Title 21 — Real Property

This Chapter may be cited as the Land Management Act. SOURCE: GC § 13000.

Unless the context otherwise requires, the following provisions shall govern the construction of this Chapter: (a) Government real property as used in regard to sales and homesteading means all real property to which fee title is now or hereafter vested in the government of Guam,…

The Department of Land Management shall have cognizance of all government real property. SOURCE: GC § 13002.

The Director shall study and keep records on the use of government real property by other departments and agencies and may make recommendations to the Governor concerning reallocation of land so used for the purpose of securing maximum utilization of such land. SOURCE: GC § 13003…

(a) The Director, after public hearing and with legislative concurrence, may, when necessary, reserve or set aside government real property not reserved by law for specific public use for the future use of any other department or agency of the government; provided, that control o…

In accordance with the rules and regulations to be promulgated pursuant to § 60111 of this Article, the Director shall, upon receipt of the property statement provided for in § 13911.1 convey to the former owner of an interest in land described in the property statement exchange …

The Department shall have the power and duty to survey, plat, inventory, classify and, from time to time, reclassify all government real property. The Department may use the following categories for such classifications: (a) Urban land. (b) Suburban land. (c) Agricultural land. (…

In addition to the classification of land provided by § 60107, there shall also be a classification known as Exchange Land. Exchange Land shall, in accordance with rules and regulations to be promulgated pursuant to § 60111 of this Chapter, be identified from among the categories…

The provisions of P.L. 12-226 commonly known as the Chamorro Land Trust Act (21 GCA §§ 75101-75117) shall not apply to any land conveyed pursuant to the authority contained in §§ 60106 and 60108 of this Title. SOURCE: Added as uncodified law by P.L. 15-068:5 (Oct. 2,1979). Codifi…

Annually on or before the first day of May, each department or agency using or controlling any government real property shall report to the Department any real property in its control which is in excess of its needs, and any need for additional real property. SOURCE: GC § 13006.

All rules and regulations prescribed in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter, and which require the approval of the Governor, shall be promulgated by Executive order, a copy of which shall be filed in the Department of Land Management. SOURCE: GC § 13007. NOTE: P.L. 13-…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, government-owned real property shall not be sold, leased, sub- leased, exchanged or otherwise transferred without the prior approval of I Liheslatura (the Legislature) by duly enacted legislation, which specifically authorizes a pa…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, government- owned real property shall not be conveyed directly or indirectly in the form of a life estate. The transfer of any future life estate of government-owned real property shall be deemed void and such interest of the transactio…

Property for Commercial Purposes. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the government of Guam is authorized to lease government-owned property for a term not exceeding fifty (50) years for commercial purposes. (b) No portion of the leased …

Autonomous Agencies, Public Corporations, and Other Public Instrumentalities of the Government of Guam for Commercial Purposes. Taxes shall be applied to lands leased as stipulated in § 60114 of this Chapter. (a) Notwithstanding § 26203(a) of Chapter 26, Article 2, Title 11, Guam…

All taxes identified in § 60114.1 shall be divided equally and deposited in the Guam Ancestral Lands Commission (GALC) “Land Bank Fund” and the Chamorro Land Trust Commission (CLTC) “Chamorro Home Development Fund” for the development of infrastructure improvements on land trust …

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation, all sales, or leases of real property owned by the government of Guam for a term of ten (10) years or longer, except the leasing of government land reserved as a cultural center as mandated by Public Law Number 22-18, shall b…

There is within the Department of Land Management the office of recorder. The Director of Land Management shall be ex officio the recorder. The recorder shall have and exercise all of the duties, powers and functions of such office, and is authorized to designate one or more empl…

All books of record, indices, maps, charts, surveys, instruments, or other papers, and microcopies thereof, filed for record in the recorder’s office, shall be open for inspection by any person, without charge, during office hours. SOURCE: GC § 13101.

The recorder shall not file or record any instruments, furnish any copy, or render any service connected with his office until the fees prescribed by law are paid or tendered. SOURCE: GC § 13102.

The term document as used in this Article means, except where the context otherwise indicates, any instrument, paper, notice, certified copy of judgment, map, plat, survey or other document, including attachments thereto, which is authorized by law to be recorded. SOURCE: GC § 13…

The recorder shall procure in accordance with government procedure, such photostatic, microfilm or other equipment, books and supplies, as the business of his office requires. SOURCE: GC § 13110.

The recorder shall have official custody of all documents, records, books, maps and other material deposited in his office. SOURCE: GC § 13111.

The recorder shall keep the following indices: (a) Two indices for the recording of instruments affecting the title or right of possession of land, labeled respectively: General Index of Grantors, Land. (1) Each page of the General Index of Grantors, Land, shall be divided into n…

The recorder may maintain temporary indices. Where permanent indices are compiled by the use of temporary cards or temporary index sheets for the use of the public before the permanent indices are compiled, the recorder may destroy such temporary index cards or sheets when the pe…

If the name of the person in whom title to real estate is vested is changed from any cause, the recorder shall index the conveyance in the name by which title was acquired and the name by which it is conveyed. SOURCE: GC § 13114.

This Article shall apply to all documents required or authorized to be recorded or filed for record in the Department of Land Management except as hereinafter provided. SOURCE: GC § 13120.

Nothing in this Article shall apply to the registration and recording of real property which has been or which may be registered under the provisions of this Title otherwise known as the Land Title Registration Act. SOURCE: GC § 13121.

When an instrument intended for record is executed or certified in whole or in part in any language other than English, the recorder shall not accept the instrument for record. The person desiring to file for record such an instrument may present the instrument and an English tra…

The Director of Administration is directed to transfer and the recorder is directed to receive and take into his records such documents, indices or papers as have previously been filed for record or recorded in the Department of Administration but which hereafter are to be record…

The Legislature finds that all buyers and transferees of real property should be aware of the availability of water and power on the land they buy or obtain at the time they purchase or obtain it. Therefore: (a) No document transferring an interest in real property, except for le…

When any document authorized by law to be recorded is deposited in the recorder’s office for record, the recorder shall immediately endorse upon it the proper filing number in the order in which it is deposited, the year, month, day, hour and minute of its reception, and the amou…

The recorder shall endorse upon each document the book and page in which it is recorded. After the document has been indexed and recorded, it shall, if filed for record, be returned to the party filing it or his order. SOURCE: GC § 13131.

The recorder shall record by legible handwriting, by typewriting, or by photographic reproduction process. A system of microphotography may be used by the recorder as a photographic reproduction process to record some or all instruments, papers and notices that are required or pe…

The words file for record when used as a directive in any law relating to any instrument to be filed in the recorder’s office shall mean record in the manner provided in § 60317 of this Article. The recorder shall not receive for recording any instrument which is not sufficiently…

The recorder shall, as rapidly as his facilities permit, index and record such original documents in his possession as affect the title to or possession of real property and which were filed on or after January 1, 1935, and which have not been merged into a certificate of title o…

(a) The recorder, notwithstanding any other provisions of law and exclusive of any documents tax, is authorized and directed to collect the following fees: (1) For recording or filing any deed, agreement, assignment, amendment, addendum, lease, contract, assumption, bill of sale,…

The United States government shall not be charged any fees as provided in paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), and (5), and for services of (6), (7) and (8) shall be charged only the cost of materials. SOURCE: GC § 13141. 2017 NOTES: Internal references were altered to reflect the chang…

(a) There is within the government of Guam the Guam Land Use Commission (Commission). The Commission shall be composed of five (5) members to be appointed by I Maga’låhi (the Governor) by and with the advice and consent of I Liheslatura (the Legislature) for a period of five (5) …

The Director of Land Management shall be Executive Secretary to the Commission. SOURCE: GC § 13201. Amended by P.L. 24-171:4 (Apr. 17, 1998). Reenacted by P.L. 25-020:2 (May 26, 1999).

Members of the Commission shall receive no compensation as such for duties prescribed by this Chapter, but shall be reimbursed for their reasonable and necessary travel and incidental expenses incurred in the course of their official duties, as certified by the Treasurer of Guam.…

The Department of Land Management shall provide the Commission with such technical and clerical personnel and office facilities as may be reasonably necessary for the carrying out of the provisions of this Chapter. SOURCE: GC § 13203. Amended by P.L. 24-171:4 (Apr. 17, 1998). Ree…

The Commission is authorized to make reasonable rules, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Chapter, for the conduct of its business. SOURCE: GC § 13204. Amended by P.L. 24-171:4 (Apr. 17, 1998). Reenacted by P.L. 25-020:2 (May 26, 1999).

In order to establish the official names of streets and highways in Guam, the Commission shall adopt and submit to the Legislature a precise plan as is required for the systematic naming of said streets and highways in Guam. SOURCE: GC § 13209. Amended by P.L. 24-171:4 (Apr. 17, …

Include. The street naming plan shall include: (a) proposed names for all streets and highways within Guam (except such streets and highways as are located upon military reservations of the United States) not in conflict with street names already adopted by virtue of the provisio…

Upon the transmittal to the Legislature of the approved plan as provided in § 60406, the Legislature shall hold at least one (1) public hearing in order to permit the public to present its views as to the proposed street and highway names. The legislature, upon the conclusion of …

The Guam Land Use Commission shall serve ex-officio as the Guam Natural Resources Board. It shall be the function of the Board to study and evaluate any plans or proposals for the utilization of government land for natural resource development or exploitation. SOURCE: GC § 13251 …

All proposals for the use, lease or purchase of government land for the purpose of commercial mining or removing therefrom any minerals, rocks or sand for processing shall be presented to the Guam Natural Resources Board. The Board shall determine if the proposal is consonant wit…

It shall be the duty of the Guam Natural Resources Board to formulate such rules, regulations and procedures as are necessary to effectuate the aims and intents of this Act and no government land shall be leased or sold for the purpose of commercial mining or removing therefrom a…

The Director of Land Management, hereinafter referred to as the Director, shall establish (a) a uniform system of geodetic triangulation controls through the establishment of primary and secondary triangulation control stations to be known as the Guam Geodetic Triangulation Net, …