Budget Justification Office of Insular Affairs FY2022
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The United States BUDGET Department of the Interior JUSTIFICATIONS and Performance Information Fiscal Year 2022 OFFICE OF INSULAR AFFAIRS NOTICE: These budget justifications are prepared for the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittees. Approval for release of the justifications prior to their printing in the public record of the Subcommittee hearings may be obtained through the Office of Budget of the Department of the Interior. Printed on Recycled Paper Office of Insular Affairs FY 2022 Budget Justification TABLE OF CONTENTS General Statement ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Good Accounting Obligation in Government Act Report .................................................................... 2 Budget Highlights ..................................................................................................................................... 2 Bureau-Level Tables ................................................................................................................................. 3 2022 Budget at a Glance ....................................................................................................................... 3 2020 Funding (Budget Authority) by Activity and Insular Areas ........................................................ 4 Organization Chart ................................................................................................................................ 5 Summary of Requirements ........................................................................................................................ 7 Assistance To Territories ...................................................................................................................... 7 Compact Of Free Association - Current Appropriation ........................................................................ 8 Compact Of Free Association - Permanent Appropriation ................................................................... 9 Fixed Costs and Related Changes ........................................................................................................... 10 Appropriations Language ........................................................................................................................ 11 Assistance to Territories ..................................................................................................................... 11 Compact of Free Association .............................................................................................................. 11 Administrative Provisions (including transfer of funds) ..................................................................... 12 Authorizations ..................................................................................................................................... 12 American Samoa Operations .................................................................................................................. 15 Program Overview .............................................................................................................................. 15 2022 Program Performance ................................................................................................................ 15 Capital Improvement Project (CIP) Grants Summary ............................................................................ 17 Program Overview .............................................................................................................................. 20 2022 Program Performance ................................................................................................................ 20 Territorial Assistance .............................................................................................................................. 25 Office of Insular Affairs...................................................................................................................... 27 Technical Assistance ........................................................................................................................... 30 Maintenance Assistance ...................................................................................................................... 36 Brown Tree Snake Control ................................................................................................................. 38 Coral Reef Initiative & Natural Resources ......................................................................................... 41 Energizing Insular Communities ........................................................................................................ 49 Compact Impact - Discretionary ......................................................................................................... 53 Compacts of Free Association ................................................................................................................ 55 Federal Services Assistance ................................................................................................................ 55 Enewetak ............................................................................................................................................. 57 Federated States of Micronesia and Republic of the Marshall Islands ............................................... 58 Compact Impact .................................................................................................................................. 67 Miscellaneous Schedules ........................................................................................................................ 69 Appendix: Insular Economic Update ...................................................................................................... 77 The Freely Associated States (FAS) ................................................................................................... 78 Table of Contents Office of Insular Affairs FY 2022 Budget Justification Table of Contents Office of Insular Affairs FY 2022 Budget Justification GENERAL STATEMENT The Assistant Secretary - Insular and International Affairs and the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) carry out the Secretary’s responsibilities for U.S.-affiliated insular areas. These include the territories of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). Residents of these U.S. territories are U.S. citizens or U.S. nationals. Additionally, OIA administers and oversees Federal assistance to three freely associated states (FAS): the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), and the Republic of Palau (Palau). The 2022 budget request achieves the Department’s mission of Fulfilling our Trust and Insular Responsibilities through efforts to strengthen economic and health capacities in the territories, fulfill U.S. Compacts of Free Association obligations, and address climate resilience, conservation, and clean energy deployment. The territories are an integral part of the fabric of America, and the freely associated states, while independent countries, are uniquely interwoven with the United States in terms of a shared history, ongoing partnership, and a shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific. Each of the territories and freely associated states are unique, yet their economies are all small, isolated, and dependent on one or two main sources of income. The Office of Insular Affairs has an important role to play in understanding the nuances of the Federal government’s interrelationship with each of the insular areas. OIA facilitates coordination of Federal policies and programs to best serve the insular areas and utilizes its own assistance programs to fill gaps not fulfilled by other Federal programs to meet the needs of the insular areas. OIA programs are purposely designed to offer the flexibility needed to respond to urgent, immediate needs in the insular areas. In 2022, technical assistance will be provided to address pressing issues and priorities and develop action plans to mitigate the challenges the insular areas are facing. This assistance will include advancing environmental justice, and investing in a clean energy future. Direct grants, reimbursable agreements, and contracts with technical assistance providers, both within and outside the Federal government, support these efforts. In addition, Capital Improvement Project (CIP) funds not only address a variety of infrastructure needs in the U.S. territories, including critical infrastructure such as hospitals, schools, wastewater, and solid waste systems to promote economic development; but, can also be leveraged as local matching funds for other Federal grant programs to assist in disaster recovery. Most of OIA’s annual budget consists of mandatory funding, including an estimated $230.7 million for 2022, to fulfill U.S. obligations under the Compacts of Free Association. Financial assistance under the Compacts of Free Association is scheduled to end after 2023 for the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands and in 2024 for Palau. Negotiations on the expiring provisions of the Compacts of Free Association with FSM, the RMI, and Palau continue, underscoring the importance of the bilateral relationships and opportunities for greater cooperation on a free and open Indo-Pacific.