110 HR 3062 : Pacific Island Economic and U.S. House of Representatives 2007-09-06 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IIB 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3062 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 6, 2007 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations AN ACT To authorize appropriations to provide for South Pacific exchanges, provide technical and other assistance to countries in the Pacific region through the United States Agency for International Development, and authorize appropriations to provide Fulbright Scholarships for Pacific Island students.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Pacific Island Economic and Educational Development Act of 2007.

2.

Pacific Island country exchanges

There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of State $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 and 2009 for exchanges with Pacific Island countries carried out under the educational and cultural exchange programs of the Department of State.

3.

USAID in Pacific Island countries

The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is authorized, upon request by the government of a Pacific Island country, to provide to such government technical and other assistance.

4.

J. Fulbright Educational Exchange Program

(a)

Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)From 1949 until 2003, the Department of State awarded 13,176 Fulbright Scholarships to students from East Asia and the Pacific, but only 31 Fulbright Scholarships went to students from Pacific Island countries. (2)In the 2003–2004 academic year, the Department of State awarded 315 scholarships to students from East Asia and the Pacific, but none were awarded to students from Pacific Island countries. (b)

Review and report

The Secretary of State shall conduct a review and submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report regarding the marginalization of students from Pacific Island countries in the awarding of Fulbright Scholarships. (c)

Participation of students from Pacific Island countries in the J. Fulbright Educational Exchange Program

(1)

Establishment

The Secretary of State shall establish a program within the J. William Fulbright Educational Exchange Program (established under section 112(a)(1) of the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2460(a)(1)), commonly referred to as the Fulbright-Hays Act) to make awards to students from Pacific Island countries to permit such students to study in the United States pursuant to the terms and conditions of such Exchange Program. (2)

Authorization of appropriations

In addition to amounts that are otherwise authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of State for fiscal years 2008 and 2009 to provide awards under the J. William Fulbright Educational Exchange Program, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $500,000 for each of such fiscal years to provide such awards to students from Pacific Island countries.

5.

Pacific Island country defined

In this Act, the terms Pacific Island country and Pacific Island countries mean any of the following countries: (1)The Cook Islands. (2)The Federated States of Micronesia. (3)The Independent State of Samoa. (4)The Kingdom of Tonga. (5)Niue. (6)Papua New Guinea. (7)The Republic of Fiji. (8)The Republic of Kiribati. (9)The Republic of the Marshall Islands. (10)The Republic of Nauru. (11)The Republic of Palau. (12)The Republic of Vanuatu. (13)The Solomon Islands. (14)Tuvalu.

Passed the House of Representatives September 5, 2007. Lorraine C. Miller, Clerk.Jorge E. Sorensen, Deputy Clerk.