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H.J.Res. 96

Joint ResolutionFederalHouseFloor Consideration
Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2023
About This Bill
Introduced
Latest Action · December 19, 2024
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 775.
Congress
118th (2023–2025)
Introduced
November 2, 2023
Cosponsors (42)
19D 23R
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Summary

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This resolution approves updated agreements between the United States and three Pacific nations known as the Freely Associated States: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. These agreements, negotiated in 2023, renew and extend the long-standing Compacts of Free Association, which govern economic assistance, defense cooperation, and the special immigration status these nations' citizens hold in the U.S. The bill authorizes roughly two decades of federal funding, from fiscal years 2024 through 2043, covering economic assistance, trust funds meant to provide long-term financial support once direct aid ends, postal services, and judicial training programs, with specific appropriations including $31.7 million annually for postal services and $550,000 annually for judicial training. It also expands benefits for residents of these nations, including access to U.S. veterans' health care, education grants, disability services, and protections from certain federal public-benefit restrictions, while establishing new oversight mechanisms such as an interagency coordinating group and enhanced State Department staffing focused on the Pacific Islands. The legislation affects the U.S. government, the governments and citizens of the three Pacific nations, and various federal agencies including the Departments of State, Interior, Defense, Education, and Veterans Affairs, and reflects continued U.S. strategic and humanitarian commitments in the Pacific region, including ongoing support tied to historical U.S. nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands.

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