Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003
Latest action. Placed on Senate legislative calendarThe list of measures reported out of committee and eligible for floor action. Being on the calendar is not a promise of a vote.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) under General Orders. Calendar No. 299.
Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 - Title I: Approval of U.S.-FSM Compact and U.S.-RMI Compact; Interpretation Of, and U.S. Policies Regarding, U.S.-FSM Compact and U.S.-RMI Compact; Supplemental Provisions - (Sec. 101) Grants congressional approval to the "Compact of Free Association, as amended between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia" (U.S.-FSM Compact) and the "Compact of Free Association, as amended between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands" (U.S.-RMI Compact), as well as specified subsidiary agreements and amended subsidiary agreements.
(Sec. 102) Directs the United States to provide non-reimbursable technical and training assistance, including training and equipment for postal inspection of illicit drugs and other contraband, to enable the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) to develop and adequately enforce its laws and to cooperate with the United States in the enforcement of U.S. criminal laws. Declares that certain funds appropriated under this title may be used to reimburse State or local agencies providing such assistance.
Specifies the auditing authorities of the Comptroller General under the U.S.-FSM Compact.
(Sec. 103) Directs the United States to provide the same non-reimbursable technical and training assistance to the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), with the same authority to use certain funds appropriated under this title to reimburse State or local agencies providing such assistance.
Cites the Compact of Free Association Act of 1985 (Public Law 99-239), which granted congressional approval of the Compact of Free Association between the United States, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia to recount provisions regarding: (1) the continued availability of certain lands on Ejit to the people of Bikini; (2) the "Section 177 Agreement" on U.S. compensation to citizens of the Marshall Islands, or the FSM, or Palau for loss or damage to property or person resulting from the U.S. nuclear testing program between June 30, 1946, and August 18, 1958; (3) additional specified amounts payable to the peoples of Bikini, Enewetak, Rongelap, and Utrik who were affected by the U.S. nuclear weapons testing program; (4) ratification and approval of the Section 177 Agreement as full and final settlement of all compensation claims relating to nuclear testing; (5) the Four Atoll Health Care Program; (6) the Enjebi Community Trust Fund and resettlement of the people of Enjebi on Enjebi or elsewhere if Enjebi exceeds radiation standards; and (7) funding of the Bikini Atoll Cleanup.
The summary continues for 62 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to Senate with amendment(s)" stage on October 1, 2003. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this joint resolution could become law.
The record's latest action, on October 1, 2003: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 299.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
What is a joint resolution, exactly?
A joint resolution travels the same road as a bill: both chambers pass it and the President signs it, and it then has the same force as any other law. The label is largely a matter of custom, often used for narrow or time-limited measures.
One exception matters. A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution is not sent to the President at all. It goes to the states, and three quarters of them have to ratify it.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 108th Congress (2003-04), 498 of the 8,623 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 5.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
PETE DOMENICI (R-NM) introduced it on July 14, 2003, and 3 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 2 Democrats, 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 14, 2003, 8459 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 8380 days ago, on October 1, 2003.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 108th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2005 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers