INTRODUCTION

The year 2006 edition of the Pohnpei Code is the first codification of the laws of Pohnpei State since the establishment of constitutional government. It is also the first codification of public laws since the Ponape District Code of March 1971. This codification was authorized by the Pohnpei Codification Act of 1988, which was preceded by a number of acts that date back to 1976.

This Code is based upon the Ponape District Code of 1971, the Trust Territory Code of 1980, public laws enacted by the Ponape District Legislature and legislatures of the state of Pohnpei through January 1, 2006.

The inclusion of laws from the Code of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1980) stamps the jurisdictional authority of the state of Pohnpei firmly within the boundaries of the Constitution of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Constitution of the state of Pohnpei. The laws that derive from the Trust Territory Code have been updated so that references to governmental authorities of the executive, legislative or judicial branches of Pohnpei State now make sense in the context of state constitutional government.

The organization of the Pohnpei Code generally follows those established by other jurisdictions. However, its divisions and titles reflect the unique scope of legislation of the state of Pohnpei. It has been set out so as to ease research and reference as well as its primary purpose of codifying the public laws, exclusive of appropriation laws and acts either obsolete or of a temporary nature.

The source of laws have been provided for all sections, extending as far back as the Ponape District Code of 1971 and the 1966 edition of the Trust Territory Code, as well as public laws of the Ponape District Legislature from 1970. There has also been included extended legislative history notes and general notes to enhance research of original legislation. Tables have been provided so that the user may find the placement of specific sections of public laws within the Code or to confirm the omission of public laws from within the Code.

All public laws that are found within the Code, and the prior Ponape District Code provisions and Trust Territory Code provisions that make up the Pohnpei Code are readopted and reenacted as positive law. Therefore, all future laws of the state of Pohnpei that amend, supersede or repeal laws within the Code should be enacted as provisions of the Code. A program of annual updates is envisaged to keep the Pohnpei Code current with legislative changes.

The Pohnpei Code is the product of a team effort of the entire Legislative Counsel Division of the Pohnpei Legislature over a period of many years. Each member of the team contributed significantly to the final production of the Code, and words of appreciation are extended for their persistence and demand for perfection throughout the years that the Code was under construction.

These individuals include the Division lawyers and paralegal staff who researched and compiled the massive collections of district, state and territorial laws for inclusion in the Code, the code editors who were largely responsible for the structuring of the Code in its printed form and who acquired the technology necessary to produce the Code in its digital format, the proofreaders whose eyes for detail ensured the accuracy of the Code in both the language of the law and its references, and the Division secretaries who undertook the arduous task of converting statutory laws into code language.

A final word of appreciation goes to the Chairman and Members of the special Subcommittee of the Standing Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations of the Sixth Pohnpei Legislature, who page by page reviewed the draft Code, resolving the lingering ambiguities in form and content, and who then reported the final version of the Code to the full Committee who then reported to the full Legislative Assembly for passage of the Code into positive law.

The code provisions reproduced on this website or electronic recording medium are derived from the computer files used to produce the printed version of The Official Code of the State of Pohnpei. The computer files are intended to be updated by the Division of the Legislative Counsel of the Pohnpei Legislature on a continuous basis in conjunction with updates to the printed version of the Code. Source information and editorial notes are also intended to be maintained on a continuous basis.

As is the case generally with respect to electronic versions of statutory codes, the digital code on this website or electronic recording medium is not the authoritative version of the Code. As stated in Section 105 of Chapter One of Title One of the Code:

1 PC 1-105. Authoritative version of Code; digital version and internet presentation.

(1) The authoritative version of the Code shall be the printed version of the Code, and all amendments, revisions, and replacements thereof as enacted by the Pohnpei Legislature and on file in the Division of Legislative Counsel of the Pohnpei Legislature as provided by Chapter 4 of Title 2 of this Code.

(2) Digital versions of the Code may be prepared by the Division of Legislative Counsel for distribution in CD-ROM or DVD format and for presentation on the internet, which versions and presentations may vary in layout, format, citation, and numbering, consistent with the interactive nature of digital documents and presentations; PROVIDED that in the event of conflict, the printed version referred to in Subsection (1) of this section shall prevail.

For reference to the authoritative wording of any section of the printed version of The Official Code of the State of Pohnpei please contact the Division of Legislative Counsel of the Pohnpei Legislature, P.O. Box 114, Kolonia, Pohnpei, FM 96941.