Biden Proposes $736 Million in the 2023 FY Budget for the U.S. Territories and the Freely Associated States

WASHINGTON – The Biden-Harris Administration today submitted to Congress the President’s Budget for fiscal year 2023. The President’s Budget details his vision to expand on the historic progress our country has made over the last year and deliver the agenda he laid out in his State of the Union address—to build a better America, reduce the deficit, reduce costs for families, and grow the economy from the bottom up and middle out.

The President’s budget for fiscal year 2023, includes $736 million in funding for the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs (OIA). The proposal would fund initiatives benefitting fellow Americans in the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It also includes funding for U.S. allies in the Pacific who have a Compact of Free Association (COFA) with the United States – the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.

“President Biden has proposed an important blueprint for our country’s future that reflects the importance of science, equity and collaboration in carrying out Interior’s important missions,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “These resources, coupled with the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will help the Department make critical investments in climate resiliency while creating good-paying union jobs in the clean energy economy, ensuring Tribal communities have the resources and support they need, and conserving and protecting wildlife and their habitats for future generations. Together, we can ensure that every community has a stake in our efforts to build a better America.”

“The 2023 budget request promotes racial justice and equity in underserved communities by fulfilling our insular area responsibilities in the Caribbean and the Pacific. The proposed budget also represents action to address environmental justice by prioritizing island communities that are disproportionately affected by climate change,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs Keone Nakoa. “I am especially pleased that the Biden-Harris Administration is prioritizing the importance of not just renewing but strengthening our relationships with the freely associated states through its support for the mandatory funding we need to negotiate and agree on amendments to the Compacts of Free Association.”

The Budget makes critical investments in the American people that will help lay a stronger foundation for shared growth and prosperity for generations to come. The OIA budget proposal includes $126 million in current appropriations and $610 million in permanent funding. The OIA budget includes increases from the FY 2022 Continuing Resolution level, of $2 million in Compact Impact grant funding and $900,000 for the Coral Reef Initiative and Natural Resources grant program to address additional conservation needs in the Insular Areas.

The Biden-Harris Administration supports funding the renewal of our COFA relationships with the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. The Administration will request necessary mandatory funding to be appropriated to the Department of State, with language calling for continued implementation by the Department of the Interior. The United States remains committed to its long-standing partnerships with the governments and the people of the freely associated states as we work together to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The Budget makes these smart investments while also reducing deficits and improving our country’s long-term fiscal outlook.

For more information on the President’s FY 2023 Budget, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/.

The Department of the Interior’s FY 2022 Budget in Brief is available online. For more about the OIA Budget in Brief visit: https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/fy2022-bib-bh131.pdf.

The Assistant Secretary of Insular and International Affairs and the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) carry out the Secretary of the Interior’s responsibilities for the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Additionally, OIA administers and oversees federal assistance under the Compacts of Free Association to the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. OIA also administers a discretionary Technical Assistance Program for all the insular areas. Find information about OIA and its work on www.doi.gov/oia, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

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