I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 44 

To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review 

Commission. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 6, 2015 

Ms. BORDALLO (for herself, Mr. HOYER, Mr. PIERLUISI, Mr. SABLAN, Ms. 

NORTON, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. HONDA, and Ms. LEE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims 

Review Commission. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Guam World War II 

5 Loyalty Recognition Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY 

7 OF THE RESIDENTS OF GUAM. 

8 (a) RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING OF THE RESI9 DENTS OF GUAM.—The United States recognizes that, as 


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1 described by the Guam War Claims Review Commission, 

2 the residents of Guam, on account of their United States 

3 nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as a result of the 

4 occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces 

5 during World War II, by being subjected to death, rape, 

6 severe personal injury, personal injury, forced labor, 

7 forced march, or internment. 

8 (b) RECOGNITION OF THE LOYALTY OF THE RESI9 DENTS OF GUAM.—The United States forever will be 

10 grateful to the residents of Guam for their steadfast loy11 alty to the United States, as demonstrated by the count12 less acts of courage they performed despite the threat of 

13 death or great bodily harm they faced at the hands of the 

14 Imperial Japanese military forces that occupied Guam 

15 during World War II. 

16 SEC. 3. GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS FUND. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.—The Secretary of 

18 the Treasury shall establish in the Treasury of the United 

19 States a special fund (in this Act referred to as the 

20 ‘‘Claims Fund’’) for the payment of claims submitted by 

21 compensable Guam victims and survivors of compensable 

22 Guam decedents in accordance with sections 4 and 5. 

23 (b) COMPOSITION OF FUND.—The Claims Fund es24 tablished under subsection (a) shall be composed of 

25 amounts deposited into the Claims Fund under subsection 


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1 (c) and any other payments made available for the pay2 ment of claims under this Act. 

3 (c) PAYMENT OF CERTAIN DUTIES, TAXES, AND

4 FEES COLLECTED FROM GUAM DEPOSITED INTO

5 FUND.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 30 

7 of the Organic Act of Guam (48 U.S.C. 1421h), the 

8 excess of— 

9 (A) any amount of duties, taxes, and fees 

10 collected under such section after fiscal year 

11 2014, over 

12 (B) the amount of duties, taxes, and fees 

13 collected under such section during fiscal year 

14 2014, 

15 shall be deposited into the Claims Fund. 

16 (2) APPLICATION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

17 apply after the date for which the Secretary of the 

18 Treasury determines that all payments required to 

19 be made under section 4 have been made. 

20 (d) LIMITATION ON PAYMENTS MADE FROM

21 FUND.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—No payment may be made in 

23 a fiscal year under section 4 until funds are depos24 ited into the Claims Fund in such fiscal year under 

25 subsection (c). 


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1 (2) AMOUNTS.—For each fiscal year in which 

2 funds are deposited into the Claims Fund under 

3 subsection (c), the total amount of payments made 

4 in a fiscal year under section 4 may not exceed the 

5 amount of funds available in the Claims Fund for 

6 such fiscal year. 

7 (e) DEDUCTIONS FROM FUND FOR ADMINISTRATIVE

8 EXPENSES.—The Secretary of the Treasury shall deduct 

9 from any amounts deposited into the Claims Fund an 

10 amount equal to 5 percent of such amounts as reimburse11 ment to the Federal Government for expenses incurred by 

12 the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission and by the 

13 Department of the Treasury in the administration of this 

14 Act. The amounts so deducted shall be covered into the 

15 Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. 

16 SEC. 4. PAYMENTS FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS. 

17 (a) PAYMENTS FOR DEATH, PERSONAL INJURY, 

18 FORCED LABOR, FORCED MARCH, AND INTERNMENT.— 

19 After the Secretary of the Treasury receives the certifi20 cation from the Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settle21 ment Commission as required under section 4(b)(8), the 

22 Secretary of the Treasury shall make payments to com23 pensable Guam victims and survivors of a compensable 

24 Guam decedents as follows: 


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1 (1) COMPENSABLE GUAM VICTIM.—Before mak2 ing any payments under paragraph (2), the Sec3 retary shall make payments to compensable Guam 

4 victims as follows: 

5 (A) In the case of a victim who has suf6 fered an injury described in subsection 

7 (c)(2)(A), $15,000. 

8 (B) In the case of a victim who is not de9 scribed in subparagraph (A), but who has suf10 fered an injury described in subsection 

11 (c)(2)(B), $12,000. 

12 (C) In the case of a victim who is not de13 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B), but who 

14 has suffered an injury described in subsection 

15 (c)(2)(C), $10,000. 

16 (2) SURVIVORS OF COMPENSABLE GUAM DECE17 DENTS.—In the case of a compensable Guam dece18 dent, the Secretary shall pay $25,000 for distribu19 tion to survivors of the decedent in accordance with 

20 subsection (b). The Secretary shall make payments 

21 under this paragraph only after all payments are 

22 made under paragraph (1). 

23 (b) DISTRIBUTION OF SURVIVOR PAYMENTS.—A 

24 payment made under subsection (a)(2) to the survivors of 


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1 a compensable Guam decedent shall be distributed as fol2 lows: 

3 (1) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is 

4 living as of the date of the enactment of this Act, 

5 but who had no living children as of such date, the 

6 payment shall be made to such spouse. 

7 (2) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is 

8 living as of the date of the enactment of this Act 

9 and who had one or more living children as of such 

10 date, 50 percent of the payment shall be made to the 

11 spouse and 50 percent shall be made to such chil12 dren, to be divided among such children to the 

13 greatest extent possible into equal shares. 

14 (3) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is 

15 not living as of the date of the enactment of this Act 

16 and who had one or more living children as of such 

17 date, the payment shall be made to such children, to 

18 be divided among such children to the greatest ex19 tent possible into equal shares. 

20 (4) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is 

21 not living as of the date of the enactment of this Act 

22 and who had no living children as of such date, but 

23 who— 


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1 (A) had a parent who is living as of such 

2 date, the payment shall be made to the parent; 

3 or 

4 (B) had two parents who are living as of 

5 such date, the payment shall be divided equally 

6 between the parents. 

7 (5) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is 

8 not living as of the date of the enactment of this 

9 Act, who had no living children as of such date, and 

10 who had no parents who are living as of such date, 

11 no payment shall be made. 

12 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this Act: 

13 (1) COMPENSABLE GUAM DECEDENT.—The 

14 term ‘‘compensable Guam decedent’’ means an indi15 vidual determined under section 5 to have been a 

16 resident of Guam who died as a result of the attack 

17 and occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese mili18 tary forces during World War II, or incident to the 

19 liberation of Guam by United States military forces, 

20 and whose death would have been compensable 

21 under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 1945 

22 (Public Law 79–224) if a timely claim had been 

23 filed under the terms of such Act. 

24 (2) COMPENSABLE GUAM VICTIM.—The term 

25 ‘‘compensable Guam victim’’ means an individual 


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1 who is not deceased as of the date of the enactment 

2 of this Act and who is determined under section 5 

3 to have suffered, as a result of the attack and occu4 pation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces 

5 during World War II, or incident to the liberation of 

6 Guam by United States military forces, any of the 

7 following: 

8 (A) Rape or severe personal injury (such 

9 as loss of a limb, dismemberment, or paralysis). 

10 (B) Forced labor or a personal injury not 

11 under subparagraph (A) (such as disfigure12 ment, scarring, or burns). 

13 (C) Forced march, internment, or hiding 

14 to evade internment. 

15 (3) DEFINITIONS OF SEVERE PERSONAL INJU16 RIES AND PERSONAL INJURIES.—Not later than 180 

17 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

18 Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall pro19 mulgate regulations to specify the injuries that con20 stitute a severe personal injury or a personal injury 

21 for purposes of subparagraphs (A) and (B), respec22 tively, of paragraph (2). 

23 SEC. 5. ADJUDICATION. 

24 (a) AUTHORITY OF FOREIGN CLAIMS SETTLEMENT

25 COMMISSION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Foreign Claims Settle2 ment Commission shall adjudicate claims and deter3 mine the eligibility of individuals for payments under 

4 section 4. 

5 (2) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—Not later than 

6 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

7 the Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement 

8 Commission shall publish in the Federal Register 

9 such rules and regulations as may be necessary to 

10 enable the Commission to carry out the functions of 

11 the Commission under this Act. 

12 (b) CLAIMS SUBMITTED FOR PAYMENTS.— 

13 (1) SUBMITTAL OF CLAIM.—For purposes of 

14 subsection (a)(1) and subject to paragraph (2), the 

15 Foreign Claims Settlement Commission may not de16 termine an individual is eligible for a payment under 

17 section 4 unless the individual submits to the Com18 mission a claim in such manner and form and con19 taining such information as the Commission speci20 fies. 

21 (2) FILING PERIOD FOR CLAIMS AND NOTICE.— 

22 (A) FILING PERIOD.—An individual filing 

23 a claim for a payment under section 4 shall file 

24 such claim not later than one year after the 

25 date on which the Foreign Claims Settlement 


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1 Commission publishes the notice described in 

2 subparagraph (B). 

3 (B) NOTICE OF FILING PERIOD.—Not later 

4 than 180 days after the date of the enactment 

5 of this Act, the Foreign Claims Settlement 

6 Commission shall publish a notice of the dead7 line for filing a claim described in subparagraph 

8 (A)— 

9 (i) in the Federal Register; and 

10 (ii) in newspaper, radio, and television 

11 media in Guam. 

12 (3) ADJUDICATORY DECISIONS.—The decision 

13 of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission on 

14 each claim filed under this Act shall— 

15 (A) be by majority vote; 

16 (B) be in writing; 

17 (C) state the reasons for the approval or 

18 denial of the claim; and 

19 (D) if approved, state the amount of the 

20 payment awarded and the distribution, if any, 

21 to be made of the payment. 

22 (4) DEDUCTIONS IN PAYMENT.—The Foreign 

23 Claims Settlement Commission shall deduct, from a 

24 payment made to a compensable Guam victim or 

25 survivors of a compensable Guam decedent under 


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1 this section, amounts paid to such victim or sur2 vivors under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 

3 1945 (Public Law 79–224) before the date of the 

4 enactment of this Act. 

5 (5) INTEREST.—No interest shall be paid on 

6 payments made by the Foreign Claims Settlement 

7 Commission under section 4. 

8 (6) LIMITED COMPENSATION FOR PROVISION

9 OF REPRESENTATIONAL SERVICES.— 

10 (A) LIMIT ON COMPENSATION.—Any 

11 agreement under which an individual who pro12 vided representational services to an individual 

13 who filed a claim for a payment under this Act 

14 that provides for compensation to the individual 

15 who provided such services in an amount that 

16 is more than one percent of the total amount of 

17 such payment shall be unlawful and void. 

18 (B) PENALTIES.—Whoever demands or re19 ceives any compensation in excess of the 

20 amount allowed under subparagraph (A) shall 

21 be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned 

22 not more than one year, or both. 

23 (7) APPEALS AND FINALITY.—Objections and 

24 appeals of decisions of the Foreign Claims Settle25 ment Commission shall be to the Commission, and 


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1 upon rehearing, the decision in each claim shall be 

2 final, and not subject to further review by any court 

3 or agency. 

4 (8) CERTIFICATIONS FOR PAYMENT.—After a 

5 decision approving a claim becomes final, the Chair6 man of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 

7 shall certify such decision to the Secretary of the 

8 Treasury for authorization of a payment under sec9 tion 4. 

10 (9) TREATMENT OF AFFIDAVITS.—For pur11 poses of section 4 and subject to paragraph (2), the 

12 Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall treat a 

13 claim that is accompanied by an affidavit of an indi14 vidual that attests to all of the material facts re15 quired for establishing the eligibility of such indi16 vidual for payment under such section as estab17 lishing a prima facie case of the eligibility of the in18 dividual for such payment without the need for fur19 ther documentation, except as the Commission may 

20 otherwise require. Such material facts shall include, 

21 with respect to a claim for a payment made under 

22 section 4(a), a detailed description of the injury or 

23 other circumstance supporting the claim involved, in24 cluding the level of payment sought. 


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1 (10) RELEASE OF RELATED CLAIMS.—Accept2 ance of a payment under section 4 by an individual 

3 for a claim related to a compensable Guam decedent 

4 or a compensable Guam victim shall be in full satis5 faction of all claims related to such decedent or vic6 tim, respectively, arising under the Guam Meri7 torious Claims Act of 1945 (Public Law 79–224), 

8 the implementing regulations issued by the United 

9 States Navy pursuant to such Act (Public Law 79– 

10 224), or this Act. 

11 SEC. 6. GRANTS PROGRAM TO MEMORIALIZE THE OCCUPA12 TION OF GUAM DURING WORLD WAR II. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to subsection (b), the 

14 Secretary of the Interior shall establish a grant program 

15 under which the Secretary shall award grants for research, 

16 educational, and media activities for purposes of appro17 priately illuminating and interpreting the causes and cir18 cumstances of the occupation of Guam during World War 

19 II and other similar occupations during the war that— 

20 (1) memorialize the events surrounding such oc21 cupation; or 

22 (2) honor the loyalty of the people of Guam 

23 during such occupation. 

24 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—The Secretary of the Interior may 

25 not award a grant under subsection (a) unless the person 


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1 seeking the grant submits an application to the Secretary 

2 for such grant, in such time, manner, and form and con3 taining such information as the Secretary specifies. 

4 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 (a) GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS PAYMENTS AND

6 ADJUDICATION.—There are authorized to be appropriated 

7 for any fiscal year beginning after the date of the enact8 ment of this Act, such sums as may be necessary to enable 

9 the Commission and the Treasury Department to pay 

10 their respective administrative expenses incurred in car11 rying out their functions under sections 4 and 5. Amounts 

12 appropriated under this section may remain available until 

13 expended. 

14 (b) GUAM WORLD WAR II GRANTS PROGRAM.—For 

15 purposes of carrying out section 6, there are authorized 

16 to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each fiscal year begin17 ning after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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