[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6625 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6625

To establish requirements for cruise lines to receive Federal funds and 
              Federal assistance, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 24, 2020

  Ms. Speier (for herself, Ms. Matsui, Mr. Grijalva, Ms. Jayapal, and 
 Mrs. Hayes) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined 
 by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as 
        fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish requirements for cruise lines to receive Federal funds and 
              Federal assistance, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Cruise Reform and Uniform Industry 
Standards Evoke Integrity Act'' or the ``CRUISE Integrity Act''.

SEC. 2. FEDERAL FUNDS FOR CRUISE VESSELS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 
Federal funds or Federal assistance, including a direct loan, loan 
guarantee, or tax credit, may be provided to a cruise line unless--
            (1) such cruise line is incorporated in the United States;
            (2) not less than 50 percent of the cruise vessels operated 
        by such cruise line are registered in the United States;
            (3) such cruise line certifies compliance with all 
        applicable environmental dumping laws and section 3507(k), as 
        amended by this Act;
            (4) such cruise line certifies that such cruise line will 
        not abrogate existing collective labor bargaining agreements 
        for the term of the loan and 2 years after completing repayment 
        of the loan, if applicable;
            (5) such cruise line certifies that such cruise line will 
        remain neutral in any union organizing effort for the term of 
        the loan, if applicable; and
            (6) such cruise line offers full reimbursement to 
        passengers for cancellations related to coronavirus COVID-19.
    (b) Use of Federal Funds.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, to be eligible to receive any Federal funds or Federal assistance 
under any provision of law, a cruise line shall--
            (1) enter into an agreement that provides that until the 
        date that is 12 months after the date on which all Federal 
        funds provided are expended, a loan or loan guarantee is no 
        longer outstanding, or Federal assistance is provided, as 
        applicable--
                    (A) neither the cruise line nor any affiliate of 
                the cruise line may purchase an equity security that is 
                listed on a national securities exchange of the cruise 
                line or any parent company of the cruise line, except 
                to the extent required under a contractual obligation 
                in effect as of the date of enactment of this Act; and
                    (B) the cruise line shall not pay dividends or make 
                other capital distributions with respect to the common 
                stock of the cruise line;
            (2) develop a plan to reduce total emissions of such cruise 
        line of carbon, methane, nitrogen oxides, and Black Carbon, 
        including by reducing the use of heavy fuel oil and exhaust gas 
        systems, by 45 percent by 2030 and achieve net-zero greenhouse 
        gas emissions by 2050; and
            (3) submit to Congress the plan developed pursuant to 
        paragraph (2).
    (c) Prohibition on Loan Forgiveness.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the principal amount of any obligation issued by a 
cruise line described under subsection (b) shall not be reduced through 
loan forgiveness.

SEC. 3. MONITORING AND INSPECTION PROGRAM FOR CRUISE VESSELS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment, 
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall 
establish a program to require monitoring and inspections of the 
compliance of cruise vessels with environmental standards, including at 
a minimum--
            (1) regular announced inspections of cruise vessel 
        operations, equipment, or discharges, including sampling and 
        testing cruise vessel discharges; and
            (2) not less than 1 unannounced inspection of each cruise 
        vessel each year.
    (b) Regulations.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue such regulations 
as are necessary to--
            (1) require the owner, operator, master, or other person in 
        charge of a cruise vessel to maintain and submit a logbook 
        detailing the times, types, volumes, flow rates, origins, and 
        specific locations of, and explanations for, any discharges 
        from the cruise vessel not otherwise required by subpart E of 
        part 159 of title 33, Code of Federal Regulations;
            (2) require routine announced and unannounced inspections 
        of--
                    (A) cruise vessel environmental compliance records 
                and procedures; and
                    (B) the operation and maintenance of installed 
                equipment for abatement and control of any cruise 
                vessel discharge (including equipment intended to treat 
                sewage, graywater, bilge water, or air pollution);
            (3) require the posting of the phone number for a toll-free 
        whistleblower hotline on all cruise vessels and at all ports 
        using language likely to be understood by international crews; 
        and
            (4) require any owner, operator, master, or other person in 
        charge of a cruise vessel, who has knowledge of a discharge 
        from the cruise vessel in violation of this subsection, 
        including regulations promulgated pursuant to this subsection, 
        to report immediately the discharge to the Administrator and 
        the Commandant of the Coast Guard.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of establishment 
of the program under subsection (a), the Administrator shall submit to 
Congress a report describing--
            (1) the results of the program, optimal coverage, 
        environmental benefits, and cruise vessel cooperation; and
            (2) recommendations for increased effectiveness, including 
        increased training needs and increased equipment needs.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON DISCHARGE OF SEWAGE, GRAYWATER, AND BILGE WATER.

    (a) In General.--No cruise vessel departing from or calling on, a 
port of the United States may discharge sewage, graywater, bilge water, 
or exhaust gas scrubber effluent into navigable waters and territorial 
seas, unless--
            (1) the sewage, graywater, bilge water, or exhaust gas 
        scrubber effluent is treated to meet all applicable effluent 
        limits and is in accordance with all other applicable laws;
            (2) the cruise vessel is underway and proceeding at a speed 
        of not less than 6 knots; and
            (3) the cruise vessel is more than 12 nautical miles from 
        shore.
    (b) Sensitive Water Bodies.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
this paragraph, no cruise vessel departing from, or calling on, a port 
of the United States may discharge treated or untreated sewage, 
graywater, or bilge water into waters belonging to Alaska, the Arctic, 
National Marine Sanctuaries, and National Marine Monuments.
    (c) Exception.--The requirements of this section shall not apply to 
discharges made for the purpose of securing the safety of the cruise 
vessel or saving life at sea, provided that all reasonable precautions 
have been taken for the purpose of preventing or minimizing the 
discharge.
    (d) Penalties.--
            (1) Civil penalty.--Any person who violates this section 
        shall be liable to the United States for a civil penalty not to 
        exceed $50,000 per day for each violation.
            (2) Separate violation.--Each day of a continuing violation 
        shall constitute a separate violation.
            (3) Criminal penalty.--A person who knowingly violates this 
        section commits a class D felony.
            (4) False statement.--Any person who knowingly makes any 
        false statement, representation, or certification in any 
        record, report, or other document filed or required to be 
        maintained under this section, or who falsifies, tampers with, 
        or knowingly renders inaccurate any testing or monitoring 
        device or method required to be maintained under this section 
        commits a class D felony.
            (5) Administration of penalties.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security 
                shall enforce the assessment and collection of any 
                penalty described in this subsection.
                    (B) Referral to attorney general.--If any person 
                fails to pay an assessment of a civil penalty under 
                this section after it has become final, the Secretary 
                may refer the matter to the Attorney General of the 
                United States for collection in any appropriate 
                district court of the United States.
    (e) Definition of Territorial Sea.--In this section, the term 
``territorial sea'' has the meaning given such term in Presidential 
Proclamation 5928.

SEC. 5. PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS.

    Section 9(b) of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 
1908(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``$25,000'' and inserting 
        ``$50,000''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ``$5,000'' and inserting 
        ``$10,000''.

SEC. 6. PASSENGER VESSEL SECURITY AND SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Medical Standards.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3507 is amended--
                    (A) by striking subsections (k) and (l); and
                    (B) by inserting after subsection (j) the 
                following:
    ``(k) Medical Standards.--
            ``(1) In general.--The owner of a vessel to which this 
        subchapter applies shall ensure that--
                    ``(A) a physician is always present and available 
                to treat any passengers who may be on board the vessel 
                in the event of an emergency situation;
                    ``(B) there is a sufficient number of qualified 
                medical staff on board the vessel to treat the number 
                of passengers who may be on board the vessel, as 
                determined by the Secretary by regulation;
                    ``(C) if a United States citizen dies on board the 
                vessel and the citizen's next of kin requests that the 
                citizen's body return to the United States on board the 
                vessel, such request is granted;
                    ``(D) every crew member on board the vessel has 
                received basic life support training and is certified 
                in cardiopulmonary resuscitation;
                    ``(E) automated external defibrillators are--
                            ``(i) placed throughout the vessel in 
                        clearly designated locations;
                            ``(ii) available for passenger access in 
                        the event of an emergency; and
                            ``(iii) capable of contacting cruise 
                        medical staff through tracing or callbox 
                        capability; and
                    ``(F) the initial safety briefing given to the 
                passengers on board the vessel includes--
                            ``(i) the location of the vessel's medical 
                        facilities;
                            ``(ii) the appropriate steps passengers 
                        should follow during a medical emergency;
                            ``(iii) the location and proper use of 
                        automated external defibrillators; and
                            ``(iv) the proper way to report an incident 
                        or to seek security assistance in the event of 
                        a medical emergency.
            ``(2) Physician defined.--In this subsection, the term 
        `physician' means a medical doctor who--
                    ``(A) has at least 3 years of post-graduate, post-
                registration experience in general and emergency 
                medicine; or
                    ``(B) is board certified in emergency medicine, 
                family medicine, or internal medicine.
            ``(3) Qualified medical staff defined.--In this subsection, 
        the term `qualified medical staff' means a medical professional 
        certified in ACLS and ATLS training.''.
            (2) Application.--The amendment made by paragraph (1)(B) 
        shall apply on and after the date that is 180 days after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Maintenance of Supplies To Prevent Sexually Transmitted 
Diseases.--Section 5307(d)(1) is further amended by inserting ``(taking 
into consideration the length of the voyage and the number of 
passengers and crewmembers that the vessel can accommodate)'' after 
``sexual assault''.

SEC. 7. DEFINITION OF CRUISE VESSEL.

    In this Act:
            (1) In general.--The term ``cruise vessel'' means a 
        passenger vessel that--
                    (A) is authorized to carry at least 250 passengers; 
                and
                    (B) has onboard sleeping facilities for each 
                passenger.
            (2) Exclusions.--The term ``cruise vessel'' does not 
        include--
                    (A) a vessel of the United States operated by the 
                Federal Government;
                    (B) a vessel owned and operated by the government 
                of a State; or
                    (C) a vessel owned by a local government.
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