[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1576 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1576

   To measure the progress of relief, recovery, reconstruction, and 
 development efforts in Haiti following the earthquake of January 12, 
                     2010, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 19, 2011

   Ms. Landrieu (for herself, Mr. Kerry, and Mr. Nelson of Florida) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                     Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To measure the progress of relief, recovery, reconstruction, and 
 development efforts in Haiti following the earthquake of January 12, 
                     2010, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Assessing Progress in Haiti Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) On January 12, 2010, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the 
        Richter magnitude scale struck the country of Haiti.
            (2) According to the United States Geological Survey 
        (USGS)--
                    (A) the earthquake epicenter was located 
                approximately 15 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, the 
                capital of Haiti; and
                    (B) the earthquake was followed by 59 aftershocks 
                of magnitude 4.5 or greater, the most severe measuring 
                6.0.
            (3) According to the Government of Haiti, more than 316,000 
        people died as a result of the earthquake, including 103 
        citizens of the United States and more than 100 United Nations 
        personnel.
            (4) According to the United Nations and the International 
        Organization for Migration--
                    (A) an estimated 3,000,000 people were directly 
                affected by the disaster, nearly one-third of the 
                country's population; and
                    (B) more than 2,100,000 people were displaced from 
                their homes to settlements.
            (5) Casualty numbers and infrastructure damage, including 
        to roads, ports, hospitals, and residential dwellings, place 
        the earthquake as the worst cataclysm to hit Haiti in over two 
        centuries and, proportionally, one of the world's worst natural 
        disasters in modern times.
            (6) The Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) conducted by 
        the Government of Haiti, the United Nations, the World Bank, 
        the Inter-American Development Bank, and other experts 
        estimates that damage and economic losses totaled 
        $7,804,000,000, approximately 120 percent of Haiti's gross 
        domestic product in 2009.
            (7) Haiti is the poorest, least developed country in the 
        Western Hemisphere with, prior to the earthquake--
                    (A) more than 70 percent of Haitians living on less 
                than $2 per day; and
                    (B) a ranking of 149 out of 182 countries on the 
                United Nations Human Development Index.
            (8) House Resolution 1021, which was passed on January 21, 
        2010, on a vote of 411 to 1 expressed--
                    (A) the House of Representatives' ``deepest 
                condolences and sympathy for the horrific loss of 
                life'' caused by the earthquake; and
                    (B) bipartisan support for Haiti's recovery and 
                reconstruction.
            (9) The initial emergency response of the men and women of 
        the United States Government, led by the United States Agency 
        for International Development and United States Southern 
        Command, was swift and resolute.
            (10) United States urban search and rescue (USAR) teams 
        were immediately activated after the earthquake and deployed 
        from Fairfax County, Virginia, Los Angeles County, California, 
        Miami-Dade, Florida, the City of Miami, Florida, and Virginia 
        Beach, Virginia, to assist the United States Agency for 
        International Development (USAID) Disaster Assistance Response 
        Team (DART), and New York City's first responders asked the 
        Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) to activate a 
        New York City urban search and rescue shortly thereafter.
            (11) A month after the earthquake, the House of 
        Representatives unanimously passed House Resolution 1059 which 
        expressed gratitude to these USAR units, and highlighted that 
        the 511 United States rescue workers comprised roughly one-
        third of the entire international USAR effort in Haiti, and 
        more than 130 people were rescued from under the rubble in 
        Haiti by these units.
            (12) Individuals, businesses, and philanthropic 
        organizations across the United States and throughout the 
        international community responded in support of Haiti and its 
        populace during this crisis, sometimes in innovative ways such 
        as fundraising through text messaging.
            (13) The Haitian diaspora in the United States, which was 
        integral to emergency relief efforts--
                    (A) has annually contributed significant monetary 
                support to Haiti through remittances; and
                    (B) continues to seek opportunities to partner with 
                the United States Agency for International Development 
                and other agencies to substantively contribute to the 
                reconstruction of Haiti.
            (14) Significant challenges still remain in Haiti as it 
        works to recover and rebuild.
            (15) According to the International Organization for 
        Migration, approximately 680,000 people remain in spontaneous 
        and organized camps in Haiti.
            (16) According to numerous nongovernmental organizations 
        and United States contractors, the pace of reconstruction has 
        lagged significantly behind the original emergency relief 
        phase.
            (17) The widespread irregularities that occurred in the 
        elections held in Haiti on November 28, 2010, led to outbursts 
        of violence which undermined the recovery efforts.
            (18) On October 21, 2010, an outbreak of cholera was 
        detected in the Lower Artibonite region.
            (19) Initial efforts to contain the epidemic were disrupted 
        by Hurricane Tomas and resulting widespread flooding, which led 
        to the spreading and entrenchment of the disease throughout the 
        country.
            (20) According to the Haitian Ministry of Public Health and 
        Population, as of March 28, 2011--
                    (A) approximately 4,766 people have died from 
                cholera; and
                    (B) approximately 270,991 have been infected from 
                the disease.
            (21) According to the Pan American Health Organization and 
        the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cholera could 
        spread to as many as 400,000 people within the first year of 
        the epidemic, potentially causing 7,600 deaths at the current 
        case fatality rate.
            (22) The United States has provided more than $62,523,017 
        worth of assistance to combat the cholera epidemic, including 
        by assisting with stockpiling health commodities, equipping 
        cholera treatments centers, providing public information, and 
        improving water and sanitation systems.
            (23) The efforts to combat the cholera epidemic have helped 
        to drive the mortality rate from cholera down from nearly 7 
        percent to 1.7 percent of all contracted cases as of February 
        25, 2011.
            (24) Throughout the series of crises, the people of Haiti 
        continue to demonstrate unwavering resilience, dignity, and 
        courage.
            (25) On March 20, 2011, presidential and parliamentary 
        elections were held in Haiti without major disruptions or 
        problems.
            (26) At the international donors conference ``Towards a New 
        Future for Haiti'' held on March 31, 2010, 59 donors pledged 
        over $5,000,000,000 to support Haiti.
            (27) The United Nations Office of the Special Envoy for 
        Haiti estimates that nearly $1,900,000,000 has been disbursed, 
        with an additional amount of approximately $2,000,000,000 
        committed.
            (28) Haiti will need the support of the international 
        community in order to confront the ongoing cholera epidemic and 
        to promote reconstruction and development.

SEC. 3. REPORT.

    (a) Report Required.--Not later than six months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the President, in consultation with the 
heads of all relevant agencies, including the Department of State, the 
United States Agency for International Development, the Department of 
Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention shall transmit to Congress a report 
on the status of post-earthquake humanitarian, reconstruction, and 
development efforts in Haiti, including efforts to prevent the spread 
of cholera and treat persons infected with the disease.
    (b) Contents.--The report required by subsection (a) shall include 
a description, analysis, and evaluation of the--
            (1) overall progress of relief, recovery, and 
        reconstruction in Haiti, including--
                    (A) programs and projects of the United States 
                Government;
                    (B) programs and projects to protect vulnerable 
                populations, such as internally displaced persons, 
                children, women and girls, and persons with 
                disabilities; and
                    (C) projects to improve water, sanitation, and 
                health, and plans for improvements in these areas in 
                the long-term;
            (2) extent to which United States and international efforts 
        are in line with the priorities of the Government of Haiti and 
        are actively engaging and working through Haitian ministries 
        and local authorities;
            (3) coordination among United States Government agencies, 
        and coordination between the United States Government and 
        United Nations agencies, international financial institutions, 
        and other bilateral donors;
            (4) mechanisms for communicating the progress of recovery 
        and reconstruction efforts to Haitian citizens, as well as 
        recommendations on how these can be improved;
            (5) mechanisms through which Haitian civil society, 
        including vulnerable populations, is actively participating in 
        all major stages of recovery and reconstruction efforts, and 
        recommendations on how these can be improved;
            (6) mechanisms through which the Haitian diaspora is 
        involved in recovery and reconstruction efforts; and
            (7) suitability of Haiti to receive aliens who are removed, 
        excluded, or deported from the United States pursuant to United 
        States law, and steps Haiti is taking to strengthen its 
        capacity in this regard.
    (c) Use of Previously Appropriated Funds.--Funding for the report 
required under subsection (a) shall derive from existing discretionary 
funds of the departments and agencies specified in such subsection.
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