FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (September 29, 2022 – Hagåtña, Guam) – Bill 277-36, the Guam Undersea Access for Homes Act (GUAHA), was signed by the Acting Governor this afternoon and became P.L. 36-108.  The measure passed on Monday with all senators present voting in favor of the bill.  Authored by Speaker Therese Terlaje, the bill is a culmination of a year and a half of research that was translated into a modern policy for the licensing of submerged lands under the jurisdiction of the CHamoru Land Trust (CLTC) for the purpose of landing telecommunications cables on Guam.  The final amended measure came before the legislature with urgency to provide resources for the CLTC to negotiate new and expiring leases.

While previous leases for submerged lands licenses were undervalued as low as $5000 per year, GUAHA brings the baseline for new or renegotiated leases up to $100,000 per year per cable with an escalation of 2% per annum.  The funds generated from these licenses would get deposited into the CHamoru Land Trust Survey and Infrastructure Fund since a lack of surveys on CLTC property is one of the primary roadblocks to the issuance of residential and agricultural leases.

“Providing resources for surveys is a critical need to get families into homes on CLTC properties.  The advantages of this bill are far reaching, and this measure is a steppingstone to lift our entire community up. Our residents continue to struggle with affordable housing options for their families and with record inflation, gas prices, and utility costs, it is my hope that we continue to enact policies that encourage fair and responsible development on Guam that directly impacts the lives of our families in a positive way,” stated the Speaker.

International consortiums join forces to provide connectivity across the globe that include companies such as Facebook, Amazon, and Google who fund these multimillion-dollar telecommunications projects.  The new law positions Guam appropriately in the global market to land cables for these companies without cost to Guam’s taxpayers, and ensures environmental safeguards are in place to protect precious land resources.

“It is my hope that the people of Guam will be encouraged by the major progress we have made today on their behalf.”

The Guam Undersea Access for Homes Act was cosponsored by Senators Telo Taitague, Sabina Perez, Telena Cruz Nelson, Christopher Duenas, and Joanne Brown.

The link to Public Law 36-108 can be found here.