,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #bjig ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #d1 #bjai,mr4 ,duffy 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,mc,caul1 ,ms4 ,eshoo1 ,mr4 ,castro of ,texas1 and ,ms4 ,speier7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to recognize the ,hmong1 ,khmer1 ,laotian1 and other ethnic groups commonly referred to as ,montagnards1 who supported and defended the ,armed ,forces during the conflict in ,southeast ,asia1 authorize assistance to support activities relating to clearance of unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,legacies of ,war ,recognition and ,unexploded ,ordnance ,removal ,act4 #b4 ,recognition of ,hmong1 ,khmer1 ,laotian1 ,montagnards1 and other ethnic groups who supported and defended the ,armed ,forces in ,southeast ,asia 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,many ,hmong1 ,khmer1 ,laotian1 and ,montagnards-- 7,a7 fought and died with ,united ,states ,armed ,forces during the conflict in ,southeast ,asia in the #aifjs and #aigjs2 7,b7 rescued ,united ,states pilots shot down in enemy-controlled territory and returned the pilots to safety2 7,c7 captured and destroyed enemy supplies and prevented enemy forces from using the supplies to kill members of the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces2 7,d7 gathered and provided to the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces intelligence about enemy troop positions1 movement1 and strength2 and 7,e7 provided food1 shelter1 and support to the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces4 7#b7 ,the ,national ,armed ,forces of ,cambodia facilitated the evacuation of the ,united ,states ,embassy in ,phnom ,penh on ,april #ab1 #aige1 by continuing to fight ,khmer ,rouge forces as they advanced upon the capital4 7#c7 ,a tragic legacy of the conflict in ,southeast ,asia is the lethal risk posed by unexploded ordnance 7,,uxo7 in ,vietnam1 ,laos1 and ,cambodia that still litter forests1 rice fields1 villages1 school grounds1 roads1 and other populated areas--hindering development and poverty reduction efforts4 7#d7 ,vietnam remains one of the world's most contaminated countries1 with an estimated #hjj1jjj tons of ,,uxo left over from the conflict in ,southeast ,asia that ended more than #dj years ago4 ,it has caused more than #ajj1jjj casualties1 including #dj1jjj deaths4 7#e7 ,from #aifd-aigc1 the ,united ,states dropped more than #b1jjj1jjj tons of bombs on ,laos during ,american operations to disrupt ,north ,vietnamese military supply routes4 ,as a result1 ,laos is the most heavily bombed country per capita in the world4 ,much of the country's land remains contaminated with more than #hj1jjj1jjj small1 unexploded cluster munitions4 ,since the end of the conflict1 ,,uxo have injured or killed more than #be1jjj civilians in ,laos4 7#f7 ,cambodia suffers from one of the highest rates of landmine and ,,uxo accidents in the world4 ,over #fd1jjj ,cambodians have been killed or injured by unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war since #aigi1 with an average of one casualty every week4 7#g7 ,the ,united ,states is the world's leading financial supporter of conventional weapons destruction worldwide4 ,since #aiic1 the ,united ,states has provided more than #c1djj1jjj1jjj in assistance to more than #ajj countries1 including more than #acb1jjj1jjj in ,vietnam1 #bjj1jjj1jjj in ,laos1 and #adj1jjj1jjj in ,cambodia4 7b7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the ,hmong1 ,khmer1 ,laotian1 and ,montagnard ,freedom ,fighters deserve recognition for their support and defense of the ,armed ,forces and freedom during the conflict in ,southeast ,asia2 and 7#b7 the ,united ,states should continue to support activities to clear unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war in ,vietnam1 ,laos1 and ,cambodia1 and strengthen people-to-people ties and reaffirm ,america's long-standing commitment to ,southeast ,asia4 #c4 ,authorization of assistance in ,vietnam1 ,laos1 and ,cambodia 7a7 ,in general ,the ,president is authorized to provide humanitarian assistance for programs to support the activities described in subsection 7b74 7b7 ,activities supported ,activities that may be supported by assistance under subsection 7a7 include the following3 7#a7 ,developing national surveys of unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war in ,vietnam1 ,laos1 and ,cambodia4 7#b7 ,providing for clearance of such unexploded ordnance4 7#c7 ,providing assistance for capacity building1 risk education1 and victims in ,vietnam1 ,laos1 and ,cambodia related to both unexploded ordnance and other explosive remnants of war4 7c7 ,coordination ,in carrying out this section1 the ,president shall seek to consult1 partner1 and coordinate with international organizations1 civil society1 donor governments through the ,mine ,action ,support ,group1 and other stakeholders1 as appropriate1 to leverage their expertise1 financial support1 and resources to minimize duplication of efforts and maximize the efficient and effective provision of ,united ,states assistance4 7d7 ,briefing ,the ,president shall provide annual briefings to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,senate on activities undertaken in accordance with this section4 7e7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,president to carry out this section #ej1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbj through #bjbd4