The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“SUPPORT OF S. 747” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the Senate section on pages S7133 on May 22, 1995.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
SUPPORT OF S. 747
Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, I rise today in support of S. 747. The intent of this bill is to modify section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export and Control Act to require congressional oversight and scrutiny of all arms sales to the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia until such time as the Secretary of the State certifies and reports to Congress that the unpaid claims of American companies described in the June 30, 1993, report by the Secretary of Defense pursuant to section 9140(c) of the Department of Defense Appropriation Act, 1993 (Public Law 102-396; 106 Stat 1939), including the additional claims noticed by the Department of Commerce on page 2 of the report, have been resolved satisfactorily.
My interest in S. 747 relates in part to a New York company, Gibbs & Hill, Inc. Gibbs & Hill was founded in 1911, and has the privilege of being the oldest power and transportation engineering firm in the United States. One of its most notable projects was the electrification of the Northeast corridor rail line between New York and Washington, DC. The first electric locomotive to run on these tracks was the George Gibbs I.
In 1978, Gibbs & Hill went to Saudi Arabia to provide its engineering expertise to the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu in connection with the design and construction of the Yanbu Industrial City. Gibbs & Hill was hired by the Royal Commission to design the desalination and related facilities, which are a major component of this industrial complex. The Royal Commission required significant additional services of Gibbs & Hill, equaling more than 200 man-years of effort. After requiring Gibbs & Hill to perform the work, committing to compensate Gibbs & Hill for the added services, and benefiting from the work performed, the Royal Commission refused to pay. Gibbs & Hill's attempts to seek redress through the kingdom's court system was useless, as the court merely upheld the wrongful acts of another agency of the kingdom.
The default landed Gibbs & Hill in the special claims process established following congressional hearings in May 1992, and furthered by section 9140(c) of the fiscal year 1993 Department of Defense Appropriations Act. The $43.4 million claim of Gibbs & Hill is the last remaining unpaid claim awaiting resolution by the Saudi Government through the special claims process. Despite repeated commitments to our Government by the Saudi Government to resolve the claim favorably for the company, Gibbs & Hill has not been paid. Gibbs & Hill has waited more than 14 years to have this debt paid, including 2 years since receiving explicit commitments from the Saudi Embassy that it would spare no efforts in resolving the claim fairly and promptly.
Today, the Yanbu Industrial City is pointed to as an example of the kingdom's technological advancement. Yet this advancement was obtained at the expense of Gibbs & Hill. The kingdom had an obligation to honor its commitments to Gibbs & Hill, as it still does today. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting S. 747.
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