PALIKIR, POHNPEI. May 30, 2025 – The First Regular Session the new 24th Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia has concluded with the adoption of several Congressional Resolutions that included a couple of nominations and various grant assist
ances, along with a convention on intellectual property resolution.
After three weeks of grueling committee work and endless public hearings with Departments, offices and agencies of the FSM Government, the 24th Congress finally completed its work and adjourned sine die on May 30, 2025, with the passage of a number of Congressional Acts and adoption of the various Congressional Resolutions. The resolutions began with nominations, and they included:
Congressional Resolution (CR) 24-02, to designate and appoint Jessicalynn Reyes to the position of Chief Clerk of the Twenty-Fourth Congress. Reyes had assumed the role of Chief Clerk at the end of the Twenty First Congress and continues through the new Body;
CR 24-05, confirmed the nomination of Epel K. Ilon to serve as the Nation’s Post Master General. Ilon had served the Nation, especially the national government, in various capacities that included Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Director of the Office of Compact Management, and Executive Director of the Joint Committee on Compact Review and Planning (JCRP); and
Finally for nominations, CR 24-07, confirmed the nomination of Marcellus J. Akapito to represent the state of Chuuk on the Board of Directors of the National Oceanic Resource Management Authority (NORMA). Akapito has the educational attainment and professional experience that qualified him to serve as a NORMA board member.
The Congress adopted CR 24-22, to express condolences and sadness of the 24th Congress to the family of the late Governor Charles Sigfred Chieng – the Ninth Governor of the State of Yap who passed on May 22, 2025. The late Governor Chieng is recognized for the dedication and extraordinary services he provided through his long career that spanned over two decades to the State of Yap, and to the Nation as a whole.
With his previous nomination defeated, the Congress adopted CR 24-23 to authorize the President to resubmit the nomination of Lucas M. Cupps to serve as the Independent Prosecutor for the Nation.
And finally, the Congress adopted CR 24-25, and expressed its sincere gratitude and appreciation to Isaac V. Figir who dedicated 42 years of service to the Nation as a member of the national body since the Third Congress in 1983. He championed climate change as a national concern and secured proper laws to highlight the issue, likewise Figir created the FSM Trust Fund and advocated for the laws vital for its growth and proper protection. The Congress acknowledged Figir as a true statesman whose vision, integrity and stewardship will profoundly shape the Nation’s future.
Along with the nominations, the Congress adopted CR 24-15, and ratified the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Established as a specialized agency of the UN, the WIPO is focused on the promotion of the protection of intellectual property globally through international cooperation.
Through the adoption of CR 24-20, the Congress authorized the President to submit the Recommended National Government Compact Budget Request for fiscal year 2026, as revised pursuant to Congress’s recommendations, to the United States of America under Article V of the 2023 Fiscal Procedures Agreement.
The remaining resolutions addressed grants for targeting various development areas in the Nation and they included:
CR 24-04, approved and accepted a USD $30,000 grant from the General Court of Audit of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through the Saudi Fund for Improved SAI Performance (Saudi FISP), to fund and support the Office of the National Public Auditor (ONPA) in enhancing its resilience through improved ICT solutions and training;
CR 24-06, approved and accepted a $28,000 grant from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to fund and support the FSM Department of Education in the 26th Consultation Meeting of the Pacific Heads of Education Systems (PHES);
CR 24-08, approved and accepted a $32,850 grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) through the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), to fund and support FSM’s preparation of the First National Report on Implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization;
CR 24-09, approved and accepted a $125,306 grant from the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Health Resources and Services Administration, to provide supplemental funding for the FSM’s Maternal and Child Health Services Program;
CR 24-11, approved and accepted a $5,000,000 grant from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to support the establishment of a headquarters for the United Nations Multi-Country Office (MCO) for the North Pacific Region;
CR 24-12, approved and accepted a $1,367,308 supplemental grant from the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to provide additional funding for the ‘Yap International Airport Runway Rehabilitation Project’;
CR 24-13, approved and accepted a $450,000 grant from the GEF through the UNEP, to fund and support the Nation’s activities to update FSM’s National Biodiversity Strategic Action Plan (NBSAP) and the compilation of FSM’s 7th National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD);
CR 24-14, approved and accepted a $990,000 grant from the India-UN Development Partnership Fund through the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation, for the implementation of the project entitled “Taking Universal Health Coverage to Every Person in the Federated States of Micronesia”;
CR 24-16, approved and accepted a ¥380,000,000 (Japanese Yen) grant from the Government of Japan to support the Chuuk Landing Station;
CR 24-17, set the ceiling of the total funds estimated to be available for appropriation from the FSM General Fund for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2025;
CR 24-18, approved and accepted a $168,340 grant from the United States Department of HHS – Office of the Secretary, to provide supplemental funding to support the project entitled: “Creating Equity by Improving Services Quality and Reach of Family Planning Services in the Federated States of Micronesia”; and finally
Through CR 24-19, the Congress approved and accepted a $545,891 grant from the United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, to fund and support the FSM National and State Historic Preservation Offices (HPO’s) for the fiscal years 2025-2027.
Following the adoption and passage of the various congressional measures from its First Regular Session, the 24th Congress adjourned sine die on May 29, 2025. Unless a Special Session is called for earlier, the Second Regular Session of the 24th Congress will be on September 12, 2025.
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