Hearings, Reports and Prints of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs

INSULAR AFFAIRS OF THE COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS. The subcommittee met at 9 a.m. in Government House, St. Croix, V.I., Hon. Hugh L. Carey (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.

Members present: Hon. Hugh L. Carey (chairman); Hon. Richard White (Texas); Hon. Rogers C. B. Morton (Maryland); Hon. Laurence J. Burton (Utah); and Hon. Sam Steiger (Arizona). Also present: Charles Leppert, committee Counsel.

Mr. CAREY. The Subcommittee on Territorial and Insular Affairs of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs of the House of Representatives is in session for the conduct of public hearings on H.R. 7330 and related bills and matters relating to the election procedure and economic affairs in the Virgin Islands and the election of a Governor of the Virgin Islands.

At the outset I should like to set forth some ground rules for the guidance of all of those who are here today.

The hearings to be conducted by the Special Subcommittee on Interior and Insular Affairs have been called to order. We would hope that all would cooperate in maintaining order during this day.

We recognize that it is somewhat uncomfortable for those in the chamber, and to recognize this more significantly I will invite my colleagues to join me in removing their coats. In that way I think we can minimize the discomfort for ourselves and we hope to minimize the discomfort for the good people who are here in the chamber today by being expeditious in the conduct of these hearings.

We will not rush. There will be no undue haste. All who have come to testify will be heard.

This special subcommittee is composed of the members of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives.

On behalf of my colleagues I want to state that our appearance here today is evidence of our serious concern on all matters affecting the territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

I might observe that in my memory as a resident of the city and State of New York that I have never seen this many Congressmen

coming to the city of New York, where we have 8 million people, to view and to hear the citizens of that great city. The fact that my colleagues join me here today is, I think, the best evidence possible that we do share with you a deep concern for all the affairs of the territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The purpose of these hearings is to obtain from the people of the Virgin Islands their views and sentiments on three specific points; namely: (1) a bill pending before the Congress of the United States to provide for the popular election of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of the Virgin Islands; (2) the general economic conditions of the Virgin Islands; and, (3) the 1966 election procedures or irregularities.

It is the desire of the committee that the persons appearing as witnesses will submit testimony which will be factual and directly material to the three issues just enumerated. It is our hope that each witness will address him or herself to one of these issues and impart to the subcommittee his or her factual knowledge in the matter.

The committee reserves the right to limit the testimony of all witnesses and require the witness to be sworn under oath if necessary. The committee will endeavor to hear all persons desiring to be heard, with priority given to those witnesses who have complied with the procedures set forth by the committee and made known through the Virgin Islands news media. All persons who desire to be heard and who have not complied with the procedure outlined will be heard, time permitting.

The committee wishes to make it clearly understood that persons appearing before the committee as witnesses to submit testimony may do so with complete freedom of expression, as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

I want to indicate that there should be no reticence about coming before the members of this subcommittee.

I know my colleagues from long experience and we are not here to embarrass anyone. We are not here to carry on intensive personal interrogation. We are here to inform ourselves. We are here to learn. We can learn only if you will come forward and forthrightly and openly give us your views and facts as we should know them.

Therefore I suggest that it is important to recognize that as far as you may be from the Capital of the United States, the Constitution of the United States speaks in this room, and no one need have any fear of recrimination or embarrassment or retribution of any kind in coming before this committee during this day or on Monday in the hearings to follow.

It is not, however, the desire or purpose of this subcommittee to listen to testimony which castigates and impugns any individual. Those are big words but what I am really saying is that we are not here to listen to smears. We are here to determine and understand the facts.

If the committee hears any individual or organization on material which we believe is significant as to anyone's conduct in public office, we may require that person to state such charges under oath.

Here again this merely means we want this to be the kind of record which is dependable for our future deliberations.

These hearings will be conducted in the manner required of all congressional hearings with the maintenance of proper order and decorum at all times.

The hearings will proceed in the following manner:

The person called as a witness will proceed to the witness stand with the 25 copies of his or her testimony, as requested, be seated, and await permission of the Chair to proceed.

The witness will then respond to preliminary questioning by the committee.

The witness will then proceed to summarize his or her testimony. Let me say a word in terms of the summarization and synopsis of testimony.

Everything you give us, everything presented, will go in the permanent record of this committee. The members will be reading your statement most intensively. It is therefore not necessary to have a completely detailed reading. This will be in the interest of time so we can have as many witnesses and as many statements as possible in our record.

Then questions will be addressed on the total text presented to us, but again I state it is not necessary to read everything in the statement but merely to highlight those things which you think should be of the most importance and interest to the members of the subcommittee.

Those persons who have not complied with the procedure to be heard as a witness and who want to be heard, time permitting, will obtain a card from the committee counsel. The committee counsel is to my right, Mr. Charles Leppert. They will state thereon the name and address of the person, specifically state on which subject on the agenda he or she wishes to testify.

If there are no questions at this time from the floor on the procedures we are following here, the hearing will commence with the calling of the first witness.

Before doing so I would like to recognize the members of the subcommittee who are here today and introduce them to the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

On my left, Congressman Richard White, of the great State of Texas.

On my right the ranking minority member of the subcommittee, the Honorable Rogers C. B. Morton, of the great State of Maryland. On his immediate right from the State of Arizona, Representative Sam Steiger.

At this point does anyone on the subcommittee seek recognition for the purpose of making additional remarks?

The gentleman from Maryland, Mr. Morton.

Mr. MORTON. I would like to extend greetings from the other members of the committee on my side to the people of the Virgin Islands. We are glad to be here.

This experience is one which several of us have had a good many times.

May I say, it is the desire of this committee to learn as much as we possibly can from factual data presented by the witnesses.

A hearing of this sort is not a forum for political speeches. I hope

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Hearings, Reports and Prints of the House Committee on Interior and Insular ...