, expansion of existing ones, and development of resorts are occurring in response to demands for additional lodging due to the everincreasing numbers of visitors to Guam and that government assistance in the form of tax rebate and abatement benefits requires periodic assessment of the growth in this section of Guam’s business community.

(c)Investment by foreign entrepreneurs continues to be major catalyst for Guam’s financial growth. The bulk of their interests, however, lies in large-scale projects that mainly benefit other off-island investors, transients mostly, and which also put undue pressure on the island’s infrastructure to expand and meet their needs, depleting rapidly Guam’s finite essential resources such as people, land and water. While Guam acknowledges their contributions to the island’s welfare in terms of taxes, construction, and employment opportunities on the low end of the pay scale, meaningful participation by people who live and work in Guam, particularly in terms of ownership and joint ventures, has been sorely lacking.

(d)It is I Liheslatura’s intent to restructure the Qualifying Certificate program to assist U. S. citizen and permanent resident entrepreneurs in establishing or expanding industries and services industries and services, including those supportive of hotels and their guests, to diversify the island economy, enrich its growth, and enhance the quality of life in Guam. I Liheslatura affirms that the program must be expanded to attract investments in order to diversify Guam’s economy.