I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1595 

To implement the recommendations of the Guam War Claims Review 

Commission. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 13, 2005 

Ms. BORDALLO (for herself, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. SENSENBRENNER, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. SKELTON, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Mr. 

LANTOS, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. HONDA, Mr. FLAKE, Mr. 

EVANS, Mr. RENZI, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. FORTUN ̃O, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. ISSA, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. MILLER of Florida, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. ALEXANDER, 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mr. REHBERG, Mr. KIND, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. 

UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. CARDOZA, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. 

PAYNE, Ms. NORTON, Mr. BECERRA, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. 

HOLDEN, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. CROWLEY, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 

LANGEVIN, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. WU, Ms. WATSON, Mr. CASE, Mr. SCOTT of 

Georgia, and Ms. MATSUI) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purposes. 

Sec. 3. Recognition of the suffering and loyalty of the residents of Guam. 

Sec. 4. Definitions. 

Sec. 5. Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Fund. 

Sec. 6. Payments for death. 

Sec. 7. Payments for personal injury, forced labor, forced march, and internment. 

Sec. 8. Adjudication. 

Sec. 9. Guam World War II Remembrance Trust Fund. 

Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

7 The purposes of this Act are to— 

8 (1) acknowledge the suffering of the residents 

9 of Guam as a result of the occupation of Guam in 

10 World War II by Imperial Japanese military forces; 

11 (2) acknowledge the steadfast loyalty to the 

12 United States of the residents of Guam as a result 

13 of the occupation of Guam in World War II by Im14 perial Japanese military forces; 

15 (3) compensate surviving relatives for the 

16 deaths of residents of Guam as a result of the occu17 pation of Guam in World War II by Imperial Japa18 nese military forces; 

19 (4) compensate persons who themselves suf20 fered personal injury (including rape and malnutri-
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1 tion), forced labor, forced march, or internment as 

2 a result of the occupation of Guam in World War II 

3 by Imperial Japanese military forces; and 

4 (5) establish a trust fund to sponsor research 

5 and educational activities regarding the wartime oc6 cupation and liberation of Guam, scholarships, med7 ical facilities, and other benefits for the people of 

8 Guam. 

9 SEC. 3. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY 

10 OF THE RESIDENTS OF GUAM. 

11 (a) RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING OF THE RESI12 DENTS OF GUAM.—The United States of America recog13 nizes that, as described by the Guam War Claims Review 

14 Commission, the residents of Guam, on account of their 

15 United States nationality, suffered unspeakable harm as 

16 a result of the occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese 

17 military forces during World War II, by being subjected 

18 to death, personal injury (including rape and malnutri19 tion), forced labor, forced march, or internment. 

20 (b) RECOGNITION OF THE LOYALTY OF THE RESI21 DENTS OF GUAM.—The United States of America forever 

22 will be grateful to the residents of Guam for their stead23 fast loyalty to the United States of America, as dem24 onstrated by the countless acts of courage they performed 

25 despite the threat of death or great bodily harm they faced 
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1 at the hands of the Imperial Japanese military forces that 

2 occupied Guam during World War II. 

3 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act— 

5 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

6 the Secretary of the Interior. 

7 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

8 means the Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition 

9 Commission established under section 8(a)(1). 

10 (3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the 

11 Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Fund es12 tablished under section 5(a). 

13 (4) TRUST FUND.—The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ 

14 means the Guam World War II Remembrance Trust 

15 Fund established under section 9(a). 

16 (5) ELIGIBLE SURVIVOR.—The term ‘‘eligible 

17 survivor’’— 

18 (A) as used in section 6, means the spouse, 

19 child, or parent, respectively in this order of 

20 priority, who is identified as an eligible suc21 cessor claimant in section 5(d) of title I of the 

22 War Claims Act of 1948 (50 U.S.C. App. 

23 2004(d)); and 
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1 (B) as used in section 7, means the 

2 spouse, child, or parent, respectively in this 

3 order of priority— 

4 (i) who is identified as an eligible suc5 cessor claimant in section 5(d) of title I of 

6 the War Claims Act of 1948 (50 U.S.C. 

7 App. 2004(d)); and 

8 (ii) who is living in the year 1990. 

9 SEC. 5. GUAM WORLD WAR II LOYALTY RECOGNITION 

10 FUND. 

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There shall be established in 

12 the Treasury of the United States the Guam World War 

13 II Loyalty Recognition Fund. 

14 (b) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall report to Con15 gress, not later than 60 days after the end of each fiscal 

16 year, on the financial condition of the Fund and the re17 sults of operations of the Fund during the preceding fiscal 

18 year, and on the expected financial condition and oper19 ations of the the Fund during the current fiscal year. 

20 (c) INVESTMENTS.—Amounts in the Fund shall be 

21 invested in accordance with section 9702 of title 31, 

22 United States Code. 

23 (d) TERMINATION.—The Secretary shall terminate 

24 the Fund three years after the date of the enactment of 

25 this Act, or one year following the disbursement of all pay-
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1 ments from the Fund, as authorized by this Act, whichever 

2 occurs later. On the date the Fund is terminated, all in3 vestments of amounts in the Fund shall be liquidated by 

4 the Secretary and the proceeds thereof deposited in the 

5 Fund, and all moneys remaining in the Fund shall be de6 posited in the miscellaneous receipts account in the Treas7 ury. 

8 SEC. 6. PAYMENTS FOR DEATH. 

9 The Secretary shall, subject to the availability of 

10 funds appropriated for the Fund and after receipt of cer11 tification pursuant to section 8(b)(7), pay the sum of 

12 $25,000 for distribution to the eligible survivor or among 

13 the eligible survivors of each resident of Guam who died 

14 or was killed as a result of the attack and occupation of 

15 Guam by Imperial Japanese military forces during World 

16 War II, or incident to the liberation of Guam by United 

17 States military forces, and whose death would have been 

18 compensable under the Guam Meritorious Claims Act of 

19 1945 (Public Law 79–224) and the implementing regula20 tions issued by the United States Navy pursuant thereto. 

21 SEC. 7. PAYMENTS FOR PERSONAL INJURY, FORCED 

22 LABOR, FORCED MARCH, AND INTERNMENT. 

23 The Secretary of the Interior shall, subject to the 

24 availability of funds appropriated for the Fund and after 

25 receipt of certification pursuant to section 8(b)(7), pay the 
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1 sum of $12,000 to each person, or to the eligible survivor 

2 or among the eligible survivors of such person, who suf3 fered, as a result of the attack and occupation of Guam 

4 by Imperial Japanese military forces during World War 

5 II, or incident to the liberation of Guam by United States 

6 military forces, one or more of the following: 

7 (1) Personal injury (including rape and mal8 nutrition). 

9 (2) Forced labor. 

10 (3) Forced march. 

11 (4) Internment. 

12 (5) Hiding to evade internment. 

13 SEC. 8. ADJUDICATION. 

14 (a) GUAM WORLD WAR II LOYALTY RECOGNITION

15 COMMISSION.— 

16 (1) COMMISSION ESTABLISHED.—The Foreign 

17 Claims Settlement Commission of the United States 

18 in the United States Department of Justice shall es19 tablish a commission to be known as the ‘‘Guam 

20 World War II Loyalty Recognition Commission’’ to 

21 adjudicate claims and determine eligibility for award 

22 payments pursuant to sections 6 and 7. 

23 (2) MEMBERSHIP AND CHAIRMAN OF COMMIS24 SION.—The Commission shall be composed of five 

25 members, who shall be appointed by the chairman of 
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1 the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, in con2 sultation with the Secretary, with two members ap3 pointed after consideration of a list of ten nominees 

4 submitted by the Governor of Guam. The chairman 

5 of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission shall 

6 designate one of the members of the Commission to 

7 serve as chairman of the Commission. 

8 (3) TERMS OF CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS.—The 

9 chairman and members of the Commission shall 

10 serve at the pleasure of the chairman of the Foreign 

11 Claims Settlement Commission, with any vacancy in 

12 the membership of the Commission to be filled in the 

13 same manner as the original appointment. 

14 (4) COMPENSATION.—The chairman and mem15 bers of the Commission shall receive compensation 

16 as provided under section 5316 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, and shall receive reimbursement for 

18 travel and other expenses incurred in connection 

19 with their duties as members, or a per diem allow20 ance in lieu thereof, at a level not to exceed that pre21 scribed under the provisions of subchapter I of chap22 ter 57 of title 5, United States Code. 

23 (5) STAFF OF COMMISSION; STAFF, FACILITIES, 

24 AND SERVICES OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 
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1 (A) STAFF OF COMMISSION.—The Com2 mission may, subject to the approval of the 

3 chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement 

4 Commission, appoint and fix the compensation 

5 and allowances of such officers, attorneys, and 

6 employees as may be reasonably necessary for 

7 its proper functioning, which employees shall be 

8 in addition to those who may be assigned by the 

9 chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement 

10 Commission to assist the Commission in car11 rying out its functions. The Commission may 

12 also delegate functions to any member, officer, 

13 or employee of the Commission. The compensa14 tion of officers, attorneys, and employees ap15 pointed pursuant to this subsection shall be set 

16 in accordance with subchapter III of chapter 53 

17 of title 5, United States Code, and they shall 

18 receive reimbursement for travel and other ex19 penses incurred in connection with their duties, 

20 or a per diem allowance in lieu thereof at a 

21 level not to exceed the amount of allowances 

22 prescribed under the provisions of subchapter I 

23 of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code. 

24 (B) STAFF, FACILITIES, AND SERVICES OF

25 FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Officers and employees 
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1 of any other department or agency of the Gov2 ernment of the United States or the Govern3 ment of Guam may, with the consent of the 

4 head of such department or agency, with or 

5 without reimbursement, be assigned to assist 

6 the Commission in carrying out its functions. 

7 The Commission may, with the consent of the 

8 head of any other department or agency of the 

9 Government of the United States or the Gov10 ernment of Guam, utilize, with or without reim11 bursement, a facility or service of such depart12 ment or agency in carrying out the functions of 

13 the Commission. 

14 (6) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—The Commis15 sion shall prescribe such rules and regulations as 

16 may be necessary to enable it to carry out its func17 tions. Such rules and regulations shall be published 

18 in the Federal Register. 

19 (7) EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS PERMITTED.— 

20 Subject to the general supervision of the chairman 

21 of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, and 

22 subject to the availability of the funds appropriated 

23 for payment of the expenses of the Commission pur24 suant to section 10 of this Act, the Commission may 
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1 expend such funds as may be reasonably necessary 

2 to enable it to carry out its functions. 

3 (b) CLAIMS SUBMITTED FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II 

4 LOYALTY RECOGNITION FUND.— 

5 (1) FILING PERIOD FOR CLAIMS AND NOTICE.— 

6 All claims for a payment described under section 6 

7 or 7 shall be filed within one year of the publishing 

8 of public notice in the Federal Register. In addition, 

9 public notice of the deadline for filing claims shall 

10 be published in newspaper, radio, and television 

11 media on Guam. 

12 (2) ADJUDICATORY DECISIONS.—The decision 

13 of the Commission on each claim shall be by major14 ity vote, shall be in writing, and shall state the rea15 sons for the approval or denial of the claim. If ap16 proved, the decision shall also state the amount 

17 awarded and the distribution, if any, to be made of 

18 the award. 

19 (3) DEDUCTIONS IN PAYMENT.—The Commis20 sion shall deduct, from potential awards, amounts 

21 previously paid under the Guam Meritorious Claims 

22 Act of 1945 (Public Law 79–224), if the previous 

23 amounts were of $1,000 or more in the case of 

24 awards for death, or of $500 or more in the case of 

25 awards for personal injury. 
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1 (4) INTEREST.—No interest shall be paid on 

2 amounts awarded by the Commission. 

3 (5) REMUNERATION PROHIBITED.—No remu4 neration on account of representational services ren5 dered on behalf of any claimant in connection with 

6 any claim filed with the Commission under this Act 

7 shall exceed one per centum of the total amount 

8 paid pursuant to any award certified under the pro9 visions of this Act on account of such claim. Any 

10 agreement to the contrary shall be unlawful and 

11 void. Whoever demands or receives, on account of 

12 services so rendered, any remuneration in excess of 

13 the maximum permitted by this section shall be 

14 fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more 

15 than twelve months, or both. 

16 (6) APPEALS AND FINALITY.—Objections and 

17 appeals of decisions of the Commission shall be to 

18 the Commission, and upon rehearing, the decision in 

19 each claim shall be final, and not subject to further 

20 review by any court or agency. 

21 (7) CERTIFICATION FOR PAYMENT.—After a 

22 decision approving a claim becomes final, the chair23 man of the Commission shall certify it to the Sec24 retary for authorization of an award payment de25 scribed under section 6 or 7, as applicable. 
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1 (8) RELEASE OF RELATED CLAIMS.—Accept2 ance of payment by an eligible individual shall be in 

3 full satisfaction of all claims arising under the Guam 

4 Meritorious Claims Act of 1945 (Public Law 79– 

5 224), the implementing regulations issued by the 

6 United States Navy pursuant thereto, and this Act. 

7 SEC. 9. GUAM WORLD WAR II REMEMBRANCE TRUST FUND. 

8 (a) REQUIREMENT TO ESTABLISH TRUST FUND.— 

9 The Secretary shall establish a non-profit corporation in10 corporated under the laws of Guam to be known as the 

11 ‘‘Guam World War II Remembrance Trust Fund’’. 

12 (b) PURPOSES OF TRUST FUND.—The Trust Fund 

13 shall be used to— 

14 (1) receive funds that result from the following 

15 processes— 

16 (A) within 90 days after the filing period 

17 described under section 8(b)(1), the Trust 

18 Fund is subrogated to the rights before the 

19 Commission of any person who, while eligible to 

20 submit a claim for a payment described under 

21 section 6 or 7, failed to file such a claim; 

22 (B) the Trust Fund is subrogated to the 

23 rights of any person to receive an award from 

24 the Commission if that person states his or her 
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1 refusal in writing and files it with the Trust 

2 Fund; and 

3 (C) the Trust Fund shall receive from the 

4 United States Treasury the proceeds of each 

5 check issued against the Fund that has not 

6 been cashed after one year from the date of 

7 issuance of such check; 

8 (2) sponsor research, educational, and media 

9 activities, so that the events surrounding the World 

10 War II occupation of Guam by Imperial Japanese 

11 military forces and liberation of Guam by United 

12 States military forces, as well as the loyalty of the 

13 people of Guam, will be remembered, and so that the 

14 causes and circumstances of this and other wartime 

15 events may be illuminated and understood; 

16 (3) grant scholarships; 

17 (4) provide medical facilities to treat the med18 ical and mental needs of residents of Guam who sur19 vived the World War II occupation of Guam by Im20 perial Japanese military forces; and 

21 (5) undertake such other public projects, con22 sistent with the foregoing, that would benefit the 

23 people of Guam. 

24 (c) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.— 
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1 (1) MEMBERSHIP AND APPOINTMENT.—The 

2 board of directors of the corporation shall consist of 

3 three persons appointed by the Secretary for stag4 gered three-year terms from lists of up to five nomi5 nees each that may be submitted by the Governor of 

6 Guam, the Speaker of the Legislature of Guam, and 

7 the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Guam. 

8 All of the nominees shall be residents of Guam, and, 

9 for the first 10 years of the life of the Trust Fund, 

10 shall be persons who lived in Guam during the 

11 World War II occupation of Guam by Imperial Jap12 anese military forces. 

13 (2) MEETINGS AND COMPENSATION.—The 

14 board of directors shall meet one day every three 

15 months to conduct Trust Fund business, with each 

16 member being paid $100 for each such meeting. 

17 (d) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR; SECRETARY-TREAS18 URER.—The Trust Fund may hire an Executive Director 

19 and a Secretary-Treasurer of the Trust Fund. 

20 (e) TERMINATION.—At any time later than two years 

21 after the conclusion of all adjudications by the Commis22 sion, the Trust Fund shall terminate if the value of the 

23 assets of the Trust Fund is less than $250,000. The ter24 mination date of the Trust Fund shall be that date which 

25 is three months after the date on which the value is less 
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1 than $250,000. On the date the Trust Fund is terminated, 

2 all investments of amounts in the Trust Fund shall be liq3 uidated by the Secretary and the proceeds thereof depos4 ited in the miscellaneous receipts account in the Treasury. 

5 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

6 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

7 as may be necessary to pay amounts awarded under this 

8 Act and to pay the expenses of the Commission. 

Æ