[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 44 (Wednesday, April 20, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 20, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
           THE IMPORTANCE OF THE U.S. MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY

                                 ______


                            HON. JACK FIELDS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 20, 1994

  Mr. FIELDS. Mr. Speaker, last week it was a pleasure for me to meet 
with two fellow Texans who were in Washington, DC, to express their 
concern about the Clinton administration's proposal to charge tuition 
at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, NY--a proposal that 
could effectively spell the death of the Academy.
  I was pleased that two of my friends, William P. Bowes, Sr. of 
Houston and John P. Zemanek, Jr. of LaPorte, could come to Washington 
to attend the spring meeting of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Alumni 
Association. Bill, a 1962 graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, 
serves as national vice president of the alumni association, while 
John, a 1984 graduate, serves as president of the alumni association's 
Houston chapter.
  During their visit to the Nation's capital, Bill and John, and all 
those attending the alumni association's spring meeting, took time to 
meet with Members of Congress and various U.S. Senators urging them to 
continue their support for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and the 
important role the Academy and its graduates play in defending our 
country.
  Fortunately, Bill and John were equipped with the facts and figures 
they needed to make a compelling case on behalf of Kings Point.
  The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy is a 4-year, fully accredited 
college with an enrollment of 950 men and women. The Academy and its 
graduates serve the economic and security interests of the United 
States by providing our merchant marine and our Nation's Armed Forces 
with highly qualified officers. While midshipmen at the Academy 
concentrate on two major fields of study--transportation and 
engineering--they also obtain logistical training applicable to all 
modes of transportation, including barges and ships.
  Each midshipman at Kings Point receives an outstanding education--at 
a surprisingly small cost to the Federal Government. The U.S. Merchant 
Marine Academy's annual operating budget is just $29 million, and the 
cost to educate each Kings Point midshipman is 40 percent less than the 
average per-student cost at the Nation's top 25 universities.
  In exchange for his or her college education, each Kings Point 
graduate provides the United States with considerable benefits over the 
course of his or her 12-year commitment to the Nation. Make no mistake 
about it, Mr. Speaker, Kings Point is anything but a ``free ride.''
  Upon entering the Academy, each midshipman makes a commitment to 
complete a 4-year course of study that includes 1 year of training at 
sea on a commercial merchant ship. In addition, each midshipman commits 
to serve the foreign and domestic commerce and national defense of the 
United States by working as an officer on a U.S.-flag vessel or in a 
maritime-related industry or profession for at least 5 years. 
(Graduates also may serve as active duty, commissioned officers in the 
U.S. armed services.)
  Additionally, each graduate commits to maintain his or her ship 
officer's license for at least 6 years, which, in practice, allows them 
to serve as a merchant ship's officer for at least 10 years following 
graduation. Finally, each graduate makes an 8-year commitment to the 
U.S. Naval Reserve. As part of this commitment, he or she enters a 
reserve program specifically designed to ensure improved coordination 
between merchant vessels and the armed services during periods of 
national emergency.
  Colin Powell, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 
recognized the contributions made by Kings Point graduates and 
midshipmen recently when he said:
  In August 1990, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and friends and allies 
in the Middle East turned to the United States for help. We turned to 
you, and you answered our call. King's Pointers, when called to service 
by their country, indeed lived up to the motto ``Deeds, Not Words.''
  Sealift was the workhorse of our deployment and sustainment 
operations. Ninety-five percent of all equipment and supplies reached 
the Persian Gulf by ship. In a little more than 7 months, almost 3\1/2\ 
million tons of dry cargo and 6 million barrels of oil were moved by 
sea. This was far greater than the amount of cargo moved in preparation 
for the invasion of Normandy * * * nearly 50 years ago.
  All told, 152 cadet-midshipmen took part, including 58 members of 
[the currently] graduating class.
  The war in the Persian Gulf is over, but the merchant marine's 
contribution to our Nation continues. In war, merchant seamen have long 
served with valor and distinction by carrying critical supplies and 
equipment to our troops in faraway lands. In peacetime, the merchant 
marine has another vital role--contributing to our economic security by 
linking us firmly to our trading partners around the world and for 
providing the foundation for our ocean commerce.
  General Powell was right, of course. The men and women of the U.S. 
Merchant Marine Academy, as well as those engaged in our maritime 
industry, contribute to our Nation's prosperity as well as our national 
security.
  That is why I cannot support the National Performance Review/Clinton 
administration's proposal to charge tuition at Kings Point, and why I 
hope that that proposal will be rejected by Congress. That proposal 
threatens not only the future of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, but 
our Nation's fragile merchant marine industry and our Nation's ability 
to move troops and equipment around the world, whenever and wherever 
they may be needed, in times of grave emergencies.
  I know that Bill Bowes, John Zemanek and the other participants in 
the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association's annual spring 
meeting made a compelling case about why this Nation needs a strong 
Merchant Marine Academy, and a strong merchant marine.
  I hope that they know that I will continue working as hard as I can 
to support their efforts, and will continue to encourage my colleagues 
to do the same. I encourage my colleagues to join with me in supporting 
and cosponsoring H.R. 3293, which would prohibit the charging of 
tuition at any of the Nation's five service academies. This bipartisan 
legislation would, in any view, strengthen the U.S. Merchant Marine 
Academy as well as ensure that the United States will always have a 
merchant marine on which we can rely when needed.

                          ____________________