June 28, 2018
Hagåtña – The Office of Public Accountability’s (OPA) commentary on the financial audit of the Government of Guam for fiscal year (FY) 2017 commended the current Administration on a surplus of $32.7 million.
This surplus was achieved even as we fulfilled obligations such as Earned Income Tax Credits (EITC), cost-of-living allowance (COLA), and pensions.
In a press conference today, Lester Carlson, Acting Director for Bureau of Budget and Management Research (BBMR) & Edward Birn, Director for the Department of Administration (DOA) addressed the public auditor’s finalized report.
“The message that everyone should take away, almost all of the financial indicators are going in the right direction. You can conclude that the Government of Guam has made real progress in FY2017 and we’re going to improve on that progress in 2018. And eventually we’ll get rid of that deficit,” stated DOA Director Edward Birn.
When asked by media where the cuts were made or could be seen in the financials, DOA Director Edward Birn responded with, “They’re spread over almost every unit and category.”
BBMR Acting Director Lester Carlson said, “I’m very proud to be a part of an Administration that tries to be good financial stewards of the taxpayer’s money. I am very glad that the Office of Public Accountability’s statement in their highlights commend the Administration.”
Independent auditors Deloitte & Touche, LLP also issued a “clean” opinion on the Government of Guam’s financial statements.
