I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2967 
To establish a comprehensive, long-term United States strategy and policy 
for the Pacific Islands, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 4, 2021 
Mr. CASE (for himself, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. BERA, and Mr. SHERMAN) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Af-
fairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Nat-
ural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speak-
er, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the ju-
risdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To establish a comprehensive, long-term United States strat-
egy and policy for the Pacific Islands, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Boosting Long-term U.S. Engagement in the Pacific 
Act’’ or the ‘‘BLUE Pacific Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
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Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. Statement of policy. 
Sec. 4. Definitions. 
Sec. 5. Authority to consolidate reports; form of reports. 
TITLE I—UNITED STATES ENGAGEMENT AND COUNTERING 
TRANSNATIONAL CRIME 
Sec. 101. Diplomatic presence in the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 102. International Law Enforcement Academy for the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 103. Security assistance for the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 104. Countering transnational crime. 
Sec. 105. Coordination with regional allies. 
TITLE II—DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES 
Sec. 201. Trade development with the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 202. Trade capacity building initiative for the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 203. Emergency preparedness initiative for the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 204. Peace Corps in the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 205. Public health in the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 206. Education assistance. 
Sec. 207. Climate resilient development in the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 208. Coordination with other Federal agencies and cooperation and partici-
pation of nongovernmental United States entities. 
TITLE III—PROMOTION OF SHARED VALUES 
Sec. 301. Press freedom in the Pacific Islands. 
Sec. 302. U.S. Agency For Global Media. 
Sec. 303. Gender equality. 
Sec. 304. Pacific Islands Leadership Development Initiative. 
Sec. 305. Civil society engagement and development. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Pacific Islands— 
(A) are home to roughly 10 million resi-
dents, including over 8.6 million in Papua New 
Guinea, constituting diverse and dynamic cul-
tures and peoples; 
(B) are spread across an expanse of the 
Pacific Ocean equivalent to 15 percent of the 
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Earth’s surface, including the three sub-regions 
of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia; and 
(C) face shared challenges in development 
that have distinct local contexts, including cli-
mate change and rising sea levels, geographic 
distances from major markets, and vulnerability 
to external shocks such as natural disasters. 
(2) The United States is a Pacific country with 
longstanding ties and shared values and interests 
with the Pacific Islands, including through the Com-
pacts of Free Association with the Freely Associated 
States, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the 
Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of 
Palau. 
(3) The United States has vital national secu-
rity interests in the Pacific Islands, including— 
(A) protecting regional peace and security 
that fully respects the sovereignty of all nations; 
(B) advancing economic prosperity free 
from coercion through trade and sustainable de-
velopment; and 
(C) supporting democracy, good govern-
ance, the rule of law, and human rights and 
fundamental freedoms. 
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(4) Successive United States administrations 
have recognized the importance of the Pacific region, 
including the Pacific Islands, in high-level strategic 
documents, including the following: 
(A) The 2015 National Security Strategy, 
which first declared the rebalance to Asia and 
the Pacific, affirmed the United States as a Pa-
cific nation, and paved the way for subsequent 
United States engagement with the Pacific Is-
lands, including several new policies focused on 
conservation and resilience to climate change 
announced in September 2016. 
(B) The 2017 National Security Strategy, 
which includes a commitment to ‘‘shore up 
fragile partner states in the Pacific Islands re-
gion to reduce their vulnerability to economic 
fluctuations and natural disasters’’. 
(C) The 2019 Indo-Pacific Strategy Re-
port, which identified the Pacific Islands as 
‘‘critical to U.S. strategy because of our shared 
values, interests, and commitments’’ and com-
mitted the United States to ‘‘building capacity 
and resilience to address maritime security; Ille-
gal, Unreported, and Unregulated fishing; drug 
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trafficking; and resilience to address climate 
change and disaster response’’. 
(5) The United States has deepened its diplo-
matic engagement with the Pacific Islands through 
several recent initiatives, including— 
(A) the Pacific Pledge, which provided an 
additional 
$100,000,000 
in 
2019 
and 
$200,000,000 in 2020, on top of the approxi-
mately $350,000,000 that the United States 
provides annually to the region to support 
shared priorities in economic and human devel-
opment, climate change, and more; and 
(B) the Small and Less Populous Island 
Economies (SALPIE) Initiative launched in 
March 2021 to strengthen United States col-
laboration with island countries and territories, 
including in the Pacific Islands, on COVID–19 
economic challenges, long-term economic devel-
opment, climate change, and other shared inter-
ests. 
(6) The Boe Declaration on Regional Security, 
signed by leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in 
2018, affirmed that climate change ‘‘remains the 
single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security, and 
wellbeing of the peoples of the Pacific’’ and asserted 
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‘‘the sovereign right of every Member to conduct its 
national affairs free of external interference and co-
ercion’’. 
(7) The Asian Development Bank has estimated 
that the Pacific Islands region needs upwards of 
$2.8 billion a year in investment needs through 
2030, in addition to $300 million a year for climate 
mitigation and adaptation over the same period. 
(8) The Pacific Islands swiftly enacted effective 
policies to prevent and contain the spread of the 
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (commonly referred to as 
‘‘COVID–19’’) pandemic to their populations. The 
United States has provided over $130,000,000 in as-
sistance to the Pacific Islands for their COVID–19 
response. However, priorities must be met to ensure 
continued success in preventing the spread of the 
COVID–19 pandemic, achieving swift and wide-
spread vaccinations, and pursuing long-term eco-
nomic recovery in the Pacific Islands, including 
through— 
(A) expanding testing capacity and acquisi-
tion of needed medical supplies, including avail-
able COVID–19 vaccines and supporting vac-
cination efforts, through a reliable supply chain; 
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