[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 107 (Tuesday, July 17, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H4888-H4892]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       INSULAR AREAS ACT OF 2011

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (S. 2009) to improve the administration of programs in the 
insular areas, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

[[Page H4889]]

                                S. 2009

       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 ``Insular Areas Act of 2011''.

     SEC. 2. CONTINUED MONITORING ON RUNIT ISLAND.

       Section 103(f)(1) of the Compact of Free Association 
     Amendments Act of 2003 (48 U.S.C. 1921b(f)(1)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``Notwithstanding'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(B) Continued monitoring on runit island.--
       ``(i) Cactus crater containment and groundwater 
     monitoring.--Effective beginning January 1, 2012, the 
     Secretary of Energy shall, as a part of the Marshall Islands 
     program conducted under subparagraph (A), periodically (but 
     not less frequently than every 4 years) conduct--

       ``(I) a visual study of the concrete exterior of the Cactus 
     Crater containment structure on Runit Island; and
       ``(II) a radiochemical analysis of the groundwater 
     surrounding and in the Cactus Crater containment structure on 
     Runit Island.

       ``(ii) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committee 
     on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate, and the 
     Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
     Representatives, a report that contains--

       ``(I) a description of--

       ``(aa) the results of each visual survey conducted under 
     clause (i)(I); and
       ``(bb) the results of the radiochemical analysis conducted 
     under clause (i)(II); and

       ``(II) a determination on whether the surveys and analyses 
     indicate any significant change in the health risks to the 
     people of Enewetak from the contaminants within the Cactus 
     Crater containment structure.

       ``(iii) Funding for groundwater monitoring.--The Secretary 
     of the Interior shall make available to the Department of 
     Energy, Marshall Islands Program, from funds available for 
     the Technical Assistance Program of the Office of Insular 
     Affairs, the amounts necessary to conduct the radiochemical 
     analysis of groundwater under clause(i)(II).''.

     SEC. 3. CLARIFYING THE TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENT OF JUDGES TO 
                   COURTS OF THE FREELY ASSOCIATED STATES.

       Section 297(a) of title 28, United States Code, is amended 
     by striking ``circuit or district judge'' and inserting 
     ``circuit, district, magistrate, or territorial judge of a 
     court''.

     SEC. 4. DELAY OF SCHEDULED MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE IN AMERICAN 
                   SAMOA.

       (a) Delayed Increase Pending Government Accountability 
     Office Report.--Section 8103(b)(2)(C) of the Fair Minimum 
     Wage Act of 2007 (29 U.S.C. 206 note; Public Law 110-28) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``each year thereafter until'' and 
     inserting ``on September 30 of every third year thereafter 
     until''; and
       (2) by striking ``except that'' and all that follows 
     through ``September 30'' and inserting ``except that there 
     shall be no such increase in 2012, 2013, and 2014 pending the 
     triennial report required under section 8104(a)''.
       (b) Triennial Government Accountability Office Report.--
     Section 8104(a) of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 (29 
     U.S.C. 206 note; Public Law 110-28) is amended by striking 
     ``April 1, 2013, and every 2 years'' and inserting ``April 1, 
     2014, and every 3 years''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) and the gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. 
Faleomavaega) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on the bill, S. 2009.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill, S. 2009 the Insular Areas 
Act, a brief bill that passed the Senate unanimously in December before 
being transmitted to the House and referred to multiple committees.
  The bill consists of three short sections:
  The first section, which shifts to the Department of Energy the 
responsibility for Department of the Interior-funded radiological 
monitoring at former U.S. nuclear test sites, has long been overseen by 
the Committee on Natural Resources.
  The second section, which confirms the continuing eligibility of U.S. 
magistrates to participate in long-standing judicial exchange programs, 
is primarily overseen by the Committee on the Judiciary.
  And the third section, involving a domestic workforce issue, is 
overseen by the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
  All of these committees have reviewed the bill, waived additional 
action, and consented to today's suspension consideration of the bill. 
I want to thank those committees for their consideration and their 
input.
  I reserve the balance of my time.

         Committee on Education and the Workforce, House of 
           Representatives,
                                   Washington, DC, March 20, 2012.
     Hon. John A. Boehner,
     Speaker, House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Speaker: I am writing to convey the consent of the 
     Committee on Education and the Workforce to be discharged 
     from consideration of S. 2009, Insular Areas Act of 2011, in 
     order to expedite its consideration on the House floor.
       Although a formal request has not yet been prepared by the 
     Congressional Budget Office (CBO), CBO staff informally 
     estimates that the bill should not have any direct spending 
     or revenue effects and should have an annual discretionary 
     cost under CBO's de minimis threshold ($500,000).
       While agreeing to waive consideration of S. 2009, the 
     Committee on Education and the Workforce does not waive any 
     jurisdiction that it has over provisions in the bill, nor 
     does it waive the right to seek appointment as conferees in 
     the event of a House-Senate conference on this or similar 
     legislation, should such a conference be convened.
       Thank you again for your consideration.
           Sincerely,
                                                       John Kline,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                       Committee on the Judiciary,


                                     House of Representatives,

                                   Washington, DC, March 28, 2012.
     Hon. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,
     Chairwoman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Rayburn House 
         Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairwoman Ros-Lehtinen, the Foreign Affairs Committee 
     has primary jurisdiction over S. 2009, the ``Insular Areas 
     Act of 2011,'' which the Senate passed by unanimous consent 
     on December 16, 2011. Section 3 of the bill contains matter 
     that falls within the Rule X jurisdiction of the Judiciary 
     Committee. Having reviewed the bill, and pursuant to your 
     request, I agree to discharge the Judiciary Committee from 
     further consideration of the bill so that it may proceed 
     expeditiously to the House Floor.
       The Judiciary Committee agrees to such discharge with the 
     understanding that, by foregoing consideration of S. 2009 at 
     this time, we do not waive any jurisdiction over the subject 
     matter contained in this or similar legislation, and with the 
     further understanding that at such time that the bill may be 
     called up on the House Floor, the bill will be identical in 
     form to the bill as referred to the Foreign Affairs 
     Committee. The Judiciary Committee reserves the right to 
     insist on certain amendments to the provisions of the bill 
     that fall within its Rule X jurisdiction if the bill is 
     called up under a rule permitting amendments thereto. 
     Additionally, if you intend to call up a suspension version 
     on the House Floor that is not identical to the bill as 
     referred to your committee, I respectfully request that you 
     consult further with the Judiciary Committee in advance of 
     such floor consideration.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Lamar Smith,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                     Committee on Foreign Affairs,


                                     House of Representatives,

                                   Washington, DC, March 13, 2012.
     Hon. John A. Boehner,
     Speaker, House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Speaker: I am writing to convey the consent of the 
     Foreign Affairs Committee to be discharged from consideration 
     of S. 2009, the Insular Areas Act of 2011, in order to 
     expedite its consideration on the House floor.
       In making this decision, the Foreign Affairs Committee 
     conferred extensively with the Committee on Resources, which 
     has traditionally dealt with the issues involved in the bill, 
     even though that Committee did not receive a formal referral 
     of S. 2009. Although a formal estimate has not yet been 
     prepared by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), CBO staff 
     provided an informal estimate that the bill should not have 
     any direct spending or revenue effects, and would have annual 
     discretionary costs under CBO's de minimis threshold 
     ($500,000).
       In agreeing to waive consideration of S. 2009, the Foreign 
     Affairs Committee does not waive any jurisdiction that it has 
     over provisions in that bill, or the right to seek to 
     participate in any conference on that bill, should one occur.
       Thank you for your consideration.
           Cordially,
                                              Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. I want to express my deepest appreciation to the

[[Page H4890]]

gentlelady from Florida, the chairwoman of the House Committee on 
Foreign Affairs, and certainly my colleague, the senior ranking member, 
Mr. Berman of California.
  I would also like to express my most sincere appreciation to our 
Speaker of the House, John Boehner; our majority leader, Eric Cantor; 
our Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi; our Democratic Whip, Steny Hoyer; 
the chairman of our Foreign Affairs Committee, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and 
Ranking Member Howard Berman of California; Chairman John Kline and 
Ranking Member George Miller of the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce; Chairman Lamar Smith and Ranking Member John Conyers of the 
Committee on the Judiciary; Chairman Doc Hastings and Ranking Member Ed 
Markey of the Committee on Natural Resources; and certainly Senator 
Jeff Bingaman and Senator Lisa Murkowski, who respectively served as 
chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources for all that they have done on behalf of the insular 
areas. I cannot thank my colleagues enough for standing with me because 
I know the passage of this bill is only possible today due to their 
support.
  I also thank the committee staff leadership for their working in 
close association with my office on the provision which will benefit 
the Associated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall 
Islands, and the Territory of American Samoa.
  Mr. Speaker, as my chairman had alluded to earlier about this 
section, it's very simple.
  This atoll, Runit Atoll, is located in Enewetak. For the benefit and 
information of my colleagues, the Enewetak Atoll is located in the 
Marshall Islands. This is where we exploded 43 of our nuclear bombs out 
of the 67 nuclear bombs that we exploded during our testing program 
from 1943 to 1962; and in the process, this is where we exploded our 
mini-hydrogen bomb, which was called a Mike shot, which was only about 
700 times more powerful than the nuclear bomb that we exploded in 
Nagasaki and Hiroshima.
  Only about a couple of hundred of miles away is also the atoll called 
Bikini Atoll, and in 1954 we exploded the most powerful and the first 
hydrogen bomb that was ever exploded on this planet. It was known as 
the Bravo shot, and it was 1,300 times more powerful than the bombs 
that we dropped in Nagasaki and Hiroshima.
  Just to give my colleagues a sense of understanding and appreciation, 
what we did in this specific atoll, Enewetak, we had to collect all the 
debris, all the nuclear waste materials as a result of the 43 bombs 
that we exploded in this atoll for purposes of preventing nuclear 
contamination from getting into the water and the ocean squall of that. 
Well, it started to leak, and there are some very serious problems of 
nuclear contamination seepage coming out of what we've done in burying, 
supposedly, the nuclear waste materials on this atoll called Runit 
Atoll.
  This provision is just simply the Congress directs the Secretary of 
Energy to do a monitoring program and to see what is happening after 
some 40 years that we did all this tremendous damage, not only to 
property, but to the lives of these people in the Marshall Islands. 
This is what this provision provides. It very simply authorizes the 
Secretary of Energy to go over there and find out what's going on and 
monitor the underground water so that these people can survive 
properly.
  In the process, and what's about good about this bill, Mr. Speaker, 
is it doesn't require any offsets. We don't have to worry about any 
financials. It will be funded by the Technical Assistance Program that 
is now provided by the Office of Insular Affairs.
  The second provision in this bill, Mr. Speaker, it just simply amends 
the Compact of Free Association to authorize our judges to go there and 
serve temporarily in the courts of the Associated States of Micronesia. 
That's all it does. It doesn't require any more expense than it is but 
just to simply authorize them.

                              {time}  1800

  And the third provision that I want to share with my colleagues is 
simply to delay the increase of the minimum wage in my little Territory 
of American Samoa for the next 3 years. That's all that this bill 
provides.
  As I said, Mr. Speaker, this is one of the most unusual bills. It has 
the support of four committee chairmen and senior ranking members. Now, 
you talk about bipartisanship: I don't know of any other bill that I've 
ever heard or known and the fact that we have something we can all work 
toward in solving some of the serious problems affecting the lives of 
our fellow Americans. And that's all I'm asking for.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2009, the Insular Areas 
Act of 2011, which was passed by the Senate on December 16, 2011.
  At this time, I would like to express my sincerest appreciation to 
Speaker of the House John Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, 
Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Chairman 
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Ranking Member Howard Berman of the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs, Chairman John Kline and Ranking Member George 
Miller of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Chairman Lamar 
Smith and Ranking Member John Conyers of the Committee on the 
Judiciary, Chairman Doc Hastings and Ranking Member Ed Markey of the 
Committee on Natural Resources, and Senators Jeff Bingaman and Lisa 
Murkowski who respectively serve as the Chairman and Ranking Member of 
the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources for all they have 
done for and on behalf of the people of American Samoa.
  I cannot thank my colleagues enough for standing with me because I 
know that passage of this bill is only possible today due to their 
support. I also thank committee and leadership staff for working in 
close association with my office on provisions which will benefit our 
Associated States of Micronesia, Republic of Marshall Islands, and the 
U.S. Territory of American Samoa for years to come. Most of all, I 
thank the people of American Samoa, our tuna cannery workers, our Fono, 
and Governor for their support and prayers.
  I want to especially commend Senator Bingaman and Senator Murkowski 
for their leadership in getting S. 2009 passed by the Senate. S. 2009 
includes a provision to delay minimum wage increases in American Samoa 
until 2015. The provision regarding minimum wage was worked out in 
advance with my office as well as the Senate HELP Committee, the Senate 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, the House Committee on 
Education and the Workforce, and the House Committee on Natural 
Resources.
  Because S. 2009 included other provisions not related to minimum 
wage, the bill was referred to three different committees in the House, 
including Education and the Workforce, the Judiciary, and the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs which has primary jurisdiction for S. 2009. With 
three different committees sharing jurisdiction, the bill could not 
move to the House floor unless the committees agreed to be discharged 
from consideration of S. 2009.
  At my request, each of the Chairmen and Ranking Members agreed to 
waive consideration in order to expedite the bill's consideration. 
Although S. 2009 was not referred to the House Committee on Natural 
Resources, I sought and received the support of Chairman Doc Hastings 
and Ranking Member Ed Markey, too.
  While we were hopeful that the bill could be placed on the House 
calendar after Congress returned from the Christmas recess, in January 
2012 the U.S. Department of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs 
(OIA) unwittingly halted the advancement of the bill due to concerns it 
raised about a provision related to the monitoring of Runit Island. 
After explaining how important delaying further minimum wage increases 
is to American Samoa's economy, we were able to resolve OIA's concerns 
and move forward. But given these setbacks, Speaker Boehner's office 
subsequently requested that we formalize, in writing, the commitment of 
the Chairmen of the committees of jurisdiction and, as of March 28, 
2012, we completed this request.
  On Tuesday, July 10, 2012, I personally met with Majority Leader Eric 
Cantor and presented our case, and he agreed that with the support of 
Speaker Boehner, Democratic Leader Pelosi and Democratic Whip Hoyer 
that he would schedule the bill for consideration. Once the bill was 
publicly placed on the House calendar for July 17, 2012, I announced 
the progress we had made. Given the sensitivities surrounding minimum 
wage, I felt like a public announcement any sooner could have 
jeopardized our efforts.
  The matter of minimum wage is of utmost importance to American Samoa. 
Since 1956, until Congress enacted P.L. 110-28 which

[[Page H4891]]

automatically increases wage rates by $.50 per hour effective July 2007 
and every year thereafter until 2014, wage rates for American Samoa 
were determined by Special Industry Committees in accordance with 
Sections 5, 6, and 8 of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 
Sections 205, 206, 208). While these Industry Committees were phased 
out in other U.S. Territories due to their more diversified economies, 
American Samoa continues to be a single industry economy, and automatic 
increases have only served to exacerbate an already difficult situation 
for the local economy.
  For more than 50 years, American Samoa's private sector economy had 
been nearly 80% dependent, either directly or indirectly, on two 
canneries--StarKist and Chicken of the Sea--which until recently 
employed more than 74 percent of our private sector workforce. However, 
on September 30, 2009, one day after American Samoa was struck by a 
powerful 8.3 Richter Scale earthquake which set off a 20-foot wave 
tsunami that left untold damage and loss from which the Territory has 
not fully recovered, Chicken of the Sea closed its operations in 
American Samoa and outsourced more than 2,000 jobs to Thailand where 
fish cleaners are paid $0.75 and less per hour compared to wage rates 
of about $4.76 per hour in American Samoa.
  As noted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), before 
minimum wage increases went into effect tuna canneries in American 
Samoa were operating at about a $7.5 million loss per year when 
compared to canneries, like Bumble Bee, and now Chicken of the Sea, 
which outsource fish cleaning jobs to low-wage rate countries. 
Outsourcing has adversely impacted American Samoa's economy in untold 
ways. Higher fish costs, higher shipping costs, higher fuel costs, 
better local tax incentives offered by competitors and the global 
economic recession have especially contributed to the weakening of the 
Territory's economy. Passage of S. 2009 will help resolve some of these 
problems by providing ASG with the time it needs to diversify the 
Territory's private-sector economy.
  While I thank my colleagues for their support and urge them to vote 
in favor of S. 2009, it is my sincere hope that improvements on the 
territory's economy will be such that it will provide for fair wages 
for American Samoa's workers. So between now and 2015, it will be up to 
ASG and our corporate partners, including StarKist and Tri-Marine, to 
find new ways of succeeding without further compromising the wages of 
both our public and private sector workers or wage earners.
  American Samoa's cannery workers have been the backbone of the U.S. 
tuna and fishing processing industries, and I salute them for 
stabilizing the Territory's economy. With heart-felt gratitude for the 
sacrifices they have made on our behalf, I am noting their service in 
the Congressional Record for historical purposes.
  Once more, I thank my colleagues in the House and Senate for helping 
American Samoa in its time of need, and I urge passage of S. 2009.

    The Enewetak People--Challenges Facing the only Population Ever 
                    Resettled on a Nuclear Test Site


                              Introduction

       Enewetak was the site of 43 of the 67 nuclear tests that 
     the U.S. conducted in the Marshall Islands and the Enewetak 
     people are the only people ever resettled on a nuclear test 
     site.


                 Enewetak Atoll as a Nuclear Test Site

       Enewetak Atoll, was the site of forty-three of the sixty-
     six nuclear tests conducted by the United States in the 
     Marshall Islands between 1946 and 1958. One of the tests at 
     Enewetak was especially significant as it was the first test 
     of a hydrogen bomb. This test occurred on October 31, 1952 
     and was known as the ``Mike'' test. The test had a yield of 
     10.4 megatons (750 times greater than the Hiroshima bomb). 
     The destructive power of the Mike test was exceeded only by 
     the Bravo test (15 megatons) in all the nuclear tests 
     conducted by the United States anywhere. The Mike test 
     vaporized an island, leaving a crater a mile in diameter and 
     200 feet deep. The Mike test detonation and the detonation of 
     the other 42 nuclear devices on Enewetak resulted in the 
     vaporization of over 8% of the land and otherwise devastated 
     the atoll. The devastation is so severe that to this day, 
     fifty-four years after the last nuclear explosion, over half 
     of the land and all of the lagoon remain contaminated by 
     radiation. The damage is so pervasive that the Enewetak 
     people cannot live on over 50% of our land. In fact, they 
     can't live on Enewetak without the importation of food.
       The U.S. Department of Energy described the devastating 
     effects of the 43 nuclear tests on Enewetak as follows:
       ``The immense ball of flame, cloud of dark dust, evaporated 
     steel tower, melted sand for a thousand feet, 10 million tons 
     of water rising out of the lagoon, waves subsiding from a 
     height of eighty feet to seven feet in three miles were all 
     repeated, in various degrees, 43 times on Enewetak Atoll.''


  Removal of the Enewetak People from Enewetak Atoll to Ujelang Atoll

       A few days before Christmas in 1947, the U.S. removed the 
     Enewetak people to the much smaller, resource poor, and 
     isolated atoll of Ujelang. They were told by the U.S. that 
     their removal would be for a short time. In fact, Captain 
     John P. W. Vest, the U.S. Military Governor for the Marshall 
     Islands, told them that their removal from Enewetak would be 
     temporary and last no more than three to five years. 
     Unfortunately, they were exiled on Ujelang for a period of 
     over thirty-three years.


                          Hardship on Ujelang

       The exile on Ujelang was particularly difficult for the 
     Enewetak people leading to hopelessness and despair. During 
     the 33-year exile on Ujelang they endured the suffering of 
     near starvation. They tried to provide food for themselves 
     and their children, but one meal a day and constant hunger 
     was the norm. Malnutrition caused illness and disease. 
     Children and the elderly were particularly vulnerable. Health 
     care was woefully inadequate. In addition, children went 
     largely uneducated in the struggle for survival. They became 
     so desperate that in the late 1960's they took over a 
     visiting government field-trip ship, demanding that they be 
     taken off of Ujelang and returned to Enewetak.
       After years of hardship, neglect and isolation the Enewetak 
     people became increasingly insistent that they be returned 
     home. Eventually, the U.S. said it would attempt to make 
     Enewetak Atoll habitable.
       The suffering and hardship experienced by the Enewetak 
     people while on Ujelang, was eventually acknowledged by the 
     U.S. The U.S. Department of Interior in a letter to the 
     President of the U.S. Senate, dated January 14, 1978, said, 
     in relevant part:
       ``The people of Enewetak Atoll were removed from their home 
     atoll in 1947 by the U.S. Government in order that their 
     atoll could be used in the atomic testing program. The people 
     were promised that they would be able to return home once the 
     U.S. Government no longer had need for their islands.
       During the thirty years that the Enewetak people have been 
     displaced from their home atoll they have suffered grave 
     privations, including periods of near starvation, in their 
     temporary home on Ujelang Atoll. The people have cooperated 
     willingly with the U.S. Government and have made many 
     sacrifices to permit the United States to use their home 
     islands for atomic testing purposes.''


               Initial Cleanup Attempt of Enewetak Atoll

       In 1972, the U.S. said that it would soon no longer require 
     the use of Enewetak. The U.S. recognized that the extensive 
     damage and residual radiation at Enewetak would require 
     radiological cleanup, soil rehabilitation, housing and basic 
     infrastructure before the people could resettle Enewetak. An 
     extensive cleanup, rehabilitation and resettlement effort was 
     undertaken between 1977 and 1980.
       Unfortunately, the cleanup left over half of the land mass 
     of the atoll contaminated by radiation confining the people 
     to the southern half of the atoll. This has prevented the 
     Enjebi island members of the Enewetak community from 
     resettling their home island in the northern part of the 
     atoll, and has prevented the people from making full and 
     unrestricted use of their atoll. In addition, the cleanup and 
     rehabilitation was not effective in rehabilitating the soil 
     and revegetating the islands. An extensive soil 
     rehabilitation and revegetation effort is still required to 
     permit the growing of food crops.


                               Runit Dome

       The cleanup of Enewetak entailed removal and collection of 
     highly contaminated topsoil, vegetation, and debris (concrete 
     and metal) that was subsequently entombed within an unlined 
     crater produced by an 18 kilo ton surface test and capped 
     with a concrete dome. The site is now known as the Runit 
     Dome. Evidence indicates open hydraulic communication between 
     radioactive waste and intruding ocean water, with migration 
     pathways leading to local groundwater and circulating lagoon 
     waters.
       Inside the Runit Dome lies over 110,000 cubic yards of 
     plutonium and other radioactive debris that is radioactive 
     for thousands of years. And, many areas of Runit Island have 
     dangerous levels of contamination. Consequently, the dome and 
     the surrounding area need to be monitored in the same manner 
     that they would be monitored in the US. The reason for such 
     monitoring is simple--the Enewetak people are entitled to the 
     same level of protection from US created radiation as the 
     people of the US.

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate Mr. Faleomavaega for the warm way 
in which he works with every member of our committee, and that is why 
it is a pleasure for all of us on the Committee on Foreign Affairs to 
do everything that we can to help the gentleman, because we know how 
important these bills are to him, as we can see, as we have heard. What 
we may consider to be a suspension bill that will not impact our daily 
lives, it impacts the many thousands of people whom he is so proud to 
represent in a very real and meaningful way.
  So I thank him for his gentle manners. I thank him for his 
graciousness. I thank him for the important bills that he brings to our 
attention. And I want to tell him what an honor it is for

[[Page H4892]]

all of us on our committee to work with him in a bipartisan way.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, S. 2009 is primarily concerned with U.S. 
responsibilities to the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the other 
Freely Associated States in Micronesia, and with a pause in the 
implementation of federal minimum wage in American Samoa.
  I certainly support continuing U.S. oversight of the effects of 
nuclear testing in the Marshalls.
  And I defer to my colleague from American Samoa with respect to 
economic policy in his district.
  In one respect, though, S. 2009 does impact my district, the Northern 
Marianas Islands.
  The bill moves a Government Accountability Office report on the 
effect of minimum wage increases in the Northern Marianas and American 
Samoa from every two years to every three years.
  These GAO reports are important. They provide a credible analysis of 
a complex policy, namely the annual 50 cents increase in the minimum 
wage in the Marianas.
  Yet this decision to delay the next GAO report and stretch out the 
period of time between reports is being made without benefit of a 
hearing in this House.
  Neither businesses nor workers, who are impacted by the minimum wage 
increases in my district, have had a chance to be heard from.
  Last year, in part based on the GAO's findings, I supported a one-
year break in the wage increase.
  Looking ahead to next year, I had hoped to have another GAO report to 
guide any decision about--perhaps--skipping another year.
  But S. 2009 will leave us without benefit of the GAO's advice.
  And I believe this House needs that guidance.
  I will not object to passage of S. 2009, but I do regret that this 
House did not follow its regular order before bringing the measure to 
the floor.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in 
support of S. 2009. This legislation includes provisions adjusting the 
federal minimum wage schedule for American Samoa in light of GAO's 
findings on its unique labor market conditions. Mr. Faleomavaega of 
American Samoa has asked the Congress to make these adjustments for 
American Samoa and pass this bill.
  Current law requires that the minimum wage increase in American Samoa 
annually until it reaches the Mainland's federal minimum wage level.
  Current law also requires the GAO to regularly report to Congress on 
economic conditions in American Samoa over the course of these minimum 
wage adjustments. These GAO reports are intended to give Congress 
information so that, if necessary, Congress can adjust the minimum wage 
schedule for the territory.
  Precisely because American Samoa has a unique, isolated, and 
relatively undiversified economy and because the path to the full 
federal minimum wage for this territory is a necessarily long one, 
Congress must be flexible over time with the minimum wage schedule in 
response to changing economic conditions. Congress must also maintain 
the clear requirement that the minimum wage in American Samoa be on a 
schedule to reach Mainland levels. In decades past, the use of a 
special industry committee to periodically review and set the minimum 
wage in American Samoa proved ineffective, unfairly depressing wage 
levels below what was economically feasible.
  The minimum wage provision in S. 2009 meets these standards. The 
adjustment proposed by S. 2009 is the result of the GAO's latest 
report, which lays out certain economic difficulties confronting 
American Samoa. These difficulties arise from a variety of factors, 
including recent global economic conditions and a specific set of 
challenges facing American Samoa's tuna canning industry.
  In response to the GAO report, this bill adjusts the schedule by 
delaying any minimum wage increases in American Samoa until 2015. 
Importantly, it maintains a clear minimum wage schedule for the 
territory, with new increases made triennially.
  This is not the first adjustment in the schedule since the increases 
began in 2007. Adjustments were also enacted in 2010.
  Congress must continue to monitor conditions in American Samoa. 
Future adjustments to either accelerate or delay the minimum wage 
schedule may be necessary and warranted. Workers in American Samoa 
deserve a fair minimum wage as soon as possible, which not only 
improves their standard of living but generates new economic activity 
for everyone's benefit. To achieve that end and to be sensitive to 
other economic pressures on the island that may affect employment 
levels, it is our ongoing responsibility to calibrate the minimum wage 
schedule as conditions warrant.
  I look forward to continuing to work with Mr. Faleomavaega and other 
colleagues in the House and Senate to ensure workers in American Samoa 
receive a just wage.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, S. 2009.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.

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