[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 44 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 44
To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review
Commission.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 5, 2011
Ms. Bordallo (for herself, Ms. Loretta Sanchez of California, Mr.
Andrews, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Bishop of Georgia, Ms.
Richardson, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Sablan, Mrs. Christensen, Mr.
Faleomavaega, Mr. Pierluisi, Mr. Jones, Mr. Hoyer, Ms. Jackson Lee of
Texas, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Sensenbrenner, Mr.
Becerra, Ms. Norton, Mr. Bartlett, Mr. Rahall, Mr. Wilson of South
Carolina, Mr. Nadler, and Mr. Michaud) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review
Commission.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Guam World War II Loyalty
Recognition Act''.
SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY OF THE RESIDENTS OF
GUAM.
(a) Recognition of the Suffering of the Residents of Guam.--The
United States recognizes that, as described by the Guam War Claims
Review Commission, the residents of Guam, on account of their United
States nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as a result of the
occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World
War II, by being subjected to death, rape, severe personal injury,
personal injury, forced labor, forced march, or internment.
(b) Recognition of the Loyalty of the Residents of Guam.--The
United States forever will be grateful to the residents of Guam for
their steadfast loyalty to the United States of America, as
demonstrated by the countless acts of courage they performed despite
the threat of death or great bodily harm they faced at the hands of the
Imperial Japanese military forces that occupied Guam during World War
II.
SEC. 3. PAYMENTS FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS.
(a) Payments for Death, Personal Injury, Forced Labor, Forced
March, and Internment.--Subject to the availability of appropriations
authorized to be appropriated under section 6(a), after receipt of
certification pursuant to section 4(b)(8) and in accordance with the
provisions of this title, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make
payments as follows:
(1) Residents injured.--Before any payments are made to
individuals described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall pay
compensable Guam victims who are not deceased as follows:
(A) If the victim has suffered an injury described
in subsection (c)(2)(A), $15,000.
(B) If the victim is not described in subparagraph
(A) but has suffered an injury described in subsection
(c)(2)(B), $12,000.
(C) If the victim is not described in subparagraph
(A) or (B) but has suffered an injury described in
subsection (c)(2)(C), $10,000.
(2) Survivors of residents who died in war.--In the case of
a compensable Guam decedent, the Secretary shall pay $25,000
for distribution to eligible survivors of the decedent as
specified in subsection (b). The Secretary shall make payments
under this paragraph after payments are made under paragraph
(1).
(b) Distribution of Survivor Payments.--Payments under paragraph
(2) of subsection (a) to eligible survivors of an individual who is a
compensable Guam decedent shall be made as follows:
(1) If there is living a spouse of the individual, but no
child of the individual, all of the payment shall be made to
such spouse.
(2) If there is living a spouse of the individual and one
or more children of the individual, one-half of the payment
shall be made to the spouse and the other half to the child (or
to the children in equal shares).
(3) If there is no living spouse of the individual, but
there are one or more children of the individual alive, all of
the payment shall be made to such child (or to such children in
equal shares).
(4) If there is no living spouse or child of the individual
but there is a living parent (or parents) of the individual,
all of the payment shall be made to the parent (or to the
parents in equal shares).
(5) If there is no such living spouse, child, or parent, no
payment shall be made.
(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this title:
(1) Compensable guam decedent.--The term ``compensable Guam
decedent'' means an individual determined under section 4 to
have been a resident of Guam who died or was killed as a result
of the attack and occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese
military forces during World War II, or incident to the
liberation of Guam by United States military forces, and whose
death would have been compensable under the Guam Meritorious
Claims Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224) if a timely claim had
been filed under the terms of such Act.
(2) Compensable guam victim.--The term ``compensable Guam
victim'' means an individual determined under section 4 to have
suffered, as a result of the attack and occupation of Guam by
Imperial Japanese military forces during World War II, or
incident to the liberation of Guam by United States military
forces, any of the following:
(A) Rape or severe personal injury (such as loss of
a limb, dismemberment, or paralysis).
(B) Forced labor or a personal injury not under
subparagraph (A) (such as disfigurement, scarring, or
burns).
(C) Forced march, internment, or hiding to evade
internment.
(3) Definitions of severe personal injuries and personal
injuries.--The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall
promulgate regulations to specify injuries that constitute a
severe personal injury or a personal injury for purposes of
subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, of paragraph (2).
SEC. 4. ADJUDICATION.
(a) Authority of Foreign Claims Settlement Commission.--
(1) In general.--The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission
is authorized to adjudicate claims and determine eligibility
for payments under section 3.
(2) Rules and regulations.--The chairman of the Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission shall prescribe such rules and
regulations as may be necessary to enable it to carry out its
functions under this title. Such rules and regulations shall be
published in the Federal Register.
(b) Claims Submitted for Payments.--
(1) Submittal of claim.--For purposes of subsection (a)(1)
and subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission may not determine an individual is eligible for a
payment under section 3 unless the individual submits to the
Commission a claim in such manner and form and containing such
information as the Commission specifies.
(2) Filing period for claims and notice.--All claims for a
payment under section 3 shall be filed within one year after
the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission publishes public
notice of the filing period in the Federal Register. The
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall provide for the
notice required under the previous sentence not later than 180
days after the date of the enactment of this title. In
addition, the Commission shall cause to be publicized the
public notice of the deadline for filing claims in newspaper,
radio, and television media on Guam.
(3) Adjudicatory decisions.--The decision of the Foreign
Claims Settlement Commission on each claim shall be by majority
vote, shall be in writing, and shall state the reasons for the
approval or denial of the claim. If approved, the decision
shall also state the amount of the payment awarded and the
distribution, if any, to be made of the payment.
(4) Deductions in payment.--The Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission shall deduct, from potential payments, amounts
previously paid under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 1945
(Public Law 79-224).
(5) Interest.--No interest shall be paid on payments
awarded by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission.
(6) Remuneration prohibited.--No remuneration on account of
representational services rendered on behalf of any claimant in
connection with any claim filed with the Foreign Claims
Settlement Commission under this title shall exceed one percent
of the total amount paid pursuant to any payment certified
under the provisions of this title on account of such claim.
Any agreement to the contrary shall be unlawful and void.
Whoever demands or receives, on account of services so
rendered, any remuneration in excess of the maximum permitted
by this section shall be fined not more than $5,000 or
imprisoned not more than 12 months, or both.
(7) Appeals and finality.--Objections and appeals of
decisions of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall be
to the Commission, and upon rehearing, the decision in each
claim shall be final, and not subject to further review by any
court or agency.
(8) Certifications for payment.--After a decision approving
a claim becomes final, the chairman of the Foreign Claims
Settlement Commission shall certify it to the Secretary of the
Treasury for authorization of a payment under section 3.
(9) Treatment of affidavits.--For purposes of section 3 and
subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement
Commission shall treat a claim that is accompanied by an
affidavit of an individual that attests to all of the material
facts required for establishing eligibility of such individual
for payment under such section as establishing a prima facie
case of the individual's eligibility for such payment without
the need for further documentation, except as the Commission
may otherwise require. Such material facts shall include, with
respect to a claim under paragraph (2) or (3) of section 3(a),
a detailed description of the injury or other circumstance
supporting the claim involved, including the level of payment
sought.
(10) Release of related claims.--Acceptance of payment
under section 3 by an individual for a claim related to a
compensable Guam decedent or a compensable Guam victim shall be
in full satisfaction of all claims related to such decedent or
victim, respectively, arising under the Guam Meritorious Claims
Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224), the implementing regulations
issued by the United States Navy pursuant thereto, or this
title.
SEC. 5. GRANTS PROGRAM TO MEMORIALIZE THE OCCUPATION OF GUAM DURING
WORLD WAR II.
(a) Establishment.--Subject to section 6(b) and in accordance with
this section, the Secretary of the Interior shall establish a grants
program under which the Secretary shall award grants for research,
educational, and media activities that memorialize the events
surrounding the occupation of Guam during World War II, honor the
loyalty of the people of Guam during such occupation, or both, for
purposes of appropriately illuminating and interpreting the causes and
circumstances of such occupation and other similar occupations during a
war.
(b) Eligibility.--The Secretary of the Interior may not award to a
person a grant under subsection (a) unless such person submits an
application to the Secretary for such grant, in such time, manner, and
form and containing such information as the Secretary specifies.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Guam World War II Claims Payments and Adjudication.--For
purposes of carrying out sections 3 and 4, there are authorized to be
appropriated $100,000,000, to remain available for obligation until
September 30, 2016, to the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission. Not
more than 5 percent of funds made available under this subsection shall
be used for administrative costs.
(b) Guam World War II Grants Program.--For purposes of carrying out
section 5, there are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000, to
remain available for obligation until September 30, 2016.
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