Date: 1986-08-01
Speaker: OE LUGO (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 2478. and the amendments thereto offered by the gentleman from Arizona. Chairman UDALL I commend the chairman for his leadership in steering the amendments that have made this noncontroversial. yet comprehensive response to legislative needs of the territories and commonwealths. I also thank the ranking minority members of the committee. particularly the gentleman from California . as well as the gentleman from New Mexico and the gentle. man from Alaska for their interest and support. There are several sections that are of concern to my constituents. the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands. and I will discuss them briefly. Of primary concern is section 1 of the bill. which would empower the people of the Virgin Islands to act by initiative and recall. Passage of this proposal fulfills a promise which I made to my constituents during the last campaign. It is a power exercised by a number of States. and. I believe. is in the strongest of democratic traditions. The representative process has failed. As a Representative. it is with caution that I promised to seek such authority. and it is a power that I expect will be used conservatively. My faith in representative government is tempered only by my belief that the people must have all the tools they need to make Government responsive and accountable. Section 3 of the bill clarifies that the concurrent jurisdiction that American Samoa. Guam. and the Virgin Islands share with the Federal Government over Federal lands in each of these insular areas is comprehensive. The amendment was originally intended to overturn a lower court decision that found that this jurisdiction did not extend to land use on a "Federal enclave"-a decision that was recently overturned on appeal. The amendment is useful. nonetheless. as it is expected to foreclose any future limiting construction of the broad jurisdiction intended. Section 4 of the bill authorizes $1.5 million for the Eastern Caribbean Center at the College of the Virgin Islands. The concept of the center grew out of the Presidents Caribbean Basin Initiative. and his reference in the early days of the CBI to the role that the U.S. Virgin Islands could play in developing an educational adjunct to the initiative. The college responded with enthusiasm. The President had suggested an expansion of what the college had always viewed as its mission: To share its resources with its neighbors in the eastern Caribbean. Making the center a reality has been difficult under the current budgetary climate. Research and curriculum development has been directed at evaluating and responding to the unique problems faced by these - island nations and stressing the areas where the college has particular expertise. This has been complemented where possible with seminars and workshops. This authorization is expected to continue the programs that have already been initiated in the areas agriculture. telecommunications. and natural and human resource development Each of these programs has been designed to meet educational needs as identified and requested by the participating eastern Caribbean nations. and are expected to benefit the economic agenda of the territory as well. Section 6 of the bill directs the Secretary of the Interior to propose options to the Congress for the disposition of Water Island. in the St. Thomas Harbor. This island. the subject of my earlier reference to land described by a Federal district court as a "Federal enclave." has long been a sore subject in the Virgin Islands. Transferred from the Department of Defense to the Department of Interior back in 1952. the island was leased by Interior to private individuals. The theory was that the Virgin Islands would benefit from development of Water Island as a resort. The terms of the lease and the type of development that ensued. suggest a different agenda. Private homes predominate. and neither the small hotel nor the guesthouse on the island suggest the type of economic asset to the territory that would warrant the incentive provided under the terms of the lease. By directing the Secretary of Interior to propose options for the disposition of Water Island. it is expected that property interests on Water Island will be equitably resolved. that liability which the Federal Government may otherwise incur under the terms of the lease will be resolved. and most importantly that Water Island will be made an integral part of the Virgin Islands. with all open property transferred to the local government. The current situation on Water Island is simply too uncertain. Property rights are unclear. legal jurisdiction is in continual debate. and underlying the whole picture is the sense that the lease is inappropriate in that it created by its terms an exclusive enclave which has been a source of tension both for the residents of Water Island and the community in which they seek to coexist. Last October. the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs held an oversight hearing on the Department of Interiors administration of Water Island. at my request. Section 6 is an outgrowth of that hearing. Section 12 grants the territories greater access to Environmental Protection Agency programs. These programs have eluded the territories in the past because of water quality grant requirements and limitations which are not appropriate. It does so by allowing EPA to adjust maintenance or level of effort requirements for waste water treatment facilities and by authorizing the Agency to waive counterproductive grant eligibility requirements for sewer collectors. It is expected that this will yield the assistance in eliminating threats to public health most consistent with the policies reflected in the Clean Water Act. Section 16 of the bill authorizes the Virgin Islands. American Samoa. Guam. and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas to receive Bureau of Reclamation Assistance. This is particularly important to the Virgin Islands. Water is a scarce commodity in the territory. Thus. the desire to make agriculture a viable industry has suffered. Other industry and public consumption has been served by water production through desalination. This has been a major governmental investment. Furthermore. the territorys dated water catchment and distribution system must be repaired where possible. and. due to corrosion. replaced. Efficiency is crucial. and this provision will assure the needed direction and assistance. Section 18 provides in part for the exclusion from sequestration orders of funds that would otherwise be covered over to Guam. Puerto Rico. and the Virgin Islands. The coverover of these funds are integral to the formal relationship between these territories and commonwealth. and should not be diminished through general budget cutting devises. Under the territorial arrangements. these accounts were never to be considered Federal revenues. and this should not be pooled in efforts to reduce Federal outlays. The last provision that I will comment on is section 20 which will grant to Federal district court judges in the Virgin Islands. Guam. and the Northern Mariana Islands retirement benefits equal to those provided to judges of other U.S. district courts. The provision would simply offer these judges the salary of the office when they retire. instead of limiting their benefits to the salary they had upon retirement. These judges have the same Federal jurisdiction as article Ill district court judges. plus significant local jurisdiction. It simply is not fair to discriminate against them in retirement. The provision is supported by the judicial conference. Its budgetary impact is nil. and will remain so until the salaries of district court judges is raised and one of the four judges covered by the provision retires. Currently. only one of them is eligible to do so. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2478. It represents the careful efforts of Members from both sides of the aisle to respond to the unique issue affecting the U.S. insular areas. To the extent this goal could be met in a noncontroversial product. H.R. 2478 is successful.