[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 140 (Monday, October 30, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H11573-H11575]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     GUAM OMNIBUS OPPORTUNITIES ACT

  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in 
the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 2462) to amend the Organic Act 
of Guam, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Senate amendment:
       Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

     SECTION 1. OPPORTUNITY FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF GUAM TO ACQUIRE 
                   EXCESS REAL PROPERTY IN GUAM.

       (a) Transfer of Excess Real Property.--(1) Except as 
     provided in subsection (d), before screening excess real 
     property located on Guam for further Federal utilization 
     under section 202 of the Federal Property and Administrative 
     Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 471, et seq.) (hereinafter 
     the ``Property Act''), the Administrator shall notify the 
     Government of Guam that the property is available for 
     transfer pursuant to this section.
       (2) If the Government of Guam, within 180 days after 
     receiving notification under paragraph (1), notifies the 
     Administrator that the Government of Guam intends to acquire 
     the property under this section, the Administrator shall 
     transfer such property in accordance with subsection (b). 
     Otherwise, the property shall be screened for further Federal 
     use and then, if there is no other Federal use, shall be 
     disposed of in accordance with the Property Act.
       (b) Conditions of Transfer.--(1) Any transfer of excess 
     real property to the Government of Guam may be only for a 
     public purpose and shall be without further consideration.
       (2) All transfers of excess real property to the Government 
     of Guam shall be subject to such restrictive covenants as the 
     Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, 
     in the case of property reported excess by a military 
     department, determines to be necessary to ensure that (A) the 
     use of the property is compatible with continued military 
     activities on Guam; (B) the use of the property is consistent 
     with the environmental condition of the property; (C) access 
     is available to the United States to conduct any additional 
     environmental remediation or monitoring that may be required; 
     (D) the property is used only for a public purpose and can 
     not be converted to any other use; and (E) to the extent that 
     facilities on the property have been occupied and used by 
     another Federal agency for a minimum of 2 years, that the 
     transfer to the Government of Guam is subject to the terms 
     and conditions for such use and occupancy.
       (3) All transfers of excess real property to the Government 
     of Guam are subject to all otherwise applicable Federal laws, 
     except section 2696 of title 10, United States Code, or 
     section 501 of Public Law 100-77 (42 U.S.C. 11411).
       (c) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
       (1) The term ``Administrator'' means--
       (A) the Administrator of General Services; or
       (B) the head of any Federal agency with the authority to 
     dispose of excess real property on Guam.
       (2) The term ``base closure law'' means the Defense 
     Authorization Amendments and Base Closure and Realignment Act 
     of 1988 (Public Law 100-526), the Defense Base Closure and 
     Realignment Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-510), or similar base 
     closure authority.
       (3) The term ``excess real property'' means excess property 
     (as that term is defined in section 3 of the Property Act) 
     that is real property and was acquired by the United States 
     prior to enactment of this section.
       (4) The term ``Guam National Wildlife Refuge'' includes 
     those lands within the refuge overlay under the jurisdiction 
     of the Department of Defense, identified as DoD lands in 
     figure 3, on page 74, and as submerged lands in figure 7, on 
     page 78 of the ``Final Environmental Assessment for the 
     Proposed Guam National Wildlife Refuge, Territory of Guam, 
     July 1993'' to the extent that the Federal Government holds 
     title to such lands.
       (5) The term ``public purpose'' means those public benefit 
     purposes for which the United States may dispose of property 
     pursuant to section 203 of the Property Act, as implemented 
     by the Federal Property Management Regulations (41 CFR 101-
     47) or the specific public benefit uses set forth in section 
     3(c) of the Guam Excess Lands Act (Public Law 103-339; 108 
     Stat. 3116), except that such definition shall not include 
     the transfer of land to an individual or entity for private 
     use other than on a nondiscriminatory basis.
       (d) Exemptions.--Notwithstanding that such property may be 
     excess real property, the provisions of this section shall 
     not apply--
       (1) to real property on Guam that is declared excess by the 
     Department of Defense for the purpose of transferring that 
     property to the Coast Guard;
       (2) to real property on Guam that is located within the 
     Guam National Wildlife Refuge, which shall be transferred 
     according to the following procedure:
       (A) The Administrator shall notify the Government of Guam 
     and the Fish and Wildlife Service that such property has been 
     declared excess. The Government of Guam and the Fish and 
     Wildlife Service shall have 180 days to engage in discussions 
     toward an agreement providing for the future ownership and 
     management of such real property.
       (B) If the parties reach an agreement under subparagraph 
     (A) within 180 days after notification of the declaration of 
     excess, the real property shall be transferred and managed in 
     accordance with such agreement: Provided, That such agreement 
     shall be transmitted to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
     Resources of the United States Senate and the appropriate 
     committees of the United States House of Representatives not 
     less than 60 days prior to such transfer and any such 
     transfer shall be subject to the other provisions of this 
     section.
       (C) If the parties do not reach an agreement under 
     subparagraph (A) within 180 days after notification of the 
     declaration of excess, the Administrator shall provide a 
     report to Congress on the status of the discussions, together 
     with his recommendations on the likelihood of resolution of 
     differences and the comments of the Fish and Wildlife Service 
     and the Government of Guam. If the subject property is under 
     the jurisdiction of a military department, the military 
     department may transfer administrative control over the 
     property to the General Services Administration subject to 
     any terms and conditions applicable to such property. In the 
     event of such a transfer by a military department to the 
     General Services Administration, the Department of the 
     Interior shall be responsible for all reasonable costs 
     associated with the custody, accountability and control of 
     such property until final disposition.
       (D) If the parties come to agreement prior to congressional 
     action, the real property shall be transferred and managed in 
     accordance with such agreement: Provided, That such agreement 
     shall be transmitted to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
     Resources of the United States Senate and the appropriate 
     committees of the United States House of Representatives not 
     less than 60 days prior to such transfer and any such 
     transfer shall be subject to the other provisions of this 
     section.
       (E) Absent an agreement on the future ownership and use of 
     the property, such property may not be transferred to another 
     Federal agency or out of Federal ownership except pursuant to 
     an Act of Congress specifically identifying such property;
       (3) to real property described in the Guam Excess Lands Act 
     (Public Law 103-339; 108 Stat. 3116) which shall be disposed 
     of in accordance with such Act;
       (4) to real property on Guam that is declared excess as a 
     result of a base closure law; or
       (5) to facilities on Guam declared excess by the managing 
     Federal agency for the purpose of transferring the facility 
     to a Federal agency that has occupied the facility for a 
     minimum of two years when the facility is declared excess 
     together with the minimum land or interest therein necessary 
     to support the facility.
       (e) Dual Classification Property.--If a parcel of real 
     property on Guam that is declared excess as a result of a 
     base closure law also falls within the boundary of the Guam 
     National Wildlife Refuge, such parcel of property shall be 
     disposed of in accordance with the base closure law.
       (f) Authority To Issue Regulations.--The Administrator of 
     General Services, after consultation with the Secretary of 
     Defense and the Secretary of the Interior, may issue such 
     regulations as he deems necessary to carry out this section.

     SEC. 2. COMPACT IMPACT REPORTS.

       Section 104(e)(2) of Public Law 99-239 (99 Stat. 1770, 
     1788) is amended by deleting ``President shall report to the 
     Congress with respect to the impact of the Compact on the 
     United States territories and commonwealths and on the State 
     of Hawaii.'' and inserting in lieu thereof, ``Governor of any 
     of the United States territories or commonwealths or the 
     State of Hawaii may report to the Secretary of the Interior 
     by February 1 of each year with respect to the impacts of the 
     compacts of free association on the Governor's respective 
     jurisdiction. The Secretary of the Interior shall review and 
     forward any such reports to the Congress with the comments of 
     the Administration. The Secretary of the Interior shall, 
     either directly or, subject to available technical assistance 
     funds, through a grant to the affected jurisdiction, provide 
     for a census of Micronesians at intervals no greater than 
     five years from each decennial United States census using 
     generally acceptable statistical methodologies for each of 
     the impact jurisdictions where the Governor requests such 
     assistance, except that the total expenditures to carry out 
     this sentence may not exceed $300,000 in any year.''.

     SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS UNDER THE COMPACTS OF 
                   FREE ASSOCIATION.

       (a) The freely associated states of the Republic of the 
     Marshall Islands, the Federated States

[[Page H11574]]

     of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau, respectively, and 
     citizens thereof, shall remain eligible for all Federal 
     programs, grant assistance, and services of the United 
     States, to the extent that such programs, grant assistance, 
     and services are provided to States and local governments of 
     the United States and residents of such States, for which a 
     freely associated State or its citizens were eligible on 
     October 1, 1999. This eligibility shall continue through the 
     period of negotiations referred to in section 231 of the 
     Compact of Free Association with the Republic of the Marshall 
     Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia, approved in 
     Public Law 99-239, and during consideration by the Congress 
     of legislation submitted by an Executive branch agency as a 
     result of such negotiations.
       (b) Section 214(a) of the Housing Community Development Act 
     of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 1436a(a)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (5);
       (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (6) and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(7) an alien who is lawfully resident in the United 
     States and its territories and possessions under section 141 
     of the Compacts of Free Association between the Government of 
     the United States and the Governments of the Marshall 
     Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia (48 U.S.C. 1901 
     note) and Palau (48 U.S.C. 1931 note) while the applicable 
     section is in effect: Provided, That, within Guam any such 
     alien shall not be entitled to a preference in receiving 
     assistance under this Act over any United States citizen or 
     national resident therein who is otherwise eligible for such 
     assistance.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen).
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 2462, legislation which would amend 
the Organic Act of Guam.
  This House passed this bill on July 25, and the other body has 
amended it and returned to it us for another vote. The amendments are 
clarifying in nature and are constructive and acceptable. I urge my 
colleagues to vote in support of H.R. 2462, as amended by the other 
body.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he 
may consume to the gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood), who has worked 
very long and hard on this legislation and has worked with all of us on 
the committee to resolve concerns that have been raised.
  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding 
me this time, and I would like to thank both the majority and minority 
for their extensive support on this particular piece of legislation. I 
also thank the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), the chairman of the 
committee, and the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), the 
ranking member.
  I ask that my colleagues support H.R. 2462, originally entitled the 
Guam Omnibus Opportunities Act, which includes important legislation 
that will improve Federal-Guam relations dealing in particular with the 
problem of Federal excess lands in Guam.
  As background, when I originally introduced H.R. 2462 last year, with 
both the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) and the gentleman from 
California (Mr. George Miller) as cosponsors, there were six provisions 
in this bill which dealt with Federal excess lands, foreign investment 
tax equity in Guam, the importation of betel nuts for personal 
consumption, housing assistance for citizens from the Freely Associated 
States, Compact Impact reporting requirements, and State share funding 
for Guam for certain Department of Justice block grant programs.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2462 was the first Guam omnibus bill ever 
introduced in Congress. My goal was to introduce legislation dealing 
with Guam issues to provide a clear delineation on the matters that 
were important to our island for Federal policymakers without being 
mired in the complexities of other territorial or other Federal issues.
  Fortunately, we were able to resolve many of these provisions and 
they are no longer in the bill, including the last provision which is 
for State share funding for Guam for Department of Justice block grant 
programs. With the assistance of the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Serrano) and others, we were able to take care of that in the State, 
Commerce, Justice appropriations measure.
  The other matter which we were able to resolve administratively was 
the provision of betel nut importation. On September 7, 2000, the Food 
and Drug Administration revised its provision on betel nuts from Guam 
by issuing an import bulletin allowing for the importation for personal 
consumption. I am pleased that the people of Guam and other Pacific 
Islanders are now able to freely practice our cultural tradition of 
betel nut chewing when visiting family or friends or residing in the 
U.S. mainland.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2462, as passed by the Senate on October 24, 2000, 
includes the remaining provisions as originally introduced and provides 
for a continuation of Federal programs for citizens from the Freely 
Associated States for the duration of compact negotiations between the 
United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the 
Federated States of Micronesia. Legislation dealing with foreign 
investment equity tax treatment is being pursued in another legislative 
vehicle due to overlapping committee jurisdictions.
  By far, the most important provision in this legislation today on the 
House floor is the Guam Land Return Act. With a land area of 220 square 
miles, one-third of which is held by the U.S. government, land is one 
of the most important issues facing the people of Guam. Section 1 of 
H.R. 2462 is truly landmark legislation which provides for a process to 
resolve all remaining Federal land issues in Guam.
  This legislation is the product of an effort which began some 7 years 
ago at a Guam land conference. The conference was attended by 
Department of Interior officials, DOD officials, government of Guam 
officials, and hundreds of citizens from Guam. We discussed in great 
detail the problems in the original land takings by the Federal 
Government which justifies a special process for Guam. We discussed in 
great detail the needs of the military and the complications created by 
the involvement of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife in declaring a wildlife 
refuge in Guam. But most importantly, we listened to the stories of the 
people of Guam, stories of patience, injustices, and failed promises, 
but steadfast loyalty. We knew then that a comprehensive process for 
the movement of Federal excess lands which was fair and tailored to fit 
the Guam situation needed to be passed.
  The Guam Land Return Act provides a process for the government of 
Guam to receive lands from the U.S. Government for specified public 
purposes by giving Guam the right of first refusal of declared Federal 
excess lands by the General Services Administration prior to it being 
made available to any other Federal agency. Consideration is given to 
the impact of future uses of the return property on nearby military 
facilities. It also provides for a process for the government of Guam 
and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife to engage in negotiations on the future 
ownership and management of declared Federal excess lands within the 
refuge.
  I am pleased that we were able to retain the definition of public 
benefit purposes under Public Law 103-339. This process has worked well 
for us in Guam and it provides the government of Guam the flexibility 
needed to provide for local land use needs. I want to stress that this 
is very important legislation for the people of Guam. It provides a 
vehicle for them to acquire, reacquire the land which was taken 
immediately after World War II in a way that does not compromise our 
military position and in a way that is fair and equitable to the people 
of Guam.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask for my colleagues' support on this legislation.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as 
she may consume to the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Mrs. 
Christensen), and I thank her for her help on this legislation.
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me 
this time.
  I rise in support of H.R. 2462, the Guam Omnibus Opportunities Act. I 
congratulate my colleague and fellow Democrat, the gentleman from Guam 
(Mr. Underwood), for his successful work in shepherding this 
legislation through the Congress. Few will ever fully appreciate the 
difficulties faced by the delegates from the U.S. territories in moving 
legislation through

[[Page H11575]]

the Congress. The process entails many emotional highs and lows, and 
often requires our full attention to educate others with the issues 
that confront our fellow Americans in the territories.
  The Guam Omnibus Opportunities Act is important legislation for Guam 
and good policy for the United States. Of all the territories, Guam has 
historically played a strategic role in the planning of our national 
defense. However, the ending of the Cold War and our shifting defense 
strategy has caused much of the military land owned in Guam to become 
excess, as it has also downsized military activities across our Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2462 sets out a process so that Guam can have the 
right of first refusal for the return of future excess Federal land in 
Guam. Taking into consideration the island's limited and precious 
resources, this new policy will provide opportunities for Guam to 
maximize the use of these lands that have been in Federal control for 
the past 5\1/2\ decades.
  Mr. Speaker, this is good legislation for the people of Guam, and I 
again congratulate the gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood) for his 
tireless work in getting this measure to the floor. I urge full support 
from my colleagues.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such 
time as I may consume.
  I just want to commend the gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood) who 
has spent a considerable amount of time working out all of the 
difficulties with this legislation in bringing the parties together.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen) that the House suspend the rules and 
concur in the Senate amendment to the bill, H.R. 2462.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8, rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

                          ____________________