CARES Act Local Advance Payment Program
In April 2020, the Government of Guam used about $11 million in local General Fund money to send early one-time COVID-19 relief checks to roughly 6,800 of the island's lowest-income tax filers (2018 household income of $10,000 or less), ahead of the federal Economic Impact Payments those funds would later reimburse. Payments followed the federal EIP formula ($1,200 per individual filer, $2,400 for joint filers, plus $500 per qualifying dependent) and were mailed automatically to eligible 2018 tax filers with no separate application. The program was administered by the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation under authority Governor Lou Leon Guerrero exercised to advance federal impact payments using local cash, with reimbursement expected once Guam's $134.8 million federal EIP allocation arrived. It was a one-time, short-lived bridge program distinct from Guam's broader federal Economic Impact Payment rollout and from the separate CARES-funded 'Prugraman Salappe Ayudon I Taotao' disaster aid program created by Executive Order 2020-12.
Guam, US territory, COVID-19 emergency cash, local government advance, low-income tax filers, one-time payment
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Government of Guam, Department of Revenue and Taxation
- City
- Barrigada
- State / Province
- Guam
- Country
- United States
Contact
- Website
- https://www.guamtax.com/
- Phone
- +1 671 475 5000
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 6,800
- Funding type
- Government
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- USD
- Total Amount
- 1,200 USD
- Avg. Per Month
- 1,200 USD
- Payment frequency
- Lump Sum
- How long the program lasts
- 1 months
- Distribution Type
- Mailed paper check
- Benefit details
Payments mirrored the pending federal Economic Impact Payment formula: $1,200 for an individual tax filer, $2,400 for a couple filing jointly, plus $500 for each qualifying dependent child. Amounts were determined automatically from the recipient's already-filed 2018 Guam income tax return; no separate benefit calculation or claim process was required. Checks were physically mailed to taxpayers by the Department of Revenue and Taxation starting mid-April 2020, with more than 4,000 of the roughly 6,800 checks issued within the first two weeks. The $11 million used was Guam General Fund (local) money that the Governor advanced under CARES Act authority permitting territorial governors to advance economic impact payments, with the expectation of reimbursement once Guam received its $134.8 million federal EIP allocation.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Eligible recipients were Guam taxpayers who had already filed a 2018 Guam income tax return showing annual household income of $10,000 or less. This 'priority group' of the island's lowest earners was moved to the front of the line for COVID-19 relief payments while the roughly 60,000 remaining tax filers waited for the full federal Economic Impact Payment rollout. No new application was needed - eligibility and payment amount were derived directly from existing 2018 tax filing data.
Financial
- Income limit (annual household)
- $10,000
Geography
- Countries covered
- Guam
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Application Process
- How to apply
No application was required. Eligibility and payment amounts were determined automatically from taxpayers' already-filed 2018 Guam income tax returns; checks were mailed directly to qualifying filers by the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
- Selection process
The Department of Revenue and Taxation, under Director Dafne Mansapit-Shimizu, identified the roughly 6,800 tax filers with 2018 household income of $10,000 or less from existing tax return records and issued mailed checks to that priority group first, ahead of the broader federal EIP disbursement to the remaining approximately 60,000 tax filers.
