PALIKIR, POHNPEI. December 13, 2024 – As agreed to during the Committee to Wait on the President meeting at the beginning of the Fourth Special Session, the Congress had adopted nomination resolutions to fill vacancies in the Nation’s overseas missions and vacancies on national boards along with various grant resolutions for ongoing programs in the Nation.
In addition to the Congressional Acts of the Fourth Regular Session, the Twenty Third Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia adopted several Congressional Resolutions, half of which dealt with nominations while the other half addressed funding grants. The nomination resolutions included the following
Congressional Resolution (CR) 23-233, confirmed the nomination of Frita F. Irons to serve as the National Election Commissioner for the state of Chuuk;
CR 23-243, confirmed the nomination of Ari Skilling to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees of the FSM Social Security Administration, representing the National Government;
CR 23-244, confirmed the nomination of Shallea Yoriko Nanpei to serve as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the FSM Embassy in Tokyo, Japan;
CR 23-246, confirmed the nomination of Myjolynne Marie Kim to serve as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the new FSM Embassy in Canberra, Australia;
CR 23-248, confirmed the nomination of Lynn Narruhn to represent the National Government on the Board of Regents of the College of Micronesia-FSM (COM-FSM);
CR 23-249, confirmed the nomination of James Thomas Movick as the Pohnpei State representative on the Board of Directors of the National Oceanic Resource Management Authority (NORMA);
CR 23-254: confirmed the nomination of Sohs John to serve as the Deputy Secretary of the FSM Department of Finance and Administration;
CR 23-255: confirmed the nomination of Ms. Yolanda Joab-Mori as the National Government representative on the FSM National Scholarship Board; and
CR 23-263: confirmed the nomination of Nena C. Ned to serve as member of the FSM Social Security Administration Board of Directors, representing the state of Kosrae.
The remaining half of the adopted resolutions addressed funds, more specifically assistant grants for various programs and services across the Nation, and they included:
Congressional Resolution (CR) 23-240, which approved and accepted a $2,500,000 grant from the Government of the United States of America to provide additional funding for the FSM East Micronesia Cable (EMC) project;
CR 23-247, approved and accepted a ¥400,000,000 grant from the Government of Japan for the Economic and Social Development Program, providing funding for road pavement equipment for the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia;
CR 23-250, 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 23-252, approved and accepted a $500,000 grant from the United States Department of Health and Human Services (USDHHS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, to provide funding for the FSM Department of Health and Social Affairs State Opioid Response projec;
CR 23-253, approved and accepted a $143,488 grant from (USDHHS), Office of the Secretary, to provide supplemental funding to support the project entitled: “Creating Equity by Improving Service Quality and Reach of Family Planning Services in the Federated States of Micronesia”;
CR 23-258, approved and accepted a ¥4,597,000,000, grant from the Government of Japan to contribute to the implementation of the Project for Expansion of the Pohnpei Port;
CR 23-259, approved and accepted a $24,900,000 grant from the Asian Development Bank, to fund the Sustainable Road Investment and Climate Resilient project, including all the terms and conditions of the assistance.
CR 23-261: approved and accepted a $136,570 grant in the amount of from the USDHHS, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to fund and support the FSM Maternal Child Health program; and
CR 23-262: approved and accepted a $504,532 grant from the USDHHS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to support and fund the FSM Immunization and Vaccines for Children program.
The next and final Regular Session of the 23rd Congress as defined by law will be for 20-days beginning on January 10, 2025.
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