[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 110 (Thursday, June 8, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37552-37554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12272]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


Announcement of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian 
Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders Meeting and 
Solicitation for Written and Oral Comments

AGENCY: Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the 
Secretary, Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs, White 
House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific 
Islanders.

ACTION: Notice of meeting and solicitation for written and oral 
comments.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 
announces the next meeting of the President's Advisory Commission on 
Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (Commission) 
and the solicitation of written and oral comment regarding the 
advancement of equity, justice and opportunity for Asian American, 
Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) communities. The 
meeting is open to the public and will be held in Honolulu, Hawaii. 
Virtual attendance will be available through livestream for July 6; in-
person attendance is available for July 7, 2023. The Commission is 
working to accomplish its mission to provide independent advice and 
recommendations to the President on ways to advance equity, justice, 
and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities.

DATES: The Commission will meet on July 6, 2023, from 2:30 p.m. Eastern 
Time (ET) to 11:30 p.m. ET and July 7, 2023, from 3:00 p.m. ET to 6:00 
p.m. ET. The final location and agenda will be posted on the website 
for the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native 
Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders: https://www.hhs.gov/about/whiaanhpi/commission/index.html when this information becomes available.

ADDRESSES: Members of the public may attend virtually or in person, 
depending on the portion of the meeting. Registration is required 
through the following links:

July 6 (virtual attendance only): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/meeting-of-the-presidents-advisory-commission-on-aa-and-nhpis-tickets-646261494527
July 7 (in-person attendance only): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/white-house-initiative-aa-and-nhpi-economic-summit-honolulu-tickets-649191698847


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Viviane Chao, Designated Federal 
Officer, President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native 
Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, U.S. Department of Health and Human 
Services, Office of the Secretary, Office of Intergovernmental and 
External Affairs, Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Room 620E, 200 
Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20201; email: 
[email protected]; telephone: (202) 951-0235.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The meeting is the sixth in a series of 
Federal advisory committee meetings regarding the development of 
recommendations to advance equity, justice, and opportunity for AA and 
NHPI communities. The meeting is open to the public and will be live 
streamed. The Commission, co-chaired by HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra 
and the U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador

[[Page 37553]]

Katherine Tai, advises the President on: the development, monitoring, 
and coordination of executive branch efforts to advance equity, 
justice, and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities in the United 
States, including efforts to close gaps in health, socioeconomic, 
employment, and educational outcomes; policies to address and end anti-
Asian bias, xenophobia, racism, and nativism, and opportunities for the 
executive branch to advance inclusion, belonging, and public awareness 
of the diversity and accomplishments of AA and NHPI people, cultures, 
and histories; policies, programs, and initiatives to prevent, report, 
respond to, and track anti-Asian hate crimes and hate incidents; ways 
in which the Federal Government can build on the capacity and 
contributions of AA and NHPI communities through equitable Federal 
funding, grantmaking, and employment opportunities; policies and 
practices to improve research and equitable data disaggregation 
regarding AA and NHPI communities; policies and practices to improve 
language access services to ensure AA and NHPI communities can access 
Federal programs and services; and strategies to increase public-and 
private-sector collaboration, and community involvement in improving 
the safety and socioeconomic, health, educational, occupational, and 
environmental well-being of AA and NHPI communities.
    Information is available on the President's Advisory Commission on 
Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders website at 
https://www.hhs.gov/about/whiaanhpi/commission/index.html. The names of 
the 25 members of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian 
Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders are available at 
https://www.hhs.gov/about/whiaanhpi/commission/commissioners/index.html.
    Purpose of Meeting: The President's Advisory Commission on Asian 
Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, authorized by 
Executive Order 14031, will meet to discuss full and draft 
recommendations by the Commission's six Subcommittees on ways to 
advance equity, justice, and opportunity for Asian American, Native 
Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. The Subcommittees are: 
Belonging, Inclusion, Anti-Asian Hate, Anti-Discrimination; Data 
Disaggregation; Language Access; Economic Equity; Health Equity; and 
Immigration and Citizenship Status.
    Background: Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander 
communities are among the fastest growing racial and ethnic populations 
in the United States according to the U.S. Census Bureau. However, in 
recent years, AA and NHPI individuals have faced increasing hate crimes 
and incidents that threaten their safety, as well as harmful 
stereotypes that often ignore socioeconomic, health, and educational 
disparities impacting these diverse communities.
    Tragic acts of anti-Asian violence increased during the COVID-19 
pandemic, casting a shadow of fear and grief over many AA and NHPI 
communities, in particular East Asian communities. Long before this 
pandemic, AA and NHPI communities in the United States, including South 
Asian and Southeast Asian communities, have faced persistent 
xenophobia, religious discrimination, racism, and violence. At the same 
time, AA and NHPI communities were overrepresented in the pandemic's 
essential workforce in healthcare, food supply, education, and 
childcare, with more than four million AA and NHPIs manning the 
frontlines throughout the pandemic.
    Many AA and NHPI communities, and in particular Native Hawaiian and 
Pacific Islander communities, were disproportionately burdened by the 
COVID-19 public health crisis. Evidence suggests that Native Hawaiians 
and Pacific Islanders were three times more likely to contract COVID-19 
compared to white people and nearly twice as likely to die from the 
disease. On top of these health inequities, many AA and NHPI workers, 
families, and small businesses faced devastating economic losses during 
the crisis.
    The challenges AA and NHPI communities face are often exacerbated 
by a lack of adequate data disaggregation and language access. The 
President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, 
and Pacific Islanders works to advise the President on executive branch 
efforts to address these challenges and advance equity, justice, and 
opportunity for AA and NHPI communities.
    Public Participation at Meeting: Members of the public may attend 
virtually or in person, depending on the portion of the meeting. 
Registration is required through the following links:

July 6 (virtual attendance only): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/meeting-of-the-presidents-advisory-commission-on-aa-and-nhpis-tickets-646261494527
July 7 (in-person attendance only): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/white-house-initiative-aa-and-nhpi-economic-summit-honolulu-tickets-649191698847

    Written public comments: Written comments are welcomed throughout 
the development of the Commission's recommendations to promote equity, 
justice, and opportunity for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and 
Pacific Islanders and may be emailed to [email protected] at any 
time. Respond concisely and in plain language. You may use any 
structure or layout that presents your information well. You may 
respond to some or all of our questions, and you can suggest other 
factors or relevant questions. You may also include links to online 
material or interactive presentations. Clearly mark any proprietary 
information and place it in its own section or file. Your response will 
become Government property, and we may publish some of its non-
proprietary content.
    Oral public comments: Individuals may submit a request to make an 
oral public comment at the July 7, 2023, meeting in response to the 
questions below. Advance copy of public comment must be sent via email 
at [email protected] with the subject line ``PACAANHPI: In-
person Response to '' no later than 
11:59 p.m. ET on Friday, June 23, 2023. Submissions received after the 
deadline will not be considered for oral public comment.
    Registration for oral public comment is on a first-come, first-
served basis. Comments are limited to two (2) minutes or less. After 
the maximum number of speakers is exceeded, individuals registered to 
provide oral comment will be placed on a wait list and notified should 
an opening become available. You will be notified via email no later 
than July 5, 2023, if you have been identified to provide in-person 
public comment.
    The Commission is particularly interested in soliciting comments on 
the following questions:
    1. Belonging, Inclusion, Anti-Asian Hate, Anti-Discrimination 
Subcommittee Questions:
    a. Please provide feedback on the experiences of Asian Americans, 
Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in the Child Protection/Child 
Welfare system.
    b. What are promising practices, services, or prevention and 
intervention strategies that advance the well-being of AA and NHPI 
children and families who encounter the child protection/child welfare 
systems?
    2. Language Access Subcommittee Questions:
    a. How can the Federal Government promote the preservation, 
teaching, learning of, maintenance and utilization of AA and NHPI 
languages?

[[Page 37554]]

    b. Are there any programs you recommend the Commission examine that 
provide meaningful language access to government benefits and services 
to persons with limited English proficiency?
    3. Economic Equity Subcommittee Questions:
    a. To what extent does the Native Hawaiian community have access to 
or understand how to access resources for job training and housing 
assistance at the local, state, and federal level?
    b. How familiar is the public with the federal government resources 
available to support small businesses, loans, or grants?
    c. How can the government better provide culturally sensitive and 
affordable housing for AA and NHPI communities?
    4. Health Equity Subcommittee Questions:
    a. What are the mental health concerns impacting communities in the 
Pacific Islands and what are some of the ways communities are trying to 
address them?
    b. What are the biggest concerns around health for Native 
Hawaiians?
    c. What are some of the biggest barriers to obtaining health care 
in Hawaii and other Pacific Islands?
    d. What could improve your communities' ability to obtain federal 
services such as housing assistance, SSI/SSDI, SNAP/WIC, FEMA 
assistance, etc.?
    5. Immigration and Citizenship Status Subcommittee Questions:
    a. What are the main policy implications for Pacific Islanders who 
have either immigrated or moved away from their island homelands to 
other locations in the United States?
    b. Pacific Islanders have a unique history with the United States 
that differs from most immigrants or migrants to this country. What 
should the responsibility of the federal government be to Pacific 
Islanders in light of this historical relationship?
    c. As immigration-related agencies within the U.S. Department of 
Homeland Security (DHS) like the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services (USCIS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and 
Customs and Border Protection (CBP), work to expand language services, 
how should they decide which languages and which processes should be 
prioritized for implementation? Are there specific forms or processes 
that DHS agencies should prioritize providing language services for 
immediately? If so, which forms and language translations should be 
prioritized?
    d. What can be done to address negative stereotypes and improve 
group relations between Pacific Islanders and other communities both in 
the Pacific Islands and throughout the United States?
    Authority: Executive Order 14031. The President's Advisory 
Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders 
is governed by provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public 
Law 92-463, as amended (5 U.S.C. app.), which sets forth standards for 
the formation and use of Federal advisory committees.

Krystal Ka`ai,
Executive Director, White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native 
Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders President's Advisory Commission on 
Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders.
[FR Doc. 2023-12272 Filed 6-7-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4153-01-P