[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 152 (Wednesday, September 21, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E963]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





            INTRODUCTION OF THE FERRY SERVICE EXPANSION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN GARAMENDI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 21, 2022

  Mr. GARAMENDI. Madam Speaker, today I introduce the ``Ferry Service 
Expansion Act'' with U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA). I want to thank 
my House colleagues for their support as original cosponsors of this 
bipartisan legislation.
  Ferries are among the most climate-resilient modes of public 
transportation, capable of reaching areas where it is infeasible or 
imprudent to build new bridges or causeways. Historically, Congress has 
underfunded public ferry service compared to other transit and roadway 
projects. Our ``Ferry Service Expansion Act'' would correct this by 
increasing funding for both the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) 
formula and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) competitive grant 
programs to the levels requested by the Public Ferry Coalition, which 
represents public ferry operators across the country.
  In the Bay Area, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency 
Transportation Authority (WETA) is working to expand ferry service for 
commuters and visitors alike. WETA is also retrofitting its existing 
diesel-powered ferries to reduce emissions of particulates and 
greenhouse gases, WETA is pursuing new, zero-emissions ferries to 
eventually replace its entire vessel fleet. The ``Ferry Service 
Expansion Act'' would provide federal support for this important work, 
while also holding federal grantees to the high standards for ``Buy 
American'' requirements and prevailing wages under the Davis-Bacon Act 
that already apply to other federal funding for ferries.
  Under current law, States may use their federal Surface 
Transportation Block Grant (STBG) for public or private ferry projects. 
In December 2020, the Bay Area Council released a feasibility study for 
employing hovercraft to provide ferry service in the South Bay. 
Hovercrafts can provide ferry service in environmentally sensitive 
areas that cannot be dredged to sufficient depth for vessels. Section 4 
of the ``Ferry Service Expansion Act'' would simply clarify that States 
could use their STBG for hovercraft ferries, provided the project is 
otherwise eligible under the program as providing ferry service to the 
public. On July 1, 2021, the House passed this same provision as my 
amendment to Chairman Peter A. DeFazio's (D-OR) ``Investing in a New 
Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation (INVEST) in 
America Act.''
  Lastly, our bicameral, bipartisan legislation would also support 
private operators of passenger ferries by allowing them to register 
Capital Construction Funds with the Maritime Administration (MARAD). 
Capital Construction Funds allow vessel operators to forgo paying 
federal business taxes on such vessels provided all that forgone tax 
payment is reinvested in constructing new U.S.-flagged vessels in 
American shipyards. Under current law, only cargo vessels and 
commercial fishing boats are eligible for this special tax exemption. 
However, some car ferry operators successfully registered Capital 
Construction Funds with MARAD, arguing that the cars are ``cargo'' and 
therefore their vessels are a ``cargo vessel'' and not a ``ferry.'' The 
``Ferry Service Expansion Act'' corrects this discrepancy by ensuring 
that passenger ferries are also clearly eligible. On March 29, 2022, 
the House passed this same provision from my H.R. 6882 as part of the 
``Don Young Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2022'' (H.R. 6865).
  As a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure, I continue working to secure additional federal funding 
to complement the state, county, and local investments to improve ferry 
service across the Bay Area. I plan to work with Senator Murray to make 
this legislation a priority. Madam Speaker, I encourage all members of 
the House to join us in cosponsoring the ``Ferry Service Expansion 
Act.''

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