§410qq–1 Establishment

Summary

The Secretary of the Interior must create the National Park of American Samoa only after the Governor of American Samoa signs a 50-year lease for the lands and waters named in the law. Negotiations had to begin right after October 31, 1988. The park will have three units shown on maps dated August 1988 (map numbers NP–AS 80,000A, B, and C). The Secretary can tweak the boundaries with the Governor to match village lines and can later revise boundaries by agreement if the new lands are also leased. The Secretary may also add parts of Ofu and Olosega shown on a February 2002 proposed map (no. 82,035) if those lands are leased, and will update the maps after any change. When the lease ends, the Governor is encouraged to extend it and urged to keep the lands protected to national park standards. If the Governor asks after 50 years from October 31, 1988, the Secretary must extend the lease. If the Governor does not ask, the Secretary must hand over full control of the park and any improvements to the Governor without payment. The Secretary must negotiate how much the United States will pay under the lease and put all U.S. lease payments into an interest-bearing escrow account in American Samoa. Only the Governor can spend that money, and the High Court of American Samoa alone decides how much each village or family inside the park gets. If payment terms were not agreed within one year after October 31, 1988, the Secretary had to open the escrow within 30 days after that year and deposit $25,000 each month until a full payment agreement was reached; any excess goes to park operation and development.