World War II Pacific Sites Establishment Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5706) to establish the Pearl Harbor National Memorial in the State of Hawai'i and the Honouliuli National Historic Site in the State of Hawai'i, and for other purposes.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 5706

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Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5706 will bring increased recognition to two important World War II sites in Hawaii. The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, will never be forgotten. Over 2,300 sailors, soldiers, and civilians lost their lives that fateful day the United States entered World War II. Five sites in Hawaii have been designated memorials, including the USS Arizona, the USS Oklahoma, and the USS Utah. Receiving over 1 million visitors each year, these serve as places of reflection and remembrance as well as tombs of honor for the crew members who remain there.

The creation of the sweeping World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument in 2008 incorporated the five Hawaii sites, along with three locations in Alaska and one in California. H.R. 5706 would establish the areas in Hawaii as the Pearl Harbor National Memorial as a distinct unit of the National Park System, giving it the full recognition this hallowed site deserves. This new designation will not affect the existing management of the area in any way.

H.R. 5706 would also redesignate Honouliuli National Monument as a National Historic Site. This site was the largest and longest used World War II confinement facility in the Hawaiian Islands. By war's end, over 2,000 people of Japanese ancestry were interned there--the majority of which were American citizens. The boundaries and management of the site will not change with the enactment of H.R. 5706.

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