Members of the House Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs pressed administration officials and diplomats on Tuesday over lingering delays in implementing benefits under the Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2024, with particular emphasis on promised Veterans Affairs services for citizens of Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Representative Letcher Fernandez, the subcommittee's ranking member, told witnesses that Congress had authorized billions in mandatory funding and said the failure to deliver benefits is “an embarrassment when The US fails to honor the promises we made.” He singled out expanded VA telehealth, mail‑order pharmacy and beneficiary travel as urgent deliverables that veterans in the freely associated states need but largely cannot access in place.

Deputy Assistant Secretary Angel Demapan of the Department of the Interior described Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) work to administer compact assistance and said OIA had made roughly $1.5 billion available so far toward economic assistance tied to the statute. He told the panel that OIA is using bodies such as JEMCO and GEMFAC to monitor grants and fiscal plans and that the department has provided technical‑assistance grants and contracting support to improve audit timeliness.

“We have actively engaged with our interagency partners,” Demapan said, describing regular interagency meetings and grant oversight mechanisms, but he also declined to give a firm timeline for VA implementation and said Interior would “take back” members’ questions for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

State Department director (introduced in testimony as Anton Bridal) said State is coleading implementation with Interior, has dedicated officers working on FAS issues, and is conducting high‑level outreach and visits to the region. He said State is passing concerns about VA delivery to VA officials and noted that offices in the Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs now handle disaster preparedness and response (with Population, Refugees and Migration handling response in a disaster).

Members repeatedly pressed witnesses for concrete timelines and ownership. “When delays occur, who owns them?” Representative Huffman asked, stressing oversight and accountability. Witnesses described interagency ‘due outs’ from a December interagency group meeting and said agencies had taken items back for action but that formal written responses were still pending.

Ambassadors from the three freely associated states — Hershey Kyota (Palau), Jack Sorum (Federated States of Micronesia) and Charles Paul (Republic of the Marshall Islands) — told the panel that veterans face substantial barriers to care because of remoteness and travel costs, and that some veterans choose to live on the U.S. mainland to access care rather than return home. Ambassador Kyota said Palau currently has more than 250 registered veterans and that promised services have not yet been implemented.

Committee members sought written responses and documentation; Chair Hurd said the record would remain open for 10 business days and asked witnesses to respond to follow‑up questions. The subcommittee also highlighted related implementation issues — staffing at State’s FAS unit, USPS mail delays in the Pacific, and audit timeliness — as factors that complicate service delivery for island populations.

The hearing concluded without a formal vote. Committee members said they expect more detailed written updates from each agency and that oversight will continue until statutory commitments are carried out.