Legislature hears bill to require recruitment and retention study for Department of Corrections staff

The Committee on Finance and Government Operations of the 30th Guam Legislature held a public hearing Oct. 27, 2025, on Bill 140-38 COR, an act to add a new subsection to require salary recruitment and retention studies for law enforcement officers employed by the Guam Department of Corrections. Senator Chris Barnett introduced the measure as the "Fair Compensation and Retention for Correctional Officers Act of 2025."

Barnett said the bill is a renewed effort after a prior, similar measure was vetoed; he and supporters described persistent recruitment and retention problems at DOC and disparities between agencies following earlier law enforcement pay adjustments. “I was actually kinda shocked, that the governor vetoed the bill,” Barnett said, and he urged a targeted study that would identify whether pay or other factors warrant adjustments.

Major Anton F. Ogun, correction facility assistant superintendent with DOC, read a memorandum from DOC Director Fred Berdaglio Jr. that expressed appreciation for attention to recruitment and retention but cautioned that the proposed bill could take DOC out of sequence with ongoing DOA "HEY" reviews and that DOA can conduct studies without further legislation. Berdaglio's memorandum also noted that the unified pay schedule established by Public Law 21-42 assigns administration of the pay plan to the director of administration and requires periodic reviews.

Major Ogun and Theresa Tayama, administrator of Casework and Counseling Services at DOC, testified the department continues to struggle despite a 25% correctional-institution differential pay. Ogun said the differential helped initially but recruitment remains challenging; he also described outdated position descriptions last updated in the 1980s and said that up-to-date job descriptions and better data are needed to score positions properly in job-evaluation studies.

Tayama urged the legislature to explicitly include correctional social workers in premium/differential pay eligibility, saying current policy language is vague and that social workers share the hazardous working conditions of uniformed personnel. She cited research on high levels of mental- and physical-health impacts among correctional staff and described operational challenges including dilapidated facilities, staff shortages and limited treatment space.

Senators asked about prior appropriations and training, the role of the Guam Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission in force-structure planning, and the use of a $1.3 million general-fund appropriation in FY25; DOC said some answers would be provided later in reports. The committee chair and Bill 140-38's sponsor said they intend to mark up the bill and invited further written testimony; no formal vote or final action was recorded at the hearing.