Customs automation plan advances amid grant, procurement and timeline hurdles

Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency officials outlined a multi‑year plan to modernize and automate manual customs processes, describing studies, vendor reviews and a proposed adoption of an ASSICUDA/ASCUDA trade‑facilitation system. Agency witnesses said work contracted under Department of Interior technical assistance funded assessments and consultant reports and that a local $1.3 million allocation plus a $760,000 DOI grant are available as contingencies.

Director Zach Perredon told senators the agency has completed diagnostic assessments and is preparing rule and legal reforms for manifest submission requirements by carriers; the agency also referenced a pending budget bill that would formalize ASSICUDA as the government’s chosen platform and permit negotiation with the vendor pending legislative action. CQA provided a projected cadence: IF the bill passes and procurement proceeds, negotiation would occur in early‑ to mid‑2026 with phased implementation, technical rollout and training extending into 2028.

Senators pressed CQA on multiple procurement failures that have delayed modernization. CQA gave a concrete example: a FEMA‑funded backscatter X‑ray procurement was awarded to a vendor whose delivery timeline exceeded the grant period; FEMA denied a no‑cost extension, and the agency expects to return approximately $1.4 million of that grant. Committee members said repeated GSA/DOA processing problems force agencies into repeated procurement cycles that risk losing federal awards and impede modernization schedules.

Lawmakers asked CQA to provide the committee with the draft procurement schedule, the IFB/sole‑source documentation (if used), and a list of all grant awards where the agency did not execute contracts so the committee can assess whether statutory or administrative changes are needed to ensure awarded grant funds are spent.