[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 80 (Tuesday, June 4, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H5784-H5786]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           BOATING AND AVIATION OPERATION SAFETY ACT OF 1996

  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 234) to amend title 11 of the United States Code to make 
nondischargeable a debt for death or injury caused by the debtor's 
operation of watercraft or aircraft while intoxicated, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                H.R. 234

       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 ``Boating and Aviation 
     Operation Safety Act of 1996''.

     SEC. 2. AMENDMENT.

       Section 523(a)(9) of title 11, United States Code, is 
     amended by inserting ``, watercraft, or aircraft'' after 
     ``motor vehicle''.

     SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION OF AMENDMENT.

       (a) Effective Date.--Except as provided in subsection (b), 
     this Act and the amendment made by section 2 shall take 
     effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (b) Application of Amendment.--The amendment made by 
     section 2 shall not apply with respect to cases commenced 
     under title 11 of the United States Code before the date of 
     the enactment of this Act.


[[Page H5785]]


  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania [Mr. Gekas] and the gentleman from Rhode Island [Mr. Reed] 
will each be recognized for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Gekas].


                             general leave

  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 234, 
the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 234, the Boating and Aviation 
Operation Safety Act and urge its adoption by the House.
  Mr. Speaker, prior to 1984, it was possible in some realms in 
bankruptcy to have the spectacle of a drunk driver who causes untold 
adverse consequences, damages, and injuries to an innocent victim and 
then we could observe a phenomenon whereby a judgment would be entered 
against this drunk driver for the damage that he has caused and then to 
see the drunk driver enter bankruptcy and have his whole obligation 
wiped out, discharged, because of the safe haven that a bankruptcy 
would accord him.
  In 1984, the Congress passed legislation that would make 
nondischargeable that kind of situation. That is, if that scenario were 
repeated after 1984, notwithstanding the fact that a drunk driver later 
would try to file for bankruptcy, even if he were accorded the 
safeguards of bankruptcy, this particular obligation on drunk driving 
damages that he had caused would not be discharged from bankruptcy.
  Now, bringing us up to date here today, it has come to pass that 
several cases have come up on watercraft drunk operation, and then the 
courts became split as to whether the nondischargeability of a debt of 
a drunk driver would apply to a drunk boat operator.
  So we have this legislation here to clarify all of those distinctions 
and controverted issues and solve the situation. In other words, this 
legislation would add watercraft of any type where operated by someone 
who is drunk, who causes damages, that kind of damage would not be 
dischargeable in bankruptcy to accompany the same prohibition that now 
exists in the law for drunk driving of land vehicles, as it were.
  That is the whole purpose of the legislation. But there are some 
matters that we wanted to clear up, so we will enter into a colloquy, 
or after the statement of the gentleman from Rhode Island [Mr. Reed], 
we will enter into a colloquy to further clarify some of these 
distinctions.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. REED. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill. The goal of chapter 7 and 
chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings is to give the debtor a fresh start 
by discharging his or her debts, either after liquidation of assets and 
payments to creditors in chapter 7 or after a 3- to 5-year consumer 
reorganization repayment period in chapter 13.
  However, certain debts, such as alimony and child support, are 
nondischargeable. The bankruptcy code already prohibits the discharge 
of debt arising from the operation of a motor vehicle while 
intoxicated, and there have been three reported cases interpreting this 
section of the bankruptcy code. Two have held that the motor boat falls 
within the meaning of motor vehicle; one held the opposite.
  This bill, introduced by the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Ehlers], 
would add watercraft and aircraft to the phrase motor vehicle in 
section 523(a)(9).
  This addition would clarify and emphasize that current law already 
prohibits the discharge of debts incurred through the drunken operation 
of boats and aircraft, as well as cars. H.R. 234 would eliminate 
further confusion in the courts about the intended scope of this 
statute.
  I commend the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Ehlers] for his interest 
in this issue. My home State of Rhode Island is known as the Ocean 
State. We have thousands of people operating all types of watercraft 
off our shores. Regrettably, in the next few weeks we will probably 
have tragic incidents in which people are injured and perhaps killed by 
someone who irresponsibly drank and piloted a boat.
  One of the witnesses at the subcommittee hearing on this issue 
testified that 25 percent of the reported boating accidents in Maryland 
involved people with elevated blood alcohol levels. Clearly, this type 
of dangerous and irresponsible behavior is something we must try to 
discourage by all means at our disposal, and using the bankruptcy code 
to do so I think is appropriate. This clarification is indeed a very 
useful clarification of the code.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Michigan [Mr. Ehlers].
  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairman of the 
subcommittee not only for yielding time but also for taking this bill 
up in the subcommittee and lending his support to it.
  As my colleagues have heard, this bill is necessary because the 
current law simply specifies motor vehicle, and that has been 
interpreted in three different ways by the courts.
  In 1989, there was a case in Florida in which the judge ruled that 
motor vehicle included a boat or an airplane, operated respectively on 
a waterway or on an airway.
  In a later decision in 1993, another court held that motor vehicle 
clearly was intended to apply only to an automobile and, therefore, did 
not apply to watercraft or aircraft.
  Once again, in 1995, there was a judgment in another court that, 
indeed, motor vehicle included boats and aircraft.
  So it is not only necessary to pass this particular bill to make 
certain that we include aircraft and watercraft as vehicles whose 
illegal operations by someone who is drunk or on drugs results in a 
nondischargeable debt during bankruptcy, but it is also very important 
to make this clear because the courts have ruled in different fashions 
in these various cases. Therefore, I appreciate the committee taking up 
the bill and giving us an opportunity to clarify this.

  The bill itself is very simple. It simply makes clear that anyone who 
is operating a motor vehicle, a watercraft or an aircraft illegally by 
virtue of being intoxicated from using alcohol, a drug or another 
substance may not hide from responsibility for damages by making this a 
dischargeable debt by declaring bankruptcy. Clearly, this can be 
labeled as a victims' rights bill, because this will ensure that 
victims of such a drunk or drugged operator will receive adequate 
compensation and they cannot be deprived of that compensation simply by 
virtue of the perpetrator having declared bankruptcy.
  I urge that the bill be passed, and I thank the chairman, once again, 
for his diligent work on this issue.
  Mr. REED. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for 
the purpose of conducting a colloquy with my colleague, the 
distinguished gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Gekas], and I would ask 
the gentleman if he would answer a question.
  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, I would be happy 
to.
  Mr. REED. Mr. Speaker, how is watercraft to be defined?
  Mr. GEKAS. A watercraft is a buoyant craft operated by a person in 
the water--as an aircraft is an airborne craft operated by a person in 
the air or in the act of taking off or landing.
  As I have said, our intent is to protect the public from intoxicated 
operators of watercraft and aircraft. It matters not whether the 
watercraft is a motorboat, a personal watercraft, a barge, a canoe, a 
kayak, a rowboat or whatever, or whether the aircraft is jet propelled, 
or propeller driven, or a glider or a hang glider--you name it. There 
is no requirement that the watercraft or aircraft be powered by an 
engine. Under this legislation, it is the unlawful operation of a 
watercraft or aircraft by an intoxicated operator resulting in death or 
personal injury that gives rise to a nondischargeable debt.
  Mr. REED. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan

[[Page H5786]]

[Mr. Ehlers] for the initiative that he displayed in bringing this 
matter to the conclusion that it has found today, and I ask the Members 
to extend their support to the current legislation.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 234, the 
Boating and Aviation Safety Act. The bill amends Federal bankruptcy law 
to ensure financial responsibility for individuals who cause deaths or 
injuries by operation of a boat or aircraft while under the influence 
of drugs or alcohol. Specifically, the measure prohibits bankruptcy 
courts from discharging an individual's debts for wrongful death or 
injuries if caused by the individual's operation of a motor vehicle, 
boat, or aircraft while intoxicated.
  This legislation is extremely important to residents of my district, 
many of whom live on the shoreline of the Long Island Sound. Boating 
accidents are an unfortunate reality on a highly active waterway. As 
the summer boating season begins, it is essential to provide the 
victims of preventable boating accidents the same recourse for reckless 
piloting of boats on our waters as any victim of a accident in a car. 
This important legislation would extend the bankruptcy law that 
pertains to operators of motor vehicles to operators of boats and 
aircraft. This is a matter of fairness.
  While some bankruptcy courts have used a broad interpretation of the 
motor vehicle to include operators of aircraft and boats in cases of 
injury or death to others due to intoxication, some have not. In order 
to ensure justice to the victims of boating accidents and their 
families we must pass this measure today.
  We must send a strong message to boat operators: If you drink and 
operate a boat you are going to face the same harsh punishment that you 
would if you drink and drive. I strongly support this bill and urge its 
immediate adoption.
  Mr. GEKAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Gekas] that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 234, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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