[Senate Report 115-216]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                      Calendar No. 360
115th Congress     }                                    {       Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session        }                                    {      115-216

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   ADMIRAL LLOYD R. ``JOE'' VASEY PACIFIC WAR COMMEMORATIVE DISPLAY 
                           ESTABLISHMENT ACT

                                _______
                                

                 March 21, 2018.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Ms. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 4300]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (H.R. 4300) to authorize Pacific Historic 
Parks to establish a commemorative display to honor members of 
the United States Armed Forces who served in the Pacific 
Theater of World War II, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of H.R. 4300 is to authorize the Pacific 
Historic Parks to establish a commemorative display to honor 
members of the United States Armed Forces who served in the 
Pacific Theater of World War II.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    President George W. Bush established the World War II Valor 
in the Pacific National Monument by proclamation under the 
Antiquities Act on December 5, 2008. The Monument includes the 
USS Arizona Memorial and Visitor Center, the USS Utah Memorial, 
the USS Oklahoma Memorial, and other sites at Pearl Harbor, 
Hawaii; three sites in Alaska's Aleutian Islands, and the Tule 
Lake Segregation Center National Historic Landmark in 
California. The Monument was established to preserve these 
sites associated with important aspects of World War II in the 
Pacific and to ``present interpretive opportunities and 
programs for visitors to better understand and honor the 
sacrifices borne by the Greatest Generation, and tell the story 
from Pearl Harbor to Peace.'' In addition, the USS Missouri 
Memorial Association preserves the USS Missouri, the battleship 
on which the Empire of Japan surrendered, ending World War II.
    H.R. 4300 supports the purposes of the World War II Valor 
in the Pacific National Monument by authorizing Pacific 
Historic Parks, a nonprofit organization that works with the 
National Park Service in support of the USS Arizona Memorial 
and other National Park units in the Pacific, to establish a 
commemorative display at a suitable location at Pearl Harbor to 
honor the members of the United States Armed Forces and its 
allies who served in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
    The commemorative display would tell the story of the U.S. 
service members who fought alongside allied service members on 
land, in the air, and at sea throughout the Pacific Theater 
during World War II. The commemorative display would also 
educate the public on the role of the Pacific War, and provide 
a place for loved ones to mourn those who were lost. The design 
and establishment of the commemorative display would be carried 
out, in coordination with the National Park Service (NPS) and 
the Pacific Historic Parks, a non-profit whose sole mission is 
to support NPS throughout the Pacific region.
    The legislation is needed to authorize Pacific Historic 
Parks to locate the commemorative display on National Park 
Service-managed property.
    The commemorative display proposed by the legislation would 
be named after Admiral Joe Vasey, who recently passed away at 
the age of 101. Admiral Vasey dedicated his life to promoting 
peace throughout the Pacific. He served aboard the USS Gunnel, 
under Admiral John S. McCain, Jr., father of Senator John 
McCain, in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He also 
founded the Pacific Forum Center for Strategic and 
International Studies, a nonprofit foreign policy research 
institute focused on the Asia-Pacific region.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 4300 was introduced in the House of Representatives by 
Rep. Hanabusa on November 8, 2017 and referred to the House 
Committee on Natural Resources. H.R. 4300 was reported by the 
House Committee on Natural Resources (H. Rept. 115-450) on 
December 6, 2017, and passed the House of Representatives by 
voice vote on December 7, 2017.
    A companion measure, S. 2213, was introduced by Senators 
Hirono and Schatz on December 7, 2017. The Senate Subcommittee 
on National Parks conducted a hearing on S. 2213 and H.R. 4300 
on February 14, 2018.
    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open 
business session on March 8, 2018, and ordered S. 2213 and H.R. 
4300 favorably reported.

                        COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on March 8, 2018, by a majority voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 
4300.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 contains the short title.

Section 2. Definitions

    Section 2 contains key definitions.

Section 3. Purposes

    Section 3 outlines three purposes of the legislation: (1) 
honoring members of the U.S. Armed Forces who fought on behalf 
of the United States in the Pacific Theater during World War 
II; (2) providing a place to mourn the lives of American and 
Allied lives lost in the Pacific Theater during World War II; 
and (3) educating the public about U.S. battles in the Pacific 
Theater and its role in World War II.

Section 4. Pacific Theater commemorative display

    Section 4(a) authorizes the Pacific Historic Parks, a 
cooperating association with the National Park Service, to 
establish and maintain a commemorative display to honor the 
members of the United States Armed Forces and Allies who served 
in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
    Subsection (b) prohibits the use of Federal funds for the 
design, procurement, preparation, installation, or maintenance 
of the commemorative display, but authorizes the NPS Director 
to accept and expend contributions of non-Federal funds and 
resources for such purposes.
    Subsection (c) authorizes the Director to allow the 
commemorative display to be established at a suitable location 
at the Pearl Harbor site of the World War II Valor in the 
Pacific National Monument in Honolulu, Hawaii. This subsection 
further prohibits the establishment of the commemorative 
display at any location under the Director's jurisdiction until 
the Director determines that an assured source of non-Federal 
funding has been established for the design, procurement, 
installation, and maintenance of the commemorative display.
    Subsection (d) specifies that the final design of the 
commemorative display shall be subject to the approval of the 
Director.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The following estimate of the costs of this measure has 
been provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
    H.R. 4300 would authorize the Pacific Historic Parks, a 
nonprofit organization, to establish a memorial at the Pearl 
Harbor site of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National 
Monument located in Honolulu, Hawaii, to commemorate members of 
the armed forces who fought in the Pacific Theater during World 
War II. The act would prohibit the use of federal funds to 
design, install, or maintain the memorial.
    Under H.R. 4300, the final design of the memorial would be 
subject to the approval of the National Park Service (NPS). On 
the basis of the cost of similar activities, CBO estimates that 
any administrative costs incurred by NPS to approve the 
memorial design would be insignificant; any such spending would 
be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
    Enacting H.R. 4300 could affect direct spending; therefore, 
pay-as-you-go procedures apply. The act would authorize NPS to 
accept donations, which would be recorded in the budget as 
offsetting receipts (or reductions in direct spending), and to 
spend them without further appropriation action to establish 
the memorial. Because CBO expects that any donation received by 
NPS would be offset by an expenditure soon thereafter, we 
estimate that the net effect on direct spending would be 
negligible. Enacting H.R. 4300 would not affect revenues.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 4300 would not increase 
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    H.R. 4300 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
    On January 19, 2018, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for 
H.R. 4300, the Admiral Lloyd R. `Joe' Vasey Pacific War 
Commemorative Display Establishment Act, as passed by the House 
of Representatives on December 7, 2017. On March 16, 2018, CBO 
transmitted a cost estimate for S. 2213, the Admiral Lloyd R. 
`Joe' Vasey Pacific War Commemorative Display Establishment 
Act, as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources on March 8, 2018. The pieces of legislation 
are similar, and CBO's estimates of their budgetary effects are 
the same.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Janani 
Shankaran. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, 
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out H.R. 4300. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals 
and businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of H.R. 4300, as ordered reported.

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    H.R. 4300, as ordered reported, does not contain any 
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, 
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The testimony provided by the Department of the Interior at 
the February 14, 2018, hearing on H.R. 4300 follows:

Statement of P. Daniel Smith, Deputy Director, Exercising the Authority 
    of the Director of the National Park Service, Department of the 
 Interior, Before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee 
on National Parks, Concerning H.R. 4300 and S. 2213, Bills To Authorize 
 Pacific Historic Parks To Establish A Commemorative Display To Honor 
  Members of the United States Armed Forces Who Served in the Pacific 
                        Theater of World War II

    Chairman Daines, Ranking Member King, and members of the 
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the 
Department of the Interior's views on H.R. 4300 and S. 2213, 
bills to authorize Pacific Historic Parks to establish a 
commemorative display to honor members of the United States 
Armed Forces who served in the Pacific Theater of World War II, 
and for other purposes.
    The Department supports this legislation and recommends a 
technical amendment. The two bills, which are virtually 
identical, would allow the organization named Pacific Historic 
Parks to establish and maintain a commemorative display at the 
Pearl Harbor site of the World War II Valor in the Pacific 
National Monument. The display would honor the members of the 
United States Armed Forces and allies who served in the Pacific 
Theater during World War II.
    The legislation prohibits the use of federal funds to 
design, procure, prepare, install, and maintain the 
commemorative display, but allows the National Park Service to 
accept and expend contributions of non-federal funds and 
resources for such purposes. It also prohibits the 
establishment of the commemorative display on National Park 
Service-managed property until the National Park Service 
determines that there is an assured source of non-federal 
funding for the design, procurement, installation, and 
maintenance of the display.
    The World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument, 
home of the USS Arizona Memorial, receives nearly two million 
visitors each year who come to learn about and to pay their 
respects to those who gave their lives in the attack on the 
island of Oahu. The monument interprets not only the events of 
December 7, 1941, but also the world events leading up to the 
attack and events that followed, including the many battles 
across the Pacific Theatre that occurred after the United 
States entered World War II. The National Park Service believes 
that the commemorative display authorized in this legislation 
would be consistent with the mission and interpretive themes 
explored at the monument.
    The Department recommends that the language in Section 4 be 
clarified to reflect the fact that authority is needed for the 
Pacific Historic Parks organization to establish a 
commemorative display on National Park Service-managed 
property, not for establishing the display itself. We would 
like to work with the sponsor and the committee on clarifying 
language.
    Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be 
pleased to answer any questions you or other members of the 
Subcommittee may have.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no 
changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered 
reported.

                                  [all]