[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 174 (Tuesday, November 15, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2045-E2046]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          COAST GUARD AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION ACT OF 2011

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, November 4, 2011

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2838) to 
     authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard for fiscal years 
     2012 through 2015, and for other purposes:

  Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise today to support H.R. 
2838, the ``Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2011.'' This 
legislation authorizes funding for the Coast Guard through fiscal year 
2014 and authorizes service strength of 47,000 active duty personnel.
  As a Senior Member on the Committee on Homeland Security and the 
Border and Maritime Security Subcommittee, I understand the importance 
of protecting our maritime borders. In our post 9/11 climate, homeland 
security continues to be a top priority for our nation.
  In 1787, Alexander Hamilton, in Federalist Paper Number 12 laid the 
foundation for the modern Coast Guard when he noted that ``[a] few 
armed vessels, judiciously stationed at the entrances of our ports, 
might at a small expense, be made useful sentinels of our laws.''
  I believe protecting our country by air, land, and sea is critical to 
our national security interests. As Coast Guard is beneficial to our 
maritime interests, and consequently, our national security it is 
imperative that we provide the Coast Guard with the funding they need.
  In the aftermath of September 11, 2001 the focus of many federal 
agencies shifted to include an increased emphasis on Homeland Security. 
Under the Homeland Security Act of 2002, a number of security missions 
were assigned to the Coast Guard. Without question the first mission of 
our Coast Guard has been to protect our ports, waterways and to focus 
on coastal security. They have completed this mission with honor for 
centuries.
  Across the United States there are currently more than 350 major 
ports of which 23 are located in my home state of Texas.
  I am honored to represent the 18th Congressional District which 
includes the Port of Houston, one of our nation's busiest ports. More 
than 220 million tons of cargo moved through the Port of Houston in 
2010 and it has been ranked as first in foreign waterborne tonnage for 
the 15th consecutive year.
  The port links Houston with over 1,000 ports located in 203 
countries, and provides 785,000 jobs throughout the state of Texas. 
Maritime ports are major centers of trade, commerce, and travel along 
our nation's coastline. All of these ports are protected by the Coast 
Guard.
  As a Representative from Texas, a border state, I am extremely 
concerned with curtailing the flow of illegal drugs entering into the 
United States. The Coast Guard is the lead federal agency for maritime 
drug interdiction.
  Houston has been classified by the Office of National Drug Control 
Policy (ONDCP) as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, and in a 2009 
report, the ONDCP expressed concern that ``the sheer volume of maritime 
traffic and foreign cargo that passes through the port offers another 
avenue for drug smuggling.''
  The Coast Guard is responsible for and has coordinated with other 
federal, state, and local agencies and countries within the region to 
disrupt and deter the flow of illegal drugs into Houston and other 
ports. This coordinated effort has resulted in a decrease in the supply 
of illicit substances being transported all over the country.
  The Coast Guard protects the interests of American citizens and 
American commerce abroad. Last year, 73.2 million tons of exports left 
the Port of Houston to be sold to countries around the world. These 
exports represented $70.8 billion dollars, and countless American jobs.
  The international counter--piracy efforts of the Coast Guard focus on 
preventing attacks of piracy that threaten American commercial vessels 
and cargo. The Coast Guard also performs vital counter terrorism 
measures in ports abroad to ensure the safety of Americans across the 
globe.
  In addition, in Houston the Coast Guard routinely conducts integrated 
operations with city, county, state and Federal Law Enforcement 
partners. The joint agency Houston Area Maritime Operations Center is a 
prime example of the type of coordination efforts directed under a 
recent Maritime Operations Coordination Plan signed by the U.S. Coast 
Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration 
and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
  The Port of Houston as one of the world's busiest ports is a 
tremendous responsibility which has been smoothly operated by the Coast 
Guard. In terms of maritime traffic and cargo, the Port of Houston 
ranks first in the nation for number of ship arrivals and second in 
total cargo tonnage. Houston handles over 50 percent of all 
containerized cargo arriving at Gulf of Mexico ports.
  Houston is the Energy capitol of the United States for a reason, more 
than 50 percent of the gasoline used in the United States is refined in 
this area. With more than 100 petrochemical waterfront facilities, 
Houston has the second largest such complex in the world. Major 
corporations such as Exxon-Mobil, Shell, Saudi ARAMCO, Stolt Nielson, 
Odfjell USA Inc., Sea River and Kirby Marine have national or 
international headquarters in Houston.
  These operations typically involve the Harris County Sheriff's Office 
and local city Police

[[Page E2046]]

Department marine divisions as well as CBP, ICE, Federal Bureau of 
Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and 
other Federal partners. Efforts are underway with The Coast Guard's 
processes with neighboring sectors to align and streamline their 
operations across all jurisdictional boundaries. They need funding to 
continue to serve our country.
  The Coast Guard relies on their port partners to act as both their 
eyes and ears on the water. With an average of 350 daily tow movements 
in the Houston Ship Channel and more than 100 waterfront facilities 
with a vigilant security presence, marine industry stakeholders are 
well positioned to recognize when things are out of the ordinary and 
serve as a valuable resource by diligently reporting breaches of 
security and suspicious activity. We also receive reports on fraudulent 
use of the Transportation Worker Identification Card, and work closely 
with our local enforcement and legal agencies such as the Harris County 
District Attorney to ensure these cases are prosecuted.
  In recognition of the significance of Houston's shipping activity, 
the State of Texas formally established the Houston Ship Channel 
Security District (HSCSD) in 2010.
  The HSCSD represents a unique public-private partnership formed to 
improve security and safety for facilities, employees and communities 
surrounding the Houston Ship Channel. The Coast Guard played an 
instrumental role in the formation of the HSCSD, and continues to work 
closely with the HSCSD to ensure alignment of priorities and unity of 
effort. As Sector Commander, I am a member of the HSCSD Advisory 
Council and Sector Port Security specialists attend HSCSD board 
meetings. The district provides oversight of comprehensive and cost-
effective security solutions, leveraging more than $30 million in 
Federal Port Security grants along with $4 million in annual member 
assessments to install technology and security infrastructure and 
provide funds for specific security projects, maintenance and 
operational services.
  The Port of Houston accommodates a large number of tankers carrying 
crude oil, refined products and chemical cargoes. With approximately 
9,600 deep draft ship arrivals each year, the Coast Guard maintains a 
very extensive Port State Control program in the Houston-Galveston 
area. The Port State Control program ensures the safe carriage of 
hazardous materials in bulk. Because over 90 percent of cargo bound for 
the United States is carried by foreign-flagged ships, this national 
program prevents operation of substandard foreign ships in U.S. waters.
  The Sector also makes excellent use of its robust Vessel Traffic 
Service (VTS). The VTS's primary role is facilitating safe vessel 
transits in the waterways and ports along the Houston Ship Channel. The 
VTS cameras, Automatic Identification System (AIS) feeds, remote radar 
observation capability, and radio communications, also provide an 
additional layer of security. In addition to the VTS resources in the 
Houston Ship Channel, Sector Houston-Galveston has access to feeds from 
three AIS receivers mounted on offshore oil platforms, which provide 
heightened awareness of activities in the maritime domain.
  With a homeland security mission of this magnitude, it is essential 
that the Coast Guard be fully funded. This bill will authorize $8.49 
billion dollars in 2012, $8.6 billion dollars in 2013, and $8.7 billion 
in 2014. It is certainly the duty of this Congress and the 
Administration to ensure the brave men and women who serve in the Coast 
Guard have the resources necessary to perform the wide range of duties 
assigned to them.
  This measure contains a private-sector mandate as defined in Unfunded 
Mandate Reform Act (UMRA). The bill would require operators to locate a 
standby vessel within 3 nautical miles of offshore oil and gas 
facilities when certain activities are being performed and within 12 
nautical miles of facilities at all other times. The cost of that 
mandate would depend on several factors. The bill would allow operators 
to share one standby vessel among multiple facilities and to use 
standby vessels for other purposes.
  For operators that can use those measures, the cost of the mandate 
would tend to be lower. At the same time, the bill would authorize the 
Coast Guard to require standby vessels to be located closer than 3 or 
12 nautical miles to offshore facilities if necessary to address delays 
caused by weather or other conditions. Reducing the minimum distance 
from facilities would increase the number of vessels necessary for 
compliance and increase the cost of the mandate for some operators. The 
Congressional Budget Office estimates that the aggregate cost of the 
mandate would probably exceed the annual threshold established in UMRA 
for private-sector mandates ($142 million in 2011, adjusted annually 
for inflation).
  However, I do have certain reservations about some of the provisions 
in this legislation. At the request of President Obama's 
Administration, Congress has appropriated funding to reactivate the 
USGC Polar Star, a heavy icebreaking vessel. The ship is to be 
reactivated by December 2012 for 7 to 10 years of service. The Polar 
Star is deployed to assist researchers throughout the Polar Regions, 
and is essential to United States icebreaking capabilities. Ice 
breaking vessels create pathways through which supply ships can travel, 
facilitating important research. In its current form, the bill 
decommissions the Polar Star within 3 years, creating a gap in the 
nation's icebreaking abilities.
  As a senior Member on the Homeland Security Committee, I have a deep 
commitment to creating a stronger and more secure America. I have 
worked with my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to pass 
legislation that ensures that our nation is receiving the security that 
our citizens deserve. As the potential threats and vulnerabilities 
along our coast line may always exist. We rely upon Coast Guard and 
their active involvement with hundreds of partners who are directly 
involved with or impacted by the maritime industry in the Houston-
Galveston area of responsibility, this Sector is committed to deterring 
incidents before they happen and is well-prepared to respond to them 
should they occur. The Coast Guard is vital to the protection of our 
national security.
  Both sides of the aisle have a strong respect for the Coast Guard as 
well as for the men and women who work on manned stations off of our 
shores. I understand that Representative Mica has agreed to honor the 
purpose of an amendment offered by Representative Olson that would have 
require the Commandant of the Coast Guard in consultation with 
appropriate representatives of industry to conduct a feasibility study 
to determine the capability, cost, and benefits of requiring the owner 
or operator of a manned facility, installation, unit, or vessel to 
locate a standby vessel nearby. I would have supported this amendment 
because although a properly designed and equipped standby vessel in the 
immediate vicinity of manned outer continental shelf facilities may, in 
some cases, improve safety on the outer continental shelf.
  In the event of a major casualty to an offshore installation, the 
immediate presence of a properly designed and equipped standby vessel, 
manned by a specially trained crew, might in some cases increase the 
chances of survival of the installation's crew members. We must not, 
however, forget the fact that historically the main cause of rig and 
platform abandonment has been due to severe weather. Unless these 
standby vessels are designed to withstand those severe conditions, 
requiring them to remain on scene could place the vessels and their 
crews in jeopardy. In addition, it is severely risky to board a standby 
vessel in severe weather conditions. For these reasons I would support 
a feasibility study to determine the effectiveness of using standby 
vessels for manned stations.
  In addition, I support the amendment offered by Representative 
Thompson that would add a new section to the end of Title II in the 
bill to open admissions to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy to eligible 
candidates nominated by Congress.
  Specifically, the amendment would require the U.S. Coast Guard to 
ensure that, beginning in academic year 2014, half of the incoming 
class is composed of eligible candidates nominated by the Vice 
President or, if there is no Vice President, by the President pro 
tempore of the Senate; Senators; Representatives; and Delegates to the 
House of Representatives. This will help to ensure that the Coast Guard 
has an even more diverse pool of candidate from across the United 
States.
  The Coast Guard is proud of that legacy and their role in our 
national strategy is vital to keep our homeland secure. The safety and 
security of our nations and its citizens must be our highest priority, 
despite difficult economic circumstances. We need to make sure the 
Coast Guard is fully funded, and have the resources they need.

                          ____________________