control of Cuba. The jurisdiction of the Committee on Insular Affairs was over "all matters (excepting those affecting the revenue and appropriations) pertaining to the islands which came to the United States through the treaty of 1899 with Spain, and to Cuba."6 The Committee gained jurisdictional control over the islands of Samoa through an agreement with England and Germany in 1899 granting the United States control over the islands. After the creation of the Republic of Cuba in 1902, the Committee on Insular Affairs transferred jurisdiction over Cuba to the Committee on Foreign Affairs in 1906. In 1916, after the Virgin Islands were purchased from Denmark, the Committee gained jurisdictional control over the Islands. As a result of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, the Committee on Insular Affairs was abolished and its jurisdictions was included into the Committee on Public Lands.7 Issues with in the jurisdiction of the Committee on Insular Affairs include: Issues relating to the islands ceded by the treaty of 1899 (Guam and Issues discussed by the Committee 1903 Philippine coinage. Removal of persons accused of crime to and from the Philippine Asher C. Hinds. Hinds' Precedents of the House of Representatives of the United States (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1907), vol. 4, p. 789. 7 ? U.S. Congress, Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of 1904 Construction of harbors and establishment of agricultural experiment stations in Porto Rico. Bonds for municipal improvements in the Philippines. 1906 Philippines, Batan Island military reservation. Construction of wharves and piers in Puerto Rico. became an independent nation. 1907 Establishment of an agricultural bank in the Philippines. 1908 Increase the membership of the Philippine Commission, and to regulate shipping in trade between the United States and the Philippine Archipelago. 1909 authorizing the construction of a bridge across the Condado Bayon San Juan Island, Porto Rico. 1910 Authorizing the President to convey to the people of Porto Rico certain land and buildings not needed for purposes of the United States. Providing for the qua drennial election of the Philippine Legislature and Resident Commissioners to the United States. 1914 All matters pertaining to the island which came to the United States through the treaty of 1899 with Spain be referred to the Committee on Insular Affairs. 1921 Authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to repair and rebuild customs buildings in Porto Rico, and to pay for the same out of duties collected in Porto Rico. 1922 Authorize the United States Shipping Board to acquire a site on the Virgin Islands for a fuel and fuel-oil station and fresh-water reservoir for Shipping Board and other merchant vessels, as well as United States naval vessels. 1925 Legalizing certain taxes imposed by the Philippine Legislature. 1926 Providing for the enlargement, completion, and repair of customs warehouses and other customs buildings in Porto Rico. United States. Providing for the government of the Virgin Islands, conferring United States citizenship upon certain inhabitants of the Virgin Islands, extending the naturalization laws thereof, laws thereof, and authorizing appropriations for public highways in the Virgin Islands. a Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs Issues within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs include: Civilian Conservation Corps Issues discussed by the Committee 1939 Add certain lands to the Cleveland National Forest in Orange County, California, created from the public domain. 1942 Revise the boundaries of the Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park in the States of Georgia and Tennessee. 1946 Authorizing the performance of necessary reclamation protection work between the Yuma project and Boulder Dam by the Bureau of Reclamation. 1950 Civilian Conservation Corps and use of volunteers on public domain lands. 1951 Relating to the activities of temporary and certain other employees of the Bureau of Land Management. 1952 Provide the basis for authorization of irrigation works in connection a power revenues. Survey. 1955 Authorize a $100 per capita payment to members of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians from the proceeds of the sale of timber and lumber on the Red Lake Reservation. 1957 Make certain provisions in connection with the construction of the Garrison Diversion Unit, Missouri River Basin reclamation project, by the Secretary of the Interior. 1958 Authorize the Secretary of the Navy to acquire certain land on the Island of Guam. 1959 Providing for the reinstatement and validation of a U.S. oil and gas lease. River Basin reclamation project. 1961 Financing of the Bonneville Power. 1963 Proposals to reserve for the use of the Department of Defense certain areas in the Outer Continental Shelf, and to exclude them from the mineral leasing provisions of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. 1965 Establish a Commission on Pennsylvania Avenue to initiate plans for the further development of the avenue as a national historic site. Directing the Secretary of Agriculture to set aside for recreational use certain lands which have been established as wilderness areas pursuant to the Wilderness Act of 1964 (78 Stat. 890). 1967 Claims by the United States to lands along the Colorado River, where it forms the boundary between states and where the government's claim Lewis and Clark and Lolo National Forests in Montana. 1973 Directing the Secretary of the Interior to rename the Alamogordo Reservoir in New Mexico, although that reservoir was a flood control project. Special Committee on Water Power The Special Committee on Water Power was established on January 11, 1918, and held jurisdiction over legislation involving the development and use of water power within the United States. For several years Congress had failed to pass legislation to authorize building of dams on navigable streams and waterways. The Secretary of War, Secretary of the Interior, and Secretary of Agriculture, cooperated in the drafting of legislation affecting their areas of authority. In the House, the jurisdiction was split: the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce had jurisdiction over bills regarding construction of bridges and dams over navigable waters within the States, the Committee on Public Lands had jurisdiction over dams on public lands, and the Agriculture Committee had jurisdiction over those on forest reserves. To prevent the Secretaries' bill from being fragmented among committees, the special committee was created, drawing its members from the three standing committees. The committee was renewed in the 66th Congress (1919-21). Select Committee on Conservation of Wildlife Resources (1934-1946) 73d-79th Congresses On January 29, 1934, the House created the Select Committee on Conservation of Wildlife Resources, consisting of 15 members, including the chairmen of the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Merchant Marine, Radio, and Fisheries, as well as the two House Members on the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission. A. Willis Robertson of Virginia served as committee chairman throughout the committee's 13-year existence. The committee monitored, studied, and investigated the wildlife conservation activities of a number of Federal agencies, including the Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, and other agencies tangentially involved in wildlife conservation. Select Committee on Outer Continental Shelf (94-96th Congresses ) On April 22, 1975, the House created the Ad Hoc Select Committee on the Outer Continental Shelf, consisting of 16 members. On May 6, 1975, membership was increased to 19. Members included representatives from the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs; Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, as well as any necessary Members the Speaker may appoint. This was the first Ad Hoc Committee in the history of Congress to have legislative authority. The ad hoc Select Committee on the Outer Continental Shelf was authorized to consider and report back to |