Making an Energy Plan for American Territories Outside of the Continental U.S. (H.R. 5803)

What is H.R. 5803?

(Updated December 27, 2017)

This bill would order the Secretary of the Interior to develop a comprehensive energy plan that addresses the needs of American territories outside of the continental U.S. — namely, the insular areas and Freely Associated States. 

America’s insular areas include American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands. The Freely Associated States include the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.

Each territory would receive a plan that includes :

• Recommendations for reducing reliance on fossil fuels, expenditures on fossil fuel imports, and developing native sources of non-fossil fuel energy.  
• Scheduling for the implementation of recommended projects.
• A financial plan for making these projects sustainable.
• Establishing benchmarks to measures the progress of various projects.

Argument in favor

Will help wean U.S. territories off of foreign oil and establish a self-reliance on local resources.

Argument opposed

The U.S. should reduce its own foreign oil dependence before it tackles the energy problems of the Freely Associated States.

Impact

People who live in the Freely Associated States and insulated areas, the Secretary of the Interior, the energy industry, and oil companies.

Cost of H.R. 5803

The CBO estimates that implementing this bill would cost approximately $10 million over the 2014-2018 period.

Additional Info

 In Depth:

In addition to its 50 states, America is composed of several far-flung territories in the Pacific Ocean. This collection of islands — the most well known are the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau — was under U.S. jurisdiction until they elected to become sovereign nations in the 1970s and 80s. Although they are technically foreignnations, the Freely Associated States have access to U.S. federal programs, can work in the states as non-immigrant residents, and are under the umbrella of U.S. military protection.

Media:

(Photo Credit: Flickr user Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet)