[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 75 (Tuesday, April 18, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20844-20845]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-9683]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Maritime Administration

[Docket No. MARAD-2000-7247]


Request for Public Comments on an Evaluation of the Maritime 
Security Program/Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement Program

AGENCY: Maritime Administration, United States Department of 
Transportation.

ACTION: Notification of open docket for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Maritime Administration (MARAD) is assessing the impact of 
the Maritime Security Program (MSP) and its associated Emergency 
Preparedness Program (EPP), the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift (VISA) 
program. The evaluation will seek to determine the contribution of MSP/
VISA to the achievement of Department of Transportation (DOT) and MARAD 
national security goals by identifying the causal relationship between 
MSP/VISA and the goals, to the extent that causality can be reliably 
measured. As part of DOT's implementation of the Government Performance 
and Results Act, MARAD has been investigating in-depth how well its 
major programs are working to achieve stated objectives. As set out in 
DOT and MARAD strategic plans to meet U.S. national security goals, the 
MSP is designed to help ensure that an active U.S. merchant fleet--and 
the trained personnel needed to operate both privately-owned active 
commercial vessels and Government-owned and controlled reserve ships--
will be available to meet Department of Defense (DoD) requirements for 
sealift during national emergencies. In FY 2000, these requirements 
include DoD access to 165,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units of 
container capacity) or 14.5 million square feet of U.S.-flag commercial 
vessel capacity and to carriers' intermodal transportation equipment 
and service networks.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Raymond R. Barberesi, Director, Office 
of Sealift Support, MAR-630, Room 7307, Maritime Administration, 400 
Seventh Street, SW, Washington, D.C. 20590, telephone number: 202-366-
2323 or fax 202-493-2180.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 10, 1995, the Administration 
submitted

[[Page 20845]]

legislation to the Congress proposing the MSP and the EPP, based on its 
analysis of current and future national security sealift requirements 
and the likely composition of the privately-owned U.S.-flag merchant 
fleet. The Congress found that, ``Without remedial action, there simply 
will be no U.S. fleet to conduct foreign commerce, and the United 
States may have difficulty manning our Ready Reserve Force (RRF) and 
will have to rely on foreign-flag shipping for all imports and exports 
and for the sustainment of future military operations'' (Senate Report 
104-167). Public Law (P.L.) 104-239, the Maritime Security Act of 1996, 
was enacted on October 8, 1996, to ``assure the continued presence of 
an active, privately owned, U.S.-flag and U.S.-crewed merchant shipping 
fleet to meet national and foreign commerce needs and to provide 
sustainment sealift capability in time of war or national emergency.'' 
P.L. 104-239 establishes the MSP fleet ``* * * of active, militarily 
useful, privately-owned vessels to meet national defense and other 
security requirements and maintain a United States presence in 
international commercial shipping.''
    As authorized through FY 2005, the MSP provides financial 
assistance to vessel operators to partially offset the higher costs of 
U.S.-flag operation in international trade. In return, MSP participants 
must commit enrolled vessels and associated intermodal resources to a 
DoD-approved EPP. The VISA program is the element of the MSP which 
assures DoD access to the U.S. commercial fleet by providing intermodal 
sealift and total logistical support to DoD in a time of war, national 
emergency, or whenever the Secretary of Defense determines it is 
necessary for national security. The VISA program enables DoD to secure 
space to transport military supplies and equipment. Today, MSP vessels 
constitute the vast majority (70 percent) of VISA sealift capacity.
    MARAD is seeking empirical information from vessel operators and 
other affected parties in the maritime and transportation industries, 
such as shippers, maritime labor, DoD and other Federal agencies to 
assess the MSP's impact on DoD sealift capability and the U.S. merchant 
fleet. Information is requested on the following issues: (1) Whether 
the MSP and the VISA programs have accomplished the goals of ``ensuring 
the availability of a U.S. maritime fleet for wartime or national 
emergencies and * * * to retain a pool of qualified mariners to serve 
on these vessels''; (2) The effectiveness of the MSP as a mechanism to 
retain vessels under U.S. registry; (3) The effect of the MSP's fixed 
financial assistance of $2.1 million per ship annually on the 
international competitiveness of MSP carriers; (4) The impact of the 
MSP payment as an economic incentive for carriers to replace existing 
vessels with newer ships; (5) Whether other factors have greater impact 
on carriers' fleet replacement decisions, and, if so, what these are; 
(6) The aspects of the MSP or VISA program that affect carriers' 
willingness to participate; (7) The appropriateness of the compensation 
levels for carriage of contingency cargoes; (8) The impact of statutory 
restrictions--i.e., Section 656 (cargo movements in domestic 
noncontiguous trade) and Section 804 (prohibition on operating 
competing foreign-flag vessels) of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, as 
amended; the cap on the amount of cargo preference that can be carried 
on MSP vessels; the requirement to operate 320 days a year; Section 2 
citizenship requirements, and trust arrangements; (9) The external 
factors that have a significant effect on program impact; (10) MSP 
participant plans if the MSP is not authorized beyond 2005; and (11) 
The aspects of program implementation that need to be changed to 
accomplish program objectives. MARAD is also soliciting comments as to 
whether other complementary programs, policies, or Federal Government 
actions would meet the statutory objectives of P.L. 104-239.
    You may submit written comments by hand or mail by the close of 
business on June 15, 2000 to the Docket Management Facility, U.S. DOT 
Dockets, Room PL-401, Department of Transportation, 400 7th St., SW, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001. Comments should refer to docket number 
MARAD-2000-7247. You may also send comments electronically via the 
Internet at http://dmses.dot.gov/submit. All comments will become part 
of this docket and will be available for inspection and copying at the 
above address between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., E.D.T., Monday through 
Friday, except federal holidays. An electronic version of this document 
and all documents entered into this docket is available on the World 
Wide Web at http://dms.dot.gov. The Maritime Administration, as a 
matter of discretion, will consider any comments submitted and take 
such action with respect thereto as may be deemed appropriate.

    Dated: April 13, 2000.

    By order of the Maritime Administrator.
Joel C. Richard,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 00-9683 Filed 4-17-00; 8:45 am]
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