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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 44 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 44

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 24, 2009

   Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 
    To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review 
                              Commission.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Guam World War II 
Loyalty Recognition Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Recognition of the suffering and loyalty of the residents of 
                            Guam.
Sec. 3. Payments for Guam World War II claims.
Sec. 4. Adjudication.
Sec. 5. Grants program to memorialize the occupation of Guam during 
                            World War II.
Sec. 6. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY OF THE RESIDENTS OF 
              GUAM.

    (a) Recognition of the Suffering of the Residents of Guam.--The 
United States recognizes that, as described by the Guam War Claims 
Review Commission, the residents of Guam, on account of their United 
States nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as a result of the 
occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World 
War II, by being subjected to death, rape, severe personal injury, 
personal injury, forced labor, forced march, or internment.
    (b) Recognition of the Loyalty of the Residents of Guam.--The 
United States forever will be grateful to the residents of Guam for 
their steadfast loyalty to the United States of America, as 
demonstrated by the countless acts of courage they performed despite 
the threat of death or great bodily harm they faced at the hands of the 
Imperial Japanese military forces that occupied Guam during World War 
II.

SEC. 3. PAYMENTS FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS.

    (a) Payments for Death, Personal Injury, Forced Labor, Forced 
March, and Internment.--Subject to section 6(a), after receipt of 
certification pursuant to section 4(b)(8) and in accordance with the 
provisions of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make 
payments as follows:
            (1) Residents injured.--The Secretary shall pay compensable 
        Guam victims who are not deceased before any payments are made 
        to individuals described in paragraphs (2) and (3) as follows:
                    (A) If the victim has suffered an injury described 
                in subsection (c)(2)(A), $15,000.
                    (B) If the victim is not described in subparagraph 
                (A) but has suffered an injury described in subsection 
                (c)(2)(B), $12,000.
                    (C) If the victim is not described in subparagraph 
                (A) or (B) but has suffered an injury described in 
                subsection (c)(2)(C), $10,000.
            (2) Survivors of residents who died in war.--In the case of 
        a compensable Guam decedent, the Secretary shall pay $25,000 
        for distribution to eligible survivors of the decedent as 
        specified in subsection (b). The Secretary shall make payments 
        under this paragraph after payments are made under paragraph 
        (1) and before payments are made under paragraph (3).
            (3) Survivors of deceased injured residents.--In the case 
        of a compensable Guam victim who is deceased, the Secretary 
        shall pay $7,000 for distribution to eligible survivors of the 
        victim as specified in subsection (b). The Secretary shall make 
        payments under this paragraph after payments are made under 
        paragraphs (1) and (2).
    (b) Distribution of Survivor Payments.--Payments under paragraph 
(2) or (3) of subsection (a) to eligible survivors of an individual who 
is a compensable Guam decedent or a compensable Guam victim who is 
deceased shall be made as follows:
            (1) If there is living a spouse of the individual, but no 
        child of the individual, all of the payment shall be made to 
        such spouse.
            (2) If there is living a spouse of the individual and one 
        or more children of the individual, one-half of the payment 
        shall be made to the spouse and the other half to the child (or 
        to the children in equal shares).
            (3) If there is no living spouse of the individual, but 
        there are one or more children of the individual alive, all of 
        the payment shall be made to such child (or to such children in 
        equal shares).
            (4) If there is no living spouse or child of the individual 
        but there is a living parent (or parents) of the individual, 
        all of the payment shall be made to the parents (or to the 
        parents in equal shares).
            (5) If there is no such living spouse, child, or parent, no 
        payment shall be made.
    (c) Definitions.--For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Compensable guam decedent.--The term ``compensable Guam 
        decedent'' means an individual determined under section 4(a)(1) 
        to have been a resident of Guam who died or was killed as a 
        result of the attack and occupation of Guam by Imperial 
        Japanese military forces during World War II, or incident to 
        the liberation of Guam by United States military forces, and 
        whose death would have been compensable under the Guam 
        Meritorious Claims Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224) if a timely 
        claim had been filed under the terms of such Act.
            (2) Compensable guam victim.--The term ``compensable Guam 
        victim'' means an individual determined under section 4(a)(1) 
        to have suffered, as a result of the attack and occupation of 
        Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World War II, 
        or incident to the liberation of Guam by United States military 
        forces, any of the following:
                    (A) Rape or severe personal injury (such as loss of 
                a limb, dismemberment, or paralysis).
                    (B) Forced labor or a personal injury not under 
                subparagraph (A) (such as disfigurement, scarring, or 
                burns).
                    (C) Forced march, internment, or hiding to evade 
                internment.
            (3) Definitions of severe personal injuries and personal 
        injuries.--The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall 
        promulgate regulations to specify injuries that constitute a 
        severe personal injury or a personal injury for purposes of 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, of paragraph (2).

SEC. 4. ADJUDICATION.

    (a) Authority of Foreign Claims Settlement Commission.--
            (1) In general.--The Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 
        is authorized to adjudicate claims and determine eligibility 
        for payments under section 3.
            (2) Rules and regulations.--The chairman of the Foreign 
        Claims Settlement Commission shall prescribe such rules and 
        regulations as may be necessary to enable it to carry out its 
        functions under this Act. Such rules and regulations shall be 
        published in the Federal Register.
    (b) Claims Submitted for Payments.--
            (1) Submittal of claim.--For purposes of subsection (a)(1) 
        and subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement 
        Commission may not determine an individual is eligible for a 
        payment under section 3 unless the individual submits to the 
        Commission a claim in such manner and form and containing such 
        information as the Commission specifies.
            (2) Filing period for claims and notice.--All claims for a 
        payment under section 3 shall be filed within one year after 
        the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission publishes public 
        notice of the filing period in the Federal Register. The 
        Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall provide for the 
        notice required under the previous sentence not later than 180 
        days after the date of the enactment of this Act. In addition, 
        the Commission shall cause to be publicized the public notice 
        of the deadline for filing claims in newspaper, radio, and 
        television media on Guam.
            (3) Adjudicatory decisions.--The decision of the Foreign 
        Claims Settlement Commission on each claim shall be by majority 
        vote, shall be in writing, and shall state the reasons for the 
        approval or denial of the claim. If approved, the decision 
        shall also state the amount of the payment awarded and the 
        distribution, if any, to be made of the payment.
            (4) Deductions in payment.--The Foreign Claims Settlement 
        Commission shall deduct, from potential payments, amounts 
        previously paid under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 1945 
        (Public Law 79-224).
            (5) Interest.--No interest shall be paid on payments 
        awarded by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission.
            (6) Remuneration prohibited.--No remuneration on account of 
        representational services rendered on behalf of any claimant in 
        connection with any claim filed with the Foreign Claims 
        Settlement Commission under this Act shall exceed one percent 
        of the total amount paid pursuant to any payment certified 
        under the provisions of this Act on account of such claim. Any 
        agreement to the contrary shall be unlawful and void. Whoever 
        demands or receives, on account of services so rendered, any 
        remuneration in excess of the maximum permitted by this section 
        shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than 
        12 months, or both.
            (7) Appeals and finality.--Objections and appeals of 
        decisions of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall be 
        to the Commission, and upon rehearing, the decision in each 
        claim shall be final, and not subject to further review by any 
        court or agency.
            (8) Certifications for payment.--After a decision approving 
        a claim becomes final, the chairman of the Foreign Claims 
        Settlement Commission shall certify it to the Secretary of the 
        Treasury for authorization of a payment under section 3.
            (9) Treatment of affidavits.--For purposes of section 3 and 
        subject to paragraph (2), the Foreign Claims Settlement 
        Commission shall treat a claim that is accompanied by an 
        affidavit of an individual that attests to all of the material 
        facts required for establishing eligibility of such individual 
        for payment under such section as establishing a prima facie 
        case of the individual's eligibility for such payment without 
        the need for further documentation, except as the Commission 
        may otherwise require. Such material facts shall include, with 
        respect to a claim under paragraph (2) or (3) of section 3(a), 
        a detailed description of the injury or other circumstance 
        supporting the claim involved, including the level of payment 
        sought.
            (10) Release of related claims.--Acceptance of payment 
        under section 3 by an individual for a claim related to a 
        compensable Guam decedent or a compensable Guam victim shall be 
        in full satisfaction of all claims related to such decedent or 
        victim, respectively, arising under the Guam Meritorious Claims 
        Act of 1945 (Public Law 79-224), the implementing regulations 
        issued by the United States Navy pursuant thereto, or this Act.
            (11) Penalty for false claims.--The provisions of section 
        1001 of title 18 of the United States Code (relating to 
        criminal penalties for false statements) apply to claims 
        submitted under this subsection.

SEC. 5. GRANTS PROGRAM TO MEMORIALIZE THE OCCUPATION OF GUAM DURING 
              WORLD WAR II.

    (a) Establishment.--Subject to section 6(b) and in accordance with 
this section, the Secretary of the Interior shall establish a grants 
program under which the Secretary shall award grants for research, 
educational, and media activities that memorialize the events 
surrounding the occupation of Guam during World War II, honor the 
loyalty of the people of Guam during such occupation, or both, for 
purposes of appropriately illuminating and interpreting the causes and 
circumstances of such occupation and other similar occupations during a 
war.
    (b) Eligibility.--The Secretary of the Interior may not award to a 
person a grant under subsection (a) unless such person submits an 
application to the Secretary for such grant, in such time, manner, and 
form and containing such information as the Secretary specifies.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Guam World War II Claims Payments and Adjudication.--For 
purposes of carrying out sections 3 and 4, there are authorized to be 
appropriated $126,000,000, to remain available for obligation until 
September 30, 2013, to the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission. Not 
more than 5 percent of funds made available under this subsection shall 
be used for administrative costs.
    (b) Guam World War II Grants Program.--For purposes of carrying out 
section 5, there are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000, to 
remain available for obligation until September 30, 2013.

            Passed the House of Representatives February 23, 2009.

            Attest:

                                            LORRAINE C. MILLER,

                                                                 Clerk.
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