[House Report 114-115]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


114th Congress    }                                     {        Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session      }                                     {       114-115

======================================================================



 
                 COAST GUARD AUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2015

                                _______
                                

  May 15, 2015.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Shuster, from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                            ADDITIONAL VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 1987]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom 
was referred the bill (H.R. 1987) to authorize appropriations 
for the Coast Guard for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, and for 
other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably 
thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as 
amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose of Legislation...........................................    20
Background and Need for Legislation..............................    21
Hearings.........................................................    23
Legislative History and Consideration............................    23
Committee Votes..................................................    24
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................    24
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................    24
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................    24
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................    27
Advisory of Earmarks.............................................    27
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................    27
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................    27
Federal Mandate Statement........................................    28
Preemption Clarification.........................................    28
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................    28
Applicability of Legislative Branch..............................    28
Section-by-Section Analysis of Legislation.......................    28
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............    36
Committee Correspondence.........................................   118
Additional Views.................................................   125

    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Coast Guard Authorization Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

  The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.

                        TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS

Sec. 101. Authorizations.
Sec. 102. Conforming amendments.

                         TITLE II--COAST GUARD

Sec. 201. Vice Commandant.
Sec. 202. Vice admirals.
Sec. 203. Coast Guard remission of indebtedness.
Sec. 204. Acquisition reform.
Sec. 205. Auxiliary jurisdiction.
Sec. 206. Long-term major acquisitions plan.
Sec. 207. Coast Guard communities.
Sec. 208. ``Polar Sea'' materiel condition assessment and service life 
extension decision.
Sec. 209. Repeal.
Sec. 210. Technical corrections to title 14.
Sec. 211. Digital boat profile pilot program.
Sec. 212. Discontinuance of an aid to navigation.
Sec. 213. Mission performance measures.
Sec. 214. Communications.
Sec. 215. Coast Guard graduate maritime operations education.

                   TITLE III--SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION

Sec. 301. Treatment of fishing permits.
Sec. 302. Survival craft.
Sec. 303. Enforcement.
Sec. 304. Model years for recreational vessels.
Sec. 305. Merchant mariner credential expiration harmonization.
Sec. 306. Marine event safety zones.
Sec. 307. Technical corrections.
Sec. 308. Recommendations for improvements of marine casualty 
reporting.
Sec. 309. Recreational vessel engine weights.
Sec. 310. Merchant mariner medical certification reform.
Sec. 311. Atlantic Coast port access route study.
Sec. 312. Certificates of documentation for recreational vessels.
Sec. 313. Program guidelines.
Sec. 314. Repeals.

                 TITLE IV--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

Sec. 401. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 402. Duties of the Chairman.
Sec. 403. Prohibition on awards.

                         TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 501. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Marin County, 
California.
Sec. 502. Elimination of reports.
Sec. 503. Vessel documentation.
Sec. 504. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Tok, Alaska.
Sec. 505. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes.
Sec. 506. Use of vessel sale proceeds.
Sec. 507. Fishing vessel and fish tender vessel certification.
Sec. 508. National Academy of Sciences cost comparison.
Sec. 509. Penalty wages.
Sec. 510. Recourse for noncitizens.

                        TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS

SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATIONS.

  (a) In General.--Title 14, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:

     ``PART III--COAST GUARD AUTHORIZATIONS AND REPORTS TO CONGRESS

``Chap.                                                            Sec.
``27. Authorizations........................................       2701
``29. Reports...............................................      2901.

                      ``CHAPTER 27--AUTHORIZATIONS

``Sec.
``2702. Authorization of appropriations.
``2704. Authorized levels of military strength and training.

``Sec. 2702. Authorization of appropriations

  ``Funds are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years 
2016 and 2017 for necessary expenses of the Coast Guard as follows:
          ``(1) For the operation and maintenance of the Coast Guard, 
        not otherwise provided for--
                  ``(A) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  ``(B) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          ``(2) For the acquisition, construction, renovation, and 
        improvement of aids to navigation, shore facilities, vessels, 
        and aircraft, including equipment related thereto, and for 
        maintenance, rehabilitation, lease, and operation of facilities 
        and equipment--
                  ``(A) $1,546,448,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  ``(B) $1,546,448,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          ``(3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, including 
        operations and maintenance of the program, personnel and 
        training costs, equipment, and services--
                  ``(A) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  ``(B) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          ``(4) For the environmental compliance and restoration 
        functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 19 of this title--
                  ``(A) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  ``(B) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          ``(5) To the Commandant of the Coast Guard for research, 
        development, test, and evaluation of technologies, materials, 
        and human factors directly related to improving the performance 
        of the Coast Guard's mission with respect to search and rescue, 
        aids to navigation, marine safety, marine environmental 
        protection, enforcement of laws and treaties, ice operations, 
        oceanographic research, and defense readiness, and for 
        maintenance, rehabilitation, lease, and operation of facilities 
        and equipment--
                  ``(A) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  ``(B) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2017.

``Sec. 2704. Authorized levels of military strength and training

  ``(a) Active Duty Strength.--The Coast Guard is authorized an end-of-
year strength for active duty personnel of 43,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2016 and 2017.
  ``(b) Military Training Student Loads.--The Coast Guard is authorized 
average military training student loads for each of fiscal years 2016 
and 2017 as follows:
          ``(1) For recruit and special training, 2,500 student years.
          ``(2) For flight training, 165 student years.
          ``(3) For professional training in military and civilian 
        institutions, 350 student years.
          ``(4) For officer acquisition, 1,200 student years.

                         ``CHAPTER 29--REPORTS

``Sec.
``2904. Manpower requirements plan.

``Sec. 2904. Manpower requirements plan

  ``(a) In General.--On the date on which the President submits to 
Congress a budget for fiscal year 2017 under section 1105 of title 31, 
on the date on which the President submits to Congress a budget for 
fiscal year 2019 under such section, and every 4 years thereafter, the 
Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a manpower 
requirements plan.
  ``(b) Scope.--A manpower requirements plan submitted under subsection 
(a) shall include for each mission of the Coast Guard--
          ``(1) an assessment of all projected mission requirements for 
        the upcoming fiscal year and for each of the 3 fiscal years 
        thereafter;
          ``(2) the number of active duty, reserve, and civilian 
        personnel assigned or available to fulfill such mission 
        requirements--
                  ``(A) currently; and
                  ``(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year and 
                each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter;
          ``(3) the number of active duty, reserve, and civilian 
        personnel required to fulfill such mission requirements--
                  ``(A) currently; and
                  ``(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year and 
                each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter;
          ``(4) an identification of any capability gaps between 
        mission requirements and mission performance caused by 
        deficiencies in the numbers of personnel available--
                  ``(A) currently; and
                  ``(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year and 
                each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; and
          ``(5) an identification of the actions the Commandant will 
        take to address capability gaps identified under paragraph (4).
  ``(c) Consideration.--In composing a manpower requirements plan for 
submission under subsection (a), the Commandant shall consider--
          ``(1) the marine safety strategy required under section 2116 
        of title 46;
          ``(2) information on the adequacy of the acquisition 
        workforce included in the most recent report under section 2903 
        of this title; and
          ``(3) any other Federal strategic planning effort the 
        Commandant considers appropriate.''.
  (b) Requirement for Prior Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 
662 of title 14, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by redesignating such section as section 2701;
          (2) by transferring such section to appear before section 
        2702 of such title (as added by subsection (a) of this 
        section); and
          (3) by striking paragraphs (1) through (5) and inserting the 
        following:
          ``(1) For the operation and maintenance of the Coast Guard, 
        not otherwise provided for.
          ``(2) For the acquisition, construction, renovation, and 
        improvement of aids to navigation, shore facilities, vessels, 
        and aircraft, including equipment related thereto, and for 
        maintenance, rehabilitation, lease, and operation of facilities 
        and equipment.
          ``(3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, including 
        operations and maintenance of the program, personnel and 
        training costs, equipment, and services.
          ``(4) For the environmental compliance and restoration 
        functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 19 of this title.
          ``(5) For research, development, test, and evaluation of 
        technologies, materials, and human factors directly related to 
        improving the performance of the Coast Guard.
          ``(6) For alteration or removal of bridges over navigable 
        waters of the United States constituting obstructions to 
        navigation, and for personnel and administrative costs 
        associated with the Alteration of Bridges Program.''.
  (c) Authorization of Personnel End Strengths.--Section 661 of title 
14, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by redesignating such section as section 2703; and
          (2) by transferring such section to appear before section 
        2704 of such title (as added by subsection (a) of this 
        section).
  (d) Reports.--
          (1) Transmission of annual coast guard authorization 
        request.--Section 662a of title 14, United States Code, is 
        amended--
                  (A) by redesignating such section as section 2901;
                  (B) by transferring such section to appear before 
                section 2904 of such title (as added by subsection (a) 
                of this section); and
                  (C) in subsection (b)--
                          (i) in paragraph (1) by striking ``described 
                        in section 661'' and inserting ``described in 
                        section 2703''; and
                          (ii) in paragraph (2) by striking ``described 
                        in section 662'' and inserting ``described in 
                        section 2701''.
          (2) Capital investment plan.--Section 663 of title 14, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                  (A) by redesignating such section as section 2902; 
                and
                  (B) by transferring such section to appear after 
                section 2901 of such title (as so redesignated and 
                transferred by paragraph (1) of this subsection).
          (3) Major acquisitions.--Section 569a of title 14, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                  (A) by redesignating such section as section 2903;
                  (B) by transferring such section to appear after 
                section 2902 of such title (as so redesignated and 
                transferred by paragraph (2) of this subsection); and
                  (C) in subsection (c)(2) by striking ``of this 
                subchapter''.
  (e) Icebreaking on the Great Lakes.--For fiscal years 2016 and 2017, 
the Commandant of the Coast Guard may use funds made available pursuant 
to section 2702(2) of title 14, United States Code (as added by 
subsection (a) of this section) for the selection of a design for and 
the construction of an icebreaker that is capable of buoy tending to 
enhance icebreaking capacity on the Great Lakes.
  (f) Additional Submissions.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall 
submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
Representatives--
          (1) each plan required under section 2904 of title 14, United 
        States Code, as added by subsection (a) of this section;
          (2) each plan required under section 2903(e) of title 14, 
        United States Code, as added by section 206 of this Act;
          (3) each plan required under section 2902 of title 14, United 
        States Code, as redesignated by subsection (d) of this section; 
        and
          (4) each mission need statement required under section 569 of 
        title 14, United States Code.

SEC. 102. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

  (a) Analysis for Title 14.--The analysis for title 14, United States 
Code, is amended by adding after the item relating to part II the 
following:

``III. Coast Guard Authorizations and Reports to Congress...    2701''.

  (b) Analysis for Chapter 15.--The analysis for chapter 15 of title 
14, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to 
section 569a.
  (c) Analysis for Chapter 17.--The analysis for chapter 17 of title 
14, United States Code, is amended by striking the items relating to 
sections 661, 662, 662a, and 663.
  (d) Analysis for Chapter 27.--The analysis for chapter 27 of title 
14, United States Code, as added by section 101(a) of this Act, is 
amended by inserting--
          (1) before the item relating to section 2702 the following:

``2701. Requirement for prior authorization of appropriations.'';

        and
          (2) before the item relating to section 2704 the following:

``2703. Authorization of personnel end strengths.''.

  (e) Analysis for Chapter 29.--The analysis for chapter 29 of title 
14, United States Code, as added by section 101(a) of this Act, is 
amended by inserting before the item relating to section 2904 the 
following:

``2901. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request.
``2902. Capital investment plan.
``2903. Major acquisitions.''.

  (f) Mission Need Statement.--Section 569(b) of title 14, United 
States Code, is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (2) by striking ``in section 569a(e)'' and 
        inserting ``in section 2903''; and
          (2) in paragraph (3) by striking ``under section 663(a)(1)'' 
        and inserting ``under section 2902(a)(1)''.

                         TITLE II--COAST GUARD

SEC. 201. VICE COMMANDANT.

  (a) Grades and Ratings.--Section 41 of title 14, United States Code, 
is amended by striking ``an admiral,'' and inserting ``admirals 
(two);''.
  (b) Vice Commandant; Appointment.--Section 47 of title 14, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ``vice admiral'' and inserting 
``admiral''.
  (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 51 of title 14, United States 
Code, is amended--
          (1) in subsection (a) by inserting ``admiral or'' before 
        ``vice admiral,'';
          (2) in subsection (b) by inserting ``admiral or'' before 
        ``vice admiral,'' each place it appears; and
          (3) in subsection (c) by inserting ``admiral or'' before 
        ``vice admiral,''.
  (d) Application.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
officer who, on the date of the enactment of this Act, is serving as 
Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard--
          (1) shall have the grade of admiral, with the pay and 
        allowances of that grade; and
          (2) shall not be required to be reappointed by reason of the 
        enactment of this Act, including the amendments made by this 
        Act.

SEC. 202. VICE ADMIRALS.

  Section 50 of title 14, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) in subsection (a)--
                  (A) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 
                following:
  ``(1) The President may--
          ``(A) designate, within the Coast Guard, no more than 5 
        positions of importance and responsibility that shall be held 
        by officers who, while so serving, shall have the grade of vice 
        admiral, with the pay and allowances of that grade, and shall 
        perform such duties as the Commandant may prescribe (if the 
        President designates 5 such positions, 1 position shall be a 
        Chief of Staff); and
          ``(B) designate, within the executive branch, other than 
        within the Coast Guard, positions of importance and 
        responsibility that shall be held by officers who, while so 
        serving, shall have the grade of vice admiral, with the pay and 
        allowances of that grade.''; and
                  (B) in paragraph (3)(A) by striking ``under paragraph 
                (1)'' and inserting ``under paragraph (1)(A)''; and
          (2) in subsection (b)(2)--
                  (A) in subparagraph (B) by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                  (B) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph 
                (D); and
                  (C) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the 
                following:
          ``(C) at the discretion of the Secretary, while awaiting 
        orders after being relieved from the position, beginning on the 
        day the officer is relieved from the position, but not for more 
        than 60 days; and''.

SEC. 203. COAST GUARD REMISSION OF INDEBTEDNESS.

  (a) In General.--Section 461 of title 14, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 461. Remission of indebtedness

  ``The Secretary may have remitted or cancelled any part of a person's 
indebtedness to the United States or any instrumentality of the United 
States if--
          ``(1) the indebtedness was incurred while the person served 
        on active duty as a member of the Coast Guard; and
          ``(2) the Secretary determines that remitting or cancelling 
        the indebtedness is in the best interest of the United 
        States.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 13 of title 14, 
United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 
461 and inserting the following:

``461. Remission of indebtedness.''.

SEC. 204. ACQUISITION REFORM.

  (a) Minimum Performance Standards.--Section 572(d)(3) of title 14, 
United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) through (H) as 
        subparagraphs (E) through (J), respectively;
          (2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C);
          (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
                  ``(B) the performance data to be used to determine 
                whether the key performance parameters have been 
                resolved;''; and
          (4) by inserting after subparagraph (C), as redesignated by 
        paragraph (2) of this subsection, the following:
                  ``(D) the results during test and evaluation that 
                will be required to demonstrate that a capability, 
                asset, or subsystem meets performance requirements;''.
  (b) Capital Investment Plan.--Section 2902(a)(1) of title 14, United 
States Code, as redesignated and otherwise amended by this Act, is 
further amended--
          (1) in subparagraph (B) by striking ``completion;'' and 
        inserting ``completion based on the proposed appropriations 
        included in the budget;''; and
          (2) in subparagraph (D) by striking ``at the projected 
        funding levels;'' and inserting ``based on the proposed 
        appropriations included in the budget;''.
  (c) Days Away From Homeport.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall--
          (1) implement a standard for tracking operational days at sea 
        for Coast Guard cutters that does not include days during which 
        such cutters are undergoing maintenance or repair; and
          (2) notify the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
        of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
        Science, and Transportation of the Senate of the standard 
        implemented under paragraph (1).
  (d) Fixed Wing Aircraft Fleet Mix Analysis.--Not later than September 
30, 2015, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a revised fleet mix analysis of Coast 
Guard fixed wing aircraft.

SEC. 205. AUXILIARY JURISDICTION.

  (a) In General.--Section 822 of title 14, United States Code, is 
amended--
          (1) by striking ``The purpose'' and inserting the following:
  ``(a) In General.--The purpose''; and
          (2) by adding at the end the following:
  ``(b) Limitation.--The Auxiliary may conduct a patrol of a waterway, 
or a portion thereof, only if--
          ``(1) the Commandant has determined such waterway, or portion 
        thereof, is navigable for purposes of the jurisdiction of the 
        Coast Guard; or
          ``(2) a State or other proper authority has requested such 
        patrol pursuant to section 141 of this title or section 13109 
        of title 46.''.
  (b) Notification.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard shall--
          (1) review the waterways patrolled by the Coast Guard 
        Auxiliary in the most recently completed fiscal year to 
        determine whether such waterways are eligible or ineligible for 
        patrol under section 822(b) of title 14, United States Code (as 
        added by subsection (a)); and
          (2) not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment 
        of this Act, provide to the Committee on Transportation and 
        Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
        Senate a written notification of--
                  (A) any waterways determined ineligible for patrol 
                under paragraph (1); and
                  (B) the actions taken by the Commandant to ensure 
                Auxiliary patrols do not occur on such waterways.

SEC. 206. LONG-TERM MAJOR ACQUISITIONS PLAN.

  Section 2903 of title 14, United States Code, as redesignated and 
otherwise amended by this Act, is further amended--
          (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and
          (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
  ``(e) Long-Term Major Acquisitions Plan.--Each report under 
subsection (a) shall include a plan that describes for the upcoming 
fiscal year, and for each of the 20 fiscal years thereafter--
          ``(1) the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to be 
        decommissioned;
          ``(2) the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to be 
        acquired to--
                  ``(A) replace the cutters and aircraft identified 
                under paragraph (1); or
                  ``(B) address an identified capability gap; and
          ``(3) the estimated level of funding in each fiscal year 
        required to--
                  ``(A) acquire the cutters and aircraft identified 
                under paragraph (2);
                  ``(B) acquire related command, control, 
                communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, 
                and reconnaissance systems; and
                  ``(C) acquire, construct, or renovate shoreside 
                infrastructure.''.

SEC. 207. COAST GUARD COMMUNITIES.

  Section 409 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1998 (14 U.S.C. 
639 note) is amended by striking the second sentence and inserting the 
following: ``The Commandant may recognize any other community in a 
similar manner if the Commandant determines that such community has 
demonstrated enduring support of the Coast Guard, Coast Guard 
personnel, and the dependents of Coast Guard personnel.''.

SEC. 208. ``POLAR SEA'' MATERIEL CONDITION ASSESSMENT AND SERVICE LIFE 
                    EXTENSION DECISION.

  Section 222 of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 
2012 (Public Law 112-213; 126 Stat. 1560) is amended--
          (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
  ``(a) In General.--Not later than 270 days after the date of the 
enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, the Secretary 
of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall--
          ``(1) complete a materiel condition assessment with respect 
        to the Polar Sea;
          ``(2) make a determination of whether it is cost effective to 
        reactivate the Polar Sea compared with other options to provide 
        icebreaking services as part of a strategy to maintain polar 
        icebreaking services; and
          ``(3) submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
        Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
        Senate--
                  ``(A) the assessment required under paragraph (1); 
                and
                  ``(B) written notification of the determination 
                required under paragraph (2).'';
          (2) in subsection (b) by striking ``analysis'' and inserting 
        ``written notification'';
          (3) by striking subsection (c);
          (4) by redesignating subsections (d) through (h) as 
        subsections (c) through (g), respectively;
          (5) in subsection (c) (as redesignated by paragraph (4) of 
        this section)--
                  (A) in paragraph (1)--
                          (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking ``based 
                        on the analysis required''; and
                          (ii) in subparagraph (C) by striking 
                        ``analysis'' and inserting ``written 
                        notification'';
                  (B) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
          ``(2) Decommissioning.--If the Secretary makes a 
        determination under subsection (a) that it is not cost 
        effective to reactivate the Polar Sea, then, not later than 180 
        days after written notification of that determination is 
        submitted under that subsection, the Commandant of the Coast 
        Guard may decommission the Polar Sea.''; and
                  (C) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows:
          ``(3) Result of no determination.--If the Secretary does not 
        make a determination under subsection (a) regarding whether it 
        is cost effective to reactivate the Polar Sea, then the 
        Commandant of the Coast Guard may decommission the Polar 
        Sea.'';
          (6) in subsection (d)(1) (as redesignated by paragraph (4) of 
        this section) by striking ``analysis'' and inserting ``written 
        notification''; and
          (7) in subsection (e) (as redesignated by paragraph (4) of 
        this section) by striking ``in subsection (d)'' and inserting 
        ``in subsection (c)''.

SEC. 209. REPEAL.

  Section 225(b)(2) of the Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime 
Transportation Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-281; 128 Stat. 3039) is 
repealed.

SEC. 210. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO TITLE 14.

  Title 14, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is further 
amended--
          (1) in the analysis for part I by striking the item relating 
        to chapter 19 and inserting the following:

``19. Environmental Compliance and Restoration Program......     690'';

          (2) in section 46(a) by striking ``subsection'' and inserting 
        ``section'';
          (3) in section 47 in the section heading by striking 
        ``commandant'' and inserting ``Commandant'';
          (4) in section 93(f) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting 
        the following:
          ``(2) Limitation.--The Commandant may lease submerged lands 
        and tidelands under paragraph (1) only if--
                  ``(A) the lease is for cash exclusively;
                  ``(B) the lease amount is equal to the fair market 
                value of the use of the leased submerged lands or 
                tidelands for the period during which such lands are 
                leased, as determined by the Commandant;
                  ``(C) the lease does not provide authority to or 
                commit the Coast Guard to use or support any 
                improvements to such submerged lands and tidelands, or 
                obtain goods and services from the lessee; and
                  ``(D) proceeds from the lease are deposited in the 
                Coast Guard Housing Fund established under section 
                687.'';
          (5) in the analysis for chapter 9 by striking the item 
        relating to section 199 and inserting the following:

``199. Marine safety curriculum.'';

          (6) in section 427(b)(2) by striking ``this chapter'' and 
        inserting ``chapter 61 of title 10'';
          (7) in the analysis for chapter 15 before the item relating 
        to section 571 by striking the following:

``Sec.'';

          (8) in section 573(c)(3)(A) by inserting ``and shall maintain 
        such cutter in class'' before the period at the end;
          (9) in section 581(5)(B) by striking ``$300,000,0000,'' and 
        inserting ``$300,000,000,'';
          (10) in section 637(c)(3) in the matter preceding 
        subparagraph (A) by inserting ``it is'' before ``any'';
          (11) in section 641(d)(3) by striking ``Guard, installation'' 
        and inserting ``Guard installation'';
          (12) in section 691(c)(3) by striking ``state'' and inserting 
        ``State'';
          (13) in the analysis for chapter 21--
                  (A) by striking the item relating to section 709 and 
                inserting the following:

``709. Reserve student aviation pilots; Reserve aviation pilots; 
appointments in commissioned grade.'';

                and
                  (B) by striking the item relating to section 740 and 
                inserting the following:

``740. Failure of selection and removal from an active status.'';

          (14) in section 742(c) by striking ``subsection'' and 
        inserting ``subsections'';
          (15) in section 821(b)(1) by striking ``Chapter 26'' and 
        inserting ``Chapter 171''; and
          (16) in section 823a(b)(1), by striking ``Chapter 26'' and 
        inserting ``Chapter 171''.

SEC. 211. DIGITAL BOAT PROFILE PILOT PROGRAM.

  (a) In General.--If, during the 1-year period beginning on the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which 
the Coast Guard is operating determines that there are at least 2 
digital boat profile technologies that are commercially available, the 
Secretary shall establish a pilot program, in accordance with this 
section, under which digital boat profiles are utilized for--
          (1) not less than 2 National Security Cutters;
          (2) not less than 4 Fast Response Cutters; and
          (3) not less than 4 Medium Endurance Cutters (270 foot).
  (b) Timing.--With respect to the National Security Cutters and Fast 
Response Cutters participating in the pilot program, a digital boat 
profile shall be established prior to the commissioning of the cutters.
  (c) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the establishment of the 
pilot program, and annually thereafter for the succeeding 4 years, the 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a report describing--
          (1) the implementation of the pilot program; and
          (2) the results of the use of digital boat profiles under the 
        pilot program with respect to--
                  (A) efficient maintenance of the cutters involved; 
                and
                  (B) the post-delivery warranty management of 
                equipment items, the repair and replacement of which 
                are contractually obligated.
  (d) Digital Boat Profile Defined.--In this section, the term 
``digital boat profile'' means a commercially available off-the-shelf 
technology that creates an electronic data source with respect to a 
vessel that--
          (1) provides lifecycle management support, including through 
        the incorporation of systems manuals, schematics, and vessel 
        documentation;
          (2) incorporates all manufacturer recommendations and 
        operator best practices;
          (3) incorporates the use of real-time analytics of deferred 
        tasks, future tasks, readiness assessments, and budgetary 
        planners;
          (4) provides advance electronic notification of upcoming 
        maintenance and inspections to multi-level permission-based 
        recipients on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis;
          (5) facilitates oversight for pre-delivery discrepancy 
        reporting and post-delivery warranty management of equipment 
        items, the repair and replacement of which are contractually 
        obligated; and
          (6) is accessible by computing devices.

SEC. 212. DISCONTINUANCE OF AN AID TO NAVIGATION.

  (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating shall establish a process for the 
discontinuance of an aid to navigation established, maintained, or 
operated by the Coast Guard.
  (b) Requirement.--The process established under subsection (a) shall 
include procedures to notify the public of any discontinuance of an aid 
to navigation described in that subsection.
  (c) Consultation.--In establishing a process under subsection (a), 
the Secretary shall consult with and consider any recommendations of 
the Navigation Safety Advisory Council.
  (d) Notification.--Not later than 30 days after establishing a 
process under subsection (a), the Secretary shall notify the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate of the process established.

SEC. 213. MISSION PERFORMANCE MEASURES.

  Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate an assessment of 
the efficacy of the Coast Guard's Standard Operational Planning Process 
with respect to annual mission performance measures.

SEC. 214. COMMUNICATIONS.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating shall establish and carry out a response 
capabilities pilot program to assess, at not fewer than 2 Coast Guard 
command centers, the effectiveness of a radio gateway that--
          (1) provides for--
                  (A) multiagency collaboration and interoperability; 
                and
                  (B) wide-area, secure, and peer-invitation-and-
                acceptance-based multimedia communications;
          (2) is certified by the Department of Defense Joint 
        Interoperability Test Center; and
          (3) is composed of commercially available, off-the-shelf 
        technology.
  (b) Assessment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for the succeeding 4 
years, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 
and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate an assessment of 
the pilot program, including the impacts of the program with respect to 
interagency and Coast Guard response capabilities.

SEC. 215. COAST GUARD GRADUATE MARITIME OPERATIONS EDUCATION.

  Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating 
shall establish an education program, for members and employees of the 
Coast Guard, that--
          (1) offers a master's degree in maritime operations;
          (2) is relevant to the professional development of such 
        members and employees;
          (3) provides resident and distant education options, 
        including the ability to utilize both options; and
          (4) to the greatest extent practicable, is conducted using 
        existing academic programs at an accredited public academic 
        institution that--
                  (A) is located near a significant number of Coast 
                Guard, maritime, and other Department of Homeland 
                Security law enforcement personnel; and
                  (B) has an ability to simulate operations normally 
                conducted at a command center.

                   TITLE III--SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION

SEC. 301. TREATMENT OF FISHING PERMITS.

  (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 313 of title 46, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 31310. Treatment of fishing permits

  ``(a) Limitation on Maritime Liens.--This chapter--
          ``(1) does not establish a maritime lien on a fishing permit; 
        and
          ``(2) does not authorize any civil action to enforce a 
        maritime lien on a fishing permit.
  ``(b) Treatment of Fishing Permits Under State and Federal Law.--A 
fishing permit--
          ``(1) is governed solely by the State or Federal law under 
        which it is issued; and
          ``(2) shall not be treated as part of a vessel, or as an 
        appurtenance or intangible of a vessel, for any purpose under 
        Federal law.
  ``(c) Authority of Secretary of Commerce Not Affected.--Nothing in 
this section shall be construed as imposing any limitation upon the 
authority of the Secretary of Commerce--
          ``(1) to modify, suspend, revoke, or impose a sanction on any 
        fishing permit issued by the Secretary of Commerce; or
          ``(2) to bring a civil action to enforce such a modification, 
        suspension, revocation, or sanction.
  ``(d) Fishing Permit Defined.--In this section the term `fishing 
permit' means any authorization of a person or vessel to engage in 
fishing that is issued under State or Federal law.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
31309 the following:

``31310. Treatment of fishing permits.''.

SEC. 302. SURVIVAL CRAFT.

  (a) In General.--Section 3104 of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 3104. Survival craft

  ``(a) Requirement To Equip.--The Secretary shall require that a 
passenger vessel be equipped with survival craft that ensures that no 
part of an individual is immersed in water, if--
          ``(1) such vessel is built or undergoes a major conversion 
        after January 1, 2016; and
          ``(2) operates in cold waters as determined by the Secretary.
  ``(b) Higher Standard of Safety.--The Secretary may revise part 117 
or part 180 of title 46, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect 
before January 1, 2016, if such revision provides a higher standard of 
safety than is provided by the regulations in effect on or before the 
date of the enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015.
  ``(c) Innovative and Novel Designs.--The Secretary may, in lieu of 
the requirements set out in part 117 or part 180 of title 46, Code of 
Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of the enactment of the 
Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, allow a passenger vessel to be 
equipped with a life saving appliance or arrangement of an innovative 
or novel design that--
          ``(1) ensures no part of an individual is immersed in water; 
        and
          ``(2) provides an equal or higher standard of safety than is 
        provided by such requirements as in effect before such date of 
        the enactment.
  ``(d) Built Defined.--In this section, the term `built' has the 
meaning that term has under section 4503(e).''.
  (b) Review; Revision of Regulations.--
          (1) Review.--Not later than December 31, 2015, the Secretary 
        of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 
        submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
        the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
        Science, and Transportation of the Senate a review of--
                  (A) the number of casualties for individuals with 
                disabilities, children, and the elderly as a result of 
                immersion in water, reported to the Coast Guard over 
                the preceding 30-year period, by vessel type and area 
                of operation;
                  (B) the risks to individuals with disabilities, 
                children, and the elderly as a result of immersion in 
                water, by passenger vessel type and area of operation;
                  (C) the effect that carriage of survival craft that 
                ensure that no part of an individual is immersed in 
                water has on--
                          (i) passenger vessel safety, including 
                        stability and safe navigation;
                          (ii) improving the survivability of 
                        individuals, including individuals with 
                        disabilities, children, and the elderly; and
                          (iii) the costs, the incremental cost 
                        difference to vessel operators, and the cost 
                        effectiveness of requiring the carriage of such 
                        survival craft to address the risks to 
                        individuals with disabilities, children, and 
                        the elderly;
                  (D) the efficacy of alternative safety systems, 
                devices, or measures in improving survivability of 
                individuals with disabilities, children, and the 
                elderly; and
                  (E) the number of small businesses and nonprofit 
                vessel operators that would be affected by requiring 
                the carriage of such survival craft on passenger 
                vessels to address the risks to individuals with 
                disabilities, children, and the elderly.
          (2) Revision.--Based on the review conducted under paragraph 
        (1), the Secretary may revise regulations concerning the 
        carriage of survival craft pursuant to section 3104(c) of title 
        46, United States Code.

SEC. 303. ENFORCEMENT.

  (a) In General.--Section 55305(d) of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended--
          (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
          ``(1) Each department or agency that has responsibility for a 
        program under this section shall administer that program 
        consistent with this section and any regulations and guidance 
        issued by the Secretary of Transportation concerning this 
        section.'';
          (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3), and by 
        inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
          ``(2)(A) The Secretary, after consulting with the department, 
        agency, organization, or person involved, shall have exclusive 
        authority for determining the applicability of this section to 
        a program of a Federal department or agency, after consulting 
        with the department, agency, organization, or person involved.
          ``(B) The head of a Federal department or agency shall 
        request the Secretary to determine the applicability of this 
        section to a program of such department or agency if the 
        department or agency is uncertain of such applicability. Not 
        later than 30 days after receiving such a request, the 
        Secretary shall make such determination.
          ``(C) Subparagraph (B) shall not be construed to limit the 
        authority of the Secretary to make a determination regarding 
        the applicability of this section to a program administered by 
        a Federal department or agency.
          ``(D) A determination made by the Secretary under this 
        paragraph regarding a program shall remain in effect until the 
        Secretary determines that this section no longer applies to 
        such program.'';
          (3) in paragraph (3), as so redesignated, by amending 
        subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
                  ``(A) shall conduct an annual review of the 
                administration of programs subject to the requirements 
                of this section to determine compliance with the 
                requirements of this section;''; and
          (4) by adding at the end the following:
          ``(4) On the date on which the President submits to Congress 
        a budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, the Secretary 
        shall make available on the Internet website of the Department 
        of Transportation a report that--
                  ``(A) lists the programs that were subject to 
                determinations made by the Secretary under paragraph 
                (2) in the preceding year; and
                  ``(B) describes the results of the most recent annual 
                review required by paragraph (3)(A), including 
                identification of the departments and agencies that 
                transported cargo in violation of this section and any 
                action the Secretary took under paragraph (3) with 
                respect to each violation.''.
  (b) Deadline for First Review.--The Secretary of Transportation shall 
complete the first review required under the amendment made by 
subsection (a)(1)(C) by not later than December 31, 2015.
  (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 3511(c) of the Duncan Hunter 
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (46 U.S.C. 
55305 note) is repealed.

SEC. 304. MODEL YEARS FOR RECREATIONAL VESSELS.

  (a) In General.--Section 4302 of title 46, United States Code is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
  ``(e)(1) If in prescribing regulations under this section the 
Secretary establishes a model year for recreational vessels and 
associated equipment, such model year shall, except as provided in 
paragraph (2)--
          ``(A) begin on June 1 of a year and end on July 31 of the 
        following year; and
          ``(B) be designated by the year in which it ends.
  ``(2) Upon the request of a recreational vessel manufacturer to which 
this chapter applies, the Secretary may alter a model year for a model 
of recreational vessel of the manufacturer and associated equipment, by 
no more than 6 months from the model year described in paragraph 
(1).''.
  (b) Application.--This section shall only apply with respect to 
recreational vessels and associated equipment constructed or 
manufactured, respectively, on or after June 1, 2015.
  (c) Guidance.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating shall publish guidance to implement section 4302(d)(2) of 
title 46, United States Code.

SEC. 305. MERCHANT MARINER CREDENTIAL EXPIRATION HARMONIZATION.

  (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (c) and not later 
than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall establish 
a process to harmonize the expiration dates of merchant mariner 
credentials, mariner medical certificates, and radar observer 
endorsements for individuals applying to the Secretary for a new 
merchant mariner credential or for renewal of an existing merchant 
mariner credential.
  (b) Requirements.--The Secretary shall ensure that the process 
established under subsection (a)--
          (1) does not require an individual to renew a merchant 
        mariner credential earlier than the date on which the 
        individual's current credential expires; and
          (2) results in harmonization of expiration dates for merchant 
        mariner credentials, mariner medical certificates, and radar 
        observer endorsements for all individuals by not later than 6 
        years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
  (c) Exception.--The process established under subsection (a) does not 
apply to individuals--
          (1) holding a merchant mariner credential with--
                  (A) an active Standards of Training, Certification, 
                and Watchkeeping endorsement; or
                  (B) Federal first-class pilot endorsement; or
          (2) who have been issued a time-restricted medical 
        certificate.

SEC. 306. MARINE EVENT SAFETY ZONES.

  Section 6 of the Ports and Waterways Safety Act (33 U.S.C. 1225) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
  ``(c) Marine Event Safety Zones.--
          ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        Secretary shall recover all costs the Coast Guard incurs to 
        enforce a safety zone under this section if such safety zone is 
        established for a marine event conducted under a permit or 
        other authorization by the Coast Guard.
          ``(2) Exception.--The Secretary may not recover costs under 
        paragraph (1) from a State or local government.
          ``(3) Treatment of recovered costs.--Costs recovered by the 
        Secretary under this subsection shall be credited to the 
        appropriation for operating expenses of the Coast Guard.
          ``(4) Marine event defined.--In this section the term `marine 
        event' means a planned activity of limited duration that by its 
        nature, circumstances, or location, will introduce extra or 
        unusual hazards to the safety of life on the navigable waters 
        of the United States.''.

SEC. 307. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.

  (a) Title 46.--Title 46, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) in section 103, by striking ``(33 U.S.C. 151).'' and 
        inserting ``(33 U.S.C. 151(b)).'';
          (2) in section 2118--
                  (A) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 
                paragraph (1), by striking ``title,'' and inserting 
                ``subtitle,''; and
                  (B) in subsection (b), by striking ``title'' and 
                inserting ``subtitle'';
          (3) in the analysis for chapter 35--
                  (A) by adding a period at the end of the item 
                relating to section 3507; and
                  (B) by adding a period at the end of the item 
                relating to section 3508;
          (4) in section 3715(a)(2), by striking ``; and'' and 
        inserting a semicolon;
          (5) in section 8103(b)(1)(A)(iii), by striking ``Academy.'' 
        and inserting ``Academy; and''; and
          (6) in section 11113(c)(1)(A)(i), by striking ``under this 
        Act''.
  (b) General Bridge Statutes.--
          (1) Act of march 3, 1899.--The Act of March 3, 1899, 
        popularly known as the Rivers and Harbors Appropriations Act of 
        1899, is amended--
                  (A) in section 9 (33 U.S.C. 401), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''; and
                  (B) in section 18 (33 U.S.C. 502), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''.
          (2) Act of march 23, 1906.--The Act of March 23, 1906, 
        popularly known as the Bridge Act of 1906, is amended--
                  (A) in the first section (33 U.S.C. 491), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating'';
                  (B) in section 4 (33 U.S.C. 494), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Homeland Security'' each place it 
                appears and inserting ``Secretary of the department in 
                which the Coast Guard is operating''; and
                  (C) in section 5 (33 U.S.C. 495), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''.
          (3) Act of august 18, 1894.--Section 5 of the Act entitled 
        ``An Act making appropriations for the construction, repair, 
        and preservation of certain public works on rivers and harbors, 
        and for other purposes'', approved August 18, 1894 (33 U.S.C. 
        499) is amended by striking ``Secretary of Transportation'' 
        each place it appears and inserting ``Secretary of the 
        department in which the Coast Guard is operating''.
          (4) Act of june 21, 1940.--The Act of June 21, 1940, 
        popularly known as the Truman-Hobbs Act, is amended--
                  (A) in the first section (33 U.S.C. 511), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating'';
                  (B) in section 4 (33 U.S.C. 514), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating'';
                  (C) in section 7 (33 U.S.C. 517), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''; and
                  (D) in section 13 (33 U.S.C. 523), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating''.
          (5) General bridge act of 1946.--The General Bridge Act of 
        1946 is amended--
                  (A) in section 502(b) (33 U.S.C. 525(b)), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating''; and
                  (B) in section 510 (33 U.S.C. 533), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''.
          (6) International bridge act of 1972.--The International 
        Bridge Act of 1972 is amended--
                  (A) in section 5 (33 U.S.C. 535c), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
                is operating''; and
                  (B) in section 8 (33 U.S.C. 535e), by striking 
                ``Secretary of Transportation'' each place it appears 
                and inserting ``Secretary of the department in which 
                the Coast Guard is operating''.

SEC. 308. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVEMENTS OF MARINE CASUALTY 
                    REPORTING.

  Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall notify the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate of 
the actions the Commandant will take to implement recommendations on 
improvements to the Coast Guard's marine casualty reporting 
requirements and procedures included in--
          (1) the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector 
        General report entitled ``Marine Accident Reporting, 
        Investigations, and Enforcement in the United States Coast 
        Guard'', released on May 23, 2013; and
          (2) the Towing Safety Advisory Committee report entitled 
        ``Recommendations for Improvement of Marine Casualty 
        Reporting'', released on March 26, 2015.

SEC. 309. RECREATIONAL VESSEL ENGINE WEIGHTS.

  Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating 
shall issue regulations amending Table 4 to Subpart H of Part 183-
Weights (Pounds) of Outboard Motor and Related Equipment for Various 
Boat Horsepower Ratings (33 C.F.R. 183) as appropriate to reflect 
``Standard 30-Outboard Engine and Related Equipment Weights'' published 
by the American Boat and Yacht Council, as in effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 310. MERCHANT MARINER MEDICAL CERTIFICATION REFORM.

  (a) In General.--Chapter 75 of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 7509. Medical certification by trusted agents

  ``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law and 
pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary, a trusted agent 
may issue a medical certificate to an individual who--
          ``(1) must hold such certificate to qualify for a license, 
        certificate of registry, or merchant mariner's document, or 
        endorsement thereto under this part; and
          ``(2) is qualified as to sight, hearing, and physical 
        condition to perform the duties of such license, certificate, 
        document, or endorsement, as determined by the trusted agent.
  ``(b) Trusted Agent Defined.--In this section the term `trusted 
agent' means a medical practitioner certified by the Secretary to 
perform physical examinations of an individual for purposes of a 
license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner's document under 
this part.''.
  (b) Deadline.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating shall issue a final rule implementing section 7509 of 
title 46, United States Code, as added by this section.
  (c) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for such chapter is amended by 
adding at the end the following:

``7509. Medical certification by trusted agents.''.

SEC. 311. ATLANTIC COAST PORT ACCESS ROUTE STUDY.

  Not later than April 1, 2016, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall 
conclude the Atlantic Coast Port Access Route Study and submit the 
results of such study to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 312. CERTIFICATES OF DOCUMENTATION FOR RECREATIONAL VESSELS.

  Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating 
shall issue regulations that--
          (1) make certificates of documentation for recreational 
        vessels effective for 5 years; and
          (2) require the owner of such a vessel--
                  (A) to notify the Coast Guard of each change in the 
                information on which the issuance of the certificate of 
                documentation is based, that occurs before the 
                expiration of the certificate; and
                  (B) apply for a new certificates of documentation for 
                such a vessel if there is any such change.

SEC. 313. PROGRAM GUIDELINES.

  Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment this Act, the 
Secretary of Transportation shall--
          (1) develop guidelines to implement the program authorized 
        under section 304(a) of the Coast Guard and Maritime 
        Transportation Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-241), including 
        specific actions to ensure the future availability of able and 
        credentialed United States licensed and unlicensed seafarers 
        including--
                  (A) incentives to encourage partnership agreements 
                with operators of foreign-flag vessels that carry 
                liquified natural gas, that provide no less than one 
                training billet per vessel for United States merchant 
                mariners in order to meet minimum mandatory sea service 
                requirements;
                  (B) development of appropriate training curricula for 
                use by public and private maritime training 
                institutions to meet all United States merchant mariner 
                license, certification, and document laws and 
                requirements under the International Convention on 
                Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping 
                for Seafarers, 1978; and
                  (C) steps to promote greater outreach and awareness 
                of additional job opportunities for sea service 
                veterans of the United States Armed Forces; and
          (2) submit such guidelines to the Committee Transportation 
        and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
        Senate.

SEC. 314. REPEALS.

  (a) Repeals, Merchant Marine Act, 1936.--Sections 601 through 606, 
608 through 611, 613 through 616, 802, and 809 of the Merchant Marine 
Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. 53101 note) are repealed.
  (b) Conforming Amendments.--Chapter 575 of title 46, United States 
Code, is amended--
          (1) in section 57501, by striking ``titles V and VI'' and 
        inserting ``title V'' ; and
          (2) in section 57531(a), by striking ``titles V and VI'' and 
        inserting ``title V''.
  (c) Transfer From Merchant Marine Act, 1936.--
          (1) In general.--Section 801 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 
        (46 U.S.C. 53101 note) is--
                  (A) redesignated as section 57522 of title 46, United 
                States Code, and transferred to appear after section 
                57521 of such title; and
                  (B) as so redesignated and transferred, is amended--
                          (i) by striking so much as precedes the first 
                        sentence and inserting the following:

``Sec. 57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and inspection and 
                    auditing'';

                          (ii) by striking ``the provision of title VI 
                        or VII of this Act'' and inserting ``this 
                        chapter'';
                          (iii) by striking ``That the provisions'' and 
                        all that follows through ``Commission; (2)'' ; 
                        and
                          (iv) by redesignating clauses (3) and (4) as 
                        clauses (2) and (3), respectively.
          (2) Clerical amendment.--The analysis for chapter 575, of 
        title 46, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the 
        item relating to section 57521 the following:

``57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and inspection and 
auditing.''.

  (d) Repeals, Title 46, U.S.C..--Section 8103 of title 46, United 
States Code, is amended in subsections (c) and (d) by striking ``or 
operating'' each place it appears.

                 TITLE IV--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

SEC. 401. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

  (a) In General.--Chapter 3 of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 308. Authorization of appropriations

  ``There is authorized to be appropriated to the Federal Maritime 
Commission $24,700,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 and 2017 for the 
activities of the Commission authorized under this chapter and subtitle 
IV.''.
  (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 3 of title 46, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

``308. Authorization of appropriations.''.

SEC. 402. DUTIES OF THE CHAIRMAN.

  Section 301(c)(3)(A) of title 46, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) in clause (ii) by striking ``units, but only after 
        consultation with the other Commissioners;'' and inserting 
        ``units (with such appointments subject to the approval of the 
        Commission);'';
          (2) in clause (iv) by striking ``and'' at the end;
          (3) in clause (v) by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
          (4) by adding at the end the following:
                          ``(vi) prepare and submit to the President 
                        and Congress requests for appropriations for 
                        the Commission (with such requests subject to 
                        the approval of the Commission).''.

SEC. 403. PROHIBITION ON AWARDS.

  Section 307 of title 46, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by striking ``The Federal Maritime Commission'' and 
        inserting the following:
  ``(a) In General.--The Federal Maritime Commission''; and
          (2) by adding at the end the following:
  ``(b) Prohibition.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Federal 
Maritime Commission may not expend any funds appropriated or otherwise 
made available to it to issue an award, prize, commendation, or other 
honor to a non-Federal entity.''.

                         TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS

SEC. 501. CONVEYANCE OF COAST GUARD PROPERTY IN MARIN COUNTY, 
                    CALIFORNIA.

  (a) Conveyance Authorized.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard may 
convey all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to 
the covered property, upon payment to the United States of the fair 
market value of the covered property.
  (b) Right of First Refusal.--The County of Marin, California shall 
have the right of first refusal with respect to purchase of the covered 
property under this section.
  (c) Survey.--The exact acreage and legal description of the covered 
property shall be determined by a survey satisfactory to the 
Commandant.
  (d) Fair Market Value.--The fair market value of the covered property 
shall--
          (1) be determined by appraisal; and
          (2) be subject to the approval of the Commandant.
  (e) Costs of Conveyance.--The responsibility for all reasonable and 
necessary costs, including real estate transaction and environmental 
documentation costs, associated with a conveyance under this section 
shall be determined by the Commandant and the purchaser.
  (f) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The Commandant may require such 
additional terms and conditions in connection with a conveyance under 
this section as the Commandant considers appropriate and reasonable to 
protect the interests of the United States.
  (g) Deposit of Proceeds.--Any proceeds received by the United States 
in a conveyance under this section shall be deposited in the Coast 
Guard Housing Fund established by section 687 of title 14, United 
States Code.
  (h) Covered Property Defined.--In this section, the term ``covered 
property'' means the approximately 32 acres of real property (including 
all improvements located on the property) that are--
          (1) located at Station Point Reyes in Marin County, 
        California;
          (2) under the administrative control of the Coast Guard; and
          (3) described as ``Parcel A, Tract 1'', ``Parcel B, Tract 
        2'', ``Parcel C'', and ``Parcel D'' in the Declaration of 
        Taking (Civil No. C-71-1245 SC) filed June 28, 1971, in the 
        United States District Court for the Northern District of 
        California.

SEC. 502. ELIMINATION OF REPORTS.

  (a) Distant Water Tuna Fleet.--Section 421 of the Coast Guard and 
Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 (46 U.S.C. 8103 note) is amended by 
striking subsection (d).
  (b) Annual Updates on Limits to Liability.--Section 603(c)(3) of the 
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 (33 U.S.C. 2704 
note) is amended by striking ``on an annual basis.'' and inserting 
``not later than January 30 of the year following each year in which 
occurs an oil discharge from a vessel or nonvessel source that results 
or is likely to result in removal costs and damages (as those terms are 
defined in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 
2701)) that exceed liability limits established under section 1004 of 
the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2704).''.
  (c) International Bridge Act of 1972.--The International Bridge Act 
of 1972 is amended by striking section 11 (33 U.S.C. 535h).

SEC. 503. VESSEL DOCUMENTATION.

  Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee 
on Transportation and infrastructure of the House and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, a description of 
actions that could be taken to--
          (1) improve the efficiency of performance of the functions 
        currently carried out by the National Vessel Documentation 
        Center, including by--
                  (A) transferring such functions to Coast Guard 
                headquarters; and
                  (B) reassigning Coast Guard personnel to better meet 
                the Coast Guard's vessel documentation mission; and
          (2) strengthen the review of compliance with United States 
        ownership requirements for vessels documented under the laws of 
        the United States.

SEC. 504. CONVEYANCE OF COAST GUARD PROPERTY IN TOK, ALASKA.

  (a) Conveyance Authorized.--The Commandant of the Coast Guard may 
convey all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to 
the covered property, upon payment to the United States of the fair 
market value of the covered property.
  (b) Right of First Refusal.--The Tanana Chiefs' Conference shall have 
the right of first refusal with respect to purchase of the covered 
property under this section.
  (c) Survey.--The exact acreage and legal description of the covered 
property shall be determined by a survey satisfactory to the 
Commandant.
  (d) Fair Market Value.--The fair market value of the covered property 
shall be--
          (1) determined by appraisal; and
          (2) subject to the approval of the Commandant.
  (e) Costs of Conveyance.--The responsibility for all reasonable and 
necessary costs, including real estate transaction and environmental 
documentation costs, associated with a conveyance under this section 
shall be determined by the Commandant and the purchaser.
  (f) Additional Terms and Conditions.--The Commandant may require such 
additional terms and conditions in connection with a conveyance under 
this section as the Commandant considers appropriate and reasonable to 
protect the interests of the United States.
  (g) Deposit of Proceeds.--Any proceeds received by the United States 
from a conveyance under this section shall be deposited in the Coast 
Guard Housing Fund established under section 687 of title 14, United 
States Code.
  (h) Covered Property Defined.--
          (1) In general.--In this section, the term ``covered 
        property'' means the approximately 3.25 acres of real property 
        (including all improvements located on the property) that are--
                  (A) located in Tok, Alaska;
                  (B) under the administrative control of the Coast 
                Guard; and
                  (C) described in paragraph (2).
          (2) Description.--The property described in this paragraph is 
        the following:
                  (A) Lots 11, 12 and 13, block ``G'', Second Addition 
                to Hartsell Subdivision, Section 20, Township 18 North, 
                Range 13 East, Copper River Meridian, Alaska as appears 
                by Plat No. 72-39 filed in the Office of the Recorder 
                for the Fairbanks Recording District of Alaska, bearing 
                seal dated 25 September 1972, all containing 
                approximately 1.25 Acres and commonly known as 2-PLEX - 
                Jackie Circle, Units A and B.
                  (B) Beginning at a point being the SE corner of the 
                SE \1/4\ of the SE \1/4\ Section 24, Township 18 North, 
                Range 12 East, Copper River Meridian, Alaska; thence 
                running westerly along the south line of said SE \1/4\ 
                of the NE \1/4\ 260 feet; thence northerly parallel to 
                the east line of said SE \1/4\ of the NE \1/4\ 335 
                feet; thence easterly parallel to the south line 260 
                feet; then south 335 feet along the east boundary of 
                Section 24 to the point of beginning; all containing 
                approximately 2.0 acres and commonly known as 4-PLEX - 
                West ``C'' and Willow, Units A, B, C and D.

SEC. 505. SAFE VESSEL OPERATION IN THE GREAT LAKES.

  The Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 
(Public Law 113-281) is amended--
          (1) in section 610, by--
                  (A) striking the section enumerator and heading and 
                inserting the following:

``SEC. 610. SAFE VESSEL OPERATION IN THE GREAT LAKES.'';

                  (B) striking ``existing boundaries and any future 
                expanded boundaries of the Thunder Bay National Marine 
                Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve'' and inserting 
                ``boundaries of any national marine sanctuary that 
                preserves shipwrecks or maritime heritage in the Great 
                Lakes''; and
                  (C) by inserting before the period at the end the 
                following: ``, unless the designation documents for 
                such sanctuary do not allow taking up or discharging 
                ballast water in such sanctuary''; and
          (2) in the table of contents in section 2, by striking the 
        item relating to such section and inserting the following:

``Sec. 610. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes.''.

SEC. 506. USE OF VESSEL SALE PROCEEDS.

  (a) Audit.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct an audit of funds credited in each fiscal year after fiscal 
year 2004 to the Vessel Operations Revolving Fund that are attributable 
to the sale of obsolete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet 
that were scrapped or sold under sections 57102, 57103, and 57104 of 
title 46, United States Code, including--
          (1) a complete accounting of all vessel sale proceeds 
        attributable to the sale of obsolete vessels in the National 
        Defense Reserve Fleet that were scrapped or sold under sections 
        57102, 57103 and 57104 of title 46, United States Code, in each 
        fiscal year after fiscal year 2004;
          (2) the annual apportionment of proceeds accounted for under 
        paragraph (1) among the uses authorized under section 308704 of 
        title 54, United States Code, in each fiscal year after fiscal 
        year 2004, including--
                  (A) for National Maritime Heritage Grants, including 
                a list of all annual National Maritime Heritage Grant 
                grant and subgrant awards that identifies the 
                respective grant and subgrant recipients and grant and 
                subgrant amounts;
                  (B) for the preservation and presentation to the 
                public of maritime heritage property of the Maritime 
                Administration;
                  (C) to the United States Merchant Marine Academy and 
                State maritime academies, including a list of annual 
                awards; and
                  (D) for the acquisition, repair, reconditioning, or 
                improvement of vessels in the National Defense Reserve 
                Fleet; and
          (3) an accounting of proceeds, if any, attributable to the 
        sale of obsolete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet 
        that were scrapped or sold under sections 57102, 57103, and 
        57104 of title 46, United States Code, in each fiscal year 
        after fiscal year 2004, that were expended for uses not 
        authorized under section 308704 of title 54, United States 
        Code.
  (b) Submission to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit the audit 
conducted in subsection (a) to the Committee on Armed Services, the 
Committee on Natural Resources, and the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 507. FISHING VESSEL AND FISH TENDER VESSEL CERTIFICATION.

  Section 4503 of title 46, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following: 
        ``Subsection (a) does not apply to a fishing vessel or fish 
        tender vessel described in subsection (d)(6), if the vessel 
        complies with an alternative safety compliance program 
        established under that subsection for such a vessel.''; and
          (2) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the following:
  ``(6) The Secretary shall establish an alternative safety compliance 
program for fishing vessels or fish tender vessels (or both) that are 
at least 50 feet overall in length, and not more than 79 feet overall 
in length, and built after July 1, 2013.''.

SEC. 508. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES COST COMPARISON.

  (a) Cost Comparison.--The Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating shall seek to enter into an arrangement with 
the National Academy of Sciences under which the Academy, by no later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, shall submit 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a comparison of the costs incurred by the 
Federal Government for each of the following alternatives:
          (1) Transferring the Polar Sea to a non-governmental entity 
        at no cost, and leasing back the vessel beginning on the date 
        on which the Coast Guard certifies that the vessel is capable 
        of the breaking out and missions described in subsection 
        (c)(1).
          (2) The reactivation and operation by the Coast Guard of the 
        Polar Sea to an operational level at which the vessel is 
        capable of such breaking out and missions.
          (3) Acquiring and operating a new icebreaker through the 
        Coast Guard's acquisition process that is capable of such 
        breaking out and missions.
          (4) Construction by a non-Federal entity of an icebreaker 
        capable of such breaking out and missions, that will be leased 
        by the Federal Government and operated using a Coast Guard 
        crew.
          (5) Construction by a non-Federal entity of an icebreaker 
        capable of such breaking out and missions, that will be leased 
        by the Federal Government and operated by a crew of non-Federal 
        employees.
          (6) The acquisition of services from a non-Federal entity to 
        perform such breaking out and missions.
  (b) Included Costs.--For purposes of subsection (a), the cost of each 
alternative includes costs incurred by the Federal Government for--
          (1) the lease or operation and maintenance of the vessel 
        concerned;
          (2) disposal of such vessel at the end of the useful life of 
        the vessel;
          (3) retirement and other benefits for Federal employees who 
        operate such vessel; and
          (4) interest payments assumed to be incurred for Federal 
        capital expenditures.
  (c) Assumptions.--For purposes of comparing the costs of such 
alternatives, the Academy shall assume that--
          (1) each vessel under consideration is--
                  (A) capable of breaking out of McMurdo Station, and 
                conducting Coast Guard missions in the United States 
                territory in the Arctic (as that term is defined in 
                section 112 of the Arctic Research and Policy Act of 
                1984 (15 U.S.C. 4111)); and
                  (B) operated for a period of 20 years;
          (2) the acquisition of services and the operation of each 
        vessel begin on the same date; and
          (3) the periods for conducting Coast Guard missions in the 
        Arctic are of equal lengths.

SEC. 509. PENALTY WAGES.

  (a) Foreign and Intercoastal Voyages.--Section 10313(g) of title 46, 
United States Code, is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (2)--
                  (A) by striking ``all claims in a class action suit 
                by seamen'' and inserting ``each claim by a seaman''; 
                and
                  (B) by striking ``the seamen'' and inserting ``the 
                seaman''; and
          (2) in paragraph (3)--
                  (A) by striking ``class action''; and
                  (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``, by a seaman 
                who is a claimant in the suit,'' and inserting ``by the 
                seaman''.
  (b) Coastwise Voyages.--Section 10504(c) of such title is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (2)--
                  (A) by striking ``all claims in a class action suit 
                by seamen'' and inserting ``each claim by a seaman''; 
                and
                  (B) by striking ``the seamen'' and inserting ``the 
                seaman''; and
          (2) in paragraph (3)--
                  (A) by striking ``class action''; and
                  (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``, by a seaman 
                who is a claimant in the suit,'' and inserting ``by the 
                seaman''.

SEC. 510. RECOURSE FOR NONCITIZENS.

  Section 30104 of title 46, United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before the first 
        sentence; and
          (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
  ``(b) Restriction on Recovery for Nonresident Aliens Employed on 
Foreign Passenger Vessels.--A claim for damages or expenses relating to 
personal injury, illness, or death of a seaman who is a citizen of a 
foreign nation, arising during or from the engagement of the seaman by 
or for a passenger vessel duly registered under the laws of a foreign 
nation, may not be brought under the laws of the United States if--
          ``(1) such seaman was not a permanent resident alien of the 
        United States at the time the claim arose;
          ``(2) the injury, illness, or death arose outside the 
        territorial waters of the United States; and
          ``(3) the seaman or the seaman's personal representative has 
        or had a right to seek compensation for the injury, illness, or 
        death in, or under the laws of--
                  ``(A) the nation in which the vessel was registered 
                at the time the claim arose; or
                  ``(B) the nation in which the seaman maintained 
                citizenship or residency at the time the claim 
                arose.''.

                         Purpose of Legislation

    H.R. 1987, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, as 
amended, authorizes $8.7 billion in discretionary funding for 
the Coast Guard for each of the fiscal years 2016 and 2017. The 
bill authorizes the end-of-year strength for active duty 
military personnel at 43,000 for each of the fiscal years 2016 
and 2017. The bill also authorizes $24.7 million for the 
Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in each of the fiscal years 
2016 and 2017. Finally, the bill makes several reforms to Coast 
Guard authorities and laws governing shipping and navigation.

                  Background and Need for Legislation


                              COAST GUARD

    The United States Coast Guard was established on January 
28, 1915, through the consolidation of the Revenue Cutter 
Service (established in 1790) and the Lifesaving Service 
(established in 1848). The Coast Guard later assumed the duties 
of three other agencies: the Lighthouse Service (established 
1789), the Steamboat Inspection Service (established in 1838), 
and the Bureau of Navigation (established in 1884).
    Under section 2 of title 14, United States Code, the Coast 
Guard has primary responsibility to enforce or assist in the 
enforcement of all applicable federal laws in, under, and over 
the high seas and waters subject to the jurisdiction of the 
United States; to ensure safety of life and property at sea; to 
protect the marine environment; to carry out icebreaking 
activities; and to ensure the safety and security of vessels, 
ports, waterways, and related facilities.
    As one of the five Armed Services, the Coast Guard also 
maintains defense readiness to operate as a specialized service 
in the Navy upon the declaration of war or when the President 
directs. The Coast Guard is composed of approximately 40,000 
military personnel, 7,500 reservists, and 8,300 civilian 
employees. The Coast Guard or its predecessors have defended 
the Nation in every war since 1790.
    In fiscal year 2014, the Coast Guard responded to over 
17,500 search and rescue cases saving over 3,400 lives, 
conducted over 8,600 security boardings of vessels entering 
U.S. ports, inspected over 12,500 U.S. flagged commercial 
vessels to ensure safety and security requirements were met, 
maintained over 51,000 aids to navigation, and interdicted over 
3,500 undocumented migrants and 140 metric tons of illegal 
drugs.
    H.R. 1987, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, as 
amended, authorizes the Coast Guard for the next two years at 
fiscally responsible levels to carry out these missions, while 
helping to replace and modernize the Coast Guard's aging assets 
in a cost effective manner, enhancing oversight, and reducing 
inefficiencies to save taxpayer dollars.
    Pursuant to section 101 of the Howard Coble Coast Guard and 
Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 (P.L. 113-281), the 
activities of the Coast Guard are authorized through fiscal 
year (FY) 2015 at $8.7 billion. H.R. 1987, as amended, 
authorizes $8.7 billion in discretionary funds for the Coast 
Guard for each of the fiscal years 2016 and 2017.

Investment in Coast Guard capabilities

    The Committee has long had concerns about the adequacy of 
capital investment in Coast Guard assets and infrastructure. 
Enforcing federal laws in, under, over the high seas and waters 
subject to the jurisdiction of the United States is a 
complicated task requiring a workforce that is highly trained 
in many areas from marine and aviation operations to marine 
safety. It also requires a substantial number of physical 
assets from cutters and aircraft, to buoys and shoreside 
facilities. The Coast Guard and GAO have both done estimates of 
what is required in annual Coast Guard capital investment. 
These estimates range from $1.5 to more than $2.0 billion 
depending on whether the goal is to maintain existing 
capability or to achieve capabilities closer to those imagined 
in the 2005 Mission Need Statement (MNS), or in the approved 
acquisition program of record. In recent years, administration 
budget requests have fallen woefully short of even meeting 
minimum needs and appropriations have only been able to make up 
a fraction of the shortfall. In fiscal year 2016, the President 
is requesting $1 billion for the Coast Guard's Acquisition, 
Construction, and Improvement (AC&I) account. This represents a 
cut of over $200 million or 17 percent from the FY 2015 enacted 
level.
    Section 215 of P.L. 113-281 requires the submission of a 
revised MNS which explains how each major acquisition program 
addresses identified mission hour gaps, and describes the 
missions the Coast Guard will be unable to fully achieve for 
each gap identified. The Committee will do oversight based on 
this MNS when it is submitted in July 2015. Pending that 
updated information, H.R. 1987 authorizes the Coast Guard's 
AC&I account at $1.5 billion for each of the fiscal years 2016 
and 2017, approximately $500 million more than the President's 
FY 2016 request. The Committee believes long-term funding at 
this level will allow the Coast Guard to maintain current 
mission capability. However, the Committee acknowledges that 
even at the level of capital funding proposed in this 
authorization, certain Coast Guard missions simply will not be 
done or will be done at an operations tempo far short of what 
is needed to adequately carry them out. The Committee looks 
forward to continuing to work with the Coast Guard for the 
remainder for the 114th Congress to determine how to better 
align missions and assets under current budget constraints and 
to identify those missions which may be best handled by other 
entities.
    As mentioned, section 215 of P.L. 113-281 requires the 
Coast Guard to update its 2005 MNS which provides the 
underlying justification for its asset recapitalization 
program. H.R. 1987, as amended, builds on that requirement by 
adding a review of Coast Guard manpower needs. Without a 
sufficient number of trained servicemembers operating assets, 
readiness and mission performance suffers. Without trained 
Coast Guard inspectors and environmental responders, maritime 
safety and environmental response regulations have no real 
world effect. The Committee believes these documents will 
assist in our oversight and our efforts to improve Coast Guard 
mission performance.

                      FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

    The FMC is the independent federal agency responsible for 
regulating the U.S. international ocean transportation system 
for the benefit of U.S. exporters, importers, and consumers. 
P.L. 113-281 authorized activities of the FMC through FY 2015. 
H.R. 1987, as amended, reauthorizes the FMC through FY 2017 at 
currently authorized levels and includes several reforms to the 
administrative procedures of the FMC to improve public 
accountability.

                        MARITIME TRANSPORTATION

    The maritime sector of our national transportation system 
is essential to our economy and vital to our national security. 
The U.S. maritime industry currently employs more than 260,000 
Americans providing nearly $29 billion in annual wages. There 
are more than 40,000 commercial vessels currently flying the 
American flag. The vast majority of these vessels are engaged 
in domestic commerce, moving over 100 million passengers and 
$400 billion worth of goods between ports in the United States 
on an annual basis. Each year, the U.S. maritime industry 
accounts for over $100 billion in economic output.
    Beyond the important contributions to our economy, a 
healthy maritime industry is vital to our national security. 
Throughout our history, the military has relied on U.S. flagged 
commercial vessels crewed by American Merchant Mariners to 
carry troops, weapons, and supplies to the battlefield. During 
Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, U.S. flagged 
commercial vessels transported 63 percent of all military 
cargos moved to Afghanistan and Iraq. Since the United States 
cannot rely on foreign vessels and crews to provide for its 
national security, it is critical to maintain a robust fleet of 
U.S. flagged vessels, a large cadre of skilled American 
mariners, and a strong shipyard industrial base.
    However, over the last 35 years, the number of U.S. flagged 
vessels sailing in the international trade has dropped from 850 
to less than 100. In the same period, the United States has 
lost over 300 shipyards and thousands of American maritime-
related jobs. Preserving and strengthening our Nation's 
maritime industry is vital to our economic and national 
security.
    H.R. 1987, as amended, improves the enforcement U.S. cargo 
preference laws to ensure that cargo financed by the American 
taxpayers is transported on U.S. flagged vessels crewed with 
U.S. mariners. The bill also encourages job growth in the U.S. 
maritime sector by reducing several regulatory burdens on small 
business.

                                Hearings

    On February 25, 2015, the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and 
Maritime Transportation held a hearing to examine the FY 2016 
budget requests for the Coast Guard, the FMC, and the Maritime 
Administration. On April 15, 2015, the Subcommittee held a 
hearing to review Coast Guard mission execution.

                 Legislative History and Consideration

    On April 23, 2015, Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime 
Transportation Chairman Duncan Hunter introduced for himself, 
Subcommittee Ranking Member John Garamendi, and Transportation 
and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster and Ranking 
Member Peter DeFazio, H.R. 1987, the Coast Guard Authorization 
Act of 2015. On April 30, 2015, the Committee met in open 
session to consider H.R. 1987, and ordered the bill, as 
amended, reported favorably to the House of Representatives by 
voice vote with a quorum present.
    Amendments were offered in Committee by Representatives 
Hunter, Brown, and Hahn. Representative Hunter offered a 
manager's amendment which was adopted by voice vote. The 
amendment made technical changes to the bill and added 
provisions to improve a training program for U.S. mariners; 
audit the proceeds from the sale of vessels in the National 
Defense Reserve Fleet; convey a parcel of excess Coast Guard 
property in Alaska at fair market value; ensure the safe 
operation of vessels on the Great Lakes; conduct a cost 
comparison between constructing and leasing a new polar 
icebreaker; and amend classification requirements for certain 
commercial fishing vessels. Representative Brown offered an 
amendment, which was adopted by voice vote, to cap penalty 
wages for mariners in individual suits and clarify recourse to 
sue in U.S. courts for foreign citizens injured while working 
on foreign flagged cruise vessels operating in international 
waters. Representative Hahn offered and withdrew an amendment 
regarding benefits for World War II merchant marine veterans.

                            Committee Votes

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires each committee report to include the 
total number of votes cast for and against on each record vote 
on a motion to report and on any amendment offered to the 
measure or matter, and the names of those members voting for 
and against. There were no record votes taken in connection 
with consideration of H.R. 1987.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(1) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are 
reflected in this report.

               New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives does not apply where a cost estimate and 
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974 has been timely submitted prior to the filing of the 
report and is included in the report. Such a cost estimate is 
included in this report.

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(3) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has 
received the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1987, as amended, 
from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                      Washington, DC, May 14, 2015.
Hon. Bill Shuster,
Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure,
U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1987, the Coast 
Guard Authorization Act of 2015.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Martin von 
Gnechten.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 1987--Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015

    Summary: H.R. 1987 would authorize appropriations totaling 
$17.5 billion, primarily for ongoing operations of the United 
States Coast Guard (USCG) and the Federal Maritime Commission 
(FMC) over the 2016-2017 period. The bill would amend laws that 
govern the activities of USCG, FMC, and the Maritime 
Administration within the Department of Transportation. 
Assuming appropriation of the specified amounts, CBO estimates 
that implementing the legislation would cost $16.6 billion over 
the 2016-2020 period.
    H.R. 1987 would expand the authority of USCG to cancel 
federal debts to include those who incurred debt as an officer 
on active duty in the Coast Guard. Based on information 
provided by USCG, CBO estimates that enacting this provision 
would reduce offsetting receipts that are treated as increases 
in direct spending by less than $500,000 over the 2016-2025 
period. (The loss of offsetting receipts are treated as 
increases in direct spending.) Because enacting this 
legislation would increase direct spending, pay-as-you-go 
procedures apply; however, the effect on direct spending would 
be insignificant in each year and over the 2016-2025 period. 
Enacting H.R. 1987 would not affect revenues.
    H.R. 1987 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA).
    H.R. 1987 would impose private-sector mandates, as defined 
in UMRA, on sponsors of marine events and manufacturers of 
small boats. Based on information from USCG and industry 
experts, CBO estimates that the cost of the mandates would fall 
below the annual threshold in UMRA for private-sector mandates 
($154 million in 2015, adjusted for inflation).
    Estimated Cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of H.R. 1987 is shown in the following table. 
The costs of this legislation fall within budget functions 050 
(national defense) and 400 (transportation).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                    ------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       2016      2017      2018      2019      2020    2016-2020
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
United States Coast Guard
    Authorization Level............................     8,704     8,704         0         0         0     17,408
    Estimated Outlays..............................     5,761     7,225     2,098       984       520     16,588
Federal Maritime Commission
    Authorization Level............................        25        25         0         0         0         49
    Estimated Outlays..............................        23        24         2         0         0         49
    Total
        Authorization Level........................     8,729     8,729         0         0         0     17,458
        Estimated Outlays..........................     5,784     7,249     2,100       984       520     16,637
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: Details may not sum to totals because of rounding.

    Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that H.R. 
1987 will be enacted near the end of fiscal year 2015 and that 
the amounts authorized by the bill will be appropriated for 
each year. Estimated outlays are based on historical spending 
patterns for authorized activities.

United States Coast Guard

    H.R. 1987 would authorize the appropriation of $8.7 billion 
for ongoing USCG activities for each of fiscal years 2016 and 
2017. In 2015 the USCG received an appropriation of $8.4 
billion. Specifically, the bill would authorize the 
appropriation of $17.4 billion for USCG operations including 
about $14 billion for operations and maintenance, $3.1 billion 
for capital acquisitions, $280 million for reserve training, 
$40 million for research programs, and $33 million for 
environmental compliance. Among the new USCG responsibilities 
in the bill, H.R. 1987 would direct USCG to:
           Submit various reports to the Congress, 
        including a 20-year acquisition plan, an implementation 
        plan for using software to manage boat maintenance, and 
        a manpower requirements plan;
           Establish a pilot program to assess USCG 
        communications during response activities;
           Authorize the conveyance of property in 
        California and Alaska at fair market value; and
           Recover the costs of providing safety zones 
        around private marine events that are permitted or 
        authorized by the Coast Guard.
    Assuming appropriation of the amounts specified ill the 
bill, CBO estimates that implementing the USCG provisions of 
H.R. 1987 would cost $16.6 billion over the 2016-2020 period. 
Based on information from the USCG, CBO expects that the 
property conveyances authorized in H.R. 1987 would have no 
significant effect on the budget.

Federal Maritime Commission

    H.R. 1987 would authorize the appropriation of nearly $25 
million, annually for 2016 and 2017 for the operations of the 
FMC. The agency received an appropriation of $26 million in 
2015. The FMC regulates shipping activities in the United 
States. CBO estimates that implementing those provisions would 
cost $49 million over the 2016-2020 period, assuming 
appropriation of the authorized amounts.
    Pay-as-you-go considerations: Enacting H.R. 1987 would 
reduce offsetting receipts (which are treated as increases in 
direct spending). The legislation would authorize the USCG to 
cancel debt owed to the federal government that was incurred by 
an officer of the Coast Guard while on active duty. Under 
current law, USCG may waive the debt incurred by enlisted 
members of the Coast Guard, and the legislation would expand 
the eligible group to include officers. Those debts primarily 
arise from administrative overpayments. CBO estimates that the 
effect of this provision on direct spending would be 
insignificant in any year and over the 2016-2025 period.
    Estimated impact on state, local, and tribal governments: 
H.R. 1987 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined in 
UMRA and would benefit state and local governments by, among 
other things, authorizing the conveyance of land, at fair 
market value, to Marin County, California, and by clarifying 
that federal law does not preempt state regulation of fishing 
permits under certain conditions.
    Estimated impact on the private-sector: H.R. 1987 would 
impose private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA. Based on 
information from USCG and industry experts, CBO estimates that 
the aggregate annual cost of the mandates would fall below the 
annual threshold in UMRA for private-sector mandates ($154 
million in 2015, adjusted for inflation).
    The bill would require sponsors of marine events requiring 
a permit or USCG authorization to pay the USCG for the cost of 
providing a safety zone for such an event. Based on information 
from USCG, CBO expects that the requirement would apply to a 
limited number of sponsors annually.
    The bill also would impose a mandate on manufacturers of 
small boats by requiring those manufacturers to use updated 
engine weights when conducting stability and floatation tests. 
According to information from industry experts, most small 
boats sold in the United States already use the updated engine 
weights.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Martin von Gnechten; 
Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Melissa 
Merrell; Impact on the Private Sector: Amy Petz.
    Estimate approved by: H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Performance Goals and Objectives

    With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(4) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
performance goals and objectives of this legislation are to 
authorize sufficient funds for the activities of the Coast 
Guard and Federal Maritime Commission, make the operations of 
Coast Guard more efficient, and improve the safety and 
productivity of the marine transportation system.

                          Advisory of Earmarks

    Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee is required to include a list 
of congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited 
tariff benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of 
rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. No 
provision in the bill includes an earmark, limited tax benefit, 
or limited tariff benefit under clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of 
rule XXI.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    Pursuant to section 3(g) of H. Res. 5, 114th Cong. (2015), 
the Committee finds that no provision of H.R. 1987, as amended, 
establishes or reauthorizes a program of the federal government 
known to be duplicative of another federal program, a program 
that was included in any report from the Government 
Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of 
Public Law 111-139, or a program related to a program 
identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    Pursuant to section 3(i) of H. Res. 5, 114th Cong. (2015), 
the Committee estimates that enacting H.R. 1987 specifically 
directs the completion of a specific rule making within the 
meaning of section 551 of title 5, United States Code. Section 
309 of H.R. 1987 requires the Secretary of the department in 
which the Coast Guard is operating to amend existing 
regulations concerning the incorporation by reference of 
standards for recreational vessel engine weights. Section 310 
of H.R. 1987 requires the Secretary of the department in which 
the Coast Guard is operating to carry out a rulemaking to 
reform merchant mariner medical certification. Section 312 of 
H.R. 1987 requires the Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating to carry out a rulemaking to reform 
the issuance of certificates of documentation for recreational 
vessels.

                       Federal Mandate Statement

    The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act (Public Law 104-4).

                        Preemption Clarification

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
requires the report of any Committee on a bill or joint 
resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the 
bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt state, local, 
or tribal law. The Committee states that H.R. 1987, as amended, 
does not preempt any state, local, or tribal law.

                      Advisory Committee Statement

    No new advisory committees within the meaning of section 
5(b) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act are created by this 
legislation, as amended.

                  Applicability of Legislative Branch

    The Committee finds that the legislation, as amended, does 
not relate to the terms and conditions of employment or access 
to public services or accommodations within the meaning of 
section 102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act 
(Public Law 104-1).

               Section-by-Section Analysis of Legislation


                         TITLE I--AUTHORIZATION

Section 101. Authorizations

    This section authorizes $8.7 billion in discretionary funds 
for the Coast Guard for each of the fiscal years 2016 and 2017. 
This is the same level of funding that was authorized for the 
Coast Guard in section 101 of P.L. 113-281. It also authorizes 
an end-of-year strength for active duty Coast Guard personnel 
of 43,000 and sets military training student loads for each of 
the fiscal years 2016 and 2017.
    The President's budget for FY 2016 includes a request to 
transfer an undefined amount of money from an undefined source 
within the Department of Homeland Security to the Coast Guard 
to complete detailed design of the Offshore Patrol Cutter 
(OPC). The Committee is very concerned with this erratic 
approach to budgeting. This approach is especially troubling 
for the OPC as the need for the cutter has been well and 
thoroughly documented and the requirements for which have been 
widely and extensively vetted. Failure to enter into a contract 
for detailed design of the OPC before the end of FY 2016 will 
significantly increase the cost and substantially delay this 
vital acquisition. The Committee is very concerned that further 
delays in the initiation of the procurement will only 
exacerbate existing gaps in Coast Guard mission capabilities. 
This section authorizes sufficient funds within the Coast 
Guard's AC&I account to enter into a contract for detailed 
design of the OPC in FY 2016. The Committee expects the Coast 
Guard to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that it 
awards a contract for detailed design of the OPC at the 
earliest possible date.
    The Committee is concerned with the adequacy of Coast Guard 
icebreaking capability on the Great Lakes. In recent winters, 
the percentage of ice cover on the Great Lakes has approached 
record levels and the Coast Guard has struggled to adequately 
keep shipping lanes open. From December 2013 to May 2014, 7 
million fewer tons were carried by U.S. flagged vessels on the 
Great Lakes, costing the economy an estimated $700 million and 
4,000 jobs. This section clarifies that funds authorized in the 
bill may be used to construct an icebreaker capable of buoy 
tending on the Great Lakes.
    The other Armed Services are currently required to provide 
Congress with a manpower requirements plan that justifies 
requested end strengths against mission requirements. The Coast 
Guard does not currently provide Congress with a similar plan. 
This section would improve oversight of the Service's mission 
performance by requiring the Coast Guard to provide Congress a 
plan for building and maintaining the force structure it needs 
to effectively carry out its missions.

Sec. 102. Conforming Amendments

    This section makes conforming and technical changes to 
title 14, United States Code.

                         TITLE II--COAST GUARD

Sec. 201. Vice Commandant

    The Coast Guard is the only Armed Service with a vice 
service chief that does not have the rank of a four star flag 
or general officer. This section would change the rank of the 
Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard from vice admiral to admiral 
to align the leadership structure of the Coast Guard to that of 
the other Armed Services. This change will enable the Vice 
Commandant to better represent the Coast Guard and the 
Commandant during frequent interactions with counterparts in 
the other Armed Services.

Sec. 202. Vice admirals

    The Coast Guard is currently the only Armed Service without 
a chief of staff. The position was discontinued in 2011 and 
many of the responsibilities were assumed by the Vice 
Commandant. This has diluted the focus of the Vice Commandant 
from his traditional duties as the vice service chief. This 
section authorizes the Coast Guard to reinstate the position of 
Chief of Staff.
    This section also authorizes the President to appoint 
additional Coast Guard vice admirals to positions in the 
executive branch. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has 
requested the appointment of Coast Guard officers to serve on 
the Joint Staff, but limitations on the number of Coast Guard 
vice admirals under current law prohibits the Service from 
fulfilling this pressing national security request.

Sec. 203. Coast Guard remission of indebtedness

    This section ensures that members of the Coast Guard are 
not held liable for administrative errors that result in 
overpayments of pay and benefits. Members of the other Armed 
Services currently receive similar protections.

Sec. 204. Acquisition reform

    This section enacts recommendations made by the Government 
Accountability Office (GAO) to improve the performance of new 
assets acquired by the Coast Guard, as well as oversight of the 
Service's acquisition process. This section requires the Coast 
Guard to establish the performance data that will be used to 
evaluate a new asset prior to testing the asset and to 
determine the performance thresholds that have to be met during 
testing. The section further requires the Coast Guard to 
provide additional information to Congress to ensure better 
oversight of the Service's multi-year, multi-billion dollar 
major asset recapitalization effort.

Sec. 205. Auxiliary jurisdiction.

    This section clarifies the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard 
Auxiliary

Sec. 206. Long term major acquisitions plan.

    Under current law, the Navy provides Congress with a long-
term plan for its shipbuilding requirements. The Coast Guard 
does not conduct a similar long-term planning effort for its 
major assets. This section would improve oversight of the Coast 
Guard's effort to recapitalize its major assets by requiring 
the Service to develop a long-term plan for its acquisition 
needs and the funding levels to support them.

Sec. 207. Coast Guard communities

    This section removes administrative barriers in the Coast 
Guard's program to recognize communities that have supported 
the Service. The Committee expects that whenever the Service 
designates a new Coast Guard Community, it will notify the 
Committee, as well as the Member of Congress representing such 
community prior to such designation.

Sec. 208. POLAR SEA materiel condition assessment and service life 
        extension decision

    The POLAR SEA is one of the Coast Guard's and the Nation's 
two polar class heavy icebreakers. Since it suffered a major 
engine casualty in June 2010, the icebreaker has not been 
operational. In October 2011, the Coast Guard placed the POLAR 
SEA in commissioned, inactive service and cannibalized many of 
its parts to help reactivate its sister ship, the POLAR STAR.
    Section 222 of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation 
Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-213) required the Coast Guard to conduct 
a business case analysis of the options for, and costs 
associated with, reactivation of the POLAR SEA. The section 
further required the Service to make a determination based on 
the analysis of whether to reactivate or decommission the 
icebreaker.
    In November 2013, the Service completed the analysis and 
estimated the reactivation would cost approximately $99 million 
to provide 7 to 10 years of service. Although it completed the 
analysis nearly two years ago, the Service has refused to make 
a determination concerning the icebreaker's future. The Service 
is currently spending $8 million to stabilize and preserve the 
POLAR SEA and is requesting an additional $6 million in its FY 
2016 budget request to conduct a materiel condition assessment 
of the icebreaker. Under the timeline put forward by the Coast 
Guard, a determination to reactivate or decommission the 
icebreaker will not be made before completion of the assessment 
in late 2016. In the meantime, the POLAR SEA continues to 
deteriorate and the United States is left with only one 
functioning polar class heavy icebreaker.
    This section sets a deadline of 270 days for the Coast 
Guard to complete and submit to Congress its assessment of the 
condition of the POLAR SEA and its determination of whether it 
is cost effective to reactivate or decommission the icebreaker.

Sec. 209. Repeal

    This section continues a limitation in current law on the 
authority of the Coast Guard to reassign certain aviation 
assets.

Sec. 210. Technical corrections

    This section makes technical and clarifying changes to 
title 14, United States Code.

Sec. 211. Digital boat profile

    This section authorizes the Coast Guard to conduct a pilot 
program to test the effectiveness of commercially available 
technologies to track and improve the maintenance and readiness 
of its cutter fleet.

Sec. 212. Discontinuance of an aid to navigation

    This section requires the Coast Guard to establish and 
implement a process that ensures adequate public notification 
when removing a physical aid to navigation.

Sec. 213. Mission performance measures

    This section requires the GAO to assess the metrics the 
Coast Guard uses to evaluate its mission performance, as well 
as the process the Service uses to establish such metrics.

Sec. 214. Communications

    This section authorizes the Coast Guard to conduct a pilot 
program to test the effectiveness of commercially available 
technologies to improve communications during response 
activities.

Sec. 215. Coast Guard graduate maritime operations education

    This section authorizes the Coast Guard to establish a 
graduate education program at an existing public academic 
institution to improve the professional development of 
servicemembers and civilian employees.

                   TITLE III--SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION

Sec. 301. Treatment of fishing permits

    This section clarifies that a fishing permit is not an 
appurtenance to a vessel and therefore not subject to a 
maritime lien.

Sec. 302. Survival craft

    This section would phase-in a requirement to carry out-of-
water survival craft by passenger vessels operating in certain 
waters. Under this section, the Coast Guard may revise 
regulations concerning the carriage of survival craft after a 
review of factors regarding out-of-water survival craft.

Sec. 303. Enforcement

    This section would improve the oversight and enforcement of 
cargo preference laws. Nothing in this section changes the 
amount of government impelled cargo subject to transportation 
on U.S. flag vessels under existing law. It merely establishes 
improved procedures to assist in the understanding and 
implementation of current law by federal government agencies.

Sec. 304. Model years for recreational vessels

    The Coast Guard's current regulatory definition of model 
year for recreational vessels is inconsistent with industry 
practice and interferes with the marketplace. This section 
revises the definition of model year for new recreational 
vessels and provides industry with appropriate discretion to 
market their products.

Sec. 305. Merchant mariner credential expiration harmonization

    The Coast Guard requires American mariners to apply for and 
carry several documents to work aboard vessels. These documents 
often expire at different times requiring the mariner and their 
employers to lose days of work to satisfy renewal requirements. 
This section would alleviate this administrative burden and 
lost productivity by requiring the Coast Guard to harmonize the 
expiration of merchant mariner credentials, radar observer 
endorsements, and medical certificates for certain mariners.

Sec. 306. Marine event safety zones

    Each year, the Coast Guard spends a significant amount of 
its time and taxpayer funds to ensure the safety of waterways 
around privately held events. While Coast Guard presence is 
important to ensure public safety, the event itself is not open 
to the public and often does not provide a public benefit. To 
defray the cost on the taxpayer, this section authorizes the 
Coast Guard to recover costs it incurs from the enforcement of 
safety zones around privately held events that are not open to 
the public. Most state and local law enforcement agencies have 
similar authority to recover costs associated with providing 
public safety services to private events.

Sec. 307. Technical corrections

    This section makes technical corrections to shipping and 
navigation law.

Sec. 308. Recommendations for improvements of marine casualty reporting

    The Department of Homeland Security Inspector General and 
the Coast Guard's Towing Safety Advisory Committee recently 
provided the Service with recommendations to modernize and 
improve its marine casualty reporting program. This section 
would require the Coast Guard to notify the Committee of the 
actions it is taking to implement these recommendations.

Sec. 309. Recreational vessel engine weights

    It has been more than 20 years since the Coast Guard 
updated the references it provides manufacturers to use to 
determine the weight of engines when conducting floatation 
tests of its new products. Today's engines are considerably 
heavier than those built in 1984. Using the outdated Coast 
Guard references for engine weight could result is less 
floatation being added to the recreational vessel than is 
required to avoid swamping or sinking. This section would 
require the Coast Guard to update its references to 
recreational vessel engine weights to ensure accurate vessel 
floatation tests by manufacturers and improve recreational 
vessel safety.

Sec 310. Merchant mariner medical certification reform

    In order to work on a vessel, American mariners are 
required to meet certain medical and physical fitness standards 
established by the Coast Guard. To certify that they meet such 
standards, mariners are required to take a form developed by 
the Coast Guard to their doctor, have the doctor fill it out, 
and submit it to the Coast Guard for review and certification. 
Coast Guard employees with limited medical training, having 
never met the mariner or medically treated the mariner, and 
without a thorough understanding of the mariner's medical 
history, make a medical fitness determination based solely on 
the information included on the form. This centralized process 
creates substantial administrative burden on the mariner and 
often leads to delays in processing mariner medical 
certificates.
    Since 1927, the Federal Aviation Administration has had a 
system in place to certify the medical and physical fitness of 
pilots that relies on government certified private physicians 
to examine pilots and empowers them to issue medical 
certificates. This efficient system has not undermined safety, 
nor resulted in the delays and administrative burdens inherent 
in the Coast Guard's system of medical certification.
    This section would require the Coast Guard to certify 
private physicians to make medical fitness determinations of 
merchant mariners. Nothing in this section is intended to 
compel the Coast Guard to terminate its current process of 
conducting medical certification or make changes to current 
medical fitness requirements for mariners.

Sec. 311. Atlantic coast port access route study

    The Coast Guard is currently conducting an Atlantic Coast 
Port Access Route Study in order to assist the Department of 
Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's, as well as 
stakeholders', understanding the impacts to navigation safety 
from the construction of certain offshore renewable energy 
projects. The Committee is concerned that the citing of these 
projects could pose hazards to safe navigation, especially 
projects built in or near vessel traffic routes. This section 
would require the Coast Guard to complete its Atlantic Coast 
Port Access Route Study by April 2016 and provide a copy to the 
Committee.

Sec. 312. Certificates of documentation for recreational vessels

    While Coast Guard certificates of documentation (COD) are 
not required for recreational vessels, many owners elect to 
document their vessels to facilitate passage into foreign ports 
and to preclude them from having to abide by state registration 
requirements. However, the Coast Guard requires CODs be renewed 
on an annual basis and does not allow owners to carry them in 
electronic form. This presents an unnecessary administrative 
burden on vessel owners. This section would require the Coast 
Guard to develop a COD for recreational vessels that is 
effective for five years.

Sec. 313. Program guidelines

    Section 304(a) of the Coast Guard and Maritime 
Transportation Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-241) requires the 
Secretary of Transportation to implement a program to promote 
the transportation of liquefied natural gas on U.S. flag 
vessels. In the nine years since this provision was enacted, 
the Secretary has failed to issue guidelines to implement this 
program. This section sets a deadline for the Secretary to 
develop such guidelines. It further requires that the 
guidelines include provisions to improve the training of U.S. 
mariners on liquefied natural gas vessels.

Sec. 314. Repeals

    This section repeals inoperative provisions of the Merchant 
Marine Act of 1936.

                 TITLE IV--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

Sec. 401. Authorization

    This section authorizes $24.7 million in funds for the 
activities of the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) for fiscal 
years 2016 and 2017. This is the same level of funding that was 
authorized for the FMC in section 401 of P.L. 113-281.

Sec. 402. Duties of the chairman

    This section would reform certain administrative procedures 
of the FMC to improve accountability. Specifically, this 
section ensures that all Commissioners have the opportunity to 
review hiring decisions and FMC annual budget submissions.

Sec. 403. Prohibition on awards

    For the past few years the Chairman of the FMC has spent 
staff time and taxpayer resources to recognize private 
companies with Earth Day Awards. The FMC has no statutory or 
regulatory authority over environmental protection or 
restoration. This section would prohibit the FMC from 
continuing to expend taxpayer dollars on superfluous awards for 
non-federal entities.

                         TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 501. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Marin County, 
        California

    This section would authorize the Coast Guard to provide the 
County of Marin, California the right of first refusal in the 
conveyance at fair market value of property under its 
administrative control in Point Reyes, California. The 
Committee expects the Coast Guard to notify the County of its 
right of first refusal as soon as practicable after completion 
of the appraisal required under this section. The Committee 
also expects this appraisal to meet federal standards, 
including the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land 
Acquisitions. Finally, the Committee expects the Coast Guard 
will provide the County at least one year after notifying it of 
its right of first refusal to enter into a contract for the 
sale of the property.

Sec. 502. Elimination of reports

    This section would eliminate two outdated and duplicative 
reports and modify the frequency of another report.

Sec. 503. Vessel documentation

    This section requires the GAO to provide recommendations to 
Congress to improve the performance of functions carried out by 
the Coast Guard's National Vessel Documentation Center, 
including compliance with laws governing U.S. ownership 
requirements for certain vessels.

Sec. 504. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Tok, Alaska

    This section would authorize the Coast Guard to provide the 
Tanana Chiefs Council, a nonprofit intertribal consortium of 
federally recognized Alaska tribes, the right of first refusal 
in the conveyance at fair market value of property under its 
administrative control Tok, Alaska.

Sec. 505. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes

    This section would bar the Coast Guard and the 
Environmental Protection Agency from prohibiting the uptake or 
discharge of ballast water from a vessel operating in certain 
National Marine Sanctuaries located in the Great Lakes if such 
uptake and discharge meets all federal and state requirements 
and the designation documents for the Marine Sanctuary do not 
prohibit such uptake and discharge.

Sec. 506. Use of vessel sale proceeds

    This section would require the GAO to conduct and submit to 
the Committee an audit of the proceeds from the sale of vessels 
in the National Defense Reserve Fleet.

Sec. 507. Fishing vessel and fish tender vessel certification

    This section would authorize an alternative compliance 
program as substitute for classification of certain commercial 
fishing vessels.

Sec. 508. National Academy of Sciences Cost Comparison.

    This section would authorize the National Academy of 
Sciences to conduct and submit to the Committee a comparison of 
the costs associated with constructing or leasing a new polar 
class icebreaker, as well as reactivating the Coast Guard 
Cutter POLAR SEA.

Sec. 509. Penalty wages

    Current law provides that if a vessel owner does not pay a 
seaman what the seaman is owed under his employment contract 
without sufficient cause, the vessel owner must pay the seaman 
two days' wages for each day the owner does not pay the seaman 
the contractual amount. In the case of a class action suit 
brought by seamen who serve on cruise ships, the total amount 
of the penalty is limited to 10 times the amount of wages owed. 
This section caps the penalty amount at 10 times the amount of 
wages owed for any seaman serving on a cruise ship, regardless 
of whether the relief is sought in a class action.

Sec. 510. Recourse for noncitizens

    This section clarifies that a foreign citizen mariner may 
file a personal injury lawsuit in a U.S. court under four 
circumstances: (1) if the accident occurred in U.S. waters; (2) 
if the accident occurred aboard a U.S. flagged vessel; (3) no 
matter where the accident occurred, if the claimant was a 
permanent resident alien of the United States at the time of 
the accident; or (4) no matter where the accident occurred, if 
the claimant does not have a right to bring suit in his country 
of residence or the flag state of the vessel from which the 
claim arose.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

                      TITLE 14, UNITED STATES CODE

 Part                                                               Sec.
      Regular Coast Guard..............................................1
      Coast Guard Reserve and Auxiliary..............................701
      Coast Guard Authorizations and Reports to Congress............2701

                      PART I--REGULAR COAST GUARD

Chapter
      Establishment and duties.........................................1
     * * * * * * *
      Coast Guard Environmental Compliance and Restortation Program.690]
690 Environmental Compliance and Restoration Program..................

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                CHAPTER 3--COMPOSITION AND ORGANIZATION

Sec.
41. Grades and ratings.
     * * * * * * *
199. Marine safety curriculum.

Sec. 41. Grades and ratings

  In the Coast Guard there shall be [an admiral,] admirals 
(two); vice admirals; rear admirals; rear admirals (lower 
half); captains; commanders; lieutenant commanders; 
lieutenants; lieutenants (junior grade); ensigns; chief warrant 
officers; cadets; warrant officers; and enlisted members. 
Enlisted members shall be distributed in ratings established by 
the Secretary.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 46. Retirement of Commandant

  (a) A Commandant who is not reappointed shall be retired with 
the grade of admiral at the expiration of the appointed term, 
except as provided in [subsection] section 51(d) of this title.
  (b) A Commandant who is retired for physical disability shall 
be placed on the retired list with the grade of admiral.
  (c) An officer who is retired prior to the expiration of his 
term, while serving as Commandant, may, in the discretion of 
the President, be retired with the grade of admiral.

Sec. 47. Vice [commandant]  Commandant; appointment

  The President may appoint, by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate, one Vice Commandant who shall rank next after 
the Commandant, shall perform such duties as the Commandant may 
prescribe and shall act as Commandant during the absence or 
disability of the Commandant or in the event that there is a 
vacancy in the office of Commandant. The Vice Commandant shall 
be selected from the officers on the active duty promotion list 
serving above the grade of captain. The Commandant shall make 
recommendation for such appointment. The Vice Commandant shall, 
while so serving, have the grade of [vice admiral] admiral with 
pay and allowances of that grade. The appointment and grade of 
a Vice Commandant shall be effective on the date the officer 
assumes that duty, and shall terminate on the date the officer 
is detached from that duty, except as provided in section 51(d) 
of this title.

Sec. 50. Vice admirals

  (a)[(1) The President may designate no more than 4 positions 
of importance and responsibility that shall be held by officers 
who--
                  [(A) while so serving, shall have the grade 
                of vice admiral, with the pay and allowances of 
                that grade; and
                  [(B) shall perform such duties as the 
                Commandant may prescribe.]
  (1) The President may--
          (A) designate, within the Coast Guard, no more than 5 
        positions of importance and responsibility that shall 
        be held by officers who, while so serving, shall have 
        the grade of vice admiral, with the pay and allowances 
        of that grade, and shall perform such duties as the 
        Commandant may prescribe (if the President designates 5 
        such positions, 1 position shall be a Chief of Staff); 
        and
          (B) designate, within the executive branch, other 
        than within the Coast Guard, positions of importance 
        and responsibility that shall be held by officers who, 
        while so serving, shall have the grade of vice admiral, 
        with the pay and allowances of that grade.
  (2) The President may appoint, by and with the advice and 
consent of the Senate, and reappoint, by and with the advice 
and consent of the Senate, to any such position an officer of 
the Coast Guard who is serving on active duty above the grade 
of captain. The Commandant shall make recommendations for such 
appointments.
  (3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), one of the 
vice admirals designated [under paragraph (1)] under paragraph 
(1)(A) must have at least 10 years experience in vessel 
inspection, marine casualty investigations, mariner licensing, 
or an equivalent technical expertise in the design and 
construction of commercial vessels, with at least 4 years of 
leadership experience at a staff or unit carrying out marine 
safety functions and shall serve as the principal advisor to 
the Commandant on these issues.
  (B) The requirements of subparagraph (A) do not apply to such 
vice admiral if the subordinate officer serving in the grade of 
rear admiral with responsibilities for marine safety, security, 
and stewardship possesses that experience.
  (b)(1) The appointment and the grade of vice admiral shall be 
effective on the date the officer assumes that duty and, except 
as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection or in section 
51(d) of this title, shall terminate on the date the officer is 
detached from that duty.
  (2) An officer who is appointed to a position designated 
under subsection (a) shall continue to hold the grade of vice 
admiral--
          (A) while under orders transferring the officer to 
        another position designated under subsection (a), 
        beginning on the date the officer is detached from that 
        duty and terminating on the date before the day the 
        officer assumes the subsequent duty, but not for more 
        than 60 days;
          (B) while hospitalized, beginning on the day of the 
        hospitalization and ending on the day the officer is 
        discharged from the hospital, but not for more than 180 
        days; [and]
          (C) at the discretion of the Secretary, while 
        awaiting orders after being relieved from the position, 
        beginning on the day the officer is relieved from the 
        position, but not for more than 60 days; and
          [(C)] (D) while awaiting retirement, beginning on the 
        date the officer is detached from duty and ending on 
        the day before the officer's retirement, but not for 
        more than 60 days.
  (c)(1) An appointment of an officer under subsection (a) does 
not vacate the permanent grade held by the officer.
  (2) An officer serving in a grade above rear admiral who 
holds the permanent grade of rear admiral (lower half) shall be 
considered for promotion to the permanent grade of rear admiral 
as if the officer was serving in the officer's permanent grade.
  (d) Whenever a vacancy occurs in a position designated under 
subsection (a), the Commandant shall inform the President of 
the qualifications needed by an officer serving in that 
position or office to carry out effectively the duties and 
responsibilities of that position or office.

Sec. 51. Retirement

  (a) An officer, other than the Commandant, who, while serving 
in the grade of admiral or vice admiral, is retired for 
physical disability shall be placed on the retired list with 
the highest grade in which that officer served.
  (b) An officer, other than the Commandant, who is retired 
while serving in the grade of admiral or vice admiral, or who, 
after serving at least 2\1/2\ years in the grade of admiral or 
vice admiral, is retired while serving in a lower grade, may in 
the discretion of the President, be retired with the highest 
grade in which that officer served.
  (c) An officer, other than the Commandant, who, after serving 
less than 2\1/2\ years in the grade of admiral or vice admiral, 
is retired while serving in a lower grade, shall be retired in 
his permanent grade.
  (d) An officer serving in the grade of admiral or vice 
admiral shall continue to hold that grade--
          (1) while being processed for physical disability 
        retirement, beginning on the day of the processing and 
        ending on the day that officer is retired, but not for 
        more than 180 days; and
          (2) while awaiting retirement, beginning on the day 
        that officer is relieved from the position of 
        Commandant, Vice Commandant, or Vice Admiral and ending 
        on the day before the officer's retirement, but not for 
        more than 60 days.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 5--FUNCTIONS AND POWERS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 93. Commandant; general powers

  (a) For the purpose of executing the duties and functions of 
the Coast Guard the Commandant may:
          (1) maintain water, land, and air patrols, and ice-
        breaking facilities;
          (2) establish and prescribe the purpose of, change 
        the location of, consolidate, discontinue, re-
        establish, maintain, operate, and repair Coast Guard 
        shore establishments;
          (3) assign vessels, aircraft, vehicles, aids to 
        navigation, equipment, appliances, and supplies to 
        Coast Guard districts and shore establishments, and 
        transfer any of the foregoing from one district or 
        shore establishment to another;
          (4) conduct experiments and investigate, or cause to 
        be investigated, plans, devices, and inventions 
        relating to the performance of any Coast Guard 
        function, including research, development, test, or 
        evaluation related to intelligence systems and 
        capabilities;
          (5) conduct any investigations or studies that may be 
        of assistance to the Coast Guard in the performance of 
        any of its powers, duties, or functions;
          (6) collect, publish, and distribute information 
        concerning Coast Guard operations;
          (7) conduct or make available to personnel of the 
        Coast Guard, and to eligible spouses as defined under 
        section 542, such specialized training and courses of 
        instruction, including correspondence courses and the 
        textbooks, manuals, and other materials required as 
        part of such training or course of instruction, as may 
        be necessary or desirable for the good of the service;
          (8) design or cause to be designed, cause to be 
        constructed, accept as gift, or otherwise acquire 
        patrol boats and other small craft, equip, operate, 
        maintain, supply, and repair such patrol boats, other 
        small craft, aircraft, and vehicles, and subject to 
        applicable regulations under subtitle I of title 40 and 
        title III of the Federal Property and Administrative 
        Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 251 et seq.) dispose of 
        them;
          (9) acquire, accept as gift, maintain, repair, and 
        discontinue aids to navigation, appliances, equipment, 
        and supplies;
          (10) equip, operate, maintain, supply, and repair 
        Coast Guard districts and shore establishments;
          (11) establish, equip, operate, and maintain shops, 
        depots, and yards for the manufacture and construction 
        of aids to navigation, equipment, apparatus, vessels, 
        vehicles, and aircraft not normally or economically 
        obtainable from private contractors, and for the 
        maintenance and repair of any property used by the 
        Coast Guard;
          (12) accept and utilize, in times of emergency in 
        order to save life or protect property, such voluntary 
        services as may be offered to the Coast Guard;
          (13) rent or lease, under such terms and conditions 
        as are deemed advisable, for a period not exceeding 
        five years, such real property under the control of the 
        Coast Guard as may not be required for immediate use by 
        the Coast Guard, the monies received from any such 
        rental or lease, less amount of expenses incurred 
        (exclusive of governmental personal services), to be 
        deposited in the fund established under section 687;
          (14) grant, under such terms and conditions as are 
        deemed advisable, permits, licenses, easements, and 
        rights-of-way over, across, in, and upon lands under 
        the control of the Coast Guard when in the public 
        interest and without substantially injuring the 
        interests of the United States in the property thereby 
        affected;
          (15) establish, install, abandon, re-establish, 
        reroute, operate, maintain, repair, purchase, or lease 
        such telephone and telegraph lines and cables, together 
        with all facilities, apparatus, equipment, structures, 
        appurtenances, accessories, and supplies used or useful 
        in connection with the installation, operation, 
        maintenance, or repair of such lines and cables, 
        including telephones in residences leased or owned by 
        the Government of the United States when appropriate to 
        assure efficient response to extraordinary operational 
        contingencies of a limited duration, and acquire such 
        real property rights of way, easements, or attachment 
        privileges as may be required for the installation, 
        operation, and maintenance of such lines, cables, and 
        equipment;
          (16) establish, install, abandon, reestablish, change 
        the location of, operate, maintain, and repair radio 
        transmitting and receiving stations;
          (17) provide medical and dental care for personnel 
        entitled thereto by law or regulation, including care 
        in private facilities;
          (18) accept, under terms and conditions the 
        Commandant establishes, the service of an individual 
        ordered to perform community service under the order of 
        a Federal, State, or municipal court;
          (19) notwithstanding any other law, enter into 
        cooperative agreements with States, local governments, 
        non-governmental organizations, and individuals, to 
        accept and utilize voluntary services for the 
        maintenance and improvement of natural and historic 
        resources on, or to benefit natural and historic 
        research on, Coast Guard facilities, subject to the 
        requirement that--
                  (A) the cooperative agreements shall each 
                provide for the parties to contribute funds or 
                services on a matching basis to defray the 
                costs of such programs, projects, and 
                activities under the agreement; and
                  (B) a person providing voluntary services 
                under this subsection shall not be considered a 
                Federal employee except for purposes of chapter 
                81 of title 5, United States Code, with respect 
                to compensation for work-related injuries, and 
                chapter 171 of title 28, United States Code, 
                with respect to tort claims;
          (20) enter into cooperative agreements with other 
        Government agencies and the National Academy of 
        Sciences;
          (21) require that any member of the Coast Guard or 
        Coast Guard Reserve (including a cadet or an applicant 
        for appointment or enlistment to any of the foregoing 
        and any member of a uniformed service who is assigned 
        to the Coast Guard) request that all information 
        contained in the National Driver Register pertaining to 
        the individual, as described in section 30304(a) of 
        title 49, be made available to the Commandant under 
        section 30305(a) of title 49, may receive that 
        information, and upon receipt, shall make the 
        information available to the individual;
          (22) provide for the honorary recognition of 
        individuals and organizations that significantly 
        contribute to Coast Guard programs, missions, or 
        operations, including State and local governments and 
        commercial and nonprofit organizations, and pay for, 
        using any appropriations or funds available to the 
        Coast Guard, plaques, medals, trophies, badges, and 
        similar items to acknowledge such contribution 
        (including reasonable expenses of ceremony and 
        presentation);
          (23) rent or lease, under such terms and conditions 
        as are considered by the Secretary to be advisable, 
        commercial vehicles to transport the next of kin of 
        eligible retired Coast Guard military personnel to 
        attend funeral services of the service member at a 
        national cemetery; and
          (24) after informing the Secretary, make such 
        recommendations to the Congress relating to the Coast 
        Guard as the Commandant considers appropriate.
  (b)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a)(13), a lease described 
in paragraph (2) of this subsection may be for a term of up to 
20 years.
  (2) A lease referred to in paragraph (1) is a lease--
          (A) to the United States Coast Guard Academy Alumni 
        Association for the construction of an Alumni Center on 
        the grounds of the United States Coast Guard Academy; 
        or
          (B) to an entity with which the Commandant has a 
        cooperative agreement under section 4(e) of the Ports 
        and Waterways Safety Act, and for which a term longer 
        than 5 years is necessary to carry out the agreement.
  (c) Marine Safety Responsibilities.--In exercising the 
Commandant's duties and responsibilities with regard to marine 
safety, the individual with the highest rank who meets the 
experience qualifications set forth in section 50(a)(3) shall 
serve as the principal advisor to the Commandant regarding--
          (1) the operation, regulation, inspection, 
        identification, manning, and measurement of vessels, 
        including plan approval and the application of load 
        lines;
          (2) approval of materials, equipment, appliances, and 
        associated equipment;
          (3) the reporting and investigation of marine 
        casualties and accidents;
          (4) the licensing, certification, documentation, 
        protection and relief of merchant seamen;
          (5) suspension and revocation of licenses and 
        certificates;
          (6) enforcement of manning requirements, citizenship 
        requirements, control of log books;
          (7) documentation and numbering of vessels;
          (8) State boating safety programs;
          (9) commercial instruments and maritime liens;
          (10) the administration of bridge safety;
          (11) administration of the navigation rules;
          (12) the prevention of pollution from vessels;
          (13) ports and waterways safety;
          (14) waterways management; including regulation for 
        regattas and marine parades;
          (15) aids to navigation; and
          (16) other duties and powers of the Secretary related 
        to marine safety and stewardship.
  (d) Other Authority Not Affected.--Nothing in subsection (c) 
affects--
          (1) the authority of Coast Guard officers and members 
        to enforce marine safety regulations using authority 
        under section 89 of this title; or
          (2) the exercise of authority under section 91 of 
        this title and the provisions of law codified at 
        sections 191 through 195 of title 50 on the date of 
        enactment of this paragraph.
  (e) Operation and Maintenance of Coast Guard Assets and 
Facilities.--All authority, including programmatic budget 
authority, for the operation and maintenance of Coast Guard 
vessels, aircraft, systems, aids to navigation, infrastructure, 
and other assets or facilities shall be allocated to and vested 
in the Coast Guard and the department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating.
  (f) Leasing of Tidelands and Submerged Lands.--
          (1) Authority.--The Commandant may lease under 
        subsection (a)(13) submerged lands and tidelands under 
        the control of the Coast Guard without regard to the 
        limitation under that subsection with respect to lease 
        duration.
          [(2) Limitation.--The Commandant may lease submerged 
        lands and tidelands under paragraph (1) only if--
                  [(A) lease payments are--
                          [(i) received exclusively in the form 
                        of cash;
                          [(ii) equal to the fair market value 
                        of the use of the leased submerged 
                        lands or tidelands for the period 
                        during which such lands are leased, as 
                        determined by the Commandant; and
                          [(iii) deposited in the fund 
                        established under section 687; and
                  [(B) the lease does not provide authority to 
                or commit the Coast Guard to use or support any 
                improvements to such submerged lands or 
                tidelands, or obtain goods or services from the 
                lessee.]
          (2) Limitation.--The Commandant may lease submerged 
        lands and tidelands under paragraph (1) only if--
                  (A) the lease is for cash exclusively;
                  (B) the lease amount is equal to the fair 
                market value of the use of the leased submerged 
                lands or tidelands for the period during which 
                such lands are leased, as determined by the 
                Commandant;
                  (C) the lease does not provide authority to 
                or commit the Coast Guard to use or support any 
                improvements to such submerged lands and 
                tidelands, or obtain goods and services from 
                the lessee; and
                  (D) proceeds from the lease are deposited in 
                the Coast Guard Housing Fund established under 
                section 687.

                     CHAPTER 9--COAST GUARD ACADEMY

Sec.
181. Administration of Academy.
     * * * * * * *
[199. Marine Safety curriculum.]
199. Marine safety curriculum.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 11--PERSONNEL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 427. Prohibition of certain involuntary administrative separations

  (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), the 
Secretary may not authorize the involuntary administrative 
separation of a covered individual based on a determination 
that the covered individual is unsuitable for deployment or 
other assignment due to a medical condition of the covered 
individual considered by a Physical Evaluation Board during an 
evaluation of the covered individual that resulted in the 
covered individual being determined to be fit for duty.
  (b) Reevaluation.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary may require a Physical 
        Evaluation Board to reevaluate any covered individual 
        if the Secretary determines there is reason to believe 
        that a medical condition of the covered individual 
        considered by a Physical Evaluation Board during an 
        evaluation of the covered individual renders the 
        covered individual unsuitable for continued duty.
          (2) Retirements and separations.--A covered 
        individual who is determined, based on a reevaluation 
        under paragraph (1), to be unfit to perform the duties 
        of the covered individual's office, grade, rank, or 
        rating may be retired or separated for physical 
        disability under [this chapter] chapter 61 of title 10.
  (c) Covered Individual Defined.--In this section, the term 
``covered individual'' means any member of the Coast Guard who 
has been determined by a Physical Evaluation Board, pursuant to 
a physical evaluation by that board, to be fit for duty.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


   CHAPTER 13--PAY, ALLOWANCES, AWARDS, AND OTHER RIGHTS AND BENEFITS

Sec.
[461. Remission of indebtedness of enlisted members upon discharge.]
461. Remission of indebtedness.
     * * * * * * *

[Sec. 461. Remission of indebtedness of enlisted members upon discharge

  [If he considers it in the best interest of the United 
States, the Secretary may have remitted or canceled any part of 
an enlisted member's indebtedness to the United States or any 
of its instrumentalities remaining unpaid before or at the time 
of, that member's honorable discharge.]

Sec. 461. Remission of indebtedness

  The Secretary may have remitted or cancelled any part of a 
person's indebtedness to the United States or any 
instrumentality of the United States if--
          (1) the indebtedness was incurred while the person 
        served on active duty as a member of the Coast Guard; 
        and
          (2) the Secretary determines that remitting or 
        cancelling the indebtedness is in the best interest of 
        the United States.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                        CHAPTER 15--ACQUISITIONS

Sec.
561. Acquisition directorate.
     * * * * * * *
[569a. Major acquisitions.]

       SUBCHAPTER II--IMPROVED ACQUISITION PROCESS AND PROCEDURES

[Sec.]
571. Identification of major system acquisitions.
     * * * * * * *

                       SUBCHAPTER III--DEFINITIONS

     * * * * * * *

Subchapter I--GENERAL PROVISIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 569. Mission need statement

  (a) In General.--On the date on which the President submits 
to Congress a budget for fiscal year 2016 under section 1105 of 
title 31, on the date on which the President submits to 
Congress a budget for fiscal year 2019 under such section, and 
every 4 years thereafter, the Commandant shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate an integrated major acquisition 
mission need statement.
  (b) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions 
apply:
          (1) Integrated major acquisition mission need 
        statement.--The term ``integrated major acquisition 
        mission need statement'' means a document that--
                  (A) identifies current and projected gaps in 
                Coast Guard mission capabilities using mission 
                hour targets;
                  (B) explains how each major acquisition 
                program addresses gaps identified under 
                subparagraph (A) if funded at the levels 
                provided for such program in the most recently 
                submitted capital investment plan; and
                  (C) describes the missions the Coast Guard 
                will not be able to achieve, by fiscal year, 
                for each gap identified under subparagraph (A).
          (2) Major acquisition program.--The term ``major 
        acquisition program'' has the meaning given that term 
        [in section 569a(e)] in section 2903.
          (3) Capital investment plan.--The term ``capital 
        investment plan'' means the plan required [under 
        section 663(a)(1)] under section 2902(a)(1).

Subchapter II--IMPROVED ACQUISITION PROCESS AND PROCEDURES

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 572. Acquisition

  (a) In General.--The Commandant may not establish a Level 1 
or Level 2 acquisition project or program until the 
Commandant--
          (1) clearly defines the operational requirements for 
        the project or program;
          (2) establishes the feasibility of alternatives;
          (3) develops an acquisition project or program 
        baseline;
          (4) produces a life-cycle cost estimate; and
          (5) assesses the relative merits of alternatives to 
        determine a preferred solution in accordance with the 
        requirements of this section.
  (b) Submission Required Before Proceeding.--Any Coast Guard 
Level 1 or Level 2 acquisition project or program may not begin 
to obtain any capability or asset or proceed beyond that phase 
of its development that entails approving the supporting 
acquisition until the Commandant submits to the appropriate 
congressional committees the following:
          (1) The key performance parameters, the key system 
        attributes, and the operational performance attributes 
        of the capability or asset to be acquired under the 
        proposed acquisition project or program.
          (2) A detailed list of the systems or other 
        capabilities with which the capability or asset to be 
        acquired is intended to be interoperable, including an 
        explanation of the attributes of interoperability.
          (3) The anticipated acquisition project or program 
        baseline and acquisition unit cost for the capability 
        or asset to be acquired under the project or program.
          (4) A detailed schedule for the acquisition process 
        showing when all capability and asset acquisitions are 
        to be completed and when all acquired capabilities and 
        assets are to be initially and fully deployed.
  (c) Analysis of Alternatives.--
          (1) In general.--The Coast Guard may not acquire an 
        experimental or technically immature capability or 
        asset or implement a Level 1 or Level 2 acquisition 
        project or program, unless it has prepared an analysis 
        of alternatives for the capability or asset to be 
        acquired in the concept and technology development 
        phase of the acquisition process for the capability or 
        asset.
          (2) Requirements.--The analysis of alternatives shall 
        be prepared by a federally funded research and 
        development center, a qualified entity of the 
        Department of Defense, or a similar independent third-
        party entity that has appropriate acquisition expertise 
        and has no financial interest in any part of the 
        acquisition project or program that is the subject of 
        the analysis. At a minimum, the analysis of 
        alternatives shall include--
                  (A) an assessment of the technical maturity 
                of the capability or asset, and technical and 
                other risks;
                  (B) an examination of capability, 
                interoperability, and other advantages and 
                disadvantages;
                  (C) an evaluation of whether different 
                combinations or quantities of specific assets 
                or capabilities could meet the Coast Guard's 
                overall performance needs;
                  (D) a discussion of key assumptions and 
                variables, and sensitivity to change in such 
                assumptions and variables;
                  (E) when an alternative is an existing 
                capability, asset, or prototype, an evaluation 
                of relevant safety and performance records and 
                costs;
                  (F) a calculation of life-cycle costs 
                including--
                          (i) an examination of likely research 
                        and development costs and the levels of 
                        uncertainty associated with such 
                        estimated costs;
                          (ii) an examination of likely 
                        production and deployment costs and the 
                        levels of uncertainty associated with 
                        such estimated costs;
                          (iii) an examination of likely 
                        operating and support costs and the 
                        levels of uncertainty associated with 
                        such estimated costs;
                          (iv) if they are likely to be 
                        significant, an examination of likely 
                        disposal costs and the levels of 
                        uncertainty associated with such 
                        estimated costs; and
                          (v) such additional measures as the 
                        Commandant or the Secretary of the 
                        department in which the Coast Guard is 
                        operating determines to be necessary 
                        for appropriate evaluation of the 
                        capability or asset; and
                  (G) the business case for each viable 
                alternative.
  (d) Test and Evaluation Master Plan.--
          (1) In general.--For any Level 1 or Level 2 
        acquisition project or program the Chief Acquisition 
        Officer must approve a test and evaluation master plan 
        specific to the acquisition project or program for the 
        capability, asset, or subsystems of the capability or 
        asset and intended to minimize technical, cost, and 
        schedule risk as early as practicable in the 
        development of the project or program.
          (2) Test and evaluation strategy.--The master plan 
        shall--
                  (A) set forth an integrated test and 
                evaluation strategy that will verify that 
                capability-level or asset-level and subsystem-
                level design and development, including 
                performance and supportability, have been 
                sufficiently proven before the capability, 
                asset, or subsystem of the capability or asset 
                is approved for production; and
                  (B) require that adequate developmental tests 
                and evaluations and operational tests and 
                evaluations established under subparagraph (A) 
                are performed to inform production decisions.
          (3) Other components of the master plan.--At a 
        minimum, the master plan shall identify--
                  (A) the key performance parameters to be 
                resolved through the integrated test and 
                evaluation strategy;
                  (B) the performance data to be used to 
                determine whether the key performance 
                parameters have been resolved;
                  [(B)] (C) critical operational issues to be 
                assessed in addition to the key performance 
                parameters;
                  (D) the results during test and evaluation 
                that will be required to demonstrate that a 
                capability, asset, or subsystem meets 
                performance requirements;
                  [(C)] (E) specific development test and 
                evaluation phases and the scope of each phase;
                  [(D)] (F) modeling and simulation activities 
                to be performed, if any, and the scope of such 
                activities;
                  [(E)] (G) early operational assessments to be 
                performed, if any, and the scope of such 
                assessments;
                  [(F)] (H) operational test and evaluation 
                phases;
                  [(G)] (I) an estimate of the resources, 
                including funds, that will be required for all 
                test, evaluation, assessment, modeling, and 
                simulation activities; and
                  [(H)] (J) the Government entity or 
                independent entity that will perform the test, 
                evaluation, assessment, modeling, and 
                simulation activities.
          (4) Update.--The Chief Acquisition Officer must 
        approve an updated master plan whenever there is a 
        revision to project or program test and evaluation 
        strategy, scope, or phasing.
          (5) Limitation.--The Coast Guard may not--
                  (A) proceed beyond that phase of the 
                acquisition process that entails approving the 
                supporting acquisition of a capability or asset 
                before the master plan is approved by the Chief 
                Acquisition Officer; or
                  (B) award any production contract for a 
                capability, asset, or subsystem for which a 
                master plan is required under this subsection 
                before the master plan is approved by the Chief 
                Acquisition Officer.
  (e) Life-Cycle Cost Estimates.--
          (1) In general.--The Commandant shall implement 
        mechanisms to ensure the development and regular 
        updating of life-cycle cost estimates for each 
        acquisition with a total acquisition cost that equals 
        or exceeds $10,000,000 and an expected service life of 
        10 or more years, and to ensure that these estimates 
        are considered in decisions to develop or produce new 
        or enhanced capabilities and assets.
          (2) Types of estimates.--In addition to life-cycle 
        cost estimates that may be developed by acquisition 
        program offices, the Commandant shall require that an 
        independent life-cycle cost estimate be developed for 
        each Level 1 or Level 2 acquisition project or program.
          (3) Required updates.--For each Level 1 or Level 2 
        acquisition project or program the Commandant shall 
        require that life-cycle cost estimates shall be updated 
        before each milestone decision is concluded and the 
        project or program enters a new acquisition phase.

Sec. 573. Preliminary development and demonstration

  (a) In General.--The Commandant shall ensure that 
developmental test and evaluation, operational test and 
evaluation, life-cycle cost estimates, and the development and 
demonstration requirements applied by this chapter to 
acquisition projects and programs are met to confirm that the 
projects or programs meet the requirements identified in the 
mission-analysis and affordability assessment prepared under 
section 571(a)(2), the operational requirements developed under 
section 572(a)(1) and the following development and 
demonstration objectives:
          (1) To demonstrate that the design, manufacturing, 
        and production solution is based upon a stable, 
        producible, and cost-effective product design.
          (2) To ensure that the product capabilities meet 
        contract specifications, acceptable operational 
        performance requirements, and system security 
        requirements.
          (3) To ensure that the product design is mature 
        enough to commit to full production and deployment.
  (b) Tests and Evaluations.--
          (1) In general.--The Commandant shall ensure that the 
        Coast Guard conducts developmental tests and 
        evaluations and operational tests and evaluations of a 
        capability or asset and the subsystems of the 
        capability or asset in accordance with the master plan 
        prepared for the capability or asset under section 
        572(d)(1).
          (2) Use of third parties.--The Commandant shall 
        ensure that the Coast Guard uses independent third 
        parties with expertise in testing and evaluating the 
        capabilities or assets and the subsystems of the 
        capabilities or assets being acquired to conduct 
        developmental tests and evaluations and operational 
        tests and evaluations whenever the Coast Guard lacks 
        the capability to conduct the tests and evaluations 
        required by a master plan.
          (3) Communication of safety concerns.--The Commandant 
        shall require that safety concerns identified during 
        developmental or operational tests and evaluations or 
        through independent or Government-conducted design 
        assessments of capabilities or assets and subsystems of 
        capabilities or assets to be acquired by the Coast 
        Guard shall be communicated as soon as practicable, but 
        not later than 30 days after the completion of the test 
        or assessment event or activity that identified the 
        safety concern, to the program manager for the 
        capability or asset and the subsystems concerned and to 
        the Chief Acquisition Officer.
          (4) Reporting of safety concerns.--Any safety 
        concerns that have been reported to the Chief 
        Acquisition Officer for an acquisition program or 
        project shall be reported by the Commandant to the 
        appropriate congressional committees at least 90 days 
        before the award of any contract or issuance of any 
        delivery order or task order for low, initial, or full-
        rate production of the capability or asset concerned if 
        they will remain uncorrected or unmitigated at the time 
        such a contract is awarded or delivery order or task 
        order is issued. The report shall include a 
        justification for the approval of that level of 
        production of the capability or asset before the safety 
        concerns are corrected or mitigated. The report shall 
        also include an explanation of the actions that will be 
        taken to correct or mitigate the safety concerns, the 
        date by which those actions will be taken, and the 
        adequacy of current funding to correct or mitigate the 
        safety concerns.
          (5) Asset already in low, initial, or full-rate 
        production.--If operational test and evaluation of a 
        capability or asset already in low, initial, or full-
        rate production identifies a safety concern with the 
        capability or asset or any subsystems of the capability 
        or asset not previously identified during developmental 
        or operational test and evaluation, the Commandant 
        shall--
                  (A) notify the program manager and the Chief 
                Acquisition Officer of the safety concern as 
                soon as practicable, but not later than 30 days 
                after the completion of the test and evaluation 
                event or activity that identified the safety 
                concern; and
                  (B) notify the Chief Acquisition Officer and 
                include in such notification--
                          (i) an explanation of the actions 
                        that will be taken to correct or 
                        mitigate the safety concern in all 
                        capabilities or assets and subsystems 
                        of the capabilities or assets yet to be 
                        produced, and the date by which those 
                        actions will be taken;
                          (ii) an explanation of the actions 
                        that will be taken to correct or 
                        mitigate the safety concern in 
                        previously produced capabilities or 
                        assets and subsystems of the 
                        capabilities or assets, and the date by 
                        which those actions will be taken; and
                          (iii) an assessment of the adequacy 
                        of current funding to correct or 
                        mitigate the safety concern in 
                        capabilities or assets and subsystems 
                        of the capabilities or assets and in 
                        previously produced capabilities or 
                        assets and subsystems.
  (c) Technical Certification.--
          (1) In general.--The Commandant shall ensure that any 
        Level 1 or Level 2 acquisition project or program is 
        certified by the technical authority of the Coast Guard 
        after review by an independent third party with 
        capabilities in the mission area, asset, or particular 
        asset component.
          (2) TEMPEST testing.--The Commandant shall--
                  (A) cause all electronics on all aircraft, 
                surface, and shore capabilities and assets that 
                require TEMPEST certification and that are 
                delivered after the date of enactment of the 
                Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 to be 
                tested in accordance with TEMPEST standards and 
                communications security (comsec) standards by 
                an independent third party that is authorized 
                by the Federal Government to perform such 
                testing; and
                  (B) certify that the assets meet all 
                applicable TEMPEST requirements.
          (3) Cutter classification.--
                  (A) In general.--The Commandant shall cause 
                each cutter, other than a National Security 
                Cutter, acquired by the Coast Guard and 
                delivered after the date of enactment of the 
                Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 to be 
                classed by the American Bureau of Shipping 
                before final acceptance and shall maintain such 
                cutter in class.
          (4) Other vessels.--The Commandant shall cause the 
        design and construction of each National Security 
        Cutter, other than National Security Cutters 1, 2, and 
        3, to be assessed by an independent third party with 
        expertise in vessel design and construction 
        certification.
          (5) Aircraft airworthiness.--The Commandant shall 
        cause all aircraft and aircraft engines acquired by the 
        Coast Guard and delivered after the date of enactment 
        of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 to be 
        assessed for airworthiness by an independent third 
        party with expertise in aircraft and aircraft engine 
        certification before final acceptance.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                      Subchapter III--DEFINITIONS

Sec. 581. Definitions

   In this chapter:
          (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the 
        Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
        House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
        Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
          (2) Chief acquisition officer.--The term ``Chief 
        Acquisition Officer'' means the officer appointed under 
        section 56 of this title.
          (3) Commandant.--The term ``Commandant'' means the 
        Commandant of the Coast Guard.
          (4) Level 1 acquisition.--The term ``Level 1 
        acquisition'' means--
                  (A) an acquisition by the Coast Guard--
                          (i) the estimated life-cycle costs of 
                        which exceed $1,000,000,000; or
                          (ii) the estimated total acquisition 
                        costs of which exceed $300,000,000; or
                  (B) any acquisition that the Chief 
                Acquisition Officer of the Coast Guard 
                determines to have a special interest--
                          (i) due to--
                                  (I) the experimental or 
                                technically immature nature of 
                                the asset;
                                  (II) the technological 
                                complexity of the asset;
                                  (III) the commitment of 
                                resources; or
                                  (IV) the nature of the 
                                capability or set of 
                                capabilities to be achieved; or
                          (ii) because such acquisition is a 
                        joint acquisition.
          (5) Level 2 acquisition.--The term ``Level 2 
        acquisition'' means an acquisition by the Coast Guard--
                  (A) the estimated life-cycle costs of which 
                are equal to or less than $1,000,000,000, but 
                greater than $300,000,000; or
                  (B) the estimated total acquisition costs of 
                which are equal to or less than 
                [$300,000,0000,] $300,000,000, but greater than 
                $100,000,000.
          (6) Life-cycle cost.--The term ``life-cycle cost'' 
        means all costs for development, procurement, 
        construction, and operations and support for a 
        particular capability or asset, without regard to 
        funding source or management control.
          (7) Project or program manager defined.--The term 
        ``project or program manager'' means an individual 
        designated--
                  (A) to develop, produce, and deploy a new 
                asset to meet identified operational 
                requirements; and
                  (B) to manage cost, schedule, and performance 
                of the acquisition, project, or program.
          (8) Safety concern.--The term ``safety concern'' 
        means any hazard associated with a capability or asset 
        or a subsystem of a capability or asset that is likely 
        to cause serious bodily injury or death to a typical 
        Coast Guard user in testing, maintaining, repairing, or 
        operating the capability, asset, or subsystem or any 
        hazard associated with the capability, asset, or 
        subsystem that is likely to cause major damage to the 
        capability, asset, or subsystem during the course of 
        its normal operation by a typical Coast Guard user.
          (9) Developmental test and evaluation.--The term 
        ``developmental test and evaluation'' means--
                  (A) the testing of a capability or asset and 
                the subsystems of the capability or asset to 
                determine whether they meet all contractual 
                performance requirements, including technical 
                performance requirements, supportability 
                requirements, and interoperability requirements 
                and related specifications; and
                  (B) the evaluation of the results of such 
                testing.
          (10) Operational test and evaluation.--The term 
        ``operational test and evaluation'' means--
                  (A) the testing of a capability or asset and 
                the subsystems of the capability or asset, 
                under conditions similar to those in which the 
                capability or asset and subsystems will 
                actually be deployed, for the purpose of 
                determining the effectiveness and suitability 
                of the capability or asset and subsystems for 
                use by typical Coast Guard users to conduct 
                those missions for which the capability or 
                asset and subsystems are intended to be used; 
                and
                  (B) the evaluation of the results of such 
                testing.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                       CHAPTER 17--ADMINISTRATION

Sec.
631. Delegation of powers by the Secretary.
     * * * * * * *
[661. Authorization of personnel end strengths.
[662. Requirement for prior authorization of appropriations.
[662a. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request.
[663. Capital investment plan.]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 637. Stopping vessels; indemnity for firing at or into vessel

  (a)(1) Whenever any vessel liable to seizure or examination 
does not stop on being ordered to do so or on being pursued by 
an authorized vessel or authorized aircraft which has displayed 
the ensign, pennant, or other identifying insignia prescribed 
for an authorized vessel or authorized aircraft, the person in 
command or in charge of the authorized vessel or authorized 
aircraft may, subject to paragraph (2), fire at or into the 
vessel which does not stop.
  (2) Before firing at or into a vessel as authorized in 
paragraph (1), the person in command or in charge of the 
authorized vessel or authorized aircraft shall fire a gun as a 
warning signal, except that the prior firing of a gun as a 
warning signal is not required if that person determines that 
the firing of a warning signal would unreasonably endanger 
persons or property in the vicinity of the vessel to be 
stopped.
  (b) The person in command of an authorized vessel or 
authorized aircraft and all persons acting under that person's 
direction shall be indemnified from any penalties or actions 
for damages for firing at or into a vessel pursuant to 
subsection (a). If any person is killed or wounded by the 
firing, and the person in command of the authorized vessel or 
authorized aircraft or any person acting pursuant to their 
orders is prosecuted or arrested therefor, they shall be 
forthwith admitted to bail.
  (c) A vessel or aircraft is an authorized vessel or 
authorized aircraft for purposes of this section if--
          (1) it is a Coast Guard vessel or aircraft;
          (2) it is a surface naval vessel or military aircraft 
        on which one or more members of the Coast Guard are 
        assigned pursuant to section 379 of title 10; or
          (3) it is any other vessel or aircraft on government 
        noncommercial service when--
                  (A) the vessel or aircraft is under the 
                tactical control of the Coast Guard; and
                  (B) at least one member of the Coast Guard is 
                assigned and conducting a Coast Guard mission 
                on the vessel or aircraft.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 641. Disposal of certain material

  (a) The Commandant subject to applicable regulations under 
subtitle I of title 40 and division C (except sections 3302, 
3501(b), 3509, 3906, 4710, and 4711) of subtitle I of title 41 
may dispose of, with or without charge, to the Coast Guard 
Auxiliary, including any incorporated unit thereof, to the sea-
scout service of the Boy Scouts of America, and to any public 
body or private organization not organized for profit having an 
interest therein for historical or other special reasons, such 
obsolete or other material as may not be needed for the Coast 
Guard.
  (b) The Commandant may, under regulations prescribed by the 
Secretary, sell apparatus or equipment manufactured by or in 
use in the Coast Guard, which is not readily procurable in the 
open market. The money received from such sale shall be 
deposited in the Treasury to the credit of the current 
appropriation from which purchase of similar apparatus or 
equipment is authorized.
  (c)(1) The Commandant may--
          (A) provide for the sale of recyclable materials that 
        the Coast Guard holds;
          (B) provide for the operation of recycling programs 
        at Coast Guard installations; and
          (C) designate Coast Guard installations that have 
        qualified recycling programs for the purposes of 
        subsection (d)(2).
  (2) Recyclable materials shall be sold in accordance with 
sections 541-555 of title 40, except that the Commandant may 
conduct sales of materials for which the proceeds of sale will 
not exceed $5,000 under regulations prescribed by the 
Commandant.
  (d)(1) Proceeds from the sale of recyclable materials at a 
Coast Guard installation shall be credited to funds available 
for operations and maintenance at that installation in amounts 
sufficient to cover operations, maintenance, recycling 
equipment, and overhead costs for processing recyclable 
materials at the installation.
  (2) If, after funds are credited, a balance remains available 
to a Coast Guard installation and the installation has a 
qualified recycling program, not more than 50 percent of that 
balance may be used at the installation for projects for 
pollution abatement, energy conservation, and occupational 
safety and health activities. The cost of the project may not 
be greater than 50 percent of the amount permissible for a 
minor construction project.
  (3) The remaining balance available to a Coast [Guard, 
installation] Guard installation may be transferred to the 
Coast Guard Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Program.
  (e) If the balance available to the Coast Guard installation 
under this section at the end of a fiscal year is in excess of 
$200,000, the amount of that excess shall be deposited in the 
general fund of the Treasury as offsetting receipts of the 
Department in which the Coast Guard is operating and ascribed 
to Coast Guard activities.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 19--ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE AND RESTORATION PROGRAM

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 691. Environmental Compliance and Restoration Program

  (a) The Secretary shall carry out a program of environmental 
compliance and restoration at current and former Coast Guard 
facilities.
  (b) Program goals include:
          (1) Identifying, investigating, and cleaning up 
        contamination from hazardous substances and pollutants.
          (2) Correcting other environmental damage that poses 
        an imminent and substantial danger to the public health 
        or welfare or to the environment.
          (3) Demolishing and removing unsafe buildings and 
        structures, including buildings and structures at 
        former Coast Guard facilities.
          (4) Preventing contamination from hazardous 
        substances and pollutants at current Coast Guard 
        facilities.
  (c)(1) The Secretary shall respond to releases of hazardous 
substances and pollutants--
          (A) at each Coast Guard facility the United States 
        owns, leases, or otherwise possesses;
          (B) at each Coast Guard facility the United States 
        owned, leased, or otherwise possessed when the actions 
        leading to contamination from hazardous substances or 
        pollutants occurred; and
          (C) on each vessel the Coast Guard owns or operates.
  (2) Paragraph (1) of this subsection does not apply to a 
removal or remedial action when a potentially responsible 
person responds under section 122 of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (42 
U.S.C. 9622).
  (3) The Secretary shall pay a fee or charge imposed by a 
[state] State authority for permit services for disposing of 
hazardous substances or pollutants from Coast Guard facilities 
to the same extent that nongovernmental entities are required 
to pay for permit services. This paragraph does not apply to a 
payment that is the responsibility of a lessee, contractor, or 
other private person.
  (d) The Secretary may agree with another Federal agency for 
that agency to assist in carrying out the Secretary's 
responsibilities under this chapter. The Secretary may enter 
into contracts, cooperative agreements, and grant agreements 
with State and local governments to assist in carrying out the 
Secretary's responsibilities under this chapter. Services that 
may be obtained under this subsection include identifying, 
investigating, and cleaning up off-site contamination that may 
have resulted from the release of a hazardous substance or 
pollutant at a Coast Guard facility.
  (e) Section 119 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9619) applies to 
response action contractors that carry out response actions 
under this chapter. The Coast Guard shall indemnify response 
action contractors to the extent that adequate insurance is not 
generally available at a fair price at the time the contractor 
enters into the contract to cover the contractor's reasonable, 
potential, long-term liability.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


PART II--COAST GUARD RESERVE AND AUXILIARY

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                    CHAPTER 21--COAST GUARD RESERVE

                              SUBCHAPTER A

                                 general

     * * * * * * *
Sec.
701. Organization.
     * * * * * * *
[709. Reserve student aviation pilots; reserve aviation pilots; 
          appointments in commissioned grade.]
709. Reserve student aviation pilots; Reserve aviation pilots; 
          appointments in commissioned grade.
     * * * * * * *

                              SUBCHAPTER B

                          commissioned officers

     * * * * * * *
[740. Failure of selection and removal from active status.]
740. Failure of selection and removal from an active status.
     * * * * * * *

Subchapter B--Commissioned Officers

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 742. Maximum ages for retention in an active status

  (a) A Reserve officer, if qualified, shall be transferred to 
the Retired Reserve on the day the officer becomes 60 years of 
age unless on active duty. If not qualified for retirement, a 
Reserve officer shall be discharged effective upon the day the 
officer becomes 60 years of age unless on active duty.
  (b) A Reserve officer on active duty shall, if qualified, be 
retired effective upon the day the officer become 62 years of 
age. If not qualified for retirement, a Reserve officer on 
active duty shall be discharged effective upon the day the 
officer becomes 62 years of age.
  (c) Notwithstanding [subsection] subsections (a) and (b), the 
Secretary may authorize the retention of a Reserve rear admiral 
or rear admiral (lower half) in an active status not longer 
than the day on which the officer concerned becomes 64 years of 
age.
  (d) For purposes of this section, ``active duty'' does not 
include active duty for training, duty on a board, or duty of a 
limited or temporary nature if assigned to active duty from an 
inactive duty status.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                   CHAPTER 23--COAST GUARD AUXILIARY

Sec. 821. Administration of the Coast Guard Auxiliary

  (a) The Coast Guard Auxiliary is a nonmilitary organization 
administered by the Commandant under the direction of the 
Secretary. For command, control, and administrative purposes, 
the Auxiliary shall include such organizational elements and 
units as are approved by the Commandant, including but not 
limited to, a national board and staff (to be known as the 
``Auxiliary headquarters unit''), districts, regions, 
divisions, flotillas, and other organizational elements and 
units. The Auxiliary organization and its officers shall have 
such rights, privileges, powers, and duties as may be granted 
to them by the Commandant, consistent with this title and other 
applicable provisions of law. The Commandant may delegate to 
officers of the Auxiliary the authority vested in the 
Commandant by this section, in the manner and to the extent the 
Commandant considers necessary or appropriate for the 
functioning, organization, and internal administration of the 
Auxiliary.
  (b) Each organizational element or unit of the Coast Guard 
Auxiliary organization (but excluding any corporation formed by 
an organizational element or unit of the Auxiliary under 
subsection (c) of this section), shall, except when acting 
outside the scope of section 822, at all times be deemed to be 
an instrumentality of the United States, for purposes of the 
following:
          (1) [Chapter 26] Chapter 171 of title 28 (popularly 
        known as the Federal Tort Claims Act).
          (2) Section 2733 of title 10 (popularly known as the 
        Military Claims Act).
          (3) Section 30101 of title 46 (popularly known as the 
        Admiralty Extension Act).
          (4) Chapter 309 of title 46 (known as the Suits in 
        Admiralty Act).
          (5) Chapter 311 of title 46 (known as the Public 
        Vessels Act).
          (6) Other matters related to noncontractual civil 
        liability.
  (c) The national board of the Auxiliary, and any Auxiliary 
district or region, may form a corporation under State law in 
accordance with policies established by the Commandant.
  (d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), personal property 
of the auxiliary shall not be considered property of the United 
States.
  (2) The Secretary may treat personal property of the 
auxiliary as property of the United States--
          (A) for the purposes of--
                  (i) the statutes and matters referred to in 
                paragraphs (1) through (6) of subsection (b); 
                and
                  (ii) section 641 of this title; and
          (B) as otherwise provided in this chapter.
  (3) The Secretary may reimburse the Auxiliary, and each 
organizational element and unit of the Auxiliary, for necessary 
expenses of operation, maintenance, and repair or replacement 
of personal property of the Auxiliary.
  (4) In this subsection, the term ``personal property of the 
Auxiliary'' means motor boats, yachts, aircraft, radio 
stations, motorized vehicles, trailers, or other equipment that 
is under the administrative jurisdiction of the Coast Guard 
Auxiliary or an organizational element or unit of the Auxiliary 
and that is used solely for the purposes described in this 
subsection.

Sec. 822. Purpose of the Coast Guard Auxiliary

   [The purpose] (a)  In General._The purpose of the Auxiliary 
is to assist the Coast Guard as authorized by the Commandant, 
in performing any Coast Guard function, power, duty, role, 
mission, or operation authorized by law.
  (b) Limitation.--The Auxiliary may conduct a patrol of a 
waterway, or a portion thereof, only if--
          (1) the Commandant has determined such waterway, or 
        portion thereof, is navigable for purposes of the 
        jurisdiction of the Coast Guard; or
          (2) a State or other proper authority has requested 
        such patrol pursuant to section 141 of this title or 
        section 13109 of title 46.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 823a. Members of the Auxiliary; status

  (a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a member of 
the Coast Guard Auxiliary shall not be considered to be a 
Federal employee and shall not be subject to the provisions of 
law relating to Federal employment, including those relating to 
hours of work, rates of compensation, leave, unemployment 
compensation, Federal employee benefits, ethics, conflicts of 
interest, and other similar criminal or civil statutes and 
regulations governing the conduct of Federal employees. 
However, nothing in this subsection shall constrain the 
Commandant from prescribing standards for the conduct and 
behavior of members of the Auxiliary.
  (b) A member of the Auxiliary while assigned to duty shall be 
deemed to be a Federal employee only for the purposes of the 
following:
          (1) [Chapter 26] Chapter 171 of title 28 (popularly 
        known as the Federal Tort Claims Act).
          (2) Section 2733 of title 10 (popularly known as the 
        Military Claims Act).
          (3) Section 30101 of title 46 (popularly known as the 
        Admiralty Extension Act).
          (4) Chapter 309 of title 46 (known as the Suits in 
        Admiralty Act).
          (5) Chapter 311 of title 46 (known as the Public 
        Vessels Act).
          (6) Other matters related to noncontractual civil 
        liability.
          (7) Compensation for work injuries under chapter 81 
        of title 5.
          (8) The resolution of claims relating to damage to or 
        loss of personal property of the member incident to 
        service under the Military Personnel and Civilian 
        Employees' Claims Act of 1964 (31 U.S.C. 3721).
          (9) On or after January 1, 2001, section 651 of 
        Public Law 104-208.
  (c) A member of the Auxiliary, while assigned to duty, shall 
be deemed to be a person acting under an officer of the United 
States or an agency thereof for purposes of section 1442(a)(1) 
of title 28.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                               PART III--

Chap.                                                               Sec.
      Authorizations................................................2701
      Reports.......................................................2901

                              CHAPTER 27--

Sec.
2701. Requirement for prior authorization of appropriations.
2702. Authorization of appropriations.
2703. Authorization of personnel end strengths.
2704. Authorized levels of military strength and training.

Sec. [662.]  2701. Requirement for prior authorization of 
                    appropriations

   Amounts may be appropriated to or for the use of the Coast 
Guard for the following matters only if the amounts have been 
authorized by law after December 31, 1976:
          [(1) For the operation and maintenance of the Coast 
        Guard.
          [(2) For the acquisition, construction, rebuilding, 
        and improvement of aids to navigation, shore or 
        offshore establishments, vessels, or aircraft, 
        including equipment related to the aids, 
        establishments, vessels, or aircraft.
          [(3) For altering obstructive bridges.
          [(4) For research, development, test, or evaluation 
        related to intelligence systems and capabilities or a 
        matter referred to in clauses (1)-(3).
          [(5) For environmental compliance and restoration at 
        Coast Guard facilities.]
          (1) For the operation and maintenance of the Coast 
        Guard, not otherwise provided for.
          (2) For the acquisition, construction, renovation, 
        and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 
        facilities, vessels, and aircraft, including equipment 
        related thereto, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, 
        lease, and operation of facilities and equipment.
          (3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, including 
        operations and maintenance of the program, personnel 
        and training costs, equipment, and services.
          (4) For the environmental compliance and restoration 
        functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 19 of this 
        title.
          (5) For research, development, test, and evaluation 
        of technologies, materials, and human factors directly 
        related to improving the performance of the Coast 
        Guard.
          (6) For alteration or removal of bridges over 
        navigable waters of the United States constituting 
        obstructions to navigation, and for personnel and 
        administrative costs associated with the Alteration of 
        Bridges Program.

Sec. 2702. Authorization of appropriations

  Funds are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal 
years 2016 and 2017 for necessary expenses of the Coast Guard 
as follows:
          (1) For the operation and maintenance of the Coast 
        Guard, not otherwise provided for--
                  (A) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  (B) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          (2) For the acquisition, construction, renovation, 
        and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 
        facilities, vessels, and aircraft, including equipment 
        related thereto, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, 
        lease, and operation of facilities and equipment--
                  (A) $1,546,448,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  (B) $1,546,448,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          (3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, including 
        operations and maintenance of the program, personnel 
        and training costs, equipment, and services--
                  (A) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  (B) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          (4) For the environmental compliance and restoration 
        functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 19 of this 
        title--
                  (A) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  (B) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2017.
          (5) To the Commandant of the Coast Guard for 
        research, development, test, and evaluation of 
        technologies, materials, and human factors directly 
        related to improving the performance of the Coast 
        Guard's mission with respect to search and rescue, aids 
        to navigation, marine safety, marine environmental 
        protection, enforcement of laws and treaties, ice 
        operations, oceanographic research, and defense 
        readiness, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, lease, 
        and operation of facilities and equipment--
                  (A) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2016; and
                  (B) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2017.

Sec. [661.]  2703. Authorization of personnel end strengths

  (a) For each fiscal year, Congress shall authorize the 
strength for active duty personnel of the Coast Guard as of the 
end of that fiscal year. Amounts may be appropriated for a 
fiscal year to or for the use of active duty personnel of the 
Coast Guard only if the end strength for active duty personnel 
for that fiscal year has been authorized by law. If at the end 
of any fiscal year there is in effect a declaration of war or 
national emergency, the President may defer the effectiveness 
of any end-strength limitation with respect to that fiscal year 
prescribed by law for any military or civilian component of the 
Coast Guard, for a period not to exceed 6 months after the end 
of the war or termination of the national emergency.
  (b)(1) Congress shall authorize the average military training 
student loads for the Coast Guard for each fiscal year. That 
authorization is required for student loads for the following 
individual training categories:
          (A) Recruit and specialized training.
          (B) Flight training.
          (C) Professional training in military and civilian 
        institutions.
          (D) Officer acquisition training.
  (2) Amounts may be appropriated for a fiscal year for use in 
training military personnel of the Coast Guard in the 
categories referred to in paragraph (1) only if the average 
student loads for the Coast Guard for that fiscal year have 
been authorized by law.

Sec. 2704. Authorized levels of military strength and training

  (a) Active duty strength The Coast Guard is authorized an 
end-of-year strength for active duty personnel of 43,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2016 and 2017.
  (b) Military training student loads The Coast Guard is 
authorized average military training student loads for each of 
fiscal years 2016 and 2017 as follows:
          (1) For recruit and special training, 2,500 student 
        years.
          (2) For flight training, 165 student years.
          (3) For professional training in military and 
        civilian institutions, 350 student years.
          (4) For officer acquisition, 1,200 student years.

                              CHAPTER 29--

Sec.
2901. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request.
2902. Capital investment plan.
2903. Major acquisitions.
2904. Manpower requirements plan.

Sec. [662a.]  2901. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization 
                    request

  (a) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
which the President submits to Congress a budget for a fiscal 
year pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, the Secretary shall 
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate a Coast Guard 
authorization request with respect to such fiscal year.
  (b) Coast Guard authorization request defined.--In this 
section, the term ``Coast Guard authorization request'' means a 
proposal for legislation that, with respect to the Coast Guard 
for the relevant fiscal year--
          (1) recommends end strengths for personnel for that 
        fiscal year, as [described in section 661] described in 
        section 2703;
          (2) recommends authorizations of appropriations for 
        that fiscal year, including with respect to matters 
        [described in section 662] described in section 2701; 
        and
          (3) addresses any other matter that the Secretary 
        determines is appropriate for inclusion in a Coast 
        Guard authorization bill.

Sec. [663.]  2902. Capital investment plan

  (a) In General.--On the date on which the President submits 
to Congress a budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, the 
Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate--
          (1) a capital investment plan for the Coast Guard 
        that identifies for each capital asset for which 
        appropriations are proposed in that budget--
                  (A) the proposed appropriations included in 
                the budget;
                  (B) the total estimated cost of [completion;] 
                completion based on the proposed appropriations 
                included in the budget;
                  (C) projected funding levels for each fiscal 
                year for the next 5 fiscal years or until 
                project completion, whichever is earlier;
                  (D) an estimated completion date [at the 
                projected funding levels;] based on the 
                proposed appropriations included in the budget; 
                and
                  (E) an acquisition program baseline, as 
                applicable; and
          (2) a list of each unfunded priority for the Coast 
        Guard.
  (b) Unfunded Priority Defined.--In this section, the term 
``unfunded priority'' means a program or mission requirement 
that--
          (1) has not been selected for funding in the 
        applicable proposed budget;
          (2) is necessary to fulfill a requirement associated 
        with an operational need; and
          (3) the Commandant would have recommended for 
        inclusion in the applicable proposed budget had 
        additional resources been available or had the 
        requirement emerged before the budget was submitted.

Sec. [569a.]  2903. Major acquisitions

  (a) In General.--In conjunction with the transmittal by the 
President to Congress of the budget of the United States for 
fiscal year 2014 and biennially thereafter, the Secretary shall 
submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives a report on the status of all major acquisition 
programs.
  (b) Information To Be Included.--Each report under subsection 
(a) shall include for each major acquisition program--
          (1) a statement of the Coast Guard's mission needs 
        and performance goals relating to such program, 
        including a justification for any change to those needs 
        and goals subsequent to a report previously submitted 
        under this section;
          (2) a justification explaining how the projected 
        number and capabilities of assets acquired under such 
        program meet applicable mission needs and performance 
        goals;
          (3) an identification of any and all mission hour 
        gaps, accompanied by an explanation of how and when the 
        Coast Guard will close those gaps;
          (4) an identification of any changes with respect to 
        such program, including--
                  (A) any changes to the timeline for the 
                acquisition of each new asset and the phaseout 
                of legacy assets; and
                  (B) any changes to--
                          (i) the costs of new assets or legacy 
                        assets for that fiscal year or future 
                        fiscal years; or
                          (ii) the total acquisition cost;
          (5) a justification explaining how any change to such 
        program fulfills the mission needs and performance 
        goals of the Coast Guard;
          (6) a description of how the Coast Guard is planning 
        for the integration of each new asset acquired under 
        such program into the Coast Guard, including needs 
        related to shore-based infrastructure and human 
        resources;
          (7) an identification of how funds in the applicable 
        fiscal year's budget request will be allocated, 
        including information on the purchase of specific 
        assets;
          (8) a projection of the remaining operational 
        lifespan and life-cycle cost of each legacy asset that 
        also identifies any anticipated resource gaps;
          (9) a detailed explanation of how the costs of legacy 
        assets are being accounted for within such program; and
          (10) an annual performance comparison of new assets 
        to legacy assets.
  (c) Adequacy of Acquisition Workforce.--Each report under 
subsection (a) shall--
          (1) include information on the scope of the 
        acquisition activities to be performed in the next 
        fiscal year and on the adequacy of the current 
        acquisition workforce to meet that anticipated 
        workload;
          (2) specify the number of officers, members, and 
        employees of the Coast Guard currently and planned to 
        be assigned to each position designated under section 
        562(c) [of this subchapter]; and
          (3) identify positions that are or will be 
        understaffed and actions that will be taken to correct 
        such understaffing.
  (d) Cutters Not Maintained in Class.--Each report under 
subsection (a) shall identify which, if any, Coast Guard 
cutters that have been issued a certificate of classification 
by the American Bureau of Shipping have not been maintained in 
class, with an explanation detailing the reasons why the 
cutters have not been maintained in class.
  (e) Long-Term Major Acquisitions Plan.--Each report under 
subsection (a) shall include a plan that describes for the 
upcoming fiscal year, and for each of the 20 fiscal years 
thereafter--
          (1) the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to 
        be decommissioned;
          (2) the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to 
        be acquired to--
                  (A) replace the cutters and aircraft 
                identified under paragraph (1); or
                  (B) address an identified capability gap; and
          (3) the estimated level of funding in each fiscal 
        year required to--
                  (A) acquire the cutters and aircraft 
                identified under paragraph (2);
                  (B) acquire related command, control, 
                communications, computer, intelligence, 
                surveillance, and reconnaissance systems; and
                  (C) acquire, construct, or renovate shoreside 
                infrastructure.
  [(e)] (f) Major Acquisition Program Defined.--In this 
section, the term ``major acquisition program'' means an 
ongoing acquisition undertaken by the Coast Guard with a life-
cycle cost estimate greater than or equal to $300,000,000.

Sec. 2904. Manpower requirements plan

  (a) In general.--On the date on which the President submits 
to Congress a budget for fiscal year 2017 under section 1105 of 
title 31, on the date on which the President submits to 
Congress a budget for fiscal year 2019 under such section, and 
every 4 years thereafter, the Commandant shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a manpower requirements plan.
  (b) Scope.--A manpower requirements plan submitted under 
subsection (a) shall include for each mission of the Coast 
Guard--
          (1) an assessment of all projected mission 
        requirements for the upcoming fiscal year and for each 
        of the 3 fiscal years thereafter;
          (2) the number of active duty, reserve, and civilian 
        personnel assigned or available to fulfill such mission 
        requirements--
                  (A) currently; and
                  (B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year 
                and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter;
          (3) the number of active duty, reserve, and civilian 
        personnel required to fulfill such mission 
        requirements--
                  (A) currently; and
                  (B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year 
                and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter;
          (4) an identification of any capability gaps between 
        mission requirements and mission performance caused by 
        deficiencies in the numbers of personnel available--
                  (A) currently; and
                  (B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal year 
                and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; and
          (5) an identification of the actions the Commandant 
        will take to address capability gaps identified under 
        paragraph (4).
  (c) Consideration.--In composing a manpower requirements plan 
for submission under subsection (a), the Commandant shall 
consider--
          (1) the marine safety strategy required under section 
        2116 of title 46;
          (2) information on the adequacy of the acquisition 
        workforce included in the most recent report under 
        section 2903 of this title; and
          (3) any other Federal strategic planning effort the 
        Commandant considers appropriate.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


        SECTION 409 OF THE COAST GUARD AUTHORIZATION ACT OF 1998

SEC. 409. COAST GUARD CITY, USA.

  The Commandant of the Coast Guard may recognize the community 
of Grand Haven, Michigan, as "Coast Guard City, USA". [If the 
Commandant desires to recognize any other community in the same 
manner or any other community requests such recognition from 
the Coast Guard, the Commandant shall notify the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives 90 days prior to approving such recognition.] 
Commandant may recognize any other community in a similar 
manner if the Commandant determines that such community has 
demonstrated enduring support of the Coast Guard, Coast Guard 
personnel, and the dependents of Coast Guard personnel.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


COAST GUARD AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION ACT OF 2012

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


TITLE II--COAST GUARD

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 222. COAST GUARD POLAR ICEBREAKERS.

  [(a) In General.--The Secretary of the department in which 
the Coast Guard is operating shall conduct a business case 
analysis of the options for and costs of reactivating and 
extending the service life of the Polar Sea until at least 
September 30, 2022, to maintain United States polar icebreaking 
capabilities and fulfill the Coast Guard's high latitude 
mission needs, as identified in the Coast Guard's July 2010, 
High Latitude Study Mission Analysis Report, during the Coast 
Guard's recapitalization of its polar class icebreaker fleet. 
The analysis shall include--
          [(1) an assessment of the current condition of the 
        Polar Sea;
          [(2) a determination of the Polar Sea's operational 
        capabilities with respect to fulfilling the Coast 
        Guard's high latitude operating requirements if 
        renovated and reactivated;
          [(3) a detailed estimate of costs with respect to 
        reactivating and extending the service life of the 
        Polar Sea;
          [(4) a life cycle cost estimate with respect to 
        operating and maintaining the Polar Sea for the 
        duration of its extended service life; and
          [(5) a determination of whether it is cost-effective 
        to reactivate the Polar Sea compared with other options 
        to provide icebreaking services as part of a strategy 
        to maintain polar icebreaking services.]
  (a) In General.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
the enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, the 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating shall--
          (1) complete a materiel condition assessment with 
        respect to the Polar Sea;
          (2) make a determination of whether it is cost 
        effective to reactivate the Polar Sea compared with 
        other options to provide icebreaking services as part 
        of a strategy to maintain polar icebreaking services; 
        and
          (3) submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
        Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
        the Senate--
                  (A) the assessment required under paragraph 
                (1); and
                  (B) written notification of the determination 
                required under paragraph (2).
  (b) Restrictions.--The Secretary shall not remove any part of 
the Polar Sea until the Secretary submits the [analysis] 
written notification required under subsection (a).
  [(c) Deadline.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate the analysis required under 
subsection (a).]
  [(d)] (c) Requirement for Reactivation of Polar Sea.--
          (1) Service life extension plan.--
                  (A) In general.--If the Secretary determines 
                [based on the analysis required] under 
                subsection (a) that it is cost-effective to 
                reactivate the Polar Sea compared with other 
                options to provide icebreaking services, the 
                Secretary shall develop a service life 
                extension plan for such reactivation, including 
                a timetable for such reactivation.
                  (B) Utilization of existing resources.--In 
                the development of the plan required under 
                subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall utilize 
                to the greatest extent practicable recent 
                plans, studies, assessments, and analyses 
                regarding the Coast Guard's icebreakers and 
                high latitude mission needs and operating 
                requirements.
                  (C) Submission.--The Secretary shall submit 
                the plan required under subparagraph (A), if so 
                required, to the Committee on Transportation 
                and Infrastructure of the House of 
                Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
                Science, and Transportation of the Senate not 
                later than 180 days after the submission of the 
                [analysis] written notification required under 
                subsection (a).
          [(2) Decommissioning.--If the analysis required under 
        subsection (a) is submitted in accordance with 
        subsection (c) and the Secretary determines under 
        subsection (a)(5) that it is not cost-effective to 
        reactivate the Polar Sea, then not later than 180 days 
        after the date on which the analysis is required to be 
        submitted under subsection (c) the Commandant of the 
        Coast Guard may decommission the Polar Sea.
          [(3) Result of no determination.--If in the analysis 
        submitted under this section the Secretary does not 
        make a determination under subsection (a)(5) regarding 
        whether it is cost effective to reactivate the Polar 
        Sea, then--
                  [(A) the Commandant of the Coast Guard may 
                decommission the Polar Sea; or
                  [(B) the Secretary may make such 
                determination, not later than 90 days after the 
                date of the enactment of Howard Coble Coast 
                Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014, 
                and take actions in accordance with this 
                subsection as though such determination was 
                made in the analysis previously submitted.]
          (2) Decommissioning.--If the Secretary makes a 
        determination under subsection (a) that it is not cost 
        effective to reactivate the Polar Sea, then, not later 
        than 180 days after written notification of that 
        determination is submitted under that subsection, the 
        Commandant of the Coast Guard may decommission the 
        Polar Sea.
          (3) Result of no determination.--If the Secretary 
        does not make a determination under subsection (a) 
        regarding whether it is cost effective to reactivate 
        the Polar Sea, then the Commandant of the Coast Guard 
        may decommission the Polar Sea.
  [(e)] (d) Strategies.--
          (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        date on which the [analysis] written notification 
        required under subsection (a) is submitted, the 
        Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the 
        Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
        House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
        Science, and Transportation of the Senate--
                  (A) unless the Secretary makes a 
                determination under this section that it is 
                cost effective to reactivate the Polar Sea, a 
                bridging strategy for maintaining the Coast 
                Guard's polar icebreaking services until at 
                least September 30, 2024;
                  (B) a strategy to meet the Coast Guard's 
                Arctic ice operations needs through September 
                30, 2050; and
                  (C) a strategy to meet the Coast Guard's 
                Antarctic ice operations needs through 
                September 30, 2050
          (2) Requirement.--The strategies required under 
        paragraph (1) shall include a business case analysis 
        comparing the leasing and purchasing of icebreakers to 
        maintain the needs and services described in that 
        paragraph.
  [(f)] (e) Restriction.--Except as provided [in subsection 
(d)] in subsection (c), the Commandant of the Coast Guard may 
not--
          (1) transfer, relinquish ownership of, dismantle, or 
        recycle the Polar Sea or Polar Star;
          (2) change the current homeport of either of the 
        vessels; or
          (3) expend any funds--
                  (A) for any expenses directly or indirectly 
                associated with the decommissioning of either 
                of the vessels, including expenses for dock use 
                or other goods and services;
                  (B) for any personnel expenses directly or 
                indirectly associated with the decommissioning 
                of either of the vessels, including expenses 
                for a decommissioning officer;
                  (C) for any expenses associated with a 
                decommissioning ceremony for either of the 
                vessels;
                  (D) to appoint a decommissioning officer to 
                be affiliated with either of the vessels; or
                  (E) to place either of the vessels in 
                inactive status.
  [(g)] (f) Definition.--For purposes of this section--
          (1) the term ``Polar Sea'' means Coast Guard Cutter 
        Polar Sea (WAGB 11); and
          (2) the term ``Polar Star'' means Coast Guard Cutter 
        Polar Star (WAGB 10).
  [(h)] (g) Repeal.--This section shall cease to have effect on 
September 30, 2022.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


HOWARD COBLE COAST GUARD AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION ACT OF 2014

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

     * * * * * * *

                         TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS

     * * * * * * *
[Sec. 610. Safe vessel operation in Thunder Bay.]
Sec. 610. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes.

     * * * * * * *

SEC. 225. AVIATION CAPABILITY.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating may--
          (1) request and accept through a direct military-to-
        military transfer under section 2571 of title 10, 
        United States Code, such H-60 helicopters as may be 
        necessary to establish a year-round operational 
        capability in the Coast Guard's Ninth District; and
          (2) use funds provided under section 101 of this Act 
        to convert such helicopters to Coast Guard MH-60T 
        configuration.
  (b) Prohibition.--
          (1) In General.--The Coast Guard may not--
                  (A) close a Coast Guard air facility that was 
                in operation on November 30, 2014; or
                  (B) retire, transfer, relocate, or deploy an 
                aviation asset from an air facility described 
                in subparagraph (A) for the purpose of closing 
                such facility.
          [(2) Sunset.--This subsection is repealed effective 
        January 1, 2016.]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 610. SAFE VESSEL OPERATION IN [THUNDER BAY]  THE GREAT LAKES.

  The Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency may not prohibit a vessel operating within the [existing 
boundaries and any future expanded boundaries of the Thunder 
Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve] 
boundaries of any national marine sanctuary that preserves 
shipwrecks or maritime heritage in the Great Lakes from taking 
up or discharging ballast water to allow for safe and efficient 
vessel operation if the uptake or discharge meets all Federal 
and State ballast water management requirements that would 
apply if the area were not a marine sanctuary, unless the 
designation documents for such sanctuary do not allow taking up 
or discharging ballast water in such sanctuary.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


TITLE 46, UNITED STATES CODE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subtitle I--General

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 1--DEFINITIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 103. Boundary Line

  In this title, the term ``Boundary Line'' means a line 
established under section 2(b) of the Act of February 19, 1895 
[(33 U.S.C. 151).] (33 U.S.C. 151(b)).

                 CHAPTER 3--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION

Sec.
301. General organization.
     * * * * * * *
308. Authorization of appropriations.

Sec. 301. General organization

  (a) Organization.--The Federal Maritime Commission is an 
independent establishment of the United States Government.
  (b) Commissioners.--
          (1) Composition.--The Commission is composed of 5 
        Commissioners, appointed by the President by and with 
        the advice and consent of the Senate. Not more than 3 
        Commissioners may be appointed from the same political 
        party.
          (2) Terms.--The term of each Commissioner is 5 years. 
        When the term of a Commissioner ends, the Commissioner 
        may continue to serve until a successor is appointed 
        and qualified, but for a period not to exceed one year. 
        Except as provided in paragraph (3), no individual may 
        serve more than 2 terms.
          (3) Vacancies.--A vacancy shall be filled in the same 
        manner as the original appointment. An individual 
        appointed to fill a vacancy is appointed only for the 
        unexpired term of the individual being succeeded. An 
        individual appointed to fill a vacancy may serve 2 
        terms in addition to the remainder of the term for 
        which the predecessor of that individual was appointed.
          (4) Conflicts of interest.--
                  (A) Limitation on relationships with 
                regulated entities.--A Commissioner may not 
                have a pecuniary interest in, hold an official 
                relation to, or own stocks or bonds of any 
                entity the Commission regulates under chapter 
                401 of this title.
                  (B) Limitation on other activities.--A 
                Commissioner may not engage in another 
                business, vocation, or employment.
          (5) Removal.--The President may remove a Commissioner 
        for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in 
        office.
  (c) Chairman.--
          (1) Designation.--The President shall designate one 
        of the Commissioners as Chairman.
          (2) General authority.--The Chairman is the chief 
        executive and administrative officer of the Commission. 
        In carrying out the duties and powers of the Commission 
        (other than under paragraph (3)), the Chairman is 
        subject to the policies, regulatory decisions, 
        findings, and determinations of the Commission.
          (3) Particular duties.--
                  (A) In general.--The Chairman shall--
                          (i) appoint and supervise officers 
                        and employees of the Commission;
                          (ii) appoint the heads of major 
                        organizational [units, but only after 
                        consultation with the other 
                        Commissioners;] units (with such 
                        appointments subject to the approval of 
                        the Commission);
                          (iii) distribute the business of the 
                        Commission among personnel and 
                        organizational units;
                          (iv) supervise the expenditure of 
                        money for administrative purposes; 
                        [and]
                          (v) assign Commission personnel, 
                        including Commissioners, to perform 
                        duties and powers delegated by the 
                        Commission under section 304 of this 
                        title[.]; and
                          (vi) prepare and submit to the 
                        President and Congress requests for 
                        appropriations for the Commission (with 
                        such requests subject to the approval 
                        of the Commission).
                  (B) Nonapplication.--Subparagraph (A) (other 
                than clause (v)) does not apply to personnel 
                employed regularly and full-time in the offices 
                of Commissioners other than the Chairman.
          (4) Delegation.--The Chairman may designate officers 
        and employees under the Chairman's jurisdiction to 
        perform duties and powers of the Chairman, subject to 
        the Chairman's supervision and direction.
  (d) Seal.--The Commission shall have a seal which shall be 
judicially recognized.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 307. Expenditures

   [The Federal Maritime Commission] (a)  In General._The 
Federal Maritime Commission may make such expenditures as are 
necessary in the performance of its functions from funds 
appropriated or otherwise made available to it, which 
appropriations are authorized.
  (b) Prohibition.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Federal 
Maritime Commission may not expend any funds appropriated or 
otherwise made available to it to issue an award, prize, 
commendation, or other honor to a non-Federal entity.

Sec. 308. Authorization of appropriations

  There is authorized to be appropriated to the Federal 
Maritime Commission $24,700,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 
and 2017 for the activities of the Commission authorized under 
this chapter and subtitle IV.

Subtitle II--Vessels and Seamen

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Part A--General Provisions

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 21--GENERAL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 2118. Establishment of equipment standards

  (a) In establishing standards for approved equipment required 
on vessels subject to part B of this [title,] subtitle, the 
Secretary shall establish standards that are--
          (1) based on performance using the best available 
        technology that is economically achievable; and
          (2) operationally practical.
  (b) Using the standards established under subsection (a), the 
Secretary may also certify lifesaving equipment that is not 
required to be carried on vessels subject to part B of this 
[title] subtitle to ensure that such equipment is suitable for 
its intended purpose.
  (c) At least once every 10 years the Secretary shall review 
and revise the standards established under subsection (a) to 
ensure that the standards meet the requirements of this 
section.

Part B--Inspection and Regulations of Vessels

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 31--GENERAL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


[Sec. 3104. Survival craft

  [(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the Secretary may 
not approve a survival craft as a safety device for purposes of 
this part, unless the craft ensures that no part of an 
individual is immersed in water.
  [(b) The Secretary may authorize a survival craft that does 
not provide protection described in subsection (a) to remain in 
service until not later than the date that is 30 months after 
the date on which the report described in subsection (c) is 
submitted, if--
          [(1) it was approved by the Secretary before January 
        1, 2010; and
          [(2) it is in serviceable condition.
  [(c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this subsection, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 
shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate a report on the carriage of survival craft that ensures 
no part of an individual is immersed in water, which shall 
include--
          [(1) the number of casualties, by vessel type and 
        area of operation, as the result of immersion in water 
        reported to the Coast Guard for each of fiscal years 
        1991 through 2011;
          [(2) the effect the carriage of such survival craft 
        has on--
                  [(A) vessel safety, including stability and 
                safe navigation; and
                  [(B) survivability of individuals, including 
                persons with disabilities, children, and the 
                elderly;
          [(3) the efficacy of alternative safety systems, 
        devices, or measures;
          [(4) the cost and cost effectiveness of requiring the 
        carriage of such survival craft on vessels; and
          [(5) the number of small businesses and nonprofit 
        entities that would be affected by requiring the 
        carriage of such survival craft on vessels.]

Sec. 3104. Survival craft

  (a) Requirement to Equip.--The Secretary shall require that a 
passenger vessel be equipped with survival craft that ensures 
that no part of an individual is immersed in water, if--
          (1) such vessel is built or undergoes a major 
        conversion after January 1, 2016; and
          (2) operates in cold waters as determined by the 
        Secretary.
  (b) Higher Standard of Safety.--The Secretary may revise part 
117 or part 180 of title 46, Code of Federal Regulations, as in 
effect before January 1, 2016, if such revision provides a 
higher standard of safety than is provided by the regulations 
in effect on or before the date of the enactment of the Coast 
Guard Authorization Act of 2015.
  (c) Innovative and Novel Designs.--The Secretary may, in lieu 
of the requirements set out in part 117 or part 180 of title 
46, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of 
the enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, 
allow a passenger vessel to be equipped with a life saving 
appliance or arrangement of an innovative or novel design 
that--
          (1) ensures no part of an individual is immersed in 
        water; and
          (2) provides an equal or higher standard of safety 
        than is provided by such requirements as in effect 
        before such date of the enactment.
  (d) Built Defined.--In this section, the term ``built'' has 
the meaning that term has under section 4503(e).

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                   CHAPTER 35--CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS

Sec.
3501. Number of passengers.
     * * * * * * *
3507. Passenger vessel security and safety requirements.
3508. Crime scene preservation training for passenger vessel 
          crewmembers.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 37--CARRIAGE OF LIQUID BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 3715. Lightering

  (a) A vessel may transfer oil or hazardous material in a port 
or place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, when 
the cargo has been transferred from another vessel on the 
navigable waters of the United States or in the marine 
environment, only if--
          (1) the transfer was conducted consistent with 
        regulations prescribed by the Secretary;
          (2) both the delivering and receiving vessels had on 
        board, at the time of transfer, a certificate of 
        inspection or a certificate of compliance, as would 
        have been required under section 3710 or 3711 of this 
        title, had the transfer taken place in a port or place 
        subject to the jurisdiction of the United States[; 
        and];
          (3) the delivering and the receiving vessel had on 
        board at the time of transfer, a certificate of 
        financial responsibility as would have been required 
        under section 1016 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, 
        had the transfer taken place in a place subject to the 
        jurisdiction of the United States;
          (4) the delivering and the receiving vessel had on 
        board at the time of transfer, evidence that each 
        vessel is operating in compliance with section 311(j) 
        of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
        1321(j)); and
          (5) the delivering and the receiving vessel are 
        operating in compliance with section 3703a of this 
        title.
  (b) The Secretary shall prescribe regulations to carry out 
subsection (a) of this section. The regulations shall include 
provisions on--
          (1) minimum safe operating conditions, including sea 
        state, wave height, weather, proximity to channels or 
        shipping lanes, and other similar factors;
          (2) the prevention of spills;
          (3) equipment for responding to a spill;
          (4) the prevention of any unreasonable interference 
        with navigation or other reasonable uses of the high 
        seas, as those uses are defined by treaty, convention, 
        or customary international law;
          (5) the establishment of lightering zones; and
          (6) requirements for communication and prearrival 
        messages.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 43--RECREATIONAL VESSELS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 4302. Regulations

  (a) The Secretary may prescribe regulations--
          (1) establishing minimum safety standards for 
        recreational vessels and associated equipment, and 
        establishing procedures and tests required to measure 
        conformance with those standards, with each standard--
                  (A) meeting the need for recreational vessel 
                safety; and
                  (B) being stated, insofar as practicable, in 
                terms of performance;
          (2) requiring the installation, carrying, or use of 
        associated equipment (including fuel systems, 
        ventilation systems, electrical systems, sound-
        producing devices, firefighting equipment, lifesaving 
        devices, signaling devices, ground tackle, life- and 
        grab-rails, and navigational equipment) on recreational 
        vessels and classes of recreational vessels subject to 
        this chapter, and prohibiting the installation, 
        carrying, or use of associated equipment that does not 
        conform with safety standards established under this 
        section; and
          (3) requiring or permitting the display of seals, 
        labels, plates, insignia, or other devices for 
        certifying or evidencing compliance with safety 
        regulations and standards of the United States 
        Government for recreational vessels and associated 
        equipment.
  (b) Each regulation prescribed under this section shall 
specify an effective date that is not earlier than 180 days 
from the date the regulation was published, unless the 
Secretary finds that there exists a recreational vessel safety 
hazard so critical as to require an earlier effective date. 
However, this period may not be more than 24 months for cases 
involving, in the discretion of the Secretary, major product 
design, retooling, or major changes in the manufacturing 
process.
  (c) In prescribing regulations under this section, the 
Secretary shall, among other things--
          (1) consider the need for and the extent to which the 
        regulations will contribute to recreational vessel 
        safety;
          (2) consider relevant available recreational vessel 
        safety standards, statistics, and data, including 
        public and private research, development, testing, and 
        evaluation;
          (3) not compel substantial alteration of a 
        recreational vessel or item of associated equipment 
        that is in existence, or the construction or 
        manufacture of which is begun before the effective date 
        of the regulation, but subject to that limitation may 
        require compliance or performance, to avoid a 
        substantial risk of personal injury to the public, that 
        the Secretary considers appropriate in relation to the 
        degree of hazard that the compliance will correct; and
          (4) consult with the National Boating Safety Advisory 
        Council established under section 13110 of this title 
        about the considerations referred to in clauses (1)-(3) 
        of this subsection.
  (d) Section 8903 of this title does not apply to a vessel 
being operated for bona fide dealer demonstrations provided 
without fee to business invitees. However, if on the basis of 
substantial evidence, the Secretary decides under this section 
that requiring vessels so operated to be under the control of 
licensed individuals is necessary for boating safety, then the 
Secretary may prescribe regulations requiring the licensing of 
individuals controlling these vessels in the same manner as 
provided in chapter 89 of this title for individuals in control 
of vessels carrying passengers for hire.
  (e)(1) If in prescribing regulations under this section the 
Secretary establishes a model year for recreational vessels and 
associated equipment, such model year shall, except as provided 
in paragraph (2)--
          (A) begin on June 1 of a year and end on July 31 of 
        the following year; and
          (B) be designated by the year in which it ends.
  (2) Upon the request of a recreational vessel manufacturer to 
which this chapter applies, the Secretary may alter a model 
year for a model of recreational vessel of the manufacturer and 
associated equipment, by no more than 6 months from the model 
year described in paragraph (1).

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 45--UNINSPECTED COMMERCIAL FISHING INDUSTRY VESSELS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 4503. Fishing, fish tender, and fish processing vessel 
                    certification

  (a) A vessel to which this section applies may not be 
operated unless the vessel--
          (1) meets all survey and classification requirements 
        prescribed by the American Bureau of Shipping or 
        another similarly qualified organization approved by 
        the Secretary; and
          (2) has on board a certificate issued by the American 
        Bureau of Shipping or that other organization 
        evidencing compliance with this subsection.
  (b) This section applies to a fish processing vessel to which 
this chapter applies that--
          (1) is built after July 27, 1990; or
          (2) undergoes a major conversion completed after that 
        date.
  (c) This section applies to a vessel to which section 4502(b) 
of this title applies that is at least 50 feet overall in 
length and is built after July 1, 2013. Subsection (a) does not 
apply to a fishing vessel or fish tender vessel described in 
subsection (d)(6), if the vessel complies with an alternative 
safety compliance program established under that subsection for 
such a vessel.
  (d)(1) After January 1, 2020, a fishing vessel, fish 
processing vessel, or fish tender vessel to which section 
4502(b) of this title applies shall comply with an alternate 
safety compliance program that is developed in cooperation with 
the commercial fishing industry and prescribed by the 
Secretary, if the vessel--
          (A) is at least 50 feet overall in length;
          (B) is built before July 1, 2013; and
          (C) is 25 years of age or older.
  (2) A fishing vessel, fish processing vessel, or fish tender 
vessel built before July 1, 2013, that undergoes a major 
conversion completed after the later of July 1, 2013, or the 
date the Secretary establishes standards for an alternate 
safety compliance program, shall comply with such an 
alternative safety compliance program that is developed in 
cooperation with the commercial fishing industry and prescribed 
by the Secretary.
  (3) Alternative safety compliance programs may be developed 
for purposes of paragraph (1) for specific regions and 
fisheries.
  (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), vessels owned by a person 
that owns more than 30 vessels subject to that paragraph are 
not required to meet the alternate safety compliance 
requirements of that paragraph until January 1, 2030, if that 
owner enters into a compliance agreement with the Secretary 
that provides for a fixed schedule for all of the vessels owned 
by that person to meet requirements of that paragraph by that 
date and the vessel owner is meeting that schedule.
  (5) A fishing vessel, fish processing vessel, or fish tender 
vessel to which section 4502(b) of this title applies that was 
classed before July 1, 2012, shall--
          (A) remain subject to the requirements of a 
        classification society approved by the Secretary; and
          (B) have on board a certificate from that society.
  (6) The Secretary shall establish an alternative safety 
compliance program for fishing vessels or fish tender vessels 
(or both) that are at least 50 feet overall in length, and not 
more than 79 feet overall in length, and built after July 1, 
2013.
  (e) For the purposes of this section, the term ``built'' 
means, with respect to a vessel, that the vessel's construction 
has reached any of the following stages:
          (1) The vessel's keel is laid.
          (2) Construction identifiable with the vessel has 
        begun and assembly of that vessel has commenced 
        comprising of at least 50 metric tons or one percent of 
        the estimated mass of all structural material, 
        whichever is less.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Part E--Merchant Seamen Licenses, Certificates, and Documents

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


   CHAPTER 75--GENERAL PROCEDURES FOR LICENSING, CERTIFICATION, AND 
                             DOCUMENTATION

Sec.
7501. Duplicates.
     * * * * * * *
7509. Medical certification by trusted agents.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 7509. Medical certification by trusted agents

  (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law 
and pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary, a 
trusted agent may issue a medical certificate to an individual 
who--
          (1) must hold such certificate to qualify for a 
        license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner's 
        document, or endorsement thereto under this part; and
          (2) is qualified as to sight, hearing, and physical 
        condition to perform the duties of such license, 
        certificate, document, or endorsement, as determined by 
        the trusted agent.
  (b) Trusted Agent Defined.--In this section the term 
``trusted agent'' means a medical practitioner certified by the 
Secretary to perform physical examinations of an individual for 
purposes of a license, certificate of registry, or merchant 
mariner's document under this part.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                       Part F--Manning of Vessels

CHAPTER 81--GENERAL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 8103. Citizenship and Navy Reserve requirements

  (a) Except as otherwise provided in this title, only a 
citizen of the United States may serve as master, chief 
engineer, radio officer, or officer in charge of a deck watch 
or engineering watch on a documented vessel.
  (b)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, on a 
documented vessel--
          (A) each unlicensed seaman must be--
                  (i) a citizen of the United States;
                  (ii) an alien lawfully admitted to the United 
                States for permanent residence; or
                  (iii) a foreign national who is enrolled in 
                the United States Merchant Marine [Academy.] 
                Academy; and
          (B) not more than 25 percent of the total number of 
        unlicensed seamen on the vessel may be aliens lawfully 
        admitted to the United States for permanent residence.
  (2) Paragraph (1) of this subsection does not apply to--
          (A) a yacht;
          (B) a fishing vessel fishing exclusively for highly 
        migratory species (as that term is defined in section 3 
        of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
        (16 U.S.C. 1802)); and
          (C) a fishing vessel fishing outside of the exclusive 
        economic zone.
  (3) The Secretary may waive a citizenship requirement under 
this section, other than a requirement that applies to the 
master of a documented vessel, with respect to--
          (A) an offshore supply vessel or other similarly 
        engaged vessel of less than 1,600 gross tons as 
        measured under section 14502 of this title, or an 
        alternate tonnage measured under section 14302 of this 
        title as prescribed by the Secretary under section 
        14104 of this title that operates from a foreign port;
          (B) a mobile offshore drilling unit or other vessel 
        engaged in support of exploration, exploitation, or 
        production of offshore mineral energy resources 
        operating beyond the water above the outer Continental 
        Shelf (as that term is defined in section 2(a) of the 
        Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331(a)); 
        and
          (C) any other vessel if the Secretary determines, 
        after an investigation, that qualified seamen who are 
        citizens of the United States are not available.
  (c) On each departure of a vessel (except a passenger vessel) 
for which a construction [or operating] differential subsidy 
has been granted, all of the seamen of the vessel must be 
citizens of the United States.
  (d)(1) On each departure of a passenger vessel for which a 
construction [or operating] differential subsidy has been 
granted, at least 90 percent of the entire complement 
(including licensed individuals) must be citizens of the United 
States.
  (2) An individual not required by this subsection to be a 
citizen of the United States may be engaged only if the 
individual has a declaration of intention to become a citizen 
of the United States or other evidence of admission to the 
United States for permanent residence. An alien may be employed 
only in the steward's department of the passenger vessel.
  (e) If a documented vessel is deprived for any reason of the 
services of an individual (except the master and the radio 
officer) when on a foreign voyage and a vacancy consequently 
occurs, until the vessel's return to a port at which in the 
most expeditious manner a replacement who is a citizen of the 
United States can be obtained, an individual not a citizen of 
the United States may serve in--
          (1) the vacancy; or
          (2) a vacancy resulting from the promotion of another 
        individual to fill the original vacancy.
  (f) A person employing an individual in violation of this 
section or a regulation prescribed under this section is liable 
to the United States Government for a civil penalty of $500 for 
each individual so employed.
  (g) A deck or engineer officer employed on a vessel on which 
an operating differential subsidy is paid, or employed on a 
vessel (except a vessel of the Coast Guard or Saint Lawrence 
Seaway Development Corporation) owned or operated by the 
Department of Transportation or by a corporation organized or 
controlled by the Department, if eligible, shall be a member of 
the Navy Reserve Reserve.
  (h) The President may--
          (1) suspend any part of this section during a 
        proclaimed national emergency; and
          (2) when the needs of commerce require, suspend as 
        far and for a period the President considers desirable, 
        subsection (a) of this section for crews of vessels of 
        the United States documented for foreign trade.
  (i)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (3) of this 
subsection, each unlicensed seaman on a fishing, fish 
processing, or fish tender vessel that is engaged in the 
fisheries in the navigable waters of the United States or the 
exclusive economic zone must be--
          (A) a citizen of the United States;
          (B) an alien lawfully admitted to the United States 
        for permanent residence;
          (C) any other alien allowed to be employed under the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et 
        seq.); or
          (D) an alien allowed to be employed under the 
        immigration laws of the Commonwealth of the Northern 
        Mariana Islands if the vessel is permanently stationed 
        at a port within the Commonwealth and the vessel is 
        engaged in the fisheries within the exclusive economic 
        zone surrounding the Commonwealth or another United 
        States territory or possession.
  (2) Not more than 25 percent of the unlicensed seamen on a 
vessel subject to paragraph (1) of this subsection may be 
aliens referred to in clause (C) of that paragraph.
  (3) This subsection does not apply to a fishing vessel 
fishing exclusively for highly migratory species (as that term 
is defined in section 3 of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802)).
  (j) Riding Gang Member.--This section does not apply to an 
individual who is a riding gang member.
  (k) Crew Requirements for Large Passenger Vessels.--
          (1) Citizenship and nationality.--Each unlicensed 
        seaman on a large passenger vessel shall be--
                  (A) a citizen of the United States;
                  (B) an alien lawfully admitted to the United 
                States for permanent residence;
                  (C) an alien allowed to be employed in the 
                United States under the Immigration and 
                Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.), 
                including an alien crewman described in section 
                101(a)(15)(D)(i) of that Act (8 U.S.C. 
                1101(a)(15)(D)(i)), who meets the requirements 
                of paragraph (3)(A) of this subsection; or
                  (D) a foreign national who is enrolled in the 
                United States Merchant Marine Academy.
          (2) Percentage limitation for alien seamen.--Not more 
        than 25 percent of the unlicensed seamen on a vessel 
        described in paragraph (1) of this subsection may be 
        aliens referred to in subparagraph (B) or (C) of that 
        paragraph.
          (3) Special rules for certain unlicensed seamen.--
                  (A) Qualifications.--An unlicensed seaman 
                described in paragraph (1)(C) of this 
                subsection--
                          (i) shall have been employed, for a 
                        period of not less than 1 year, on a 
                        passenger vessel under the same common 
                        ownership or control as the vessel 
                        described in paragraph (1) of this 
                        subsection, as certified by the owner 
                        or managing operator of such vessel to 
                        the Secretary;
                          (ii) shall have no record of material 
                        disciplinary actions during such 
                        employment, as verified in writing by 
                        the owner or managing operator of such 
                        vessel to the Secretary;
                          (iii) shall have successfully 
                        completed a United States Government 
                        security check of the relevant domestic 
                        and international databases, as 
                        appropriate, or any other national 
                        security-related information or 
                        database;
                          (iv) shall have successfully 
                        undergone an employer background 
                        check--
                                  (I) for which the owner or 
                                managing operator provides a 
                                signed report to the Secretary 
                                that describes the background 
                                checks undertaken that are 
                                reasonably and legally 
                                available to the owner or 
                                managing operator including 
                                personnel file information 
                                obtained from such seaman and 
                                from databases available to the 
                                public with respect to the 
                                seaman;
                                  (II) that consisted of a 
                                search of all information 
                                reasonably available to the 
                                owner or managing operator in 
                                the seaman's country of 
                                citizenship and any other 
                                country in which the seaman 
                                receives employment referrals, 
                                or resides;
                                  (III) that is kept on the 
                                vessel and available for 
                                inspection by the Secretary; 
                                and
                                  (IV) the information derived 
                                from which is made available to 
                                the Secretary upon request; and
                          (v) may not be a citizen or temporary 
                        or permanent resident of a country 
                        designated by the United States as a 
                        sponsor of terrorism or any other 
                        country that the Secretary, in 
                        consultation with the Secretary of 
                        State and the heads of other 
                        appropriate United States agencies, 
                        determines to be a security threat to 
                        the United States.
                  (B) Restrictions.--An unlicensed seaman 
                described in paragraph (1)(C) of this 
                subsection--
                          (i) may be employed only in the 
                        steward's department of the vessel; and
                          (ii) may not perform watchstanding, 
                        automated engine room duty watch, or 
                        vessel navigation functions.
                  (C) Status, documentation, and employment.--
                An unlicensed seaman described in subparagraph 
                (C) or (D) of paragraph (1) of this 
                subsection--
                          (i) is deemed to meet the nationality 
                        requirements necessary to qualify for a 
                        merchant mariners document 
                        notwithstanding the requirements of 
                        part 12 of title 46, Code of Federal 
                        Regulations;
                          (ii) is deemed to meet the proof-of-
                        identity requirements necessary to 
                        qualify for a merchant mariners 
                        document, as prescribed under 
                        regulations promulgated by the 
                        Secretary, if the seaman possesses--
                                  (I) an unexpired passport 
                                issued by the government of the 
                                country of which the seaman is 
                                a citizen or subject; and
                                  (II) an unexpired visa issued 
                                to the seaman, as described in 
                                paragraph (1)(C);
                          (iii) shall, if eligible, be issued a 
                        merchant mariners document with an 
                        appropriate annotation reflecting the 
                        restrictions of subparagraph (B) of 
                        this paragraph; and
                          (iv) may be employed for a period of 
                        service on board not to exceed 36 
                        months in the aggregate as a 
                        nonimmigrant crewman described in 
                        section 101(a)(15)(D)(i) of the 
                        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
                        U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(D)(i)) on vessels 
                        engaged in domestic voyages 
                        notwithstanding the departure 
                        requirements and time limitations of 
                        such section and section 252 of the 
                        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
                        U.S.C. 1282) and the regulations and 
                        rules promulgated thereunder.
          (4) Merchant mariner's document requirements not 
        affected.--This subsection shall not be construed to 
        affect any requirement under Federal law that an 
        individual must hold a merchant mariner's document.
          (5) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                  (A) Steward's department.--The term 
                ``steward's department'' means the department 
                that includes entertainment personnel and all 
                service personnel, including wait staff, 
                housekeeping staff, and galley workers, as 
                defined in the vessel security plan approved by 
                the Secretary pursuant to section 70103(c) of 
                this title.
                  (B) Large passenger vessel.--The term ``large 
                passenger vessel'' means a vessel of more than 
                70,000 gross tons, as measured under section 
                14302 of this title, with capacity for at least 
                2,000 passengers and documented with a 
                coastwise endorsement under chapter 121 of this 
                title.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Part G--Merchant Seamen Protection and Relief

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 103--FOREIGN AND INTERCOASTAL VOYAGES

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 10313. Wages

  (a) A seaman's entitlement to wages and provisions begins 
when the seaman begins work or when specified in the agreement 
required by section 10302 of this title for the seaman to begin 
work or be present on board, whichever is earlier.
  (b) Wages are not dependent on the earning of freight by the 
vessel. When the loss or wreck of the vessel ends the service 
of a seaman before the end of the period contemplated in the 
agreement, the seaman is entitled to wages for the period of 
time actually served. The seaman shall be deemed a destitute 
seaman under section 11104 of this title. This subsection 
applies to a fishing or whaling vessel but not a yacht.
  (c) When a seaman who has signed an agreement is discharged 
improperly before the beginning of the voyage or before one 
month's wages are earned, without the seaman's consent and 
without the seaman's fault justifying discharge, the seaman is 
entitled to receive from the master or owner, in addition to 
wages earned, one month's wages as compensation.
  (d) A seaman is not entitled to wages for a period during 
which the seaman--
          (1) unlawfully failed to work when required, after 
        the time fixed by the agreement for the seaman to begin 
        work; or
          (2) lawfully was imprisoned for an offense, unless a 
        court hearing the case otherwise directs.
  (e) After the beginning of the voyage, a seaman is entitled 
to receive from the master, on demand, one-half of the balance 
of wages earned and unpaid at each port at which the vessel 
loads or delivers cargo during the voyage. A demand may not be 
made before the expiration of 5 days from the beginning of the 
voyage, not more than once in 5 days, and not more than once in 
the same port on the same entry. If a master does not comply 
with this subsection, the seaman is released from the agreement 
and is entitled to payment of all wages earned. Notwithstanding 
a release signed by a seaman under section 10312 of this title, 
a court having jurisdiction may set aside, for good cause 
shown, the release and take action that justice requires. This 
subsection does not apply to a fishing or whaling vessel or a 
yacht.
  (f) At the end of a voyage, the master shall pay each seaman 
the balance of wages due the seaman within 24 hours after the 
cargo has been discharged or within 4 days after the seaman is 
discharged, whichever is earlier. When a seaman is discharged 
and final payment of wages is delayed for the period permitted 
by this subsection, the seaman is entitled at the time of 
discharge to one-third of the wages due the seaman.
  (g)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), when payment is not made as 
provided under subsection (f) of this section without 
sufficient cause, the master or owner shall pay to the seaman 2 
days' wages for each day payment is delayed.
  (2) The total amount required to be paid under paragraph (1) 
with respect to [all claims in a class action suit by seamen] 
each claim by a seaman on a passenger vessel capable of 
carrying more than 500 passengers for wages under this section 
against a vessel master, owner, or operator or the employer of 
[the seamen] the seaman shall not exceed ten times the unpaid 
wages that are the subject of the claims.
  (3) A [class action] suit for wages under this subsection 
must be commenced within three years after the later of--
          (A) the date of the end of the last voyage for which 
        the wages are claimed; or
          (B) the receipt[, by a seaman who is a claimant in 
        the suit,] by the seaman of a payment of wages that are 
        the subject of the suit that is made in the ordinary 
        course of employment.
  (h) Subsections (f) and (g) of this section do not apply to a 
fishing or whaling vessel or a yacht.
  (i) This section applies to a seaman on a foreign vessel when 
in a harbor of the United States. The courts are available to 
the seaman for the enforcement of this section.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 105--COASTWISE VOYAGES

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 10504. Wages

  (a) After the beginning of a voyage, a seaman is entitled to 
receive from the master, on demand, one-half of the balance of 
wages earned and unpaid at each port at which the vessel loads 
or delivers cargo during the voyage. A demand may not be made 
before the expiration of 5 days from the beginning of the 
voyage, not more than once in 5 days, and not more than once in 
the same port on the same entry. If a master does not comply 
with this subsection, the seaman is released from the agreement 
required by section 10502 of this title and is entitled to 
payment of all wages earned. Notwithstanding a release signed 
by a seaman under section 10312 of this title, a court having 
jurisdiction may set aside, for good cause shown, the release 
and take action that justice requires. This subsection does not 
apply to a fishing or whaling vessel or a yacht.
  (b) The master shall pay a seaman the balance of wages due 
the seaman within 2 days after the termination of the agreement 
required by section 10502 of this title or when the seaman is 
discharged, whichever is earlier.
  (c)(1) Subject to subsection (d), and except as provided in 
paragraph (2), when payment is not made as provided under 
subsection (b) of this section without sufficient cause, the 
master or owner shall pay to the seaman 2 days' wages for each 
day payment is delayed.
  (2) The total amount required to be paid under paragraph (1) 
with respect to [all claims in a class action suit by seamen] 
each claim by a seaman on a passenger vessel capable of 
carrying more than 500 passengers for wages under this section 
against a vessel master, owner, or operator or the employer of 
[the seamen] the seaman shall not exceed ten times the unpaid 
wages that are the subject of the claims.
  (3) A [class action] suit for wages under this subsection 
must be commenced within three years after the later of--
          (A) the date of the end of the last voyage for which 
        the wages are claimed; or
          (B) the receipt[, by a seaman who is a claimant in 
        the suit,] by the seaman of a payment of wages that are 
        the subject of the suit that is made in the ordinary 
        course of employment.
  (d) Subsections (b) and (c) of this section do not apply to:
          (1) a vessel engaged in coastwise commerce.
          (2) a yacht.
          (3) a fishing vessel.
          (4) a whaling vessel.
  (e) This section applies to a seaman on a foreign vessel when 
in harbor of the United States. The courts are available to the 
seaman for the enforcement of this section.
  (f) Deposits in Seaman Account.--On written request signed by 
the seaman, a seaman employed on a passenger vessel capable of 
carrying more than 500 passengers may authorize, the master, 
owner, or operator of the vessel, or the employer of the 
seaman, to make deposits of wages of the seaman into a 
checking, savings, investment, or retirement account, or other 
account to secure a payroll or debit card for the seaman if--
          (1) the wages designated by the seaman for such 
        deposit are deposited in a United States or 
        international financial institution designated by the 
        seaman;
          (2) such deposits in the financial institution are 
        fully guaranteed under commonly accepted international 
        standards by the government of the country in which the 
        financial institution is licensed;
          (3) a written wage statement or pay stub, including 
        an accounting of any direct deposit, is delivered to 
        the seaman no less often than monthly; and
          (4) while on board the vessel on which the seaman is 
        employed, the seaman is able to arrange for withdrawal 
        of all funds on deposit in the account in which the 
        wages are deposited.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 111--PROTECTION AND RELIEF

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 11113. Treatment of abandoned seafarers

  (a) Abandoned Seafarers Fund.--
          (1) Establishment.--There is established in the 
        Treasury a separate account to be known as the 
        Abandoned Seafarers Fund.
          (2) Authorized uses.--Amounts in the Fund may be 
        appropriated to the Secretary for use--
                  (A) to pay necessary support of a seafarer--
                          (i) who--
                                  (I) was paroled into the 
                                United States under section 
                                212(d)(5) of the Immigration 
                                and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
                                1182(d)(5)), or for whom the 
                                Secretary has requested parole 
                                under such section; and
                                  (II) is involved in an 
                                investigation, reporting, 
                                documentation, or adjudication 
                                of any matter that is related 
                                to the administration or 
                                enforcement of law by the Coast 
                                Guard; or
                          (ii) who--
                                  (I) is physically present in 
                                the United States;
                                  (II) the Secretary determines 
                                was abandoned in the United 
                                States; and
                                  (III) has not applied for 
                                asylum under the Immigration 
                                and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
                                1101 et seq.); and
                  (B) to reimburse a vessel owner or operator 
                for the costs of necessary support of a 
                seafarer who has been paroled into the United 
                States to facilitate an investigation, 
                reporting, documentation, or adjudication of 
                any matter that is related to the 
                administration or enforcement of law by the 
                Coast Guard, if--
                          (i) the vessel owner or operator is 
                        not convicted of a criminal offense 
                        related to such matter; or
                          (ii) the Secretary determines that 
                        reimbursement is appropriate.
          (3) Crediting of amounts to fund.--
                  (A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), there shall be credited to 
                the Fund the following:
                          (i) Penalties deposited in the Fund 
                        under section 9 of the Act to Prevent 
                        Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 1908).
                          (ii) Amounts reimbursed or recovered 
                        under subsection (c).
                  (B) Limitation.--Amounts may be credited to 
                the Fund under subparagraph (A) only if the 
                unobligated balance of the Fund is less than 
                $5,000,000.
          (4) Report required.--On the date on which the 
        President submits each budget for a fiscal year 
        pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, the Secretary 
        shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
        Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
        the Senate a report that describes--
                  (A) the amounts credited to the Fund under 
                paragraph (2) for the preceding fiscal year; 
                and
                  (B) amounts in the Fund that were expended 
                for the preceding fiscal year.
  (b) Limitation.--Nothing in this section shall be construed--
          (1) to create a private right of action or any other 
        right, benefit, or entitlement to necessary support for 
        any person; or
          (2) to compel the Secretary to pay or reimburse the 
        cost of necessary support.
  (c) Reimbursement; Recovery.--
          (1) In general.--A vessel owner or operator shall 
        reimburse the Fund an amount equal to the total amount 
        paid from the Fund for necessary support of a seafarer, 
        if--
                  (A) the vessel owner or operator--
                          (i) during the course of an 
                        investigation, reporting, 
                        documentation, or adjudication of any 
                        matter [under this Act] that the Coast 
                        Guard referred to a United States 
                        attorney or the Attorney General, fails 
                        to provide necessary support of a 
                        seafarer who was paroled into the 
                        United States to facilitate the 
                        investigation, reporting, 
                        documentation, or adjudication; and
                          (ii) subsequently is--
                                  (I) convicted of a criminal 
                                offense related to such matter; 
                                or
                                  (II) required to reimburse 
                                the Fund pursuant to a court 
                                order or negotiated settlement 
                                related to such matter; or
                  (B) the vessel owner or operator abandons a 
                seafarer in the United States, as determined by 
                the Secretary based on substantial evidence.
          (2) Enforcement.--If a vessel owner or operator fails 
        to reimburse the Fund under paragraph (1) within 60 
        days after receiving a written, itemized description of 
        reimbursable expenses and a demand for payment, the 
        Secretary may--
                  (A) proceed in rem against the vessel on 
                which the seafarer served in the Federal 
                district court for the district in which the 
                vessel is found; and
                  (B) withhold or revoke the clearance required 
                under section 60105 for the vessel and any 
                other vessel operated by the same operator (as 
                that term is defined in section 2(9)(a) of the 
                Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. 
                1901(9)(a)) as the vessel on which the seafarer 
                served.
          (3) Obtaining clearance.--A vessel may obtain 
        clearance from the Secretary after it is withheld or 
        revoked under paragraph (2)(B) if the vessel owner or 
        operator--
                  (A) reimburses the Fund the amount required 
                under paragraph (1); or
                  (B) provides a bond, or other evidence of 
                financial responsibility, sufficient to meet 
                the amount required to be reimbursed under 
                paragraph (1).
          (4) Notification required.--The Secretary shall 
        notify the vessel at least 72 hours before taking any 
        action under paragraph (2)(B).
  (d) Definitions.--In this section:
          (1) Abandons; abandoned.--Each of the terms 
        ``abandons'' and ``abandoned'' means--
                  (A) a vessel owner's or operator's unilateral 
                severance of ties with a seafarer; or
                  (B) a vessel owner's or operator's failure to 
                provide necessary support of a seafarer.
          (2) Fund.--The term ``Fund'' means the Abandoned 
        Seafarers Fund established under this section.
          (3) Necessary support.--The term ``necessary 
        support'' means normal wages and expenses the Secretary 
        considers reasonable for lodging, subsistence, 
        clothing, medical care (including hospitalization), 
        repatriation, and any other support the Secretary 
        considers to be appropriate.
          (4) Seafarer.--The term ``seafarer'' means an alien 
        crew member who is employed or engaged in any capacity 
        on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the 
        United States.
          (5) Vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the united 
        states.--The term ``vessel subject to the jurisdiction 
        of the United States'' has the meaning given that term 
        in section 70502(c), except that it does not include a 
        vessel that is--
                  (A) owned, or operated under a bareboat 
                charter, by the United States, a State or 
                political subdivision thereof, or a foreign 
                nation; and
                  (B) not engaged in commerce.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subtitle III--Maritime Liability

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


CHAPTER 301--GENERAL LIABILITY PROVISIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 30104. Personal injury to or death of seamen

   (a) In General._A seaman injured in the course of employment 
or, if the seaman dies from the injury, the personal 
representative of the seaman may elect to bring a civil action 
at law, with the right of trial by jury, against the employer. 
Laws of the United States regulating recovery for personal 
injury to, or death of, a railway employee apply to an action 
under this section.
  (b) Restriction on Recovery for Nonresident Aliens Employed 
on Foreign Passenger Vessels.--A claim for damages or expenses 
relating to personal injury, illness, or death of a seaman who 
is a citizen of a foreign nation, arising during or from the 
engagement of the seaman by or for a passenger vessel duly 
registered under the laws of a foreign nation, may not be 
brought under the laws of the United States if--
          (1) such seaman was not a permanent resident alien of 
        the United States at the time the claim arose;
          (2) the injury, illness, or death arose outside the 
        territorial waters of the United States; and
          (3) the seaman or the seaman's personal 
        representative has or had a right to seek compensation 
        for the injury, illness, or death in, or under the laws 
        of--
                  (A) the nation in which the vessel was 
                registered at the time the claim arose; or
                  (B) the nation in which the seaman maintained 
                citizenship or residency at the time the claim 
                arose.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


         CHAPTER 313--COMMERCIAL INSTRUMENTS AND MARITIME LIENS

                          SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL

Sec.
31301. Definitions.
     * * * * * * *
31310. Treatment of fishing permits.
     * * * * * * *

Subchapter I--GENERAL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 31310. Treatment of fishing permits

  (a) Limitation on Maritime Liens.--This chapter--
          (1) does not establish a maritime lien on a fishing 
        permit; and
          (2) does not authorize any civil action to enforce a 
        maritime lien on a fishing permit.
  (b) Treatment of Fishing Permits Under State and Federal 
Law.--A fishing permit--
          (1) is governed solely by the State or Federal law 
        under which it is issued; and
          (2) shall not be treated as part of a vessel, or as 
        an appurtenance or intangible of a vessel, for any 
        purpose under Federal law.
  (c) Authority of Secretary of Commerce Not Affected.--Nothing 
in this section shall be construed as imposing any limitation 
upon the authority of the Secretary of Commerce--
          (1) to modify, suspend, revoke, or impose a sanction 
        on any fishing permit issued by the Secretary of 
        Commerce; or
          (2) to bring a civil action to enforce such a 
        modification, suspension, revocation, or sanction.
  (d) Fishing Permit Defined.--In this section the term 
``fishing permit'' means any authorization of a person or 
vessel to engage in fishing that is issued under State or 
Federal law.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subtitle V--Merchant Marine

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Part D--Promotional Programs

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


              CHAPTER 553--PASSENGER AND CARGO PREFERENCES

Subchapter I--GENERAL

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 55305. Cargoes procured, furnished, or financed by the United 
                    States Government

  (a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``privately-owned 
commercial vessel of the United States'' does not include a 
vessel that, after September 21, 1961, was built or rebuilt 
outside the United States or documented under the laws of a 
foreign country, until the vessel has been documented under the 
laws of the United States for at least 3 years.
  (b) Minimum Tonnage.--When the United States Government 
procures, contracts for, or otherwise obtains for its own 
account, or furnishes to or for the account of a foreign 
country, organization, or persons without provision for 
reimbursement, any equipment, materials, or commodities, or 
provides financing in any way with Federal funds for the 
account of any persons unless otherwise exempted, within or 
without the United States, or advances funds or credits, or 
guarantees the convertibility of foreign currencies in 
connection with the furnishing or obtaining of the equipment, 
materials, or commodities, the appropriate agencies shall take 
steps necessary and practicable to ensure that at least 50 
percent of the gross tonnage of the equipment, materials, or 
commodities (computed separately for dry bulk carriers, dry 
cargo liners, and tankers) which may be transported on ocean 
vessels is transported on privately-owned commercial vessels of 
the United States, to the extent those vessels are available at 
fair and reasonable rates for commercial vessels of the United 
States, in a manner that will ensure a fair and reasonable 
participation of commercial vessels of the United States in 
those cargoes by geographic areas.
  (c) Waivers.--The President, the Secretary of Defense, or 
Congress (by concurrent resolution or otherwise) may waive this 
section temporarily by--
          (1) declaring the existence of an emergency 
        justifying a waiver; and
          (2) notifying the appropriate agencies of the waiver.
  (d) Programs of Other Agencies.--
          [(1) Each department or agency that has 
        responsibility for a program under this section shall 
        administer that program with respect to this section 
        under regulations and guidance issued by the Secretary 
        of Transportation. The Secretary, after consulting with 
        the department or agency or organization or person 
        involved, shall have the sole responsibility for 
        determining if a program is subject to the requirements 
        of this section.]
          (1) Each department or agency that has responsibility 
        for a program under this section shall administer that 
        program consistent with this section and any 
        regulations and guidance issued by the Secretary of 
        Transportation concerning this section.
          (2)(A) The Secretary, after consulting with the 
        department, agency, organization, or person involved, 
        shall have exclusive authority for determining the 
        applicability of this section to a program of a Federal 
        department or agency, after consulting with the 
        department, agency, organization, or person involved.
          (B) The head of a Federal department or agency shall 
        request the Secretary to determine the applicability of 
        this section to a program of such department or agency 
        if the department or agency is uncertain of such 
        applicability. Not later than 30 days after receiving 
        such a request, the Secretary shall make such 
        determination.
          (C) Subparagraph (B) shall not be construed to limit 
        the authority of the Secretary to make a determination 
        regarding the applicability of this section to a 
        program administered by a Federal department or agency.
          (D) A determination made by the Secretary under this 
        paragraph regarding a program shall remain in effect 
        until the Secretary determines that this section no 
        longer applies to such program.
          [(2)] (3) The Secretary--
                  [(A) shall conduct an annual review of the 
                administration of programs determined pursuant 
                to paragraph (1) as subject to the requirements 
                of this section;]
                  (A) shall conduct an annual review of the 
                administration of programs subject to the 
                requirements of this section to determine 
                compliance with the requirements of this 
                section;
                  (B) may direct agencies to require the 
                transportation on United States-flagged vessels 
                of cargo shipments not otherwise subject to 
                this section in equivalent amounts to cargo 
                determined to have been shipped on foreign 
                carriers in violation of this section;
                  (C) may impose on any person that violates 
                this section, or a regulation prescribed under 
                this section, a civil penalty of not more than 
                $25,000 for each violation willfully and 
                knowingly committed, with each day of a 
                continuing violation following the date of 
                shipment to be a separate violation; and
                  (D) may take other measures as appropriate 
                under the Federal Acquisition Regulations 
                issued pursuant to section 25(c)(1) of the 
                Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 
                U.S.C. 421(c)(1) or contract with respect to 
                each violation.
          (4) On the date on which the President submits to 
        Congress a budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, 
        the Secretary shall make available on the Internet 
        website of the Department of Transportation a report 
        that--
                  (A) lists the programs that were subject to 
                determinations made by the Secretary under 
                paragraph (2) in the preceding year; and
                  (B) describes the results of the most recent 
                annual review required by paragraph (3)(A), 
                including identification of the departments and 
                agencies that transported cargo in violation of 
                this section and any action the Secretary took 
                under paragraph (3) with respect to each 
                violation.
  (e) Security of Government-Impelled Cargo.--
          (1) In order to ensure the safety of vessels and 
        crewmembers transporting equipment, materials, or 
        commodities under this section, the Secretary of 
        Transportation shall direct each department or agency 
        (except the Department of Defense), when responsible 
        for the carriage of such equipment, materials, or 
        commodities, to reimburse, subject to the availability 
        of appropriations, the owners or operators of vessels 
        of the United States carrying such equipment, 
        materials, or commodities for the cost of providing 
        armed personnel aboard such vessels if the vessels are 
        transiting high-risk waters.
          (2) In this subsection, the term ``high-risk waters'' 
        means waters so designated by the Commandant of the 
        Coast Guard in the maritime security directive issued 
        by the Commandant and in effect on the date on which an 
        applicable voyage begins, if the Secretary of 
        Transportation--
                  (A) determines that an act of piracy occurred 
                in the 12-month period preceding the date the 
                voyage begins; or
                  (B) in such period, issued an advisory 
                warning that an act of piracy is possible in 
                such waters.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Part F--Government-Owned Merchant Vessels

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


        CHAPTER 575--CONSTRUCTION, CHARTER, AND SALE OF VESSELS

                          SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL

Sec.
57501. Completion of long-range program.
     * * * * * * *

                         SUBCHAPTER II--CHARTERS

     * * * * * * *
57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and inspection and auditing.
     * * * * * * *

                         Subchapter I--GENERAL

Sec. 57501. Completion of long-range program

  Whenever the Secretary of Transportation determines that the 
objectives and policies declared in sections 50101 and 50102 of 
this title cannot be fully realized within a reasonable time 
under [titles V and VI] title V of the Merchant Marine Act, 
1936, and the President approves the determination, the 
Secretary, in accordance with this chapter, shall complete the 
long-range program described in section 50102 of this title.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Subchapter II--CHARTERS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and inspection and 
                    auditing

  Every contract executed by the Secretary of Transportation 
under this chapter shall contain provisions requiring (1) that 
the contractor and every affiliate, domestic agent, subsidiary, 
or holding company connected with, or directly or indirectly 
controlling or controlled by, the contractor, to keep its 
books, records, and accounts, relating to the maintenance, 
operation, and servicing of the vessels, services, routes, and 
lines covered by the contract, in such form and under such 
regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary of 
Transportation: Provided, that the contractor and every 
affiliate, domestic agent, subsidiary, or holding company 
connected with, or directly or indirectly controlling or 
controlled by the contractor, to file, upon notice from the 
Secretary of Transportation, balance sheets, profit and loss 
statements, and such other statements of financial operations, 
special report, memoranda of any facts and transactions, which 
in the opinion of the Secretary of Transportation affect the 
financial results in, the performance of, or transactions or 
operations under, such contract; (2) that the Secretary of 
Transportation shall be authorized to examine and audit the 
books, records, and accounts of all persons referred to in this 
section whenever he may deem it necessary or desirable; and (3) 
that upon the willful failure or refusal of any person 
described in this section to comply with the contract 
provisions required by this section, the Secretary of 
Transportation shall have the right to rescind the contract, 
and upon such rescission the United States shall be relieved of 
all further liability on such contract.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                     Subchapter III--MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 57531. Construction and charter of vessels for unsuccessful routes

  (a) In General.--If the Secretary of Transportation finds 
that a trade route determined to be essential under section 
50103 of this title cannot be successfully developed and 
maintained and the Secretary's replacement program cannot be 
achieved under private operation of the trade route by a 
citizen of the United States with vessels documented under 
chapter 121 of this title, without further aid by the United 
States Government in addition to the financial aid authorized 
under [titles V and VI] title V of the Merchant Marine Act, 
1936, the Secretary, without advertisement or competition, 
may--
          (1) have constructed, in private shipyards or in navy 
        yards, vessels of the types necessary for the trade 
        route; and
          (2) demise charter those new vessels to the operator 
        of vessels of the United States established on the 
        trade route.
  (b) Amount of Charter Hire.--
          (1) In general.--The annual charter hire under 
        subsection (a) shall be at least 4 percent of the price 
        (referred to in this section as the ``foreign cost'') 
        at which the vessel would be sold if constructed under 
        title V of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, plus--
                  (A) a percentage of the depreciated foreign 
                cost computed annually determined by the 
                Secretary of the Treasury, taking into 
                consideration the current average market yield 
                on outstanding marketable obligations of the 
                Government with remaining periods to maturity 
                comparable to the term of the charter, adjusted 
                to the nearest one-eighth percent; and
                  (B) an allowance adequate in the judgment of 
                the Secretary of Transportation to cover 
                administrative costs.
          (2) Depreciation.--Depreciation under paragraph 
        (1)(A) shall be based on--
                  (A) a 25-year life for dry-cargo and 
                passenger vessels; and
                  (B) a 20-year life for tankers and other bulk 
                liquid carrier vessels.
  (c) Option To Purchase.--The charter may contain an option to 
the charterer to purchase the vessels from the Secretary of 
Transportation within 5 years after delivery under the charter, 
on the same terms and conditions as provided in title V of the 
Merchant Marine Act, 1936, for the purchase of new vessels from 
the Secretary. However--
          (1) the purchase price shall be the foreign cost less 
        depreciation to the date of purchase based on the 
        useful life specified in subsection (b)(2);
          (2) the required cash payment payable at the time of 
        the purchase shall be 25 percent of the purchase price;
          (3) the charter may provide that any part of the 
        charter hire paid in excess of the minimum charter hire 
        provided for in this section may be credited against 
        the cash payment payable at the time of the purchase;
          (4) the balance of the purchase price shall be paid 
        within the remaining years of useful life (as specified 
        in subsection (b)(2)) after the date of delivery of the 
        vessel under the charter and in approximately equal 
        annual installments, except that the first installment, 
        which shall be payable on the next ensuing anniversary 
        date of the delivery under the charter, shall be a 
        proportionate part of the annual installment; and
          (5) interest shall be payable on the unpaid balances 
        from the date of purchase, at a rate not less than--
                  (A) a rate determined by the Secretary of the 
                Treasury, taking into consideration the current 
                average market yield on outstanding marketable 
                obligations of the Government with remaining 
                periods to maturity comparable to the average 
                maturities of the loans, adjusted to the 
                nearest one-eighth percent; plus
                  (B) an allowance adequate in the judgment of 
                the Secretary of Transportation to cover 
                administrative costs.
  (d) Operation of Vessel.--
          (1) Permissible voyages.--The charter shall provide 
        for operation of the vessel exclusively--
                  (A) in foreign trade;
                  (B) on a round-the-world voyage;
                  (C) on a round voyage from the west coast of 
                the United States to a European port that 
                includes an intercoastal port of the United 
                States;
                  (D) on a round voyage from the Atlantic coast 
                of the United States to the Orient that 
                includes an intercoastal port of the United 
                States; or
                  (E) on a voyage in foreign trade on which the 
                vessel may stop at Hawaii or an island 
                territory or possession of the United States.
          (2) Domestic trade.--The charter shall provide if the 
        vessel is operated in domestic trade on any of the 
        services specified in paragraph (1), the charterer will 
        pay annually to the Secretary of Transportation that 
        proportion of \1/25\ of the difference between the 
        domestic and foreign cost of the vessel as the gross 
        revenue derived from the domestic trade bears to the 
        gross revenue derived from the entire voyages completed 
        during the preceding year.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


 SECTION 3511 OF THE DUNCAN HUNTER NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT 
FOR FISCAL YEAR 2009

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 3511. TRANSPORTATION IN AMERICAN VESSELS OF GOVERNMENT PERSONNEL 
                    AND CERTAIN CARGOES

  (a) [Omitted--amendatory]
  (b) [Omitted--amendatory]
  [(c) Regulations.--The Secretary of Transportation shall 
prescribe such rules as are necessary to carry out section 
55305(d) of title 46, United States Code. The Secretary may 
prescribe interim rules necessary to carry out section 55305(d) 
of such title. An interim rule prescribed under this subsection 
shall remain in effect until superseded by a final rule.]
  (d) [Omitted--amendatory]
                              ----------                              


                     PORTS AND WATERWAYS SAFETY ACT

  Section 1. Short Title.
  This Act may be cited as the ``Ports and Waterways Safety 
Act''.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  Sec. 6. Waterfront Safety.
  (a) In General.--The Secretary may take such action as is 
necessary to--
          (1) prevent damage to, or the destruction of, any 
        bridge or other structure on or in the navigable waters 
        of the United States, or any land structure or shore 
        area immediately adjacent to such waters; and
          (2) protect the navigable waters and the resources 
        therein from harm resulting from vessel or structure 
        damage, destruction, or loss. Such action may include, 
        but need not be limited to--
                  (A) establishing procedures, measures, and 
                standards for the handling, loading, unloading, 
                storage, stowage, and movement on the structure 
                (including the emergency removal, control, and 
                disposition) of explosives or other dangerous 
                articles and substances, including oil or 
                hazardous material as those terms are defined 
                in section 4417a of the Revised Statutes, as 
                amended;
                  (B) prescribing minimum safety equipment 
                requirements for the structure to assure 
                adequate protection from fire, explosion, 
                natural disaster, and other serious accidents 
                or casualties;
                  (C) establishing water or waterfront safety 
                zones, or other measures for limited, 
                controlled, or conditional access and activity 
                when necessary for the protection of any 
                vessel, structure, waters, or shore area; and
                  (D) establishing procedures for examination 
                to assure compliance with the requirements 
                prescribed under this section.
  (b) State Law.--Nothing contained in this section, with 
respect to structures, prohibits a State or political 
subdivision thereof from prescribing higher safety equipment 
requirements or safety standards than those which may be 
prescribed by regulations hereunder.
  (c) Marine Event Safety Zones.--
          (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
        the Secretary shall recover all costs the Coast Guard 
        incurs to enforce a safety zone under this section if 
        such safety zone is established for a marine event 
        conducted under a permit or other authorization by the 
        Coast Guard.
          (2) Exception.--The Secretary may not recover costs 
        under paragraph (1) from a State or local government.
          (3) Treatment of recovered costs.--Costs recovered by 
        the Secretary under this subsection shall be credited 
        to the appropriation for operating expenses of the 
        Coast Guard.
          (4) Marine event defined.--In this section the term 
        ``marine event'' means a planned activity of limited 
        duration that by its nature, circumstances, or 
        location, will introduce extra or unusual hazards to 
        the safety of life on the navigable waters of the 
        United States.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


                       ACT OF MARCH 3, 1899425.--

CHAPT. 425.--AN ACT Making appropriations for the construction, repair, 
and preservation of certain public works on rivers and harbors, and for 
other purposes.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


  Sec. 9. It shall not be lawful to construct or commence the 
construction of any bridge, causeway, dam, or dike over or in 
any port, roadstead, haven, harbor, canal, navigable river, or 
other navigable water of the United States until the consent of 
Congress to the building of such structures shall have been 
obtained and until the plans for (1) the bridge or causeway 
shall have been submitted to and approved by the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating, or (2) the dam or dike shall have been 
submitted to and approved by the Chief of Engineers and 
Secretary of the Army. However, such structures may be built 
under authority of the legislature of a State across rivers and 
other waterways the navigable portions of which lie wholly 
within the limits of a single State, provided the location and 
plans thereof are submitted to and approved by the [Secretary 
of Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating or by the Chief of Engineers and 
Secretary of the Army before construction is commenced. When 
plans for any bridge or other structure have been approved by 
the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department 
in which the Coast Guard is operating or by the Chief of 
Engineers and Secretary of the Army, it shall not be lawful to 
deviate from such plans either before or after completion of 
the structure unless modification of said plans has previously 
been submitted to and received the approval of the [Secretary 
of Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating or the Chief of Engineers and the 
Secretary of the Army. The approval required by this section of 
the location and plans or any modification of plans of any 
bridge or causeway does not apply to any bridge or causeway 
over waters that are not subject to the ebb and flow of the 
tide and that are not used and are not susceptible to use in 
their natural condition or by reasonable improvement as a means 
to transport interstate or foreign commerce.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  Sec. 18. (a) That whenever the [Secretary of Transportation] 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating shall have good reason to believe that any railroad 
or other bridge now constructed, or which may hereafter be 
constructed, over any of the navigable waterways of the United 
States is an unreasonable obstruction to the free navigation of 
such waters on account of insufficient height, width of span, 
or otherwise, or where there is difficulty in passing the draw 
opening or the draw span of such bridge by rafts, steamboats, 
or other water craft, it shall be the duty of the said 
Secretary, first giving the parties reasonable opportunity to 
be heard, to give notice to the persons or corporations owning 
or controlling such bridge so to alter the same as to render 
navigation through or under it reasonably free, easy, and 
unobstructed; and in giving such notice he shall specify the 
changes that are required to be made, and shall prescribe in 
each case a reasonable time in which to make them. If at the 
end of such time the alteration has not been made, the 
[Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department in 
which the Coast Guard is operating shall forthwith notify the 
United States district attorney for the district in which such 
bridge is situated, to the end that the criminal proceedings 
hereinafter mentioned may be taken. If the persons, 
corporation, or association owning or controlling any railroad 
or other bridge shall, after receiving notice to that effect, 
as hereinbefore required, from the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating, and within the time prescribed by him 
willfully fail or refuse to remove the same or to comply with 
the lawful order of the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary 
of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating in the 
premises, such persons, corporation, or association shall be 
deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall 
be punished by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars, and 
every month such persons, corporation, or association shall 
remain in default in respect to the removal or alteration of 
such bridge shall be deemed a new offense, and subject the 
persons, corporation, or association so offending to the 
penalties above prescribed.
  (b) No owner or operator of any bridge, drawbridge, or 
causeway shall endanger, unreasonably obstruct, or make 
hazardous the free navigation of any navigable water of the 
United States by reason of the failure to keep the bridge, 
drawbridge, or causeway and any accessory works in proper 
repair.
  (c) Whoever violates any provision of this section or any 
order issued under this section, shall be liable to a civil 
penalty of not more than $5,000 for a violation occurring in 
2004; $10,000 for a violation occurring in 2005; $15,000 for a 
violation occurring in 2006; $20,000 for a violation occurring 
in 2007; and $25,000 for a violation occurring in 2008 and any 
year thereafter. Each day a violation continues shall be deemed 
a separate offense. No penalty may be accessed under this 
subsection until the person charged is given notice and an 
opportunity for a hearing on the charge. The [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating may access and collect any civil penalty 
incurred under this subsection and, in his discretion, may 
remit, mitigate, or compromise any penalty until the matter is 
referred to the Attorney General. If a person against whom a 
civil penalty is assessed under this subsection fails to pay 
that penalty, an action may be commenced in the district court 
of the United States for any district in which the violation 
occurs for such penalty.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


                         ACT OF MARCH 23, 1906

 AN ACT To regulate the construction of bridges over navigable waters.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That when, 
hereafter, authority is granted by Congress to any persons to 
construct and maintain a bridge across or over any of the 
navigable waters of the United States, such bridge shall not be 
built or commenced until the plans and specifications for its 
construction, together with such drawings of the proposed 
construction and such map of the proposed location as may be 
required for a full understanding of the subject, have been 
submitted to the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating for the 
Secretary's approval, nor until the Secretary shall have 
approved such plans and specifications and the location of such 
bridge and accessory works; and when the plans for any bridge 
to be constructed under the provisions of this Act have been 
approved by the Secretary it shall not be lawful to deviate 
from such plans, either before or after completion of the 
structure, unless the modification of such plans has previously 
been submitted to and received the approval of the Secretary. 
This section shall not apply to any bridge over waters which 
are not subject to the ebb and flow of the tide and which are 
not used and are not susceptible to use in their natural 
condition or by reasonable improvement as a means to transport 
interstate or foreign commerce.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  Sec. 4. That no bridge erected or maintained under the 
provisions of this Act shall at any time unreasonably obstruct 
the free navigation of the waters over which it is constructed, 
and if any bridge erected in accordance with the provisions of 
this Act shall, in the opinion of the [Secretary of Homeland 
Security] Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating, at any time unreasonably obstruct such 
navigation, either on account of insufficient height, width of 
span, or otherwise, or if there be difficulty in passing the 
draw opening or the drawspan of such bridge by rafts, 
steamboats, or other water craft, it shall be the duty of the 
[Secretary of Homeland Security] Secretary of the department in 
which the Coast Guard is operating, after giving the parties 
interested reasonable opportunity to be heard, to notify the 
persons owning or controlling such bridge to so alter the same 
as to render navigation through or under it reasonably free, 
easy, and unobstructed, stating in such notice the changes 
required to be made, and prescribing in each case a reasonable 
time in which to make such changes, and if at the end of the 
time so specified the changes so required have not been made, 
the persons owning or controlling such bridge shall be deemed 
guilty of a violation of this Act; and all such alterations 
shall be made and all such obstructions shall be removed at the 
expense of the persons owning or operating said bridge. The 
persons owning or operating any such bridge shall maintain, at 
their own expense, such lights and other signals thereon as the 
Secretary of Commerce and Labor shall prescribe. If the bridge 
shall be constructed with a draw, then the draw shall be opened 
promptly by the persons owning or operating such bridge upon 
reasonable signal for the passage of boats and other water 
craft.
  Sec. 5. (a) That any persons who shall willfully fail or 
refuse to comply with the lawful order of the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating or the Chief of Engineers, made in 
accordance with the provisions of this Act, shall be deemed 
guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be 
punished in any court of competent jurisdiction by a fine not 
exceeding five thousand dollars, and every month such persons 
shall remain in default shall be deemed a new offense and 
subject such persons to additional penalties therefor; and in 
addition to the penalties above described the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating and the Chief of Engineers may, upon refusal 
of the persons owning or controlling any such bridge and 
accessory works to comply with any lawful order issued by the 
[Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department in 
which the Coast Guard is operating or Chief of Engineers in 
regard thereto, cause the removal of such bridge and accessory 
works at the expense of the persons owning or controlling such 
bridge, and suit for such expense may be brought in the name of 
the United States against such persons, and recovery had for 
such expense in any court of competent jurisdiction; and the 
removal of any structures erected or maintained in violation of 
the provisions of this Act or the order or direction of the 
[Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department in 
which the Coast Guard is operating or Chief of Engineers made 
in pursuance thereof may be enforced by injunction, mandamus, 
or other summary process, upon application to the circuit court 
in the district in which such structure may, in whole or in 
part, exist, and proper proceedings to this end may be 
instituted under the direction of the Attorney-General of the 
United States at the request of the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating; and in case of any litigation arising from 
any obstruction or alleged obstruction to navigation created by 
the construction of any bridge under this Act, the cause or 
question arising may be tried before the circuit court of the 
United States in any district which any portion of said 
obstruction or bridge touches.
  (b) Whoever violates any provision of this Act, or any order 
issued under this Act, shall be liable to a civil penalty of 
not more than $5,000 for a violation occurring in 2004; $10,000 
for a violation occurring in 2005; $15,000 for a violation 
occurring in 2006; $20,000 for a violation occurring in 2007; 
and $25,000 for a violation occurring in 2008 and any year 
thereafter. Each day a violation continues shall be deemed a 
separate offense. No penalty may be assessed under this 
subsection until the person charged is given notice and an 
opportunity for a hearing on the charge. The [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating may assess and collect any civil penalty 
incurred under this subsection and, in his discretion, may 
remit, mitigate, or compromise any penalty until the matter is 
referred to the Attorney General. If a person against whom a 
civil penalty is assessed under this subsection fails to pay 
that penalty, an action may be commenced in the district court 
of the United States for any district in which the violation 
occurs for such penalty.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


                SECTION 5 OF THE ACT OF AUGUST 18, 1894

    AN ACT Making appropriations for the construction, repair, and 
  preservation of certain public works on rivers and harbors, and for 
other purposes.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


  Sec. 5. (a) That it shall be the duty of all persons owning, 
operating, and tending the drawbridges now built, or which may 
hereafter be built across the navigable rivers and other waters 
of the United States, to open, or cause to be opened, the draws 
of such bridges under such rules and regulations as in the 
opinion of the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating the public 
interests require to govern the opening of drawbridges for the 
passage of vessels and other water crafts, and such rules and 
regulations, when so made and published, shall have the force 
of law. Every such person who shall willfully fail or refuse to 
open, or cause to be opened, the dram of any such bridge for 
the passage of a boat or boats, as provided in such 
regulations, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on 
conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than 
two thousand dollars nor less one thousand dollars, or by 
imprisonment (in the case of a natural person) for not 
exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment, in 
the discretion of the court: Provided, That the proper action 
to enforce the provisions of this subsection may be commenced 
before any commissioner, judge, or court of the United States, 
and such commissioner, judge, or court shall proceed in respect 
thereto as authorized by law in case of crimes against the 
United States: Provided further, That whenever, in the opinion 
of the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating, the public 
interests require it, he may make rules and regulations to 
govern the opening of drawbridges for the passage of vessels 
and other water crafts, and such rules and regulations, when so 
made and published, shall have the force of law, and any 
willful violation thereof shall be punished as hereinbefore 
provided. Any rules and regulations made in pursuance of this 
section shall, to the extent practical and feasible, provide 
for regularly scheduled openings of drawbridges during seasons 
of the year, and during times of the day, when scheduled 
openings would help reduce motor vehicle traffic delays and 
congestion on roads and highways linked by drawbridges.
  (b) No vessel owner or operator shall signal a drawbridge to 
open for any nonstructural vessel appurtenance which is not 
essential to navigation or which is easily lowered and no 
person shall unreasonably delay the opening of a draw after the 
signal required by rules or regulations under this section has 
been given. The [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall issue 
rules and regulations to implement this subsection.
  (c) Whoever violates any rule or regulation issued under 
subsection (a) or (b), shall be liable to a civil penalty of 
not more than $5,000 for a violation occurring in 2004; $10,000 
for a violation occurring in 2005; $15,000 for a violation 
occurring in 2006; $20,000 for a violation occurring in 2007; 
and $25,000 for a violation occurring in 2008 and any year 
thereafter. No penalty may be assessed under this subsection 
until the person charged is given notice and an opportunity for 
a hearing on the charge. The [Secretary of Transportation] 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating may assess and collect any civil penalty incurred 
under this subsection and, in his discretion, may remit, 
mitigate, or compromise any penalty until the matter is 
referred to the Attorney General. If a person against whom a 
civil penalty is assessed under this subsection fails to pay 
that penalty, an action may be commenced in the district court 
of the United States for any district in which the violation 
occurs for such penalty.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


                          ACT OF JUNE 21, 1940

AN ACT To provide for the alteration of certain bridges over navigable 
waters of the United States, for the apportionment of the cost of such 
 alterations between the United States and the owners of such bridges, 
                        and for other purposes.

                              definitions

  Section 1. When used in this Act, unless the context 
indicates otherwise--
   The term ``alteration'' includes changes of any kind, 
reconstruction, or removal in whole or in part.
   The term ``bridge'' means a lawful bridge over navigable 
waters of the United States, including approaches, fenders, and 
appurtenances thereto, which is used and operated for the 
purpose of carrying railroad traffic, or both railroad and 
highway traffic, or if a State, county, municipality, or other 
political subdivision is the owner or joint owner thereof, 
which is used and operated for the purpose of carrying highway 
traffic.
   The term ``bridge owner'' means any State, county, 
municipality, or other political subdivision, or any 
corporation, association, partnership, or individual owning, or 
jointly owning, any bridge, and, when any bridge shall be in 
the possession or under the control of any trustee, receiver, 
trustee in a case under title 11 of the United States Code, or 
lessee, such term shall include both the owner of the legal 
title and the person or the entity in possession or control of 
such bridge.
   The term ``Secretary'' means the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating.
   The term ``United States'', when used in a geographical 
sense, includes the Territories and possessions of the United 
States.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


      submission and approval of general plans and specifications

  Sec. 4. After the service of an order under this Act, it 
shall be the duty of the bridge owner to prepare and submit to 
the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department 
in which the Coast Guard is operating, within a reasonable time 
as prescribed by the Secretary, general plans and 
specifications to provide for the alteration of such bridge in 
accordance with such order, and for such additional alteration 
of such bridge as the bridge owner may desire to meet the 
necessities of railroad or highway traffic, or both. The 
Secretary may approve or reject such general plans and 
specifications, in whole or in part, and may require the 
submission of new or additional plans and specifications, but 
when the Secretary shall have approved general plans and 
specifications, they shall be final and binding upon all 
parties unless changes therein be afterward approved by the 
Secretary and the bridge owner.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                 payment of share of the united states

  Sec. 7. Following service of the order requiring alteration 
of the bridge, the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of 
the department in which the Coast Guard is operating may make 
partial payments as the work progresses to the extent that 
funds have been appropriated. The total payments out of Federal 
funds shall not exceed the proportionate share of the United 
States of the total cost of the project paid or incurred by the 
bridge owner, and, if such total cost exceeds the cost 
guaranteed by the bridge owner, shall not exceed the 
proportionate share of the United States of such guaranteed 
cost, except that if the cost of the work exceeds the 
guaranteed cost by reason of emergencies, conditions beyond the 
control of the owner, or unforeseen or undetermined conditions, 
the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department 
in which the Coast Guard is operating may, after full review of 
all the circumstances, provide for additional payments by the 
United States to help defray such excess cost to the extent he 
deems to be reasonable and proper, and shall certify such 
additional payments to the Secretary of the Treasury for 
payment. All payments to any bridge owner herein provided for 
shall be made by the Secretary of the Treasury through the 
Division of Disbursement upon certifications of the [Secretary 
of Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the 
Coast Guard is operating.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                         relocation of bridges

  Sec. 13. If the owner of any bridge and the Secretary shall 
agree that in order to remove an obstruction to navigation, or 
for any other purpose, a relocation of such bridge or the 
construction of a new bridge upon a new location would be 
preferable to an alteration of the existing bridge, such 
relocation or new construction may be carried out at such new 
site and upon such terms as may be acceptable to the bridge 
owner and the Secretary, and the cost of such relocation or new 
construction, including also any expense of changes in and 
additions to rights-of-way, stations, tracks, spurs, sidings, 
switches, signals, and other railroad facilities and property, 
and relocation of shippers required for railroad connection 
with the bridge at the new site, shall be apportioned as 
between the bridge owner and the United States in the manner 
which is provided for in section 6 hereof in the case of an 
alteration and the share of the United States paid from the 
appropriation authorized in section 8 hereof: Provided, That 
nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring the 
United States to pay any part of the expense of building any 
bridge across a navigable stream which the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating shall not find to be, in fact, a relocation 
of an existing bridge.
                              ----------                              


                        GENERAL BRIDGE ACT 1946

                      TITLE V--GENERAL BRIDGE ACT

                              SHORT TITLE

  Sec. 501. This title may be cited as the ``General Bridge Act 
of 1946''.

                          CONSENT OF CONGRESS

  Sec. 502. (a) The consent of Congress is hereby granted for 
the construction, maintenance, and operation of bridges and 
approaches thereto over the navigable waters of the United 
States, in accordance with the provisions of this title.
  (b) The location and plans for such bridges shall be approved 
by the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating before 
construction is commenced, and, in approving the location and 
plans of any bridge, the Secretary may impose any specific 
conditions relating to the maintenance and operation of the 
structure which the Secretary may deem necessary in the 
interest of public navigation, and the conditions so imposed 
shall have the force of law. This subsection shall not apply to 
any bridge over waters which are not subject to the ebb and 
flow of the tide and which are not used and are not susceptible 
to use in their natural condition or by reasonable improvement 
as a means to transport interstate or foreign commerce.
  (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and 
(b), it shall be unlawful to construct or commence the 
construction of any privately owned highway toll bridge until 
the location and plans thereof shall also have been submitted 
to and approved by the highway department or departments of the 
State or States in which the bridge and its approaches are 
situated; and where such bridge shall be between two or more 
States and the highway departments thereof shall be unable to 
agree upon the location and plans therefor, or if they, or 
either of them, shall fail or refuse to act upon the location 
and plans submitted, such location and plans then shall be 
submitted to the Public Roads Administration and, if approved 
by the Public Roads Administration, approval by the highway 
departments shall not be required.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                               PENALTIES

  Sec. 510. (a) Any person who willfully fails or refuses to 
comply with any lawful order of the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating or the Chief of Engineers issued under the 
provisions of this title, or who willfully fails to comply with 
any specific condition imposed by the Chief of Engineers and 
the [Secretary of Transportation] Secretary of the department 
in which the Coast Guard is operating relating to the 
maintenance and operation of bridges, or who willfully refuses 
to produce books, papers, or documents in obedience to a 
subpena or other lawful requirement under this title, or who 
otherwise willfully violates any provisions of this title, 
shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not to 
exceed $5,000 or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or 
by both such fine and imprisonment.
  (b) Whoever violates any provision of this Act, or any order 
issued under this Act, shall be liable to a civil penalty of 
not more than $5,000 for a violation occurring in 2004; $10,000 
for a violation occurring in 2005; $15,000 for a violation 
occurring in 2006; $20,000 for a violation occurring in 2007; 
and $25,000 for a violation occurring in 2008 and any year 
thereafter. Each day a violation continues shall be deemed a 
separate offense. No penalty may be assessed under this 
subsection until the person charged is given notice and an 
opportunity for a hearing on the charge. The [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating may assess and collect any civil penalty 
incurred under this subsection and, in his discretion, may 
remit, mitigate, or compromise any penalty until the matter is 
referred to the Attorney General. If a person against whom a 
civil penalty is assessed under this subsection fails to pay 
that penalty, an action may be commenced in the district court 
of the United States for any district in which the violation 
occurs for such penalty.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE ACT OF 1972

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


  Sec. 5. The approval of the [Secretary of Transportation] 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating, as required by the first section of the Act of March 
23, 1906 (33 U.S.C. 491), shall be given only subsequent to the 
President's approval, as provided for in section 4 of this Act, 
and shall be null and void unless the construction of the 
bridge is commenced within two years and completed within five 
years from the date of the Secretary's approval: Provided, 
however, That the Secretary, for good cause shown, map extend 
for a reasonable time either or both of the time limits herein 
provided.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  Sec. 8. (a) Nothing in this act shall be deemed to prevent 
the individual, corporation, or other entity to which, pursuant 
to this act, authorization has been given to construct, 
operate, and maintain an international bridge and the 
approaches thereto, from selling, assigning, or transferring 
the rights, powers, and privileges conferred by this act: 
Provided, that such sale, assignment, or transfer shall be 
subject to approval by the [Secretary of Transportation] 
Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating.
  (b) Upon the acquisition by a State or States, or by a 
subdivision or instrumentality thereof, of the right, title, 
and interest of a private individual, corporation, or other 
private entity, in and to an international bridge, any license, 
contract, or order issued or entered into by the [Secretary of 
Transportation] Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
Guard is operating, to or with such private individual, 
corporation, or other private entity, shall be deemed 
terminated forthwith. Thereafter, the State, subdivision, or 
instrumentality so acquiring shall operate and maintain such 
bridge in the same manner as if it had been the original 
applicant, and the provisions of section 6 of this Act shall 
not apply.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  [Sec. 11.  The Secretary of Transportation shall make a 
report of all approvals granted by him during the fiscal year 
pursuant to section 5 of this Act in each annual report of the 
activities of the Department required by section 11 of the 
Department of Transportation Act (49 U.S.C. 1658).]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


MERCHANT MARINE ACT, 1936

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


             TITLE VI--VESSEL OPERATING ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

           Subtitle A--Operating-Differential Subsidy Program

  [Sec. 601. (a) The Secretary of Transportation is authorized 
and directed to consider the application of any citizen of the 
United States for financial aid in the operation of a vessel or 
vessels, which are to be used in an essential service in the 
foreign commerce of the United States or in such service and in 
cruises authorized under section 613 of this title. In this 
title VI the term ``essential service'' means the operation of 
a vessel on a service, route, or line described in section 
211(a) or in bulk cargo carrying service described in section 
211(b). No such application shall be approved by the Secretary 
of Transportation unless he determines that (1) the operation 
of such vessel or vessels in an essential service is required 
to meet foreign-flag competition and to promote the foreign 
commerce of the United States except to the extent such vessels 
are to be operated on cruises authorized under section 613 of 
this title, and that such vessel or vessels were built in the 
United States, or have been documented under the laws of the 
United States not later than February 1, 1928, or actually 
ordered and under construction for the account of citizens of 
the United States prior to such date; (2) the applicant owns or 
leases, or can and will build or purchase or lease, a vessel or 
vessels of the size, type, speed, and number, and with the 
proper equipment required to enable him to operate in an 
essential service, in such manner as may be necessary to meet 
competitive conditions, and to promote foreign commerce; (3) 
the applicant possesses the ability, experience, financial 
resources, and other qualifications necessary to enable him to 
conduct the proposed operations of the vessel or vessels as to 
meet competitive conditions and promote foreign commerce; (4) 
the granting of the aid applied for is necessary to place the 
proposed operations of the vessel or vessels on a parity with 
those of foreign competitors, and is reasonably calculated to 
carry out effectively the purposes and policy of this Act. To 
the extent the application covers cruises, as authorized under 
section 613 of this title, the Secretary of Transportation may 
make the portion of this last determination relating to parity 
on the basis that any foreign flag cruise from the United 
States competes with any American flag cruise from the United 
States.
  [(b) Every application for an operating-differential subsidy 
under the provisions of this title shall be accompanied by 
statements disclosing the names of all person having any 
pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in such application, or 
in the ownership or use of the vessel or vessels, routes, or 
lines covered thereby, and the nature and extent of any such 
interest, together with such financial and other statements as 
may be required by the Secretary of Transportation. All such 
statements shall be under oath or affirmation and in such form 
as the Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe. Any person 
who, in an application for financial aid under this title or in 
any statement required to be filed therewith, willfully makes 
any untrue statement of a material fact, shall be guilty of a 
misdemeanor.
  [Sec. 602. Except with respect to cruises authorized under 
section 613 of this title, no contract for an operating-
differential subsidy shall be made by the Secretary of 
Transportation for the operation of a vessel or vessels to meet 
foreign competition, except direct foreign-flag competition, 
until and unless the Secretary of Transportation, after a full 
and complete investigation and hearing, shall determine that an 
operating-differential subsidy is necessary to meet competition 
of foreign-flag ships.
  [Sec. 603. (a) If the Secretary of Transportation approves 
the application, he may enter into a contract with the 
applicant for the payment of an operating-differential subsidy 
determined in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) 
of this section, for the operation of such vessel or vessels in 
an essential service and in cruises authorized under section 
613 of this title for a period not exceeding twenty years, and 
subject to such reasonable terms and conditions, consistent 
with this Act, as the Secretary of Transportation shall require 
to effectuate the purposes and policy of this Act, including a 
performance bond with approved sureties, if such bond is 
required by the Secretary of Transportation.
  [(b) Such contract shall provide, except as the parties 
should agree upon a lesser amount, that the amount of the 
operating-differential subsidy for the operation of vessels in 
an essential service shall equal the excess of the subsidizable 
wage costs of the United States officers and crews, the fair 
and reasonable cost of insurance, subsistence of officers and 
crews on passenger vessels, as defined in section 613 of this 
Act, maintenance, and repairs not compensated by insurance 
incurred in the operation under United States registry of the 
vessel or vessels covered by the contract, over the estimated 
fair and reasonable cost of the same items of expense (after 
deducting therefrom any estimated increase in such items 
necessitated by features incorporated pursuant to the 
provisions of section 501(b)) if such vessel or vessels were 
operated under the registry of a foreign country whose vessels 
are substantial competitors of the vessel or vessels covered by 
the contract: Provided, however, That the Secretary of 
Transportation may, with respect to any vessel in an essential 
bulk cargo carrying service as described in section 211(b), 
pay, in lieu of the operating-differential subsidy provided by 
this subsection (b), such sums as he shall determine to be 
necessary to make the cost of operating such vessel competitive 
with the cost of operating similar vessels under the registry 
of a foreign country. For any period during which a vessel 
cruises as authorized by section 613 of this Act, operating-
differential subsidy shall be computed as though the vessel 
were operating on the essential service to which the vessel is 
assigned: Provided, however, That if the cruise vessel calls at 
a port or ports outside of its assigned service, but which is 
served with passenger vessels (as defined in section 613 of 
this Act) by another subsidized operator at an operating-
differential subsidy rate for wages lower than the cruise 
vessel has on its assigned essential service, the operating-
differential subsidy rates for each of the subsidizable items 
for each day (a fraction of a day to count as a day) that the 
vessel stops at such port shall be at the respective rates 
applicable to the subsidized operator regularly serving the 
area.
  [(c)(1) When used in this section--
  [(A) The term ``collective bargaining costs'' means the 
annual cost, calculated on the basis of the per diem rate of 
expense as of any date, of all items of expense required of the 
applicant through collective bargaining or other agreement, 
covering the employment of United States officers and crew of a 
vessel, including payments required by law to assure old-age 
pensions, unemployment benefits, or similar benefits and taxes 
or other governmental assessments on crew payrolls, but 
excluding subsistence of officers and crews on vessels other 
than passenger vessels as defined in section 613 of this Act 
and costs relating to:
          [(i) the officers or members of the crew that the 
        Secretary of Transportation has found, prior to the 
        award of a contract for the construction or 
        reconstruction of a vessel, to be unnecessary for the 
        efficient and economical operation of such vessel: 
        Provided, That the Secretary of Transportation shall 
        afford representatives of the collective-bargaining 
        unit or units responsible for the manning of the vessel 
        an opportunity to comment on such finding prior to the 
        effective date of such finding: And provided further, 
        That in determining whether officers or members of the 
        crew are necessary for the efficient and economical 
        operation of such vessel, the Secretary of 
        Transportation shall give due consideration to, but 
        shall not be bound by, wage and manning scales and 
        working conditions required by a bona fide collective-
        bargaining agreement, or
          [(ii) those officers or members of the crew that the 
        Secretary of Transportation has found, prior to ninety 
        days following the date of enactment of this 
        subsection, to be unnecessary for the efficient and 
        economical operation of the vessel.
  [(B) The term ``base period costs'' means for the base period 
beginning July 1, 1970, and ending June 30, 1971, the 
collective-bargaining costs as of January 1, 1971, less all 
other items of cost that have been disallowed by the Secretary 
of Transportation prior to ninety days following the date of 
enactment of this subsection, and not already excluded from 
collective-bargaining costs under subparagraph (A)(i) or 
(A)(ii) of this subsection. In any subsequent base period the 
term ``base period costs'' means the average of the 
subsidizable wage cost of the United States officers and crews 
for the preceding annual period ending June 30 (calculated 
without regard to the limitation of the last sentence of 
paragraph (D) of this subdivision but increased or decreased by 
the increase or decrease in the index described in subdivision 
(3) of this subsection from January 1 of such annual period to 
January 1 of the base period), and the collective-bargaining 
costs as of January 1 of the base period: Provided, That in no 
event shall the base period cost be such that the difference 
between the base period cost and the collective-bargaining 
costs as of January 1 of any base period subsequent to the 
first base period exceeds five-fourths of 1 per centum of the 
collective-bargaining costs as of such January 1 multiplied by 
the number of years that have elapsed since the most recent 
base period.
  [(C) The term ``base period'' means any annual period 
beginning July 1, and ending June 30 with respect to which a 
base period cost is established.
  [(D) The term ``subsidizable wage costs of United States 
officers and crews'' in any period other than a base period 
means the most recent base period costs increased or decreased 
by the increase or decrease from January 1 of such base period 
to January 1 of such period in the index described in 
subdivision (3) hereof, and with respect to a base period means 
the base period cost. The subsidizable wage costs of United 
States officers and crews in any period other than a base 
period shall not be less than 90 per centum of the collective-
bargaining costs as of January 1 of such period nor greater 
than 110 per centum of such collective-bargaining costs.
  [(2) The Secretary of Transportation shall determine the 
collective-bargaining costs on ships in subsidized operation as 
of January 1, 1971, and as of each January 1 thereafter, and 
shall as of intervals of not less than two years nor more than 
four years, establish a new base period cost, except that the 
Secretary shall not establish a new base period unless he 
announces his intention to do so prior to the December 31 that 
would be included in the new base period.
  [(3) The Bureau of Labor Statistics shall compile the index 
referred to in subdivision (1). Such index shall consist of the 
average annual change in wages and benefits placed into effect 
for employees covered by collective-bargaining agreements with 
equal weight to be given to changes affecting employees in the 
transportation industry (excluding the offshore maritime 
industry) and to changes affecting employees in private 
nonagricultural industries other than transportation. Such 
index shall be based on the materials regularly used by the 
Bureau of Labor Statistics in compiling its regularly published 
statistical series on wage and benefit changes arrived at 
through collective bargaining. Such materials shall remain 
confidential and not be subject to disclosure.
  [(d) Each foreign wage cost computation shall be made after 
an opportunity is given to the contractor to submit in writing 
and in timely fashion all relevant data within his possession. 
In making the computation, the Secretary shall consider all 
relevant matter so presented and all foreign wage cost data 
collected at his request or on his behalf. Such foreign cost 
data shall be made available to an interested contractor, 
unless the Secretary shall find that disclosure of the data 
will prevent him from obtaining such data in the future. In 
determining foreign manning for purposes of this section, the 
foreign manning determined for any ship type with respect to 
any base period shall not be redetermined until the beginning 
of a new base period.
  [(e) The wage subsidy shall be payable monthly for the 
voyages completed during the month, upon the contractor's 
certification that the subsidized vessels were in authorized 
service during the month. The Secretary of Transportation shall 
prescribe procedures for the calculation and payment of subsidy 
on items of expense which are included in ``collective-
bargaining costs'' but are not included in the daily rate 
because they are unpredictably timed.
  [(f) Ninety percent of the amount of the insurance and 
maintenance and repair and subsistence of officers an crews 
subsidy shall be payable monthly for the voyages completed 
during the month on the basis of the subsidy estimated to have 
accrued with respect to such voyages. Any such payment shall be 
made only after there has been furnished to the Secretary of 
Transportation such security as he deems to be reasonable and 
necessary to assure refund of any overpayment. The contractor 
and the Secretary of Transportation shall audit the voyage 
accounts as soon as practicable after such payments. The 
remaining 10 percent of such subsidy shall be payable after 
such audit.
  [Sec. 604. If in the case of any particular foreign-trade 
route the Secretary of Transportation shall find after 
consultation with the Secretary of State, that the subsidy 
provided for in this title is in any respect inadequate to 
offset the effect of governmental aid paid to foreign 
competitors, he may grant such additional subsidy as he 
determines to be necessary for that purpose.
  [Sec. 605. (a) No operating-differential subsidy shall be 
paid for the operation of any vessel on a voyage on which it 
engages in coastwise or intercoastal trade: Provided, however, 
That such subsidy may be paid on a round-the-world voyage or a 
round voyage from the west coast of the United States to a 
European port or ports or a round voyage from the Atlantic 
coast to the Orient which includes intercoastal ports of the 
United States or a voyage in foreign trade on which the vessel 
may stop at the State of Hawaii, or an island possession or 
island territory of the United States, and if the subsidized 
vessel earns any gross revenue on the carriage of mail, 
passengers, or cargo by reason of such coastal or intercoastal 
trade the subsidy payments for the entire voyage shall be 
reduced by an amount which bears the same ratio to the subsidy 
otherwise payable as such gross revenue bears to the gross 
revenue derived from the entire voyage. No vessel operating on 
the inland waterways of the United States shall be considered 
for the purposes of this Act to be operating in foreign trade.
  [(b) No operating-differential subsidy shall be paid for the 
operation of a vessel after the calendar year the vessel 
becomes 25 years of age, unless the Secretary of Transportation 
has determined, before the date of enactment of the Maritime 
Security Act of 1996, that it is in the public interest to 
grant such financial aid for the operation of such vessel.
  [(c) No contract shall be made under this title with respect 
to a vessel to be operated in an essential service served by 
citizens of the United States which would be in addition to the 
existing service, or services, unless the Secretary of 
Transportation shall determine after proper hearing of all 
parties that the service already provided by vessels of United 
States registry is inadequate, and that in the accomplishment 
of the purposes and policy of this Act additional vessels 
should be operated thereon; and no contract shall be made with 
respect to a vessel operated or to be operated in an essential 
service served by two or more citizens of the United States 
with vessels of United States registry, if the Secretary of 
Transportation shall determine the effect of such a contract 
would be to give undue advantage or be unduly prejudicial, as 
between citizens of the United States, in the operation of 
vessels on such essential service, unless following public 
hearing, due notice of which shall be given to each operator 
serving such essential service, the Secretary of Transportation 
shall find that it is necessary to enter into such contract in 
order to provide adequate service by vessels of United States 
registry. The Secretary of Transportation, in determining for 
the purposes of this section whether services are competitive, 
shall take into consideration the type, size, and speed of the 
vessels employed, whether passenger or cargo, or combination 
passenger and cargo, vessels, the ports or ranges between which 
they run, the character of cargo carried, and such other facts 
as he may deem proper.
  [Sec. 606. Every contract for an operating-differential 
subsidy under this title shall provide (1) that the amount of 
the future payments to the contractor shall be subject to 
review and readjustment from time to time, but not more 
frequently than once a year, at the instance of the Secretary 
of Transportation or of the contractor. If any such 
readjustment cannot be reached by mutual agreement, the 
Secretary of Transportation, on his own motion or on the 
application of the contractor, shall, after a proper hearing, 
determine the facts and make such readjustment in the amount of 
such future payments as he may determine to be fair and 
reasonable and in the public interest. The testimony in every 
such proceeding shall be reduced to writing and filed in the 
office of the Secretary of Transportation. His decision shall 
be based upon and governed by the changes which may have 
occurred since the date of the said contract, with respect to 
the items theretofore considered and on which such contract was 
based, and other conditions affecting shipping, and shall be 
promulgated in a formal order, which shall be accompanied by a 
report in writing in which the Secretary of Transportation 
shall state his findings of fact; (2) that the compensation to 
be paid under it shall be reduced, under such terms and in such 
amounts as the Secretary of Transportation shall determine, for 
any periods in which the vessel or vessels are laid up; (3) 
that if the Secretary of Transportation shall determine that a 
change in an essential service, which is receiving an 
operating-differential subsidy under this title, is necessary 
in the accomplishment of the purposes of this Act, he may make 
such change upon such readjustment of payments to the 
contractor as shall be arrived at by the method prescribed in 
clause (1) of these conditions; (4) that if at any time the 
contractor receiving an operating-differential subsidy claims 
that he cannot maintain and operate his vessels in such an 
essential service, with a reasonable profit upon his 
investment, and applies to the Secretary of Transportation for 
a modification or rescission of his contract to maintain such 
essential service, and the Secretary of Transportation 
determines that such claim is proved, the Secretary of 
Transportation shall modify or rescind such contract and permit 
the contractor to withdraw such vessels from such essential 
service, upon a date fixed by the Secretary of Transportation, 
and upon the date of such withdrawal the further payment of the 
operating-differential subsidy shall cease and the contractor 
be discharged from any further obligation under such contract; 
(5) that the contractor shall conduct his operations with 
respect to essential services, and any services authorized 
under section 613 of this title, covered by his contract in an 
economical and efficient manner; and (6) that whenever 
practicable, an operator who receives subsidy with respect to 
subsistence of officers and crews shall use as such subsistence 
items only articles, materials, and supplies of the growth, 
production, and manufacture of the United States, as defined in 
section 505 herein, except when it is necessary to purchase 
supplies outside the United States to enable such vessel to 
continue and complete her voyage, and an operator who receives 
subsidy with respect to repairs shall perform such repairs 
within any of the United States or the Commonwealth of Puerto 
Rico, except in an emergency.
  [Sec. 608. No contract executed under this title or any 
interest therein shall be sold, assigned, or transferred, 
either directly or indirectly, or through any reorganization, 
merger, or consolidation, nor shall any agreement or 
arrangement be made by the holder whereby the maintenance, 
management, or operation of the service, route, line, vessel, 
or vessels is to be performed by any other person, without the 
written consent of the Secretary of Transportation. If he 
consents to such agreement or arrangement, the agreement or 
arrangement shall make provision whereby the person undertaking 
such maintenance, management, or operation agrees to be bound 
by all of the provisions of the contract and of this Act 
applicable thereto, and the rules and regulations prescribed 
pursuant to this Act. If the holder of any such contract shall 
voluntarily sell such contract or any interest therein, or make 
such assignment, transfer, agreement, or arrangement whereby 
the maintenance, management, or operation of the service, 
route, line, vessel, or vessels is to be performed by any other 
person, without the consent of the Secretary of Transportation, 
or if the operation of the service, route, line, or vessel, 
shall pass out of the direct control of the holder of such 
contract by reason of any voluntary or involuntary receivership 
or bankruptcy proceedings, the Secretary of Transportation 
shall have the right to modify or rescind such contract, 
without further liability thereon by the United States, and is 
hereby vested with exclusive jurisdiction to determine the 
purposes for which any payments made by him under such contract 
shall be expended.
  [Sec. 609. The Secretary of Transportation shall withhold the 
payment of operating-differential subsidy while any contractor 
therefor is in default in any payments due on account of 
construction-loan, ship-sales mortgage notes, or any other 
obligation due the United States, and shall apply the amount so 
withheld to the satisfaction of such debt.
  [Sec. 610. An operating-differential subsidy shall not be 
paid under authority of this title on account of the operation 
of any vessel which does not meet the following requirements: 
(1) The vessel shall be of steel or other acceptable metal, 
shall be propelled by steam or motor, shall be as nearly 
fireproof as practicable, shall be built in a domestic yard or 
shall have been documented under the laws of the United States 
not later than February 1, 1928, or actually ordered and under 
construction for the account of citizens of the United States 
prior to such date, and shall be documented under the laws of 
the United States, during the entire life of the subsidy 
contract; and (2) if the vessel shall be constructed after the 
passage of this Act it shall be either a vessel constructed 
according to plans and specifications approved by the Secretary 
of Transportation and the Secretary of the Navy, with 
particular reference to economical conversion into an auxiliary 
naval vessel, or a vessel approved by the Secretary of 
Transportation and the Navy Department as otherwise useful to 
the United States in time of national emergency.
  [Sec. 611. (a) The contractor, upon compliance with the 
provisions of this section, may transfer to foreign registry 
the vessels covered by any operating-differential subsidy 
contract held by him, in the event that the United States 
defaults upon such contract or cancels it without just cause. 
Any contractor desiring to transfer any such vessel to foreign 
registry upon such default or cancellation shall file an 
application in writing with the Secretary of Transportation 
setting forth its contention with respect to the lack of just 
cause or lawful grounds for such default or cancellation. The 
Secretary of Transportation shall afford the contractor an 
opportunity for a hearing within twenty days after such 
contractor files written application therefor, and after the 
testimony, if any, in such hearing has been reduced to writing 
and filed with the Secretary of Transportation, he shall, 
within a reasonable time, grant or deny the application by 
order.
  [(b) If any such application is denied, the contractor may 
obtain a review of the order of denial in the United States 
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, by filing in 
such court, within twenty days after the entry of such order, a 
written petition praying that the order of the Secretary of 
Transportation be set aside. A copy of such petition shall be 
forthwith transmitted by the clerk of the court to the 
Secretary of Transportation or any officer designated by him 
for that purpose, and thereupon the Secretary of Transportation 
shall file in the court, the record upon which the order 
complained of was entered as provided in section 2112 of title 
28, United States Code. Upon the filing of such petition such 
court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to determine whether 
such cancellation or default was without just cause, and to 
affirm or set aside such order. The judgment and decree of the 
court affirming or setting aside any such order of the 
Secretary of Transportation shall be final.
  [(c) No transfer of vessels to foreign registry under this 
section shall become effective until any indebtedness to the 
Government or to any citizen of the United States, secured by 
such vessels, has been paid or discharged, and until after the 
expiration of ninety days from the date of final determination 
of the application or the appeal, if any. Within such ninety-
day period the Secretary of Transportation may (1) with the 
consent of the contractor purchase the vessels at cost to the 
contractor plus cost of capital improvements thereon, less 4 
per centum annual depreciation upon such vessel, and the actual 
depreciated costs of capital improvements thereon, or (2) 
reinstate the contract and adjust or settle the default found 
by the Secretary of Transportation or the court to exist.
  [Sec. 613. (a) In this section, ``passenger vessel'' means a 
vessel which (1) is of not less than ten thousand gross tons, 
and (2) has accommodations for not less than one hundred 
passengers.
  [(b) If the Secretary of Transportation finds that the 
operation of any passenger vessel with respect to which a 
contract for the payment of an operating-differential subsidy 
has been entered into under section 603 of this title effective 
before January 2, 1960, is not required for all of each year, 
in order to furnish adequate service on the service, route, or 
line covered by such contract, he may amend such contract to 
agree to pay an operating differential subsidy for operation of 
the vessel (1) on such service, route, or line for some part or 
no part of each year, and (2) on cruises for all or part of 
each year if such specific cruise is approved by the Secretary 
of Transportation under subsection (e) of this section: 
Provided, however, That no such vessel may cruise for more than 
seven months of each year to ports which are regularly served 
by another United States-flag passenger vessel pursuant to an 
operating-differential subsidy contract.
  [(c) The Secretary of Transportation may authorize passenger 
vessels under operating-differential subsidy contracts to 
provide domestic service between specified ports while the 
vessels are on voyages in an essential service in the foreign 
commerce of the United States without reduction of operating-
differential subsidy and the partial payback of construction-
differential subsidy for operating in the domestic trades, if 
he finds that such domestic service will not result in a 
substantial deviation from the service, route, or line for 
which operating-differential subsidy is paid and will not 
adversely affect service on such service, route, or line.
  [(d) When a vessel is being operated on cruises or has been 
authorized under this section to provide domestic passenger 
services while on voyages in an essential service in foreign 
commerce of the United States--
          [(1) except as provided in subdivision (4) of this 
        subsection, it shall carry no mail unless required by 
        law, or cargo except passengers' luggage, except 
        between those ports between which it may carry mail and 
        cargo on its regular service assigned by contract;
          [(2) it may not carry one-way passengers between 
        those ports served by another United States carrier on 
        its regular service assigned by contract, without the 
        consent of such carrier, except between those ports 
        between which it may carry one-way passengers on its 
        own regular service assigned by contract;
          [(3) it shall stop at other domestic ports only for 
        the same time and the same purpose as is permitted with 
        respect to a foreign-flag vessel which is carrying 
        passengers who embarked at a domestic port, except that 
        a cruise may end at a different port or coast from that 
        where it began and may embark or disembark passengers 
        at other domestic ports, either when not involving 
        transportation in the domestic offshore trade in 
        competition with a United States-flag passenger vessel 
        offering berth service therein, or, if involving such 
        transportation, with the consent of such carrier: 
        Provided, however, That nothing herein shall be 
        construed to repeal or modify section 805(a) of this 
        Act.
          [(4) Any other provisions of the Merchant Marine Act, 
        1936, or of the Shipping Act, 1916, to the contrary 
        notwithstanding, with the approval of the Secretary of 
        Transportation, it may carry cargo and mail between 
        ports to the extent such carriage is not in direct 
        competition with a carrier offering United States-flag 
        berth service between those ports, or, if such carriage 
        is in direct competition with one or more carriers 
        offering United States flag berth service between such 
        ports, with the consent of the next scheduled United 
        States-flag carrier, which consent shall not be 
        unreasonably withheld in the judgment of the Maritime 
        Administrator.
Section 605(c) of this Act shall not apply to cruises 
authorized under this section. Notwithstanding the applicable 
provisions of section 605(a) and section 506 of this Act 
requiring the reduction of operating differential subsidy and 
the partial payback of construction differential subsidy for 
operating in the domestic trades, such reduction of operating 
subsidy and partial payback of construction subsidy under 
sections 605(a) and 506, respectively, shall not apply to 
cruises or domestic services authorized under this section.
  [(e) Upon the application of any operator for approval of a 
specific cruise, the Secretary of Transportation, after notice 
to all other American flag operators who may be affected and 
after affording all such operators an opportunity to submit 
written data, views or arguments, with or without opportunity 
to present the same orally in any manner, and after 
consideration of all relevant matter presented, shall approve 
the proposed cruise, if he determines that the proposed cruise 
will not substantially adversely affect an existing operator's 
service performed with passenger vessels of United States 
registry. Such approval shall not be given more than two years 
in advance of the beginning of the cruise.
  [Sec. 614. (a) Any operator receiving operating differential 
subsidy funds may elect, for all or a portion of its ships, to 
suspend its operating differential subsidy contract with all 
attendant statutory and contractual restrictions, except as to 
those pertaining to the domestic intercoastal or coastwise 
service, including any agreement providing for the replacement 
of vessels, if--
          [(1) the vessel is less than ten years of age;
          [(2) the suspension period is not less than twelve 
        months;
          [(3) the operator's financial condition is maintained 
        at a level acceptable to the Secretary of Commerce; and
          [(4) the owner agrees to pay to the Secretary, upon 
        such terms and conditions as he may prescribe, an 
        amount which bears the same proportion to the 
        construction differential subsidy paid by the Secretary 
        as the portion of the suspension period during which 
        the vessel is operated in any preference trade from 
        which a subsidized vessel would otherwise be excluded 
        by law or contract bears to the entire economic life of 
        the vessel.
  [(b) Any operator making an election under this section is 
entitled to full reinstatement of the suspended contract on 
request. The Secretary of Commerce may prescribe rules and 
regulations consistent with the purpose of this section.
  [Sec. 615. (a) The Secretary of Commerce may, until September 
30, 1983, authorize an operator receiving or applying for 
operating differential subsidy under this title to construct, 
reconstruct, or acquire its vessels of over five thousand 
deadweight tons in a foreign shipyard if the Secretary finds 
and certifies in writing that such operator's application for 
construction differential subsidy cannot be approved due to the 
unavailability of funds in the construction differential 
subsidy account. Vessels constructed, reconstructed, or 
modified pursuant to this section shall be deemed to have been 
United States built for the purposes of this title, section 
901(b) of this Act, and section 5(7) of the Port and Tanker 
Safety Act of 1978 (46 U.S.C. 391(a)(7)): Provided, That the 
provisions of section 607 of this Act shall not apply to 
vessels constructed, reconstructed, modified, or acquired 
pursuant to this section.
  [(b) The provisions of this section shall be effective for 
fiscal year 1983 only if the President in his annual budget 
message for that year requests at least $100,000,000 in 
construction differential subsidy or proposes an alternate 
program that would create equivalent merchant shipbuilding 
activity in privately owned United States shipyards and the 
Secretary reports to Congress on the effect such action will 
have on the shipyard mobilization base at least thirty days 
prior to making the certification referred to in subsection 
(a).
  [Sec. 616. (a) After the date of enactment of the Maritime 
Security Act of 1996, the Secretary of Transportation shall not 
enter into any new contract for operating-differential subsidy 
under this subtitle.
  [(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, any 
operating-differential subsidy contract in effect under this 
title on the day before the date of enactment of the Maritime 
Security Act of 1996 shall continue in effect and terminate as 
set forth in the contract, unless voluntarily terminated at an 
earlier date by the parties (other than the United States 
Government) to the contract.
  [(c) The essential service requirements of section 601(a) and 
603(b), and the provisions of sections 605(c) and 809(a), shall 
not apply to the operating-differential subsidy program under 
this subtitle effective upon the earlier of--
          [(1) the date that a payment is made, under the 
        Maritime Security Program established by subtitle B to 
        a contractor under that subtitle who is not party to an 
        operating-differential subsidy contract under this 
        subtitle, with the Secretary to cause notice of the 
        date of such payment to be published in the Federal 
        Register as soon as possible; or
          [(2) with respect to a particular contractor under 
        the operating-differential subsidy program, the date 
        that contractor enters into a contract with the 
        Secretary under the Maritime Security Program 
        established by subtitle B.
  [(d)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a vessel 
may be transferred and registered under an effective United 
States-controlled foreign flag if--
          [(A) the operator of the vessel receives an 
        operating-differential subsidy pursuant to a contract 
        under this subtitle which is in force on October 1, 
        1994, and the Secretary approves the replacement of 
        such vessel with a comparable vessel, or
          [(B) the vessel is covered by an operating agreement 
        under subtitle B, and the Secretary approves the 
        replacement of such vessel with a comparable vessel for 
        inclusion in the Maritime Security Fleet established 
        under subtitle B.
  [(2) Any such vessel may be requisitioned by the Secretary of 
Transportation pursuant to section 902.]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                    TITLE VIII--CONTRACT PROVISIONS

  [Sec. 801. Every contract executed by the Secretary of 
Transportation under the provision of title VI or VII of this 
Act shall contain provisions requiring (1) that the contractor 
and every affiliate, domestic agent, subsidiary, or holding 
company connected with, or directly or indirectly controlling 
or controlled by, the contractor, to keep its books, records, 
and accounts, relating to the maintenance, operation, and 
servicing of the vessels, services, routes, and lines covered 
by the contract, in such form and under such regulations as may 
be prescribed by the Secretary of Transportation: Provided, 
That the provisions of this paragraph shall not require the 
duplication of books, records, and accounts required to be kept 
in some other form by the Interstate Commerce Commission; (2) 
that the contractor and every affiliate, domestic agent, 
subsidiary, or holding company connected with, or directly or 
indirectly controlling or controlled by the contractor, to 
file, upon notice from the Secretary of Transportation, balance 
sheets, profit and loss statements, and such other statements 
of financial operations, special report, memoranda of any facts 
and transactions, which in the opinion of the Secretary of 
Transportation affect the financial results in, the performance 
of, or transactions or operations under, such contract; (3) 
that the Secretary of Transportation shall be authorized to 
examine and audit the books, records, and accounts of all 
persons referred to in this section whenever he may deem it 
necessary or desirable; and (4) that upon the willful failure 
or refusal of any person described in this section to comply 
with the contract provisions required by this section, the 
Secretary of Transportation shall have the right to rescind the 
contract, and upon such rescission the United States shall be 
relieved of all further liability on such contract.
  [Sec. 802. Every contract executed by the Secretary of 
Transportation under authority of title V of this Act shall 
provide that--
   [In the event the United States shall, through purchase or 
requisition, acquire ownership of the vessel or vessels on 
which a construction-differential subsidy was paid, the owner 
shall be paid therefor the value thereof, but in no event shall 
such payment exceed the actual depreciated construction cost 
thereof (together with the actual depreciated cost of capital 
improvements thereon, but excluding the cost of national-
defense features) less the depreciated amount of construction-
differential subsidy theretofore paid incident to the 
construction or reconditioning of such vessel or vessels, or 
the fair and reasonable scrap value of such vessel as 
determined by the Secretary of Transportation, whichever is the 
greater. Such determination shall be final. In computing the 
depreciated value of such vessel, depreciation shall be 
computed on each vessel on the schedule adopted by the Bureau 
of Internal Revenue for income-tax purposes.
   [The foregoing provision respecting the requisition or the 
acquisition of ownership by the United States shall run with 
the title to such vessel or vessels and be binding on all 
owners thereof.]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  [Sec. 809. (a) Contracts under this Act shall be entered into 
so as to equitably serve, insofar as possible, the foreign-
trade requirements of the Atlantic, Gulf, Great Lakes, and 
Pacific ports of the United States. In order to assure 
equitable treatment for each range of ports referred to in the 
preceding sentence, not less than 10 percent of the funds 
appropriated for construction-differential subsidy and 
operating-differential subsidy pursuant to this Act or any law 
authorizing funds for the purposes of this Act shall be 
allocated to each such port range: Provided, however, That such 
allocation shall apply to the extent that subsidy contracts are 
approved by the Secretary of Transportation. For the purposes 
of this section, the Secretary shall establish trade routes, 
services, or lines that take into account the seasonal closure 
of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and provide for alternate routing 
of ships via a different range of ports during that closure so 
as to maintain continuity of service on a year-round basis. For 
the purposes of section 605(c), such an alternate routing via a 
different range of ports shall be deemed to be service from 
Great Lakes ports, provided such alternative routing is based 
upon receipt or delivery of cargo at Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence 
Seaway ports under through intermodal bills of lading. The 
Secretary shall include in the annual report pursuant to 
section 208 of this Act a detailed report (1) describing the 
actions that have been taken pursuant to this Act to assure 
insofar as possible that direct and adequate service is 
provided by United States-flag commercial vessels to each range 
of ports referred to in this section; and (2) including any 
recommendations for additional legislation that may be 
necessary to achieve the purpose of this section. In awarding 
contracts under this Act, preference shall be given to persons 
who are citizens of the United States and who have the support, 
financial and otherwise, of the domestic communities primarily 
interested.]

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                              ----------                              


COAST GUARD AND MARITIME TRANSPORTATION ACT OF 2006

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 421. DISTANT WATER TUNA FLEET.

  (a) Manning Requirements.--Notwithstanding section 8103(a) of 
title 46, United States Code, United States purse seine fishing 
vessels fishing exclusively for highly migratory species in the 
treaty area under a fishing license issued pursuant to the 1987 
Treaty on Fisheries Between the Governments of Certain Pacific 
Islands States and the Government of the United States of 
America, or transiting to or from the treaty area exclusively 
for such purpose, may engage foreign citizens to meet the 
manning requirement (except for the master) until the date of 
expiration of this section if, after timely notice of a vacancy 
to meet the manning requirement, no United States citizen 
personnel are readily available to fill such vacancy.
  (b) Licensing Restrictions.--
          (1) In general.--Subsection (a) only applies to a 
        foreign citizen who holds a credential that is 
        equivalent to the credential issued by the Coast Guard 
        to a United States citizen for the position, with 
        respect to requirements for experience, training, and 
        other qualifications.
          (2) Treatment of credential.--An equivalent 
        credential under paragraph (1) shall be considered as 
        meeting the requirements of section 8304 of title 46, 
        United States Code, but only while a person holding the 
        credential is in the service of the vessel to which 
        this section applies.
  (c) Expiration.--This section expires on the date the Treaty 
on Fisheries Between the Governments of Certain Pacific Island 
States and the Government of the United States of America 
ceases to have effect for any party under Article 12.6 or 12.7 
of such treaty, as in effect on the date of enactment of the 
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2012.
  [(d) Reports.--On March 1, 2007, and annually thereafter 
until the date of expiration of this section, the Coast Guard 
and the National Marine Fisheries Service shall submit a report 
to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
the Senate and the Committees on Transportation and 
Infrastructure and Resources of the House of Representatives, 
providing the following information on the United States purse 
seine fleet referred to in subsection (a):
          [(1) The number and identity of vessels in the fleet 
        using foreign citizens to meet manning requirements 
        pursuant to this section and any marine casualties 
        involving such vessel.
          [(2) The number of vessels in the fishery under 
        United States flag as of January 1 of the year in which 
        the report is submitted, the percentage ownership or 
        control of such vessels by non-United States citizens, 
        and the nationality of such ownership or control.
          [(3) Description of any transfers or sales of United 
        States flag vessels in the previous calendar year, and 
        the disposition of such vessel, including whether the 
        vessel was scrapped or sold, and, if sold, the 
        nationality of the new owner and location of any 
        fishery to which the vessel will be transferred.
          [(4) Landings of tuna by vessels under flag in the 2 
        previous calendar years, including an assessment of 
        landing trends, and a description of landing 
        percentages and totals--
                  [(A) delivered to American Samoa and any 
                other port in a State or territory of the 
                United States; and
                  [(B) delivered to ports outside of a State or 
                territory of the United States, including the 
                identity of the port.
          [(5) An evaluation of capacity and trends in the 
        purse seine fleet fishing in the area covered by the 
        South Pacific Regional Fisheries Treaty, and any 
        transfer of capacity from such fleet or area to other 
        fisheries, including those governed under the Western 
        and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention and the Inter-
        American Tropical Tuna Convention.]

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TITLE VI--DELAWARE RIVER PROTECTION AND MISCELLANEOUS OIL PROVISIONS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SEC. 603. LIMITS ON LIABILITY.

  (a) [omitted--amendatory]
  (b) [omitted--amendatory]
  (c) Report.--
          (1) Initial report.--Not later than 45 days after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 
        department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 
        submit a report on liability limits described in 
        paragraph (2) to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
        and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
        Representatives.
          (2) Contents.--The report shall include, at a 
        minimum, the following:
                  (A) An analysis of the extent to which oil 
                discharges from vessels and nonvessel sources 
                have or are likely to result in removal costs 
                and damages (as defined in section 1001 of the 
                Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701)) for 
                which no defense to liability exists under 
                section 1003 of such Act and that exceed the 
                liability limits established in section 1004 of 
                such Act, as amended by this section.
                  (B) An analysis of the impacts that claims 
                against the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for 
                amounts exceeding such liability limits will 
                have on the Fund.
          (3) Annual updates.--The Secretary shall provide an 
        update of the report to the Committees referred to in 
        paragraph (1) [on an annual basis.] not later than 
        January 30 of the year following each year in which 
        occurs an oil discharge from a vessel or nonvessel 
        source that results or is likely to result in removal 
        costs and damages (as those terms are defined in 
        section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
        U.S.C. 2701)) that exceed liability limits established 
        under section 1004 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
        U.S.C. 2704).

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[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


                            ADDITIONAL VIEWS

    The right for seafarers to seek ``maintenance and cure'' 
for injuries, illness, and damages while at sea, and U.S. 
penalty wage protections that ensure that ship operators do not 
unfairly withhold or garnish the wages of seafarers, have been 
a part of U.S. maritime law for as long as U.S. ships have 
flown the U.S. flag on the high seas.
    Congress and American courts have always recognized the 
arduous work and occupational perils that seafarers encounter 
in their shipboard employment. They have also recognized the 
disproportionate bargaining power that shipowners have over 
seafarers, and that seafarers are particularly vulnerable to 
exploitation and abuse by unscrupulous shipowners. In response 
to such threats, and acknowledging the vital contributions that 
seafarers have made and continue to make to our economic and 
national security, Congress and the Courts have zealously 
safeguarded seafarers' rights for over two centuries.
    Nevertheless, the Committee has again acted imprudently to 
accept an unwarranted en bloc amendment offered on behalf of 
the international cruise line industry that would arbitrarily 
restrict the scope and applicability of these vital seafarer 
protections to non-U.S. seafarers working on cruise ships. The 
Committee has acceded to virtually revoke these customary 
seafarer protections--doctrine that has been in place since the 
12th century under the Laws of Oleron--without having held one 
hearing; without having sought one legal opinion; and without 
compelling the cruise industry to provide any reputable 
information to justify these changes. This absence of 
constructive oversight is regrettable.
    Regarding the penalty wage, under the Penalty Wage Act of 
1790 (subsequently reauthorized and strengthened in 1872, 1898, 
and 1915), a two-day penalty for each day a wage is unpaid is 
imposed on unscrupulous shipowners who arbitrarily or unfairly 
withhold a seafarer's earned wages. The intent is for the 
penalty wage to be a strong disincentive and history has shown 
that it has been an effective deterrent to seafarer abuse.
    It is important to note, however, that the penalty is only 
imposed when the failure to pay wages is without sufficient 
cause (e.g., the delay in pay was arbitrary, willful, or 
unreasonable). Under the Maritime Labour Convention of 2006, an 
international accord which is in force for virtually all cruise 
vessels calling at U.S. ports, all shipowners are required to 
maintain accurate records of seafarers' working hours and must 
pay seafarers no less than once a month. As such, if a cruise 
vessel owner is complying with the terms and obligations of 
this international agreement and paying seafarers fairly and on 
time, there is no risk of penalties under the Penalty Wage Act. 
A 2013 review conducted by the American Law Division of the 
Congressional Research Service found, in fact, that penalty 
wage claims are infrequent, if not rare, which affirms the 
status quo.
    In 2006, in response to class action lawsuits filed against 
the cruise lines on behalf of seafarers who had been deprived 
of their overtime wages, the cruise line industry asked 
Congress to amend the Penalty Wage Act to limit their exposure 
to penalty wage claims. Not wishing to deprive individual 
seafarers of their right to file a penalty wage claim, former 
Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
James Oberstar (D-MN), negotiated a compromise that placed a 
cap on penalty wage claims awarded under class actions at 10 
times the daily rate, but left an individual penalty wage claim 
unchanged.
    The first provision in the en bloc amendment adopted by the 
Committee is simply rewarding the cruise industry for coming 
back for a second bite at the apple; this time to extend this 
same cap to an individual seafarer's penalty wage claim. That 
the Committee has agreed to this proposition absent any 
evidence demonstrating that penalty wage claims are an imminent 
financial threat to any cruise line, much less the cruise 
industry, is unfortunate. Moreover, it is completely contrary 
to Congress's long history of steadfast support for the Penalty 
Wage Act.
    The second part of the en bloc amendment arbitrarily bars 
foreign seafarers serving on foreign-flag cruise ships access 
to U.S courts thereby denying those seafarers a legal remedy to 
enforce a shipowner's obligation to pay ``maintenance and 
cure'' claims for damages or expenses related to personal 
injury, illness, or even death while serving on a vessel.
    As stressed earlier, this provision is completely contrary 
to a general maritime law principle that has been around since 
at least the 12th century and has remained applicable because 
of the international nature of shipping. A seafarer's right to 
medical care is one of the oldest and most fundamental 
seafarer's rights, is deeply rooted in maritime law, and is an 
incident or implied term in every seafarer's service contract. 
Paradoxically, the right was created in the shipowner's own 
self-interest as an inducement to recruit and retain skilled 
and responsible workers to accept employment in an arduous and 
perilous profession.
    To be effective, U.S. and foreign seafarers must have the 
ability to enforce their rights to medical care immediately in 
every country their vessels may call. Yet, the amendment 
approved by the Committee would enable an unscrupulous cruise 
ship operator to avoid his or her obligation to provide medical 
care to sick or injured seafarers by leaving them without a 
quick or practical way to enforce their rights, particularly in 
circumstances where the shipowner does not have any assets in 
the country where other remedies may be available for the 
seafarer.
    If enacted, this provision would erode fundamental 
principles of maritime law and also conflict with U.S. 
obligations under international law. Shipowners' and U.S. 
obligations to provide for sick and injured seafarers are 
codified under the Shipowners' Liability (Sick and Injured 
Seamen) Convention of 1936. Under Article 9 of the Convention, 
the U.S. is obligated to provide for rapid and inexpensive 
settlements of disputes concerning shipowners' liability to 
provide seafarers' medical care. Moreover, Article 11 obligates 
the U.S. to ensure equality of treatment to all seafarers 
irrespective of nationality, domicile, or race. It makes 
absolutely no sense for the U.S. to become the only country in 
the world that does not protect all seafarers from unscrupulous 
shipowners.
    In closing, the intent of the en bloc amendment is less to 
afford protection for cruise ship operators from a purported 
financial threat, and more to provide unwarranted legal 
immunity under U.S. law to allow cruise ship owners to evade 
their international obligations to treat their workers fairly. 
The Committee should have better understood these amendments 
before approving them. It is now left to the Senate to do its 
due diligence.

                                   John Garamendi.
                                   Jerrold Nadler.

                                  [all]