Honoring OCEANIA Act

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1774 To strengthen United States engagement in the Oceania region and enhance the security and resilience of allies and partners of the Oceania commu- nity, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 20, 2021 Mr. SCHATZ (for himself and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To strengthen United States engagement in the Oceania region and enhance the security and resilience of allies and partners of the Oceania community, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Honoring Our Commitment to Elevate America’s Neigh- 5 bor Islands and Allies Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘Honoring 6 OCEANIA Act’’. 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1774 IS (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 1 this Act is as follows: 2 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Statement of policy. Sec. 3. Oceania strategic roadmap. Sec. 4. Review of USAID programming in Oceania. Sec. 5. Oceania development finance strategy. Sec. 6. Oceania disaster preparedness. Sec. 7. Oceania infrastructure resilience program. Sec. 8. Oceania Peace Corps partnerships. Sec. 9. Oceania Youth Engagement Coordinator. Sec. 10. Improving health care access for veterans in freely associated states. Sec. 11. Public health capacity-building in Oceania. Sec. 12. Oceania Security Dialogue. Sec. 13. Oceania Restoration and Hazards Removal Program. Sec. 14. Report on countering illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in Oceania. Sec. 15. Oceania maritime security initiative. Sec. 16. Coordinator for displaced persons. Sec. 17. Oceania anticorruption program. Sec. 18. Imposition of sanctions with respect to corruption in Oceania. Sec. 19. Report on financial intelligence resources of the Department of the Treasury in Oceania. Sec. 20. Definitions. SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 3 It shall be the policy of the United States— 4 (1) to elevate the countries of Oceania, includ- 5 ing the people and the protection of their cultural, 6 historical, and environmental resources, as a stra- 7 tegic priority of the United States Government in all 8 national security and economic considerations; 9 (2) to promote civil society, the rule of law, and 10 democratic governance across Oceania as part of a 11 free and open Indo-Pacific region; 12 (3) to broaden and deepen relationships with 13 the Freely Associated States of the Republic of 14 Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the 15 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1774 IS Federated States of Micronesia through robust de- 1 fense, diplomatic, economic, and development ex- 2 changes that promote the goals of individual states 3 and the entire region; 4 (4) to work with the governments of Pacific Is- 5 lands countries, Australia, France, Japan, New Zea- 6 land, the Republic of Korea, and the United King- 7 dom to advance shared alliance goals of the Oceania 8 region concerning health, environmental protection, 9 disaster resilience and preparedness, illegal, unre- 10 ported, and unregulated fishing (commonly referred 11 to as ‘‘IUU fishing’’), maritime security, and eco- 12 nomic development; 13 (5) to invest in a whole-of-government United 14 States strategy that will enhance youth engagement 15 and advance long-term growth and development 16 throughout Oceania, especially as it relates to pro- 17 tecting marine resources and fisheries, addressing 18 the existential global climate crisis, and strength- 19 ening the resilience of countries of the Oceania re- 20 gion against current and future threats resulting 21 from extreme weather and severe changes in the en- 22 vironment that pose a threat to livelihoods, public 23 health, and safety; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1774 IS (6) to participate, wherever possible and appro- 1 priate, in existing regional organizations and inter- 2 national structures to support the Boe Declaration 3 on Regional Security and advance the national secu- 4 rity and economic goals of the United States and 5 countries of the Oceania region; 6 (7) to deter and combat acts of malign foreign 7 influence and corruption aimed at undermining the 8 political, environmental, social, and economic sta- 9 bility of the people and governments of countries of 10 Oceania; 11 (8) to improve the local capacity of the coun- 12 tries of Oceania to address public health challenges 13 and improve global health security, particularly as it 14 relates to domestic violence, substance use disorders, 15 obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular-related dis- 16 eases, malnutrition, and endemic tropical diseases, 17 as well as global pandemic diseases, such as 18 coronaviruses, influenza viruses, HIV/AIDS, and the 19 Zika virus; 20 (9) to help the countries of Oceania access mar- 21 ket-based private sector investments that adhere to 22 best practices regarding transparency, debt sustain- 23 ability, and environmental and social safeguards as 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1774 IS an alternative to state-directed investments by au- 1 thoritarian governments; 2 (10) to ensure the people and communities of 3 Oceania remain safe from the risks of old and de- 4 grading munitions hazards, marine plastics, and 5 other marine debris that threaten health and liveli- 6 hoods; and 7 (11) to work cooperatively with all governments 8 in Oceania to promote the dignified return of all the 9 remains of members of the United States Armed 10 Forces that are missing in action from previous con- 11 flicts in the Indo-Pacific region. 12 SEC. 3. OCEANIA STRATEGIC ROADMAP. 13 (a) OCEANIA STRATEGIC ROADMAP.—Not later than 14 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 15 Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate congres- 16 sional committees a strategic roadmap for strengthening 17 United States engagement with the countries specified in 18 subsection (c) to address shared concerns and promote 19 shared goals in pursuit of security and resiliency for the 20 countries of Oceania. 21 (b) ELEMENTS.—The strategic roadmap required by 22 subsection (a) shall include the following: 23 (1) An assessment of the regional goals and 24 concerns shared by the countries specified in sub- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1774 IS section (c), including a review of issues related to 1 anticorruption, maritime security, environmental 2 protection, fisheries management, foreign economic 3 assistance and development, and disaster resilience 4 and preparedness. 5 (2) A review of ongoing programs and initia- 6 tives by the governments of the countries specified 7 in subsection (c) and the United States in pursuit of 8 those shared regional goals and concerns, including 9 with respect to the issues described in paragraph 10 (1). 11 (3) A review of ongoing programs and initia- 12 tives by regional organizations and other related 13 intergovernmental structures aimed at addressing 14 the issues described in paragraph (1). 15 (4) A plan for aligning United States programs 16 and resources in pursuit of the shared regional goals 17 and concerns with respect to the issues described in 18 paragraph (1). 19 (5) Recommendations for additional United 20 States authorities, personnel, programs, or resources 21 necessary to execute the strategic roadmap. 22 (6) Any other elements the Secretary considers 23 appropriate. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1774 IS (c) COUNTRIES SPECIFIED.—The countries specified 1 in this subsection are the following: 2 (1) Australia. 3 (2) France. 4 (3) Japan. 5 (4) New Zealand. 6 (5) The Republic of Korea. 7 (6) The United Kingdom. 8 SEC. 4. REVIEW OF USAID PROGRAMMING IN OCEANIA. 9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, in coordi- 10 nation with the Administrator of the United States Agen- 11 cy for International Development (in this section referred 12 to as ‘‘USAID’’), shall include the countries of Oceania 13 in existing strategic planning and multi-sector program 14 evaluation processes, including the Department of State’s 15 Integrated Country Strategies and USAID’s Country De- 16 velopment Cooperation Strategies, the Joint Strategic 17 Plan, and the Journey to Self-Reliance Country Road- 18 maps. 19 (b) PROGRAMMATIC CONSIDERATIONS.—Evaluations 20 and considerations for countries of Oceania in the pro- 21 gram planning and strategic development processes under 22 subsection (a) should include— 23 (1) descriptions of the diplomatic and develop- 24 ment challenges of the Indo-Pacific countries of Oce- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1774 IS ania as those challenges relate to the strategic, eco- 1 nomic, and humanitarian interests of the United 2 States; 3 (2) reviews of existing Department of State and 4 USAID programs to address the diplomatic and de- 5 velopment challenges of those countries evaluated 6 under paragraph (1); 7 (3) descriptions of the barriers, if any, to in- 8 creasing Department of State and USAID program- 9 ming to countries of Oceania, including— 10 (A) the relative income level of the coun- 11 tries of Oceania relative to other regions where 12 there is high demand for United States foreign 13 assistance to support development needs; 14 (B) the relative capacity of the countries of 15 Oceania to absorb United States foreign assist- 16 ance for diplomatic and development needs 17 through partner governments and civil society 18 institutions; and 19 (C) any other factor that the Secretary or 20 Administrator determines may constitute a bar- 21 rier to deploying or increasing United States 22 foreign assistance to the countries of Oceania; 23 (4) assessments of the presence of, degree of 24 international development by, partner country in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1774 IS debtedness to, and political influence of malign for- 1 eign governments, such as the Government of the 2 People’s Republic of China, and non-state actors; 3 (5) assessments of new foreign economic assist- 4 ance modalities that could assist in strengthening 5 United States foreign assistance in the countries of 6 Oceania, including the deployment of technical as- 7 sistance and asset recovery tools to partner govern- 8 ments and civil society institutions to help develop 9 the capacity and expertise necessary to achieve self- 10 sufficiency; 11 (6) an evaluation of the existing budget and re- 12 source management processes for the mission and 13 work of the Department of State and USAID with 14 respect to programming in the countries of Oceania; 15 (7) an explanation of how the Secretary and the 16 Administrator will use existing programming proc- 17 esses, including those with respect to development of 18 an Integrated Country Strategy, a Country Develop- 19 ment Cooperation Strategy, the Joint Strategic 20 Plan, and the Journey to Self-Reliance Country 21 Roadmaps, to advance the long-term growth, govern- 22 ance, economic development, and resilience of the 23 countries of Oceania; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1774 IS (8) any recommendations about appropriate 1 budgetary, resource management, and programmatic 2 changes necessary to assist in strengthening United 3 States foreign assistance programming in the coun- 4 tries of Oceania. 5 (c) OCEANIA DEFINED.—In this section, the term 6 ‘‘Oceania’’ includes such independent countries of Oceania 7 as are identified by the Secretary of State and the Admin- 8 istrator of the United States Agency for International De- 9 velopment. 10 SEC. 5. OCEANIA DEVELOPMENT FINANCE STRATEGY. 11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Executive Officer of the 12 United States International Development Finance Cor- 13 poration (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Corporation’’), 14 in consultation with the Administrator of the United 15 States Agency for International Development, shall estab- 16 lish a strategy for supporting the development goals of the 17 countries of Oceania using market-based private invest- 18 ment wherever there is appropriate capacity to absorb pri- 19 vate financing. 20 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the strategy required 21 by subsection (a) is to ensure that the United States Gov- 22 ernment is fully utilizing existing development finance au- 23 thorities to support efforts of the countries of Oceania to 24 access market-based private investment, including authori- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:27 Jun 10, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1774.IS S1774 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1774 IS ties provided under the Better Utilization of Investments 1 Leading to Development Act of 2018 (22 U.S.C. 9601 et 2 seq.), and consistent with section 1412(c) of that Act (22 3 U.S.C. 9612(c)), to support sustainability, resilience, and 4 development. 5 (c) OBJECTIVES.—In developing the strategy re- 6 quired by subsection (a), the Chief Executive Officer of 7 the Corporation shall consider the following, to the max- 8 imum extent practicable: 9 (1) How the full range of financing products 10 and technical assistance tools available to the Cor- 11 poration can be used to help counter malign foreign 12 influence in Oceania that entraps host countries with 13 development projects that result in high indebted- 14 ness and financial imbalance. 15 (2) How the Corporation can create an invest- 16 ment portfolio that complements existing United 17 States foreign economic assistance programs in the 18 countries of Oceania, including specifically those ac- 19 tivities aimed at advancing the long-term growt [Text truncated for display. 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