[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 23309]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     LEGISLATION TO UPDATE TITLE 46

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 3, 2007

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, I am introducing a bill to update and 
improve the codification of title 46 of the United States Code. Last 
year, Congress enacted H.R. 1442, which became Public Law 109-304. This 
legislation formally codified the various statutes in title 46 as 
positive law. As is typical with the codification process, a number of 
non-substantive revisions were made, including the reorganization of 
sections into a more coherent logical structure.
  As with all codification legislation, that law restated and replaced 
existing law as in effect on a particular date. While Congress was 
considering H.R. 1442, it was also considering four other pieces of 
legislation affecting title 46. These other bills were drafted in 
conformance with then-existing title 46, rather than title 46 as it 
would be revised. These four bills were enacted after the date 
specified in H.R. 1442, and thus were not reflected in P.L. 109-304.
  The Office of the Law Revision Counsel prepared this bill as part of 
its functions under 2 U.S.C. 285(b). It incorporates the four new laws 
into the codified title 46. It also makes other minor, non-substantive 
revisions and technical corrections to the codified title 46 to reflect 
subsequent public comments that were submitted too late to be reflected 
in P.L. 109-304.
  It is important to emphasize that this bill is not intended to make 
any substantive changes in the law. It is intended simply to update the 
codified title 46.
  The Committee on the Judiciary plans to act on this bill in the very 
near future, after providing an additional brief opportunity for public 
review and comment.

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