The Committee on Finance and Government Operations held a public hearing on Bill 140‑38 COR, a proposal to add a new subsection to Title 9 requiring recruitment and retention studies for law enforcement officers employed by the Guam Department of Corrections (DOC).

Senator Chris Barnett, sponsor of the bill, described the measure as a targeted response to persistent staffing shortages and pay disparities that followed island‑wide HAY/compensation adjustments for law enforcement. He said the bill is intended to prompt a data‑driven review of recruitment, retention and compensation for corrections personnel.

Major Anton F. Ogan, correction facility assistant superintendent, read a memorandum from DOC Director Fred Berdaglio Jr. and also offered his own testimony. The director's memorandum reminded the committee that a unified HAY pay schedule and executive orders already include DOC in periodic HAY reviews and cautioned that the bill's three‑month study requirement could take the DOC pay plan "out of sequence" with DOA HAY studies. The memo asked the legislature instead to ensure funding for any adopted pay adjustments during the budget cycle.

Major Ogan and others from DOC testified in favor of a study, saying that despite a 25% correctional‑institution differential pay the department continues to face recruitment and retention problems. Ogan noted operational issues that worsen recruitment, including job descriptions that have not been updated since the 1980s and position descriptions that do not reflect required education or duties used by HAY scoring.

Theresa Tayama, administrator of the Casework and Counseling Services Division at DOC, urged the committee to include correctional social workers in any premium 25% differential pay or other compensation that results from a study. Tayama described social workers' routine exposure to risks in custodial settings, mental‑health impacts that research shows are comparable to other high‑risk public‑safety occupations, and operational challenges including staff shortages, poor facility conditions and program space limitations.

During questions senators discussed whether the Guam Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission (POST) or DOA could perform parts of the work, and members expressed support for a focused study. Several senators said the study could help identify non‑pay retention tools (training, mentoring, position‑description updates) as well as pay adjustments. The DOC said it will update position descriptions and work with POST and DOA as appropriate.

No formal vote occurred at the hearing. Chair Christopher M. Duenas closed the public hearing and invited written testimony within seven days.

Provenance: Testimony was provided in the hearing by Senator Chris Barnett, Major Anton F. Ogan, DOC Director Fred Berdaglio Jr. (memo read into record), and Theresa Tayama.