§1423d Commission Appointments; Compensation, Travel Expenses, and Claims

Summary

The President appoints the United States commissioners to the Commission after getting recommendations from the Secretary, the Secretary of State, and the Alaska Nanuuq Commission. One commissioner must be a federal official and the other must be a representative of Alaska Native people for whom polar bears are important. Both must know about polar bears. Each commissioner serves at the President’s pleasure, with an initial 4-year term and any extra terms the President decides. If a seat opens early, the new appointee serves the rest of that term and is chosen the same way as the original. The Secretary, working with the Secretary of State and the Alaska Nanuuq Commission, names alternate commissioners. An alternate can do everything the regular commissioner does when that commissioner is absent, can attend meetings, and can be reappointed by the President. Members do not get a salary but can be paid travel costs and per diem at the rates for federal employees under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5. For claims and tort rules under title 28, the United States section counts as a Federal agency.