The education committee heard sharply divergent views Oct. 30 on Bill 200-38, which would require the Guam Academy Charter Schools Council (GACC) to review and approve academy charter school contracts, memoranda of agreement and similar binding documents to strengthen oversight of public funds.

Evangeline Cepeda, chair of the Guam Academy Charter School Council, testified in strong support of the bills intent and asked senators to adopt targeted amendments. Cepeda said the councils objective is not to "micromanage" trustees but to ensure transparency and protect public dollars. She proposed limiting council review to larger contracts and recommended a financial threshold; in remarks during the hearing she repeatedly cited a $100,000 threshold as an example, and said the council should be notified in advance of significant agreements so it can maintain a paper trail and respond to inquiries from elected officials.

Several charter school leaders and operators, however, urged the committee not to adopt the bill in its current form. Helen Nishihara and representatives of Guahan Academy Charter School told the panel that charter schools already submit annual budgets and itemized expenditures and that the council has statutory powers to request books and records under the existing charter-school law. They warned the bills preapproval requirement would create procurement delays and duplicate nonprofit governance obligations; they recommended instead a higher threshold and stronger consequences for schools that repeatedly fail to provide requested documents.

Will Castro, a charter operator and former senator, described mandatory council approval of agreements above a low dollar amount as overreach, and urged practical alternatives: roundtable reviews, phone consultations, or posting executed contracts to a shared portal. Castro said that small charter operators handle many roles (teacher, administrator, operations) and lack the time or staffing to await state-level preapproval; he urged the Legislature to address underlying resource shortfalls (per-pupil funding and capital access) rather than broad preapproval requirements.

Former Speaker Judith Won Pat, who drafted Guams original charter law, said she supports oversight of public funds and urged a data-driven approach to set review thresholds so the council focuses on substantial expenditures rather than routine operational contracts.

Speakers also discussed litigation and liability. Attorney Michael Phillips and others noted a court opinion that limits government liability for charter school actions and stressed that the councils authority and any immunity language should be carefully defined if the law is amended. The council and charter leaders agreed on the need to refine language; senators said they would work with stakeholders and consider amendments (including a higher threshold such as $100,000) before marking up the bill.

No committee vote was taken at the hearing.