Here’s good news for Guam.
The House of Representatives has finally passed the long delayed Disaster Aid Act, which had been blocked by Republican congressmen three times already.
This time, the bill passed with broad bipartisan support in a vote of 354–58, with every Democrat voting for it.
The Disaster Relief Bill provides assistance to states and territories recently affected by hurricanes, wildfires, and other devastating disasters.
The Senate version of the bill allows Guam to draw down from available Affordable Care Act (ACA) funds without having to put up a local match, but only within a limited time frame of January 1, 2019 to September 30, 2019.
Around $268 million in ACA funds was appropriated for Guam in 2011 but the funding requires a 45 percent local match. In prior years, GovGuam has struggled to come up with the local match.
Reacting to the passage of the bill, Governor Lou Leon Guerrero said she was glad that the bill has overcome the latest hurdle and that she is optimistic that President Trump will honor his word that he will sign the bill into law.