WHEREAS, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau (collectively, Freely Associated States), formerly part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands under the United Nations Charter, entered into an agreement with the government of the United States known as the Compact of Free Association (Compact); and

WHEREAS, the Compact was entered into with these nations in part to terminate the trusteeship, recognize their independence, provide them with critical economic development aid, and allow their people to immigrate freely to the United States; and

WHEREAS, under the Compact, the United States provides direct economic assistance, federal services, and military protection to these nations, in exchange for defense rights; and

WHEREAS, the Compact, codified as Title II of Public Law 99-239, was established in 1986 between the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia, and in 1994 with the Republic of Palau, codified as Title II of Public Law 99-658; and

WHEREAS, section 104(e)(1) of Title I, Public Law 99-239, regarding the interpretation of and United States policy regarding the Compact, states that in approving the Compact, "it is not the intent of the Congress to cause any adverse consequences for ... the State of Hawaii"; and

WHEREAS, section 104(e)(4) of Title I, Public Law 99-239, provides that "if any adverse consequences to ... the State of Hawaii result from implementation of the Compact of Free Association, the Congress will act sympathetically and expeditiously to redress those adverse consequences"; and

WHEREAS, section 104(e)(5) of Title I, Public Law 99-239, appropriated funds beginning after September 30, 1985, to cover the costs, if any, incurred by Hawaii "resulting from any increased demands placed on educational and social services by immigrants from the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia"; and

WHEREAS, section 104(e)(2) of Title I, Public Law 99-239, requires the President of the United States to report annually to the Congress on the impact of the Compact on the State of Hawaii, identifying any adverse consequences resulting from the Compact and making recommendations for corrective action, focusing on such areas as trade, taxation, immigration, labor, and environmental regulations; and

WHEREAS, section 104(e)(3) of Title I, Public Law 99-239, further provides that in preparing these reports to Congress, the President shall request the views of the government of the State of Hawaii and transmit the full text of those views to Congress as part of those reports; and

WHEREAS, the interpretation of and United States policy regarding the Compact as set forth in section 104 of Title I, Public Law 99-239, with respect to the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, also applies to the Republic of Palau, pursuant to section 102(a) of Title I, Public Law 99-658, thereby making the State of Hawaii eligible for additional funds resulting from increased demands placed on the educational and social services of the State of Hawaii by immigrants from the Freely Associated States; and

WHEREAS, payments from the United States to the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia under the Compact of Free Association will end on October 1, 2003, and Compact re-negotiation talks have been continuing; and

WHEREAS, instead of mitigating the incentive for Freely Associated States citizens to migrate by improving the overall quality of life in the Freely Associated States through increased economic aid, the United States has proposed giving additional funds to regions affected by "Compact impacts," while creating "various mechanisms" to ensure that migrants from Freely Associated States are eligible for admission; and

WHEREAS, although the renegotiated Compacts with the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia will most likely continue to provide islanders with visa-free entry to the United States, the United States Congress should review the migration issue and increase the amount of aid available for the Compact's educational and social impact on Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, many residents of the Freely Associated States are attracted to the State of Hawaii due to the State's increased employment and educational opportunities, as well as similar Pacific Island culture and lifestyle; and

WHEREAS, drawn by the promise of better medical care and a better education for their children, over six thousand Freely Associated States citizens have migrated to and are currently residing in Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, Freely Associated States citizens that enter the United States may have contagious diseases, criminal records, or chronic health problems—conditions that are normally grounds for inadmissibility into the United States; and

WHEREAS, the 1996 federal Welfare Reform Act cut off access to federal welfare and medical assistance programs, forcing citizens of the Freely Associated States residing in Hawaii to rely on state aid; and

WHEREAS, the cost of supporting Freely Associated States citizens residing in Hawaii, largely in healthcare and education, totaled more than $101,000,000 between 1998 and 2002; and

WHEREAS, Freely Associated States students have higher costs than other students due to poor language and other skills, and because such students enter and leave school a few times each year, their integration into the school system has been difficult; and

WHEREAS, since the Compact went into effect in 1986 until 2001, Hawaii has spent over $64,000,000 to educate Freely Associated States citizens and their children in public schools, $10,000,000 in 2000 alone; and

WHEREAS, last year, the number of Freely Associated States students in primary and secondary public schools in Hawaii increased by twenty-eight per cent, resulting in costs to the State of over $13,000,000 for school year 2001-2002, and bringing the total cost for education, since 1988, to about $78,000,000; and

WHEREAS, during the academic school year 2001-2002, the University of Hawaii lost over $1,200,000 in tuition revenue systemwide, as a result of students from the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau paying resident rather than non-resident tuition; and

WHEREAS, inadequate and delayed federal compensation to Hawaii's education system results in a cost to Hawaii's own children and contributes to Hawaii being substantially below many other states in per pupil expenditures for public school children in kindergarten through grade twelve; and

WHEREAS, state medical assistance payments for Freely Associated States citizens from 1998 to 2002 totaled $14,961,427, and financial assistance payments during the same period totaled $13,378,692, with costs borne solely by the State of Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, the financial stability and viability of private hospitals and medical providers is threatened by staggering debts and write-offs for medical services provided to Freely Associated States citizens residing in Hawaii, in spite of state Medicaid reimbursements; and

WHEREAS, between 1998 and 2002, $10.1 million in operating losses attributable to healthcare for Freely Associated States citizens residing in Hawaii were incurred at three Honolulu hospitals (the Queen's Medical Center, Straub Clinic and Hospital, and Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children), and these types of losses were also incurred at the twenty other hospitals in the State; and

WHEREAS, community health centers estimate an annual cost of $420,000 for services to Freely Associated States citizens residing in Hawaii; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Health has also been significantly impacted by the cost of public health services to Freely Associated States citizens residing in Hawaii, with $967,000 spent on screening vaccination and treatment of communicable diseases and $190,000 spent for immunization and outreach by public health nurses; and

WHEREAS, inadequate and delayed federal compensation threaten to overwhelm Hawaii's health care systems, leading to potential cutbacks in services and personnel that would impact all of Hawaii's citizens; and

WHEREAS, it is imperative that Hawaii be granted immediate and substantial federal assistance to meet these mounting costs; and

WHEREAS, the fact that Micronesians should qualify for federal benefits, while residing in Hawaii and the rest of the United States, can best be summed up by the resolution which was adopted September 9, 2001, in Washington, D.C., by Grassroots Organizing for Welfare Leadership, supporting the insertion of language in all federal welfare, food, and housing legislation, because Micronesians are eligible for these and other benefits as "qualified non-immigrants" residing in the United States; and

WHEREAS, the United States government is not owning up to its responsibility for what the United States did to the Micronesian people by refusing them food stamps and other federal benefits when they come to Hawaii and the rest of the United States seeking help; and

WHEREAS, the excuse by the United States government to deny any aid to the Micronesians in the United States is the word "nonimmigrant" used in the Compact of Free Association to describe Micronesians who move to Hawaii and the United States; and

WHEREAS, Micronesians have also developed high rates of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity as a result of American dietary colonialism; and

WHEREAS, it is the intent of this Resolution to encourage the responsible entities to implement the provisions of the Compact of Freely Associated States, which authorizes compact impact funds to be made available to states that welcome and provide services to the people of the Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Republic of Palau, because most of the Freely Associated States citizens who migrate to Hawaii do so for medical problems related to the United States' military testing of nuclear bombs; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that the Bush Administration and the United States Congress are requested to appropriate adequate financial impact assistance for health, education, and other social services for Hawaii's Freely Associated States citizens; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Bush Administration and the United States Congress are requested to insert language in all federal welfare, food, and housing legislation which says that Micronesians are eligible for federal food stamps, welfare, public housing, and other federal benefits as "qualified nonimmigrants" residing in the United States; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Bush Administration and the United States Congress are requested to restore Freely Associated States citizens' eligibility for federal public benefits, such as Medicaid, Medicare, and food stamps; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Hawaii's congressional delegation is requested to introduce legislation in the United States Congress calling for further review of the migration issue and for increased aid for the educational and social impact of the Compact of Free Association, and any newly renegotiated Compact, on the State of Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Hawaii's congressional delegates are requested to assure financial reimbursements, through the establishment of a trust, escrow, or set-aside account, to the State of Hawaii for educational, medical, and social services and to Hawaii's private medical providers who have provided services to Freely Associated States citizens; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States; U.S. Secretary of State; President of the U.S. Senate; Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; members of Hawaii's congressional delegation; the Presidents of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, and their respective Honolulu Offices; and the national negotiating teams of the Compact of Free Association; the Governor; State Attorney General; Directors of Health and Human Services; President of the University of Hawaii; Superintendent of Education; Chair of the Board of Agriculture; and Grassroots Organizing for Welfare Leadership; Micronesians United; the United Church of Christ; Hawaii Conference of Churches; and the United Methodist Church of Honolulu.

Compact of Free Association; Federal Impact Assistance