On the recordFebruary 14, 2011
today, I join the Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Senator Murkowski, in reintroducing The Republic of the Marshall Islands Supplemental Nuclear Compensation Act at the request of the President of the Marshall Islands, the Honorable Jurelang Zedkaia. This legislation tracks S. 1756, a bill that was introduced in the 110th Congress at the request of then-President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Kessai Note, and that was ordered reported from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, on September 11, 2008. The bill was reintroduced in the 111th Congress as S. 2941 at the request of President Zedkaia, and it was again reported from the Committee, on August 5, 2010. Unfortunately, there was insufficient time before adjournment for floor consideration and to identify an offset for the bill's CBO-estimated cost of $58 million. It is my hope that the 112th Congress will move promptly to consider this bill, find any necessary offset, and enact this legislation as a part of our Nation's continuing engagement with the Marshall Islands to address the damage and injuries that resulted from the nuclear weapons testing program.
