II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4188 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 14, 2015 

Received 

AN ACT 

To authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard for fiscal 

years 2016 and 2017, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Coast Guard Author3 ization Act of 2015’’. 

4 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

5 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. Coast Guard communities. 

Sec. 207. Polar icebreakers. 

Sec. 208. Air facility closures. 

Sec. 209. Technical corrections to title 14, United States Code. 

Sec. 210. Discontinuance of an aid to navigation. 

Sec. 211. Mission performance measures. 

Sec. 212. Communications. 

Sec. 213. Coast Guard graduate maritime operations education. 

Sec. 214. Professional development. 

Sec. 215. Senior enlisted member continuation boards. 

Sec. 216. Coast Guard member pay. 

Sec. 217. Transfer of funds necessary to provide medical care. 

Sec. 218. Participation of the Coast Guard Academy in Federal, State, or other 

educational research grants. 

Sec. 219. National Coast Guard Museum. 

Sec. 220. Investigations. 

Sec. 221. Clarification of eligibility of members of the Coast Guard for combatrelated special compensation. 

Sec. 222. Leave policies for the Coast Guard. 

TITLE III—SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION 

Sec. 301. Survival craft. 

Sec. 302. Vessel replacement. 

Sec. 303. Model years for recreational vessels. 

Sec. 304. Merchant mariner credential expiration harmonization. 

Sec. 305. Safety zones for permitted marine events. 

Sec. 306. Technical corrections. 

Sec. 307. Recommendations for improvements of marine casualty reporting. 

Sec. 308. Recreational vessel engine weights. 

Sec. 309. Merchant mariner medical certification reform. 


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Sec. 310. Atlantic Coast port access route study. 

Sec. 311. Certificates of documentation for recreational vessels. 

Sec. 312. Program guidelines. 

Sec. 313. Repeals. 

Sec. 314. Maritime drug law enforcement. 

Sec. 315. Examinations for merchant mariner credentials. 

Sec. 316. Higher volume port area regulatory definition change. 

Sec. 317. Recognition of port security assessments conducted by other entities. 

Sec. 318. Fishing vessel and fish tender vessel certification. 

Sec. 319. Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research. 

Sec. 320. International port and facility inspection coordination. 

TITLE IV—FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION 

Sec. 401. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 402. Duties of the Chairman. 

Sec. 403. Prohibition on awards. 

TITLE V—CONVEYANCES 

Subtitle A—Miscellaneous Conveyances 

Sec. 501. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Point Reyes Station, California. 

Sec. 502. Conveyance of Coast Guard property in Tok, Alaska. 

Subtitle B—Pribilof Islands 

Sec. 521. Short title. 

Sec. 522. Transfer and disposition of property. 

Sec. 523. Notice of certification. 

Sec. 524. Redundant capability. 

Subtitle C—Conveyance of Coast Guard Property at Point Spencer, Alaska 

Sec. 531. Findings. 

Sec. 532. Definitions. 

Sec. 533. Authority to convey land in Point Spencer. 

Sec. 534. Environmental compliance, liability, and monitoring. 

Sec. 535. Easements and access. 

Sec. 536. Relationship to Public Land Order 2650. 

Sec. 537. Archeological and cultural resources. 

Sec. 538. Maps and legal descriptions. 

Sec. 539. Chargeability for land conveyed. 

Sec. 540. Redundant capability. 

Sec. 541. Port Coordination Council for Point Spencer. 

TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 601. Modification of reports. 

Sec. 602. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes. 

Sec. 603. Use of vessel sale proceeds. 

Sec. 604. National Academy of Sciences cost assessment. 

Sec. 605. Penalty wages. 

Sec. 606. Recourse for noncitizens. 

Sec. 607. Coastwise endorsements. 

Sec. 608. International Ice Patrol. 


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Sec. 609. Assessment of oil spill response and cleanup activities in the Great 

Lakes. 

Sec. 610. Report on status of technology detecting passengers who have fallen 

overboard. 

Sec. 611. Venue. 

Sec. 612. Disposition of infrastructure related to E–LORAN. 

Sec. 613. Parking. 

1 TITLE I—AUTHORIZATIONS 

2 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title 14, United States Code, is 

4 amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘PART III—COAST GUARD AUTHORIZATIONS AND 

6 REPORTS TO CONGRESS 

‘‘Chap. Sec. 

‘‘27. Authorizations .......................................................................... 2701 

‘‘29. Reports ......................................................................................... 2901 

7 ‘‘CHAPTER 27—AUTHORIZATIONS 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘2702. Authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘2704. Authorized levels of military strength and training. 

8 ‘‘§ 2702. Authorization of appropriations 

9 ‘‘Funds are authorized to be appropriated for each 

10 of fiscal years 2016 and 2017 for necessary expenses of 

11 the Coast Guard as follows: 

12 ‘‘(1) For the operation and maintenance of the 

13 Coast Guard, not otherwise provided for— 

14 ‘‘(A) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) $6,981,036,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

17 ‘‘(2) For the acquisition, construction, renova18 tion, and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 


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1 facilities, vessels, and aircraft, including equipment 

2 related thereto, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, 

3 lease, and operation of facilities and equipment— 

4 ‘‘(A) $1,945,000,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(B) $1,945,000,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

7 ‘‘(3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, in8 cluding operations and maintenance of the program, 

9 personnel and training costs, equipment, and serv10 ices— 

11 ‘‘(A) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(B) $140,016,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

14 ‘‘(4) For the environmental compliance and res15 toration functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 

16 19 of this title— 

17 ‘‘(A) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2016; and 

18 ‘‘(B) $16,701,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

19 ‘‘(5) To the Commandant of the Coast Guard 

20 for research, development, test, and evaluation of 

21 technologies, materials, and human factors directly 

22 related to improving the performance of the Coast 

23 Guard’s mission with respect to search and rescue, 

24 aids to navigation, marine safety, marine environ25 mental protection, enforcement of laws and treaties, 


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1 ice operations, oceanographic research, and defense 

2 readiness, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, lease, 

3 and operation of facilities and equipment— 

4 ‘‘(A) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2016; and 

5 ‘‘(B) $19,890,000 for fiscal year 2017. 

6 ‘‘§ 2704. Authorized levels of military strength and 

7 training 

8 ‘‘(a) ACTIVE DUTY STRENGTH.—The Coast Guard is 

9 authorized an end-of-year strength for active duty per10 sonnel of 43,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 and 2017. 

11 ‘‘(b) MILITARY TRAINING STUDENT LOADS.—The 

12 Coast Guard is authorized average military training stu13 dent loads for each of fiscal years 2016 and 2017 as fol14 lows: 

15 ‘‘(1) For recruit and special training, 2,500 

16 student years. 

17 ‘‘(2) For flight training, 165 student years. 

18 ‘‘(3) For professional training in military and 

19 civilian institutions, 350 student years. 

20 ‘‘(4) For officer acquisition, 1,200 student 

21 years. 

22 ‘‘CHAPTER 29—REPORTS 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘2904. Manpower requirements plan. 


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1 ‘‘§ 2904. Manpower requirements plan 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—On the date on which the Presi3 dent submits to the Congress a budget for fiscal year 2017 

4 under section 1105 of title 31, on the date on which the 

5 President submits to the Congress a budget for fiscal year 

6 2019 under such section, and every 4 years thereafter, the 

7 Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Transpor8 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 

9 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor10 tation of the Senate a manpower requirements plan. 

11 ‘‘(b) SCOPE.—A manpower requirements plan sub12 mitted under subsection (a) shall include for each mission 

13 of the Coast Guard— 

14 ‘‘(1) an assessment of all projected mission re15 quirements for the upcoming fiscal year and for each 

16 of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; 

17 ‘‘(2) the number of active duty, reserve, and ci18 vilian personnel assigned or available to fulfill such 

19 mission requirements— 

20 ‘‘(A) currently; and 

21 ‘‘(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal 

22 year and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; 

23 ‘‘(3) the number of active duty, reserve, and ci24 vilian personnel required to fulfill such mission re25 quirements— 

26 ‘‘(A) currently; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal 

2 year and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; 

3 ‘‘(4) an identification of any capability gaps be4 tween mission requirements and mission perform5 ance caused by deficiencies in the numbers of per6 sonnel available— 

7 ‘‘(A) currently; and 

8 ‘‘(B) as projected for the upcoming fiscal 

9 year and each of the 3 fiscal years thereafter; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(5) an identification of the actions the Com12 mandant will take to address capability gaps identi13 fied under paragraph (4). 

14 ‘‘(c) CONSIDERATION.—In composing a manpower 

15 requirements plan for submission under subsection (a), 

16 the Commandant shall consider— 

17 ‘‘(1) the marine safety strategy required under 

18 section 2116 of title 46; 

19 ‘‘(2) information on the adequacy of the acqui20 sition workforce included in the most recent report 

21 under section 2903 of this title; and 

22 ‘‘(3) any other Federal strategic planning effort 

23 the Commandant considers appropriate.’’. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENT FOR PRIOR AUTHORIZATION OF

2 APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 662 of title 14, United States 

3 Code, is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating such section as section 

5 2701; 

6 (2) by transferring such section to appear be7 fore section 2702 of such title (as added by sub8 section (a) of this section); and 

9 (3) by striking paragraphs (1) through (5) and 

10 inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) For the operation and maintenance of the 

12 Coast Guard, not otherwise provided for. 

13 ‘‘(2) For the acquisition, construction, renova14 tion, and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 

15 facilities, vessels, and aircraft, including equipment 

16 related thereto, and for maintenance, rehabilitation, 

17 lease, and operation of facilities and equipment. 

18 ‘‘(3) For the Coast Guard Reserve program, in19 cluding operations and maintenance of the program, 

20 personnel and training costs, equipment, and serv21 ices. 

22 ‘‘(4) For the environmental compliance and res23 toration functions of the Coast Guard under chapter 

24 19 of this title. 


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1 ‘‘(5) For research, development, test, and eval2 uation of technologies, materials, and human factors 

3 directly related to improving the performance of the 

4 Coast Guard. 

5 ‘‘(6) For alteration or removal of bridges over 

6 navigable waters of the United States constituting 

7 obstructions to navigation, and for personnel and 

8 administrative costs associated with the Alteration of 

9 Bridges Program.’’. 

10 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF PERSONNEL END

11 STRENGTHS.—Section 661 of title 14, United States 

12 Code, is amended— 

13 (1) by redesignating such section as section 

14 2703; and 

15 (2) by transferring such section to appear be16 fore section 2704 of such title (as added by sub17 section (a) of this section). 

18 (d) REPORTS.— 

19 (1) TRANSMISSION OF ANNUAL COAST GUARD

20 AUTHORIZATION REQUEST.—Section 662a of title 

21 14, United States Code, is amended— 

22 (A) by redesignating such section as sec23 tion 2901; 


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1 (B) by transferring such section to appear 

2 before section 2904 of such title (as added by 

3 subsection (a) of this section); and 

4 (C) in subsection (b)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘de6 scribed in section 661’’ and inserting ‘‘de7 scribed in section 2703’’; and 

8 (ii) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘de9 scribed in section 662’’ and inserting ‘‘de10 scribed in section 2701’’. 

11 (2) CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN.—Section 663 

12 of title 14, United States Code, is amended— 

13 (A) by redesignating such section as sec14 tion 2902; and 

15 (B) by transferring such section to appear 

16 after section 2901 of such title (as so redesig17 nated and transferred by paragraph (1) of this 

18 subsection). 

19 (3) MAJOR ACQUISITIONS.—Section 569a of 

20 title 14, United States Code, is amended— 

21 (A) by redesignating such section as sec22 tion 2903; 

23 (B) by transferring such section to appear 

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1 nated and transferred by paragraph (2) of this 

2 subsection); and 

3 (C) in subsection (c)(2) by striking ‘‘of this 

4 subchapter’’. 

5 (e) ICEBREAKERS.— 

6 (1) ICEBREAKING ON THE GREAT LAKES.—For 

7 fiscal years 2016 and 2017, the Commandant of the 

8 Coast Guard may use funds made available pursuant 

9 to section 2702(2) of title 14, United States Code 

10 (as added by subsection (a) of this section), for the 

11 selection of a design for and the construction of an 

12 icebreaker that is capable of buoy tending to en13 hance icebreaking capacity on the Great Lakes. 

14 (2) POLAR ICEBREAKING.—Of the amounts au15 thorized to be appropriated under section 2702(2) of 

16 title 14, United States Code, as amended by sub17 section (a), there is authorized to be appropriated to 

18 the Coast Guard $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2016 

19 and $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2017 for 

20 preacquisition activities for a new polar icebreaker, 

21 including initial specification development and feasi22 bility studies. 

23 (f) ADDITIONAL SUBMISSIONS.—The Commandant 

24 of the Coast Guard shall submit to the Committee on 

25 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives— 


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1 (1) each plan required under section 2904 of 

2 title 14, United States Code, as added by subsection 

3 (a) of this section; 

4 (2) each plan required under section 2903(e) of 

5 title 14, United States Code, as added by section 

6 206 of this Act; 

7 (3) each plan required under section 2902 of 

8 title 14, United States Code, as redesignated by sub9 section (d) of this section; and 

10 (4) each mission need statement required under 

11 section 569 of title 14, United States Code. 

12 SEC. 102. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

13 (a) ANALYSIS FOR TITLE 14.—The analysis for title 

14 14, United States Code, is amended by adding after the 

15 item relating to part II the following: 

‘‘III. Coast Guard Authorizations and Reports to Congress ............................................................................ 2701’’. 

16 (b) ANALYSIS FOR CHAPTER 15.—The analysis for 

17 chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, is amended 

18 by striking the item relating to section 569a. 

19 (c) ANALYSIS FOR CHAPTER 17.—The analysis for 

20 chapter 17 of title 14, United States Code, is amended 

21 by striking the items relating to sections 661, 662, 662a, 

22 and 663. 


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1 (d) ANALYSIS FOR CHAPTER 27.—The analysis for 

2 chapter 27 of title 14, United States Code, as added by 

3 section 101(a) of this Act, is amended by inserting— 

4 (1) before the item relating to section 2702 the 

5 following: 

‘‘2701. Requirement for prior authorization of appropriations.’’; 

6 and 

7 (2) before the item relating to section 2704 the 

8 following: 

‘‘2703. Authorization of personnel end strengths.’’. 

9 (e) ANALYSIS FOR CHAPTER 29.—The analysis for 

10 chapter 29 of title 14, United States Code, as added by 

11 section 101(a) of this Act, is amended by inserting before 

12 the item relating to section 2904 the following: 

‘‘2901. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request. 

‘‘2902. Capital investment plan. 

‘‘2903. Major acquisitions.’’. 

13 (f) MISSION NEED STATEMENT.—Section 569(b) of 

14 title 14, United States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘in section 

16 569a(e)’’ and inserting ‘‘in section 2903’’; and 

17 (2) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘under section 

18 663(a)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘under section 

19 2902(a)(1)’’. 


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1 TITLE II—COAST GUARD 

2 SEC. 201. VICE COMMANDANT. 

3 (a) GRADES AND RATINGS.—Section 41 of title 14, 

4 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘an admiral,’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘admirals (two);’’. 

6 (b) VICE COMMANDANT; APPOINTMENT.—Section 47 

7 of title 14, United States Code, is amended by striking 

8 ‘‘vice admiral’’ and inserting ‘‘admiral’’. 

9 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 51 of title 

10 14, United States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a) by inserting ‘‘admiral or’’ 

12 before ‘‘vice admiral,’’; 

13 (2) in subsection (b) by inserting ‘‘admiral or’’ 

14 before ‘‘vice admiral,’’ each place it appears; and 

15 (3) in subsection (c) by inserting ‘‘admiral or’’ 

16 before ‘‘vice admiral,’’. 

17 SEC. 202. VICE ADMIRALS. 

18 Section 50 of title 14, United States Code, is amend19 ed— 

20 (1) in subsection (a)— 

21 (A) by striking paragraph (1) and insert22 ing the following: 

23 ‘‘(1) The President may— 

24 ‘‘(A) designate, within the Coast Guard, no 

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1 bility that shall be held by officers who, while so 

2 serving— 

3 ‘‘(i) shall have the grade of vice admiral, 

4 with the pay and allowances of that grade; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) shall perform such duties as the Com6 mandant may prescribe, except that if the 

7 President designates five such positions, one po8 sition shall be the Chief of Staff of the Coast 

9 Guard; and 

10 ‘‘(B) designate, within the executive branch, 

11 other than within the Coast Guard or the National 

12 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, positions 

13 of importance and responsibility that shall be held 

14 by officers who, while so serving, shall have the 

15 grade of vice admiral, with the pay and allowances 

16 of that grade.’’; and 

17 (B) in paragraph (3)(A) by striking 

18 ‘‘under paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘under 

19 paragraph (1)(A)’’; and 

20 (2) in subsection (b)(2)— 

21 (A) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ 

22 at the end; 

23 (B) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as 

24 subparagraph (D); and 


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1 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (B) 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(C) at the discretion of the Secretary, while 

4 awaiting orders after being relieved from the posi5 tion, beginning on the day the officer is relieved 

6 from the position, but not for more than 60 days; 

7 and’’. 

8 SEC. 203. COAST GUARD REMISSION OF INDEBTEDNESS. 

9 (a) EXPANSION OF AUTHORITY TO REMIT INDEBT10 EDNESS.—Section 461 of title 14, United States Code, is 

11 amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘§ 461. Remission of indebtedness 

13 ‘‘The Secretary may have remitted or cancelled any 

14 part of a person’s indebtedness to the United States or 

15 any instrumentality of the United States if— 

16 ‘‘(1) the indebtedness was incurred while the 

17 person served on active duty as a member of the 

18 Coast Guard; and 

19 ‘‘(2) the Secretary determines that remitting or 

20 cancelling the indebtedness is in the best interest of 

21 the United States.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap23 ter 13 of title 14, United States Code, is amended by 

24 striking the item relating to section 461 and inserting the 

25 following: 

‘‘461. Remission of indebtedness.’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. ACQUISITION REFORM. 

2 (a) MINIMUM PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.—Section 

3 572(d)(3) of title 14, United States Code, is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) through 

5 (H) as subparagraphs (E) through (J), respectively; 

6 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub7 paragraph (C); 

8 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(B) the performance data to be used to 

11 determine whether the key performance param12 eters have been resolved;’’; and 

13 (4) by inserting after subparagraph (C), as re14 designated by paragraph (2) of this subsection, the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(D) the results during test and evaluation 

17 that will be required to demonstrate that a ca18 pability, asset, or subsystem meets performance 

19 requirements;’’. 

20 (b) CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN.—Section 2902 of 

21 title 14, United States Code, as redesignated and other22 wise amended by this Act, is further amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 

24 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

25 ‘‘completion;’’ and inserting ‘‘completion based 


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1 on the proposed appropriations included in the 

2 budget;’’; and 

3 (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘at 

4 the projected funding levels;’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘based on the proposed appropriations included 

6 in the budget;’’; 

7 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub8 section (c), and inserting after subsection (a) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(b) NEW CAPITAL ASSETS.—In the fiscal year fol11 lowing each fiscal year for which appropriations are en12 acted for a new capital asset, the report submitted under 

13 subsection (a) shall include— 

14 ‘‘(1) an estimated life-cycle cost estimate for 

15 the new capital asset; 

16 ‘‘(2) an assessment of the impact the new cap17 ital asset will have on— 

18 ‘‘(A) delivery dates for each capital asset; 

19 ‘‘(B) estimated completion dates for each 

20 capital asset; 

21 ‘‘(C) the total estimated cost to complete 

22 each capital asset; and 

23 ‘‘(D) other planned construction or im24 provement projects; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) recommended funding levels for each cap2 ital asset necessary to meet the estimated completion 

3 dates and total estimated costs included in the such 

4 asset’s approved acquisition program baseline.’’; and 

5 (3) by amending subsection (c), as so redesig6 nated, to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

8 ‘‘(1) the term ‘unfunded priority’ means a pro9 gram or mission requirement that— 

10 ‘‘(A) has not been selected for funding in 

11 the applicable proposed budget; 

12 ‘‘(B) is necessary to fulfill a requirement 

13 associated with an operational need; and 

14 ‘‘(C) the Commandant would have rec15 ommended for inclusion in the applicable pro16 posed budget had additional resources been 

17 available or had the requirement emerged be18 fore the budget was submitted; and 

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘new capital asset’ means— 

20 ‘‘(A) an acquisition program that does not 

21 have an approved acquisition program baseline; 

22 or 

23 ‘‘(B) the acquisition of a capital asset in 

24 excess of the number included in the approved 

25 acquisition program baseline.’’. 


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1 (c) DAYS AWAY FROM HOMEPORT.—Not later than 

2 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

3 Commandant of the Coast Guard shall— 

4 (1) implement a standard for tracking oper5 ational days at sea for Coast Guard cutters that 

6 does not include days during which such cutters are 

7 undergoing maintenance or repair; and 

8 (2) notify the Committee on Transportation 

9 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 

10 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

11 Transportation of the Senate of the standard imple12 mented under paragraph (1). 

13 (d) FIXED WING AIRCRAFT FLEET MIX ANALYSIS.— 

14 Not later than September 30, 2016, the Commandant of 

15 the Coast Guard shall submit to the Committee on Trans16 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa17 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

18 Transportation of the Senate a revised fleet mix analysis 

19 of Coast Guard fixed wing aircraft. 

20 (e) LONG-TERM MAJOR ACQUISITIONS PLAN.—Sec21 tion 2903 of title 14, United States Code, as redesignated 

22 and otherwise amended by this Act, is further amended— 

23 (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub24 section (g); and 


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1 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(e) LONG-TERM MAJOR ACQUISITIONS PLAN.— 

4 Each report under subsection (a) shall include a plan that 

5 describes for the upcoming fiscal year, and for each of the 

6 20 fiscal years thereafter— 

7 ‘‘(1) the numbers and types of cutters and air8 craft to be decommissioned; 

9 ‘‘(2) the numbers and types of cutters and air10 craft to be acquired to— 

11 ‘‘(A) replace the cutters and aircraft iden12 tified under paragraph (1); or 

13 ‘‘(B) address an identified capability gap; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(3) the estimated level of funding in each fis16 cal year required to— 

17 ‘‘(A) acquire the cutters and aircraft iden18 tified under paragraph (2); 

19 ‘‘(B) acquire related command, control, 

20 communications, computer, intelligence, surveil21 lance, and reconnaissance systems; and 

22 ‘‘(C) acquire, construct, or renovate shore23 side infrastructure. 

24 ‘‘(f) QUARTERLY UPDATES ON RISKS OF PRO25 GRAMS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 days 

2 after the end of each fiscal year quarter, the Com3 mandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the 

4 committees of Congress specified in subsection (a) 

5 an update setting forth a current assessment of the 

6 risks associated with all current major acquisition 

7 programs. 

8 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—Each update under this sub9 section shall set forth, for each current major acqui10 sition program, the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) The top five current risks to such 

12 program. 

13 ‘‘(B) Any failure of such program to dem14 onstrate a key performance parameter or 

15 threshold during operational test and evaluation 

16 conducted during the fiscal year quarter pre17 ceding such update. 

18 ‘‘(C) Whether there has been any decision 

19 during such fiscal year quarter to order full20 rate production before all key performance pa21 rameters or thresholds are met. 

22 ‘‘(D) Whether there has been any breach 

23 of major acquisition program cost (as defined 

24 by the Major Systems Acquisition Manual) dur25 ing such fiscal year quarter. 


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1 ‘‘(E) Whether there has been any breach 

2 of major acquisition program schedule (as so 

3 defined) during such fiscal year quarter.’’. 

4 SEC. 205. AUXILIARY JURISDICTION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 822 of title 14, United 

6 States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘The purpose’’ and inserting the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The purpose’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The Auxiliary may conduct a pa12 trol of a waterway, or a portion thereof, only if— 

13 ‘‘(1) the Commandant has determined such wa14 terway, or portion thereof, is navigable for purposes 

15 of the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard; or 

16 ‘‘(2) a State or other proper authority has re17 quested such patrol pursuant to section 141 of this 

18 title or section 13109 of title 46.’’. 

19 (b) NOTIFICATION.—The Commandant of the Coast 

20 Guard shall— 

21 (1) review the waterways patrolled by the Coast 

22 Guard Auxiliary in the most recently completed fis23 cal year to determine whether such waterways are 

24 eligible or ineligible for patrol under section 822(b) 


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1 of title 14, United States Code (as added by sub2 section (a)); and 

3 (2) not later than 180 days after the date of 

4 the enactment of this Act, provide to the Committee 

5 on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

6 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a written 

8 notification of— 

9 (A) any waterways determined ineligible 

10 for patrol under paragraph (1); and 

11 (B) the actions taken by the Commandant 

12 to ensure Auxiliary patrols do not occur on such 

13 waterways. 

14 SEC. 206. COAST GUARD COMMUNITIES. 

15 Section 409 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act 

16 of 1998 (14 U.S.C. 639 note) is amended in the second 

17 sentence by striking ‘‘90 days’’ and inserting ‘‘30 days’’. 

18 SEC. 207. POLAR ICEBREAKERS. 

19 (a) INCREMENTAL FUNDING AUTHORITY FOR POLAR

20 ICEBREAKERS.—In fiscal year 2016 and each fiscal year 

21 thereafter, the Commandant of the Coast Guard may 

22 enter into a contract or contracts for the acquisition of 

23 polar icebreakers and associated equipment using incre24 mental funding. 


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1 (b) ‘‘POLAR SEA’’ MATERIEL CONDITION ASSESS2 MENT AND SERVICE LIFE EXTENSION.—Section 222 of 

3 the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 

4 2012 (Public Law 112–213; 126 Stat. 1560) is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol7 lows: 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

9 date of the enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization 

10 Act of 2015, the Secretary of the department in which 

11 the Coast Guard is operating shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) complete a materiel condition assessment 

13 with respect to the Polar Sea; 

14 ‘‘(2) make a determination of whether it is cost 

15 effective to reactivate the Polar Sea compared with 

16 other options to provide icebreaking services as part 

17 of a strategy to maintain polar icebreaking services; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(3) submit to the Committee on Transpor20 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent21 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

22 and Transportation of the Senate— 

23 ‘‘(A) the assessment required under para24 graph (1); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) written notification of the determina2 tion required under paragraph (2).’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘analysis’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘written notification’’; 

5 (3) by striking subsection (c); 

6 (4) by redesignating subsections (d) through (h) 

7 as subsections (c) through (g), respectively; 

8 (5) in subsection (c) (as redesignated by para9 graph (4) of this section)— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

11 (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking 

12 ‘‘based on the analysis required’’; and 

13 (ii) in subparagraph (C) by striking 

14 ‘‘analysis’’ and inserting ‘‘written notifica15 tion’’; 

16 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘analysis’’ each place it 

18 appears and inserting ‘‘written notifica19 tion’’; 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ and 

21 inserting ‘‘subsection (a)(3)(B)’’; 

22 (iii) by striking ‘‘subsection (c)’’ each 

23 place it appears and inserting ‘‘that sub24 section’’; and 


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1 (iv) by striking ‘‘under subsection 

2 (a)(5)’’; and 

3 (C) in paragraph (3)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘in the analysis sub5 mitted under this section’’; 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘(a)(5)’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘(a)’’; 

8 (iii) by striking ‘‘then’’ and all that 

9 follows through ‘‘(A)’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘then’’; 

11 (iv) by striking ‘‘; or’’ and inserting a 

12 period; and 

13 (v) by striking subparagraph (B); and 

14 (6) in subsection (d) (as redesignated by para15 graph (4) of this subsection) by striking ‘‘in sub16 section (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘in subsection (c)’’. 

17 SEC. 208. AIR FACILITY CLOSURES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 17 of title 14, United 

19 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 676 the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘§ 676a. Air facility closures 

22 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Coast Guard may 

24 not— 


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1 ‘‘(A) close a Coast Guard air facility that 

2 was in operation on November 30, 2014; or 

3 ‘‘(B) retire, transfer, relocate, or deploy an 

4 aviation asset from an air facility described in 

5 subparagraph (A) for the purpose of closing 

6 such facility. 

7 ‘‘(2) SUNSET.—Paragraph (1) shall have no 

8 force or effect beginning on the later of— 

9 ‘‘(A) January 1, 2018; or 

10 ‘‘(B) the date on which the Secretary sub11 mits to the Committee on Transportation and 

12 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives, 

13 and to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

14 and Transportation of the Senate, rotary wing 

15 strategic plans prepared in accordance with sec16 tion 208(b) of the Coast Guard Authorization 

17 Act of 2015. 

18 ‘‘(b) CLOSURES.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on January 1, 

20 2018, the Secretary may not close a Coast Guard air 

21 facility, except as specified by this section. 

22 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS.—The Secretary may 

23 not propose closing or terminating operations at a 

24 Coast Guard air facility unless the Secretary deter25 mines that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) remaining search and rescue capabili2 ties maintain the safety of the maritime public 

3 in the area of the air facility; 

4 ‘‘(B) regional or local prevailing weather 

5 and marine conditions, including water tem6 peratures or unusual tide and current condi7 tions, do not require continued operation of the 

8 air facility; and 

9 ‘‘(C) Coast Guard search and rescue 

10 standards related to search and response times 

11 are met. 

12 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT.—Prior to 

13 closing an air facility, the Secretary shall provide op14 portunities for public comment, including the con15 vening of public meetings in communities in the area 

16 of responsibility of the air facility with regard to the 

17 proposed closure or cessation of operations at the air 

18 facility. 

19 ‘‘(4) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—Prior to closure, 

20 cessation of operations, or any significant reduction 

21 in personnel and use of a Coast Guard air facility 

22 that is in operation on or after December 31, 2015, 

23 the Secretary shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) submit to the Congress a proposal for 

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1 ations along with the budget of the President 

2 submitted to Congress under section 1105(a) of 

3 title 31 for the fiscal year in which the action 

4 will be carried out; and 

5 ‘‘(B) not later than 7 days after the date 

6 a proposal for an air facility is submitted pur7 suant to subparagraph (A), provide written no8 tice of such proposal to each of the following: 

9 ‘‘(i) Each member of the House of 

10 Representatives who represents a district 

11 in which the air facility is located. 

12 ‘‘(ii) Each member of the Senate who 

13 represents a State in which the air facility 

14 is located. 

15 ‘‘(iii) Each member of the House of 

16 Representatives who represents a district 

17 in which assets of the air facility conduct 

18 search and rescue operations. 

19 ‘‘(iv) Each member of the Senate who 

20 represents a State in which assets of the 

21 air facility conduct search and rescue oper22 ations. 

23 ‘‘(v) The Committee on Appropria24 tions of the House of Representatives. 


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1 ‘‘(vi) The Committee on Transpor2 tation and Infrastructure of the House of 

3 Representatives. 

4 ‘‘(vii) The Committee on Appropria5 tions of the Senate. 

6 ‘‘(viii) The Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

8 ‘‘(c) OPERATIONAL FLEXIBILITY.—The Secretary 

9 may implement any reasonable management efficiencies 

10 within the air station and air facility network, such as 

11 modifying the operational posture of units or reallocating 

12 resources as necessary to ensure the safety of the mari13 time public nationwide.’’. 

14 (b) ROTARY WING STRATEGIC PLANS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the depart16 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

17 prepare the plans specified in paragraph (2) to ade18 quately address contingencies arising from potential 

19 future aviation casualties or the planned or un20 planned retirement of rotary wing airframes to avoid 

21 to the greatest extent practicable any substantial 

22 gap or diminishment in Coast Guard operational ca23 pabilities. 

24 (2) ROTARY WING STRATEGIC PLANS.— 


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1 (A) ROTARY WING CONTINGENCY PLAN.— 

2 Not later than 1 year after the date of enact3 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the depart4 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating 

5 shall develop and submit to the Committee on 

6 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

7 of Representatives and the Committee on Com8 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen9 ate a contingency plan— 

10 (i) to address the planned or un11 planned losses of rotary wing airframes; 

12 (ii) to reallocate resources as nec13 essary to ensure the safety of the maritime 

14 public nationwide; and 

15 (iii) to ensure the operational posture 

16 of Coast Guard units. 

17 (B) ROTARY WING REPLACEMENT CAPITAL

18 INVESTMENT PLAN.— 

19 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 

20 years after the date of enactment of this 

21 Act, the Secretary of the department in 

22 which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

23 develop and submit to the Committee on 

24 Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

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1 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Trans2 portation of the Senate a capital invest3 ment plan for the acquisition of new rotary 

4 wing airframes to replace the Coast 

5 Guard’s legacy helicopters and fulfil all ex6 isting mission requirements. 

7 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The plan devel8 oped under this subparagraph shall pro9 vide— 

10 (I) a total estimated cost for 

11 completion; 

12 (II) a timetable for completion of 

13 the acquisition project and phased in 

14 transition to new airframes; and 

15 (III) projected annual funding 

16 levels for each fiscal year. 

17 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) ANALYSIS FOR CHAPTER 17.—The analysis 

19 for chapter 17 of title 14, United States Code, is 

20 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec21 tion 676 the following: 

‘‘676a. Air facility closures.’’. 

22 (2) REPEAL OF PROHIBITION.—Section 225 of 

23 the Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime 

24 Transportation Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–281; 

25 128 Stat. 3022) is amended— 


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1 (A) by striking subsection (b); and 

2 (B) by striking ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’. 

3 SEC. 209. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO TITLE 14, UNITED 

4 STATES CODE. 

5 Title 14, United States Code, as amended by this Act, 

6 is further amended— 

7 (1) in the analysis for part I, by striking the 

8 item relating to chapter 19 and inserting the fol9 lowing: 

‘‘19. Environmental Compliance and Restoration Program ............................................................................ 690’’; 

10 (2) in section 46(a), by striking ‘‘subsection’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘section’’; 

12 (3) in section 47, in the section heading by 

13 striking ‘‘commandant’’ and inserting ‘‘Com14 mandant’’; 

15 (4) in section 93(f), by striking paragraph (2) 

16 and inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The Commandant may 

18 lease submerged lands and tidelands under para19 graph (1) only if— 

20 ‘‘(A) the lease is for cash exclusively; 

21 ‘‘(B) the lease amount is equal to the fair 

22 market value of the use of the leased sub23 merged lands or tidelands for the period during 


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1 which such lands are leased, as determined by 

2 the Commandant; 

3 ‘‘(C) the lease does not provide authority 

4 to or commit the Coast Guard to use or support 

5 any improvements to such submerged lands and 

6 tidelands, or obtain goods and services from the 

7 lessee; and 

8 ‘‘(D) proceeds from the lease are deposited 

9 in the Coast Guard Housing Fund established 

10 under section 687.’’; 

11 (5) in the analysis for chapter 9, by striking the 

12 item relating to section 199 and inserting the fol13 lowing: 

‘‘199. Marine safety curriculum.’’; 

14 (6) in section 427(b)(2), by striking ‘‘this chap15 ter’’ and inserting ‘‘chapter 61 of title 10’’; 

16 (7) in the analysis for chapter 15 before the 

17 item relating to section 571, by striking the fol18 lowing: 

‘‘Sec.’’; 

19 (8) in section 581(5)(B), by striking 

20 ‘‘$300,000,0000,’’ and inserting ‘‘$300,000,000,’’; 

21 (9) in section 637(c)(3), in the matter pre22 ceding subparagraph (A) by inserting ‘‘it is’’ before 

23 ‘‘any’’; 


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1 (10) in section 641(d)(3), by striking ‘‘Guard, 

2 installation’’ and inserting ‘‘Guard installation’’; 

3 (11) in section 691(c)(3), by striking ‘‘state’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘State’’; 

5 (12) in the analysis for chapter 21— 

6 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

7 709 and inserting the following: 

‘‘709. Reserve student aviation pilots; Reserve aviation pilots; appointments in 

commissioned grade.’’; 

8 and 

9 (B) by striking the item relating to section 

10 740 and inserting the following: 

‘‘740. Failure of selection and removal from an active status.’’; 

11 (13) in section 742(c), by striking ‘‘subsection’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘subsections’’; 

13 (14) in section 821(b)(1), by striking ‘‘Chapter 

14 26’’ and inserting ‘‘Chapter 171’’; and 

15 (15) in section 823a(b)(1), by striking ‘‘Chap16 ter 26’’ and inserting ‘‘Chapter 171’’. 

17 SEC. 210. DISCONTINUANCE OF AN AID TO NAVIGATION. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 

20 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

21 establish a process for the discontinuance of an aid to 

22 navigation (other than a seasonal or temporary aid) estab23 lished, maintained, or operated by the Coast Guard. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENT.—The process established under 

2 subsection (a) shall include procedures to notify the public 

3 of any discontinuance of an aid to navigation described 

4 in that subsection. 

5 (c) CONSULTATION.—In establishing a process under 

6 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with and con7 sider any recommendations of the Navigation Safety Advi8 sory Council. 

9 (d) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 30 days after es10 tablishing a process under subsection (a), the Secretary 

11 shall notify the Committee on Transportation and Infra12 structure of the House of Representatives and the Com13 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

14 Senate of the process established. 

15 SEC. 211. MISSION PERFORMANCE MEASURES. 

16 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

17 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

18 shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and In19 frastructure and the Committee on Homeland Security of 

20 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com21 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate an as22 sessment of the efficacy of the Coast Guard’s Standard 

23 Operational Planning Process with respect to annual mis24 sion performance measures. 


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1 SEC. 212. COMMUNICATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary of Homeland Se3 curity determines that there are at least two communica4 tions systems described under paragraph (1)(B) and cer5 tified under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall establish 

6 and carry out a pilot program across not less than three 

7 components of the Department of Homeland Security to 

8 assess the effectiveness of a communications system 

9 that— 

10 (1) provides for— 

11 (A) multiagency collaboration and inter12 operability; and 

13 (B) wide-area, secure, and peer-invitation14 and acceptance-based multimedia communica15 tions; 

16 (2) is certified by the Department of Defense 

17 Joint Interoperability Test Center; and 

18 (3) is composed of commercially available, off19 the-shelf technology. 

20 (b) ASSESSMENT.—Not later than 6 months after the 

21 date on which the pilot program is completed, the Sec22 retary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

23 and Infrastructure and the Committee on Homeland Secu24 rity of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

25 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Com26 mittee Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 


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1 the Senate an assessment of the pilot program, including 

2 the impacts of the program with respect to interagency 

3 and Coast Guard response capabilities. 

4 (c) STRATEGY.—The pilot program shall be con5 sistent with the strategy required by the Department of 

6 Homeland Security Interoperable Communications Act 

7 (Public Law 114–29). 

8 (d) TIMING.—The pilot program shall commence 

9 within 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act 

10 or within 60 days after the completion of the strategy re11 quired by the Department of Homeland Security Inter12 operable Communications Act (Public Law 114–29), 

13 whichever is later. 

14 SEC. 213. COAST GUARD GRADUATE MARITIME OPER15 ATIONS EDUCATION. 

16 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

17 of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which the 

18 Coast Guard is operating shall establish an education pro19 gram, for members and employees of the Coast Guard, 

20 that— 

21 (1) offers a master’s degree in maritime oper22 ations; 

23 (2) is relevant to the professional development 

24 of such members and employees; 


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1 (3) provides resident and distant education op2 tions, including the ability to utilize both options; 

3 and 

4 (4) to the greatest extent practicable, is con5 ducted using existing academic programs at an ac6 credited public academic institution that— 

7 (A) is located near a significant number of 

8 Coast Guard, maritime, and other Department 

9 of Homeland Security law enforcement per10 sonnel; and 

11 (B) has an ability to simulate operations 

12 normally conducted at a command center. 

13 SEC. 214. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 

14 (a) MULTIRATER ASSESSMENT.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 11 of title 14, 

16 United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

17 section 428 the following: 

18 ‘‘§ 429. Multirater assessment of certain personnel 

19 ‘‘(a) MULTIRATER ASSESSMENT OF CERTAIN PER20 SONNEL.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Commencing not later than 

22 1 year after the date of the enactment of the Coast 

23 Guard Authorization Act of 2015, the Commandant 

24 of the Coast Guard shall develop and implement a 


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1 plan to conduct every 2 years a multirater assess2 ment for each of the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) Each flag officer of the Coast Guard. 

4 ‘‘(B) Each member of the Senior Executive 

5 Service of the Coast Guard. 

6 ‘‘(C) Each officer of the Coast Guard nom7 inated for promotion to the grade of flag offi8 cer. 

9 ‘‘(2) POST-ASSESSMENT ELEMENTS.—Following 

10 an assessment of an individual pursuant to para11 graph (1), the individual shall be provided appro12 priate post-assessment counseling and leadership 

13 coaching. 

14 ‘‘(b) MULTIRATER ASSESSMENT DEFINED.—In this 

15 section, the term ‘multirater assessment’ means a review 

16 that seeks opinion from members senior to the reviewee 

17 and the peers and subordinates of the reviewee.’’. 

18 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at 

19 the beginning of such chapter is amended by insert20 ing after the item related to section 428 the fol21 lowing: 

‘‘429. Multirater assessment of certain personnel.’’. 

22 (b) TRAINING COURSE ON WORKINGS OF CON23 GRESS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 14, United 

2 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

3 following: 

4 ‘‘§ 60. Training course on workings of Congress 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

6 the date of the enactment of the Coast Guard Authoriza7 tion Act of 2015, the Commandant, in consultation with 

8 the Superintendent of the Coast Guard Academy and such 

9 other individuals and organizations as the Commandant 

10 considers appropriate, shall develop a training course on 

11 the workings of the Congress and offer that training 

12 course at least once each year. 

13 ‘‘(b) COURSE SUBJECT MATTER.—The training 

14 course required by this section shall provide an overview 

15 and introduction to the Congress and the Federal legisla16 tive process, including— 

17 ‘‘(1) the history and structure of the Congress 

18 and the committee systems of the House of Rep19 resentatives and the Senate, including the functions 

20 and responsibilities of the Committee on Transpor21 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent22 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

23 and Transportation of the Senate; 

24 ‘‘(2) the documents produced by the Congress, 

25 including bills, resolutions, committee reports, and 


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1 conference reports, and the purposes and functions 

2 of those documents; 

3 ‘‘(3) the legislative processes and rules of the 

4 House of Representatives and the Senate, including 

5 similarities and differences between the two proc6 esses and rules, including— 

7 ‘‘(A) the congressional budget process; 

8 ‘‘(B) the congressional authorization and 

9 appropriation processes; 

10 ‘‘(C) the Senate advice and consent process 

11 for Presidential nominees; and 

12 ‘‘(D) the Senate advice and consent proc13 ess for treaty ratification; 

14 ‘‘(4) the roles of Members of Congress and con15 gressional staff in the legislative process; and 

16 ‘‘(5) the concept and underlying purposes of 

17 congressional oversight within our governance frame18 work of separation of powers. 

19 ‘‘(c) LECTURERS AND PANELISTS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) OUTSIDE EXPERTS.—The Commandant 

21 shall ensure that not less than 60 percent of the lec22 turers, panelists, and other individuals providing 

23 education and instruction as part of the training 

24 course required by this section are experts on the 

25 Congress and the Federal legislative process who are 


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1 not employed by the executive branch of the Federal 

2 Government. 

3 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT PRO BONO SERV4 ICES.—In satisfying the requirement under para5 graph (1), the Commandant shall seek, and may ac6 cept, educational and instructional services of lec7 turers, panelists, and other individuals and organiza8 tions provided to the Coast Guard on a pro bono 

9 basis. 

10 ‘‘(d) COMPLETION OF REQUIRED TRAINING.— 

11 ‘‘(1) CURRENT FLAG OFFICERS AND EMPLOY12 EES.—A Coast Guard flag officer appointed or as13 signed to a billet in the National Capital Region on 

14 the date of the enactment of this section, and a 

15 Coast Guard Senior Executive Service employee em16 ployed in the National Capital Region on the date of 

17 the enactment of this section, shall complete a train18 ing course that meets the requirements of this sec19 tion within 60 days after the date on which the 

20 Commandant completes the development of the 

21 training course. 

22 ‘‘(2) NEW FLAG OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.— 

23 A Coast Guard flag officer who is newly appointed 

24 or assigned to a billet in the National Capital Re25 gion, and a Coast Guard Senior Executive Service 


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1 employee who is newly employed in the National 

2 Capital Region, shall complete a training course that 

3 meets the requirements of this section not later than 

4 60 days after reporting for duty.’’. 

5 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at 

6 the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

‘‘60. Training course on workings of Congress.’’. 

8 (c) REPORT ON LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

10 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

11 Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the 

12 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor13 tation of the Senate and the Committee on Trans14 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep15 resentatives a report on Coast Guard leadership de16 velopment. 

17 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include the 

18 following: 

19 (A) An assessment of the feasibility of— 

20 (i) all officers (other than officers cov21 ered by section 429(a) of title 14, United 

22 States Code, as amended by this section) 

23 completing a multirater assessment; 


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1 (ii) all members (other than officers 

2 covered by such section) in command posi3 tions completing a multirater assessment; 

4 (iii) all enlisted members in a super5 visory position completing a multirater as6 sessment; and 

7 (iv) members completing periodic 

8 multirater assessments. 

9 (B) Such recommendations as the Com10 mandant considers appropriate for the imple11 mentation or expansion of a multirater assess12 ment in the personnel development programs of 

13 the Coast Guard. 

14 (C) An overview of each of the current 

15 leadership development courses of the Coast 

16 Guard, an assessment of the feasibility of the 

17 expansion of any such course, and a description 

18 of the resources, if any, required to expand 

19 such courses. 

20 (D) An assessment on the state of leader21 ship training in the Coast Guard, and rec22 ommendations on the implementation of a pol23 icy to prevent leadership that has adverse ef24 fects on subordinates, the organization, or mis25 sion performance, including— 


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1 (i) a description of methods that will 

2 be used by the Coast Guard to identify, 

3 monitor, and counsel individuals whose 

4 leadership may have adverse effects on 

5 subordinates, the organization, or mission 

6 performance; 

7 (ii) the implementation of leadership 

8 recognition training to recognize such lead9 ership in one’s self and others; 

10 (iii) the establishment of procedures 

11 for the administrative separation of leaders 

12 whose leadership may have adverse effects 

13 on subordinates, the organization, or mis14 sion performance; and 

15 (iv) a description of the resources 

16 needed to implement this section. 

17 SEC. 215. SENIOR ENLISTED MEMBER CONTINUATION 

18 BOARDS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 357 of title 14, United 

20 States Code, is amended— 

21 (1) by striking subsections (a) through (h) and 

22 subsection (j); and 

23 (2) in subsection (i), by striking ‘‘(i)’’. 

24 (b) CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) HEADING AMENDMENT.—The heading of 

2 such section is amended to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘§ 357. Retirement of enlisted members: increase in 

4 retired pay’’. 

5 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at 

6 the beginning of chapter 11 of such title is amended 

7 by striking the item relating to such section and in8 serting the following: 

‘‘357. Retirement of enlisted members: increase in retired pay.’’. 

9 SEC. 216. COAST GUARD MEMBER PAY. 

10 (a) ANNUAL AUDIT OF PAY AND ALLOWANCES OF

11 MEMBERS UNDERGOING PERMANENT CHANGE OF STA12 TION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 13 of title 14, 

14 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

15 end the following: 

16 ‘‘§ 519. Annual audit of pay and allowances of mem17 bers undergoing permanent change of 

18 station 

19 ‘‘The Commandant shall conduct each calendar year 

20 an audit of member pay and allowances for the members 

21 who transferred to new units during such calendar year. 

22 The audit for a calendar year shall be completed by the 

23 end of the calendar year.’’. 


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1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at 

2 the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 

3 at the end the following: 

‘‘519. Annual audit of pay and allowances of members undergoing permanent 

change of station.’’. 

4 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

5 of the enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the 

6 Coast Guard shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 

7 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Com8 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

9 of Representatives a report on alternative methods for no10 tifying members of the Coast Guard of their monthly earn11 ings. The report shall include— 

12 (1) an assessment of the feasibility of providing 

13 members a monthly notification of their earnings, 

14 categorized by pay and allowance type; and 

15 (2) a description and assessment of mechanisms 

16 that may be used to provide members with notifica17 tion of their earnings, categorized by pay and allow18 ance type. 

19 SEC. 217. TRANSFER OF FUNDS NECESSARY TO PROVIDE 

20 MEDICAL CARE. 

21 (a) TRANSFER REQUIRED.—In lieu of the reimburse22 ment required under section 1085 of title 10, United 

23 States Code, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 


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1 transfer to the Secretary of Defense an amount that rep2 resents the actuarial valuation of treatment or care— 

3 (1) that the Department of Defense shall pro4 vide to members of the Coast Guard, former mem5 bers of the Coast Guard, and dependents of such 

6 members and former members (other than former 

7 members and dependents of former members who 

8 are a Medicare-eligible beneficiary or for whom the 

9 payment for treatment or care is made from the 

10 Medicare-Eligible Retiree Health Care Fund) at fa11 cilities under the jurisdiction of the Department of 

12 Defense or a military department; and 

13 (2) for which a reimbursement would otherwise 

14 be made under section 1085. 

15 (b) AMOUNT.—The amount transferred under sub16 section (a) shall be— 

17 (1) in the case of treatment or care to be pro18 vided to members of the Coast Guard and their de19 pendents, derived from amounts appropriated for the 

20 operating expenses of the Coast Guard; 

21 (2) in the case of treatment or care to be pro22 vided former members of the Coast Guard and their 

23 dependents, derived from amounts appropriated for 

24 retired pay; 


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1 (3) determined under procedures established by 

2 the Secretary of Defense; 

3 (4) transferred during the fiscal year in which 

4 treatment or care is provided; and 

5 (5) subject to adjustment or reconciliation as 

6 the Secretaries determine appropriate during or 

7 promptly after such fiscal year in cases in which the 

8 amount transferred is determined excessive or insuf9 ficient based on the services actually provided. 

10 (c) NO TRANSFER WHEN SERVICE IN NAVY.—No 

11 transfer shall be made under this section for any period 

12 during which the Coast Guard operates as a service in the 

13 Navy. 

14 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO TRICARE.—This section 

15 shall not be construed to require a payment for, or the 

16 transfer of an amount that represents the value of, treat17 ment or care provided under any TRICARE program. 

18 SEC. 218. PARTICIPATION OF THE COAST GUARD ACADEMY 

19 IN FEDERAL, STATE, OR OTHER EDU20 CATIONAL RESEARCH GRANTS. 

21 Section 196 of title 14, United States Code, is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 

24 the first sentence; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(b) QUALIFIED ORGANIZATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant of the 

3 Coast Guard may— 

4 ‘‘(A) enter into a contract, cooperative 

5 agreement, lease, or licensing agreement with a 

6 qualified organization; 

7 ‘‘(B) allow a qualified organization to use, 

8 at no cost, personal property of the Coast 

9 Guard; and 

10 ‘‘(C) notwithstanding section 93, accept 

11 funds, supplies, and services from a qualified 

12 organization. 

13 ‘‘(2) SOLE-SOURCE BASIS.—Notwithstanding 

14 chapter 65 of title 31 and chapter 137 of title 10, 

15 the Commandant may enter into a contract or coop16 erative agreement under paragraph (1)(A) on a sole17 source basis. 

18 ‘‘(3) MAINTAINING FAIRNESS, OBJECTIVITY, 

19 AND INTEGRITY.—The Commandant shall ensure 

20 that contributions under this subsection do not— 

21 ‘‘(A) reflect unfavorably on the ability of 

22 the Coast Guard, any of its employees, or any 

23 member of the armed forces to carry out any 

24 responsibility or duty in a fair and objective 

25 manner; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) compromise the integrity or appear2 ance of integrity of any program of the Coast 

3 Guard, or any individual involved in such a pro4 gram. 

5 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—For purposes of this sub6 section, employees or personnel of a qualified organi7 zation shall not be employees of the United States. 

8 ‘‘(5) QUALIFIED ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—In 

9 this subsection the term ‘qualified organization’ 

10 means an organization— 

11 ‘‘(A) described under section 501(c)(3) of 

12 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt 

13 from taxation under section 501(a) of that 

14 Code; and 

15 ‘‘(B) established by the Coast Guard Acad16 emy Alumni Association solely for the purpose 

17 of supporting academic research and applying 

18 for and administering Federal, State, or other 

19 educational research grants on behalf of the 

20 Coast Guard Academy.’’. 

21 SEC. 219. NATIONAL COAST GUARD MUSEUM. 

22 Section 98(b) of title 14, United States Code, is 

23 amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘any appro2 priated Federal funds for’’ and insert ‘‘any funds 

3 appropriated to the Coast Guard on’’; and 

4 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘artifacts.’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘artifacts, including the design, fab6 rication, and installation of exhibits or displays in 

7 which such artifacts are included.’’. 

8 SEC. 220. INVESTIGATIONS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 11 of title 14, United 

10 States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘§ 430. Investigations of flag officers and Senior Exec13 utive Service employees 

14 ‘‘In conducting an investigation into an allegation of 

15 misconduct by a flag officer or member of the Senior Ex16 ecutive Service serving in the Coast Guard, the Inspector 

17 General of the Department of Homeland Security shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) conduct the investigation in a manner con19 sistent with Department of Defense policies for such 

20 an investigation; and 

21 ‘‘(2) consult with the Inspector General of the 

22 Department of Defense.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at the be24 ginning of such chapter is further amended by inserting 

25 after the item related to section 429 the following: 

‘‘430. Investigations of flag officers and Senior Executive Service employees.’’. 


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1 SEC. 221. CLARIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY OF MEMBERS OF 

2 THE COAST GUARD FOR COMBAT-RELATED 

3 SPECIAL COMPENSATION. 

4 (a) CONSIDERATION OF ELIGIBILITY.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

7 of the department is which the Coast Guard is oper8 ating shall issue procedures and criteria to use in 

9 determining whether the disability of a member of 

10 the Coast Guard is a combat-related disability for 

11 purposes of the eligibility of such member for com12 bat-related special compensation under section 

13 1413a of title 10, United States Code. Such proce14 dures and criteria shall include the procedures and 

15 criteria prescribed by the Secretary of Defense pur16 suant to subsection (e)(2) of such section. Such pro17 cedures and criteria shall apply in determining 

18 whether the disability of a member of the Coast 

19 Guard is a combat-related disability for purposes of 

20 determining the eligibility of such member for com21 bat-related special compensation under such section. 

22 (2) DISABILITY FOR WHICH A DETERMINATION

23 IS MADE.—For the purposes of this section, and in 

24 the case of a member of the Coast Guard, a dis25 ability under section 1413a(e)(2)(B) of title 10, 

26 United States Code, includes a disability incurred 


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1 during aviation duty, diving duty, rescue swimmer or 

2 similar duty, and hazardous service duty onboard a 

3 small vessel (such as duty as a surfman)— 

4 (A) in the performance of duties for which 

5 special or incentive pay was paid pursuant to 

6 section 301, 301a, 304, 307, 334, or 351 of 

7 title 37, United States Code; 

8 (B) in the performance of duties related 

9 to— 

10 (i) law enforcement, including drug or 

11 migrant interdiction; 

12 (ii) defense readiness; or 

13 (iii) search and rescue; or 

14 (C) while engaged in a training exercise for 

15 the performance of a duty described in subpara16 graphs (A) and (B). 

17 (b) APPLICABILITY OF GUIDANCE.—The guidance 

18 issued pursuant to subsection (a) shall apply to disabilities 

19 described in that subsection that are incurred on or after 

20 the effective date provided in section 636(a)(2) of the Bob 

21 Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 

22 Year 2003 (Public Law 107–314; 116 Stat. 2574; 10 

23 U.S.C. 1413a note). 

24 (c) REAPPLICATION FOR COMPENSATION.—Any 

25 member of the Coast Guard who was denied combat-reVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:58 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4188.RDS H4188

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1 lated special compensation under section 1413a of title 10, 

2 United States Code, during the period beginning on the 

3 effective date specified in subsection (b) and ending on 

4 the date of the issuance of the guidance required by sub5 section (a) may reapply for combat-related special com6 pensation under such section on the basis of such guidance 

7 in accordance with such procedures as the Secretary of 

8 the department in which the Coast Guard is operating 

9 shall specify. 

10 SEC. 222. LEAVE POLICIES FOR THE COAST GUARD. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 11 of title 14, United 

12 States Code, is further amended by inserting after section 

13 430 the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 431. Leave policies for the Coast Guard 

15 ‘‘Not later than 1 year after the date on which the 

16 Secretary of the Navy promulgates a new rule, policy, or 

17 memorandum pursuant to section 704 of title 10, United 

18 States Code, with respect to leave associated with the birth 

19 or adoption of a child, the Secretary of the department 

20 in which the Coast Guard is operating shall promulgate 

21 a similar rule, policy, or memorandum that provides leave 

22 to officers and enlisted members of the Coast Guard that 

23 is equal in duration and compensation to that provided 

24 by the Secretary of the Navy.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at the be2 ginning of such chapter is further amended by inserting 

3 after the item related to section 430 the following: 

‘‘431. Leave policies for the Coast Guard.’’. 

4 TITLE III—SHIPPING AND 

5 NAVIGATION 

6 SEC. 301. SURVIVAL CRAFT. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3104 of title 46, United 

8 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘§ 3104. Survival craft 

10 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT TO EQUIP.—The Secretary shall 

11 require that a passenger vessel be equipped with survival 

12 craft that ensures that no part of an individual is im13 mersed in water, if— 

14 ‘‘(1) such vessel is built or undergoes a major 

15 conversion after January 1, 2016; and 

16 ‘‘(2) operates in cold waters as determined by 

17 the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(b) HIGHER STANDARD OF SAFETY.—The Sec19 retary may revise part 117 or part 180 of title 46, Code 

20 of Federal Regulations, as in effect before January 1, 

21 2016, if such revision provides a higher standard of safety 

22 than is provided by the regulations in effect on or before 

23 the date of the enactment of the Coast Guard Authoriza24 tion Act of 2015. 


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1 ‘‘(c) INNOVATIVE AND NOVEL DESIGNS.—The Sec2 retary may, in lieu of the requirements set out in part 

3 117 or part 180 of title 46, Code of Federal Regulations, 

4 as in effect on the date of the enactment of the Coast 

5 Guard Authorization Act of 2015, allow a passenger vessel 

6 to be equipped with a life-saving appliance or arrangement 

7 of an innovative or novel design that— 

8 ‘‘(1) ensures no part of an individual is im9 mersed in water; and 

10 ‘‘(2) provides an equal or higher standard of 

11 safety than is provided by such requirements as in 

12 effect before such date of the enactment. 

13 ‘‘(d) BUILT DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

14 ‘built’ has the meaning that term has under section 

15 4503(e).’’. 

16 (b) REVIEW; REVISION OF REGULATIONS.— 

17 (1) REVIEW.—Not later than December 31, 

18 2016, the Secretary of the department in which the 

19 Coast Guard is operating shall submit to the Com20 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

21 House of Representatives and the Committee on 

22 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen23 ate a review of— 

24 (A) the number of casualties for individ25 uals with disabilities, children, and the elderly 


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1 as a result of immersion in water, reported to 

2 the Coast Guard over the preceding 30-year pe3 riod, by vessel type and area of operation; 

4 (B) the risks to individuals with disabil5 ities, children, and the elderly as a result of im6 mersion in water, by passenger vessel type and 

7 area of operation; 

8 (C) the effect that carriage of survival 

9 craft that ensure that no part of an individual 

10 is immersed in water has on— 

11 (i) passenger vessel safety, including 

12 stability and safe navigation; 

13 (ii) improving the survivability of indi14 viduals, including individuals with disabil15 ities, children, and the elderly; and 

16 (iii) the costs, the incremental cost 

17 difference to vessel operators, and the cost 

18 effectiveness of requiring the carriage of 

19 such survival craft to address the risks to 

20 individuals with disabilities, children, and 

21 the elderly; 

22 (D) the efficacy of alternative safety sys23 tems, devices, or measures in improving surviv24 ability of individuals with disabilities, children, 

25 and the elderly; and 


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1 (E) the number of small businesses and 

2 nonprofit vessel operators that would be af3 fected by requiring the carriage of such survival 

4 craft on passenger vessels to address the risks 

5 to individuals with disabilities, children, and the 

6 elderly. 

7 (2) REVISION.—Based on the review conducted 

8 under paragraph (1), the Secretary may revise regu9 lations concerning the carriage of survival craft pur10 suant to section 3104(c) of title 46, United States 

11 Code. 

12 SEC. 302. VESSEL REPLACEMENT. 

13 (a) LOANS AND GUARANTEES.—Chapter 537 of title 

14 46, United States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) in section 53701— 

16 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (8) 

17 through (14) as paragraphs (9) through (15), 

18 respectively; and 

19 (B) by inserting after paragraph (7) the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(8) HISTORICAL USES.—The term ‘historical 

22 uses’ includes— 

23 ‘‘(A) refurbishing, repairing, rebuilding, or 

24 replacing equipment on a fishing vessel, without 

25 materially increasing harvesting capacity; 


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1 ‘‘(B) purchasing a used fishing vessel; 

2 ‘‘(C) purchasing, constructing, expanding, 

3 or reconditioning a fishery facility; 

4 ‘‘(D) refinancing existing debt; 

5 ‘‘(E) reducing fishing capacity; and 

6 ‘‘(F) making upgrades to a fishing vessel, 

7 including upgrades in technology, gear, or 

8 equipment, that improve— 

9 ‘‘(i) collection and reporting of fish10 ery-dependent data; 

11 ‘‘(ii) bycatch reduction or avoidance; 

12 ‘‘(iii) gear selectivity; 

13 ‘‘(iv) adverse impacts caused by fish14 ing gear; or 

15 ‘‘(v) safety.’’; and 

16 (2) in section 53702(b), by adding at the end 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) MINIMUM OBLIGATIONS AVAILABLE FOR

19 HISTORIC USES.—Of the direct loan obligations 

20 issued by the Secretary under this chapter, the Sec21 retary shall make a minimum of $59,000,000 avail22 able each fiscal year for historic uses. 

23 ‘‘(4) USE OF OBLIGATIONS IN LIMITED ACCESS

24 FISHERIES.—In addition to the other eligible pur25 poses and uses of direct loan obligations provided for 


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1 in this chapter, the Secretary may issue direct loan 

2 obligations for the purpose of— 

3 ‘‘(A) financing the construction or recon4 struction of a fishing vessel in a fishery man5 aged under a limited access system; or 

6 ‘‘(B) financing the purchase of harvesting 

7 rights in a fishery that is federally managed 

8 under a limited access system.’’. 

9 (b) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION TO CERTAIN FISH10 ING VESSELS OF PROHIBITION UNDER VESSEL CON11 STRUCTION PROGRAM.—Section 302(b)(2) of the Fish12 eries Financing Act (title III of Public Law 104–297; 46 

13 U.S.C. 53706 note) is amended— 

14 (1) in the second sentence— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘or in’’ and inserting ‘‘, 

16 in’’; and 

17 (B) by inserting before the period the fol18 lowing: ‘‘, in fisheries that are under the juris19 diction of the North Pacific Fishery Manage20 ment Council and managed under a fishery 

21 management plan issued under the Magnuson22 Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 

23 Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), or in the Pacific 

24 whiting fishery that is under the jurisdiction of 

25 the Pacific Fishery Management Council and 


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1 managed under a fishery management plan 

2 issued under that Act’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Any 

4 fishing vessel operated in fisheries under the juris5 diction of the North Pacific Fishery Management 

6 Council and managed under a fishery management 

7 plan issued under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

8 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 

9 et seq.), or in the Pacific whiting fishery under the 

10 jurisdiction of the Pacific Fishery Management 

11 Council and managed under a fishery management 

12 plan issued under that Act, and that is replaced by 

13 a vessel that is constructed or rebuilt with a loan or 

14 loan guarantee provided by the Federal Government 

15 may not be used to harvest fish in any fishery under 

16 the jurisdiction of any regional fishery management 

17 council, other than a fishery under the jurisdiction 

18 of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council or 

19 the Pacific Fishery Management Council.’’. 

20 SEC. 303. MODEL YEARS FOR RECREATIONAL VESSELS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4302 of title 46, United 

22 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(e)(1) If in prescribing regulations under this sec25 tion the Secretary establishes a model year for recreational 


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1 vessels and associated equipment, such model year shall, 

2 except as provided in paragraph (2)— 

3 ‘‘(A) begin on June 1 of a year and end on July 

4 31 of the following year; and 

5 ‘‘(B) be designated by the year in which it ends. 

6 ‘‘(2) Upon the request of a recreational vessel manu7 facturer to which this chapter applies, the Secretary may 

8 alter a model year for a model of recreational vessel of 

9 the manufacturer and associated equipment, by no more 

10 than 6 months from the model year described in para11 graph (1).’’. 

12 (b) APPLICATION.—This section shall only apply with 

13 respect to recreational vessels and associated equipment 

14 constructed or manufactured, respectively, on or after 

15 June 1, 2015. 

16 (c) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 90 days after the 

17 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 

18 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

19 publish guidance to implement section 4302(d)(2) of title 

20 46, United States Code. 

21 SEC. 304. MERCHANT MARINER CREDENTIAL EXPIRATION 

22 HARMONIZATION. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

24 (c) and not later than 1 year after the date of the enact25 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which 


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1 the Coast Guard is operating shall establish a process to 

2 harmonize the expiration dates of merchant mariner cre3 dentials, mariner medical certificates, and radar observer 

4 endorsements for individuals applying to the Secretary for 

5 a new merchant mariner credential or for renewal of an 

6 existing merchant mariner credential. 

7 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall ensure 

8 that the process established under subsection (a)— 

9 (1) does not require an individual to renew a 

10 merchant mariner credential earlier than the date on 

11 which the individual’s current credential expires; and 

12 (2) results in harmonization of expiration dates 

13 for merchant mariner credentials, mariner medical 

14 certificates, and radar observer endorsements for all 

15 individuals by not later than 6 years after the date 

16 of the enactment of this Act. 

17 (c) EXCEPTION.—The process established under sub18 section (a) does not apply to individuals— 

19 (1) holding a merchant mariner credential 

20 with— 

21 (A) an active Standards of Training, Cer22 tification, and Watchkeeping endorsement; or 

23 (B) Federal first-class pilot endorsement; 

24 or 


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1 (2) who have been issued a time-restricted med2 ical certificate. 

3 SEC. 305. SAFETY ZONES FOR PERMITTED MARINE EVENTS. 

4 Not later than 6 months after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which 

6 the Coast Guard is operating shall establish and imple7 ment a process to— 

8 (1) account for the number of safety zones es9 tablished for permitted marine events; 

10 (2) differentiate whether the event sponsor who 

11 requested a permit for such an event is— 

12 (A) an individual; 

13 (B) an organization; or 

14 (C) a government entity; and 

15 (3) account for Coast Guard resources utilized 

16 to enforce safety zones established for permitted ma17 rine events, including for— 

18 (A) the number of Coast Guard or Coast 

19 Guard Auxiliary vessels used; and 

20 (B) the number of Coast Guard or Coast 

21 Guard Auxiliary patrol hours required. 

22 SEC. 306. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS. 

23 (a) TITLE 46.—Title 46, United States Code, is 

24 amended— 


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1 (1) in section 103, by striking ‘‘(33 U.S.C. 

2 151).’’ and inserting ‘‘(33 U.S.C. 151(b)).’’; 

3 (2) in section 2118— 

4 (A) in subsection (a), in the matter pre5 ceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘title,’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘subtitle,’’; and 

7 (B) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘title’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘subtitle’’; 

9 (3) in the analysis for chapter 35— 

10 (A) by adding a period at the end of the 

11 item relating to section 3507; and 

12 (B) by adding a period at the end of the 

13 item relating to section 3508; 

14 (4) in section 3715(a)(2), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

15 and inserting a semicolon; 

16 (5) in section 4506, by striking ‘‘(a)’’; 

17 (6) in section 8103(b)(1)(A)(iii), by striking 

18 ‘‘Academy.’’ and inserting ‘‘Academy; and’’; 

19 (7) in section 11113(c)(1)(A)(i), by striking 

20 ‘‘under this Act’’; 

21 (8) in the analysis for chapter 701— 

22 (A) by adding a period at the end of the 

23 item relating to section 70107A; 


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1 (B) in the item relating to section 70112, 

2 by striking ‘‘security advisory committees.’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘Security Advisory Committees.’’; and 

4 (C) in the item relating to section 70122, 

5 by striking ‘‘watch program.’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘Watch Program.’’; 

7 (9) in section 70105(c)— 

8 (A) in paragraph (1)(B)(xv)— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘18, popularly’’ and in10 serting ‘‘18 (popularly’’; and 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘Act’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘Act)’’; and 

13 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘(D) 

14 paragraph’’ and inserting ‘‘(D) of paragraph’’; 

15 (10) in section 70107— 

16 (A) in subsection (b)(2), by striking 

17 ‘‘5121(j)(8)),’’ and inserting ‘‘5196(j)(8)),’’; 

18 and 

19 (B) in subsection (m)(3)(C)(iii), by strik20 ing ‘‘that is’’ and inserting ‘‘that the appli21 cant’’; 

22 (11) in section 70122, in the section heading, 

23 by striking ‘‘watch program’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘Watch Program’’; and 


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1 (12) in the analysis for chapter 705, by adding 

2 a period at the end of the item relating to section 

3 70508. 

4 (b) GENERAL BRIDGE STATUTES.— 

5 (1) ACT OF MARCH 3, 1899.—The Act of March 

6 3, 1899, popularly known as the Rivers and Harbors 

7 Appropriations Act of 1899, is amended— 

8 (A) in section 9 (33 U.S.C. 401), by strik9 ing ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each place it 

10 appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the depart11 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating’’; 

12 and 

13 (B) in section 18 (33 U.S.C. 502), by 

14 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each 

15 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the 

16 department in which the Coast Guard is oper17 ating’’. 

18 (2) ACT OF MARCH 23, 1906.—The Act of March 

19 23, 1906, popularly known as the Bridge Act of 

20 1906, is amended— 

21 (A) in the first section (33 U.S.C. 491), by 

22 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and in23 serting ‘‘Secretary of the department in which 

24 the Coast Guard is operating’’; 


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1 (B) in section 4 (33 U.S.C. 494), by strik2 ing ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Security’’ each 

3 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the 

4 department in which the Coast Guard is oper5 ating’’; and 

6 (C) in section 5 (33 U.S.C. 495), by strik7 ing ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each place it 

8 appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the depart9 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating’’. 

10 (3) ACT OF AUGUST 18, 1894.—Section 5 of the 

11 Act entitled ‘‘An Act making appropriations for the 

12 construction, repair, and preservation of certain pub13 lic works on rivers and harbors, and for other pur14 poses’’, approved August 18, 1894 (33 U.S.C. 499), 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘Secretary of Transpor16 tation’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Sec17 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

18 is operating’’. 

19 (4) ACT OF JUNE 21, 1940.—The Act of June 

20 21, 1940, popularly known as the Truman-Hobbs 

21 Act, is amended— 

22 (A) in section 1 (33 U.S.C. 511), by strik23 ing ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘Secretary of the department in which the 

25 Coast Guard is operating’’; 


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1 (B) in section 4 (33 U.S.C. 514), by strik2 ing ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘Secretary of the department in which the 

4 Coast Guard is operating’’; 

5 (C) in section 7 (33 U.S.C. 517), by strik6 ing ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each place it 

7 appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the depart8 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating’’; 

9 and 

10 (D) in section 13 (33 U.S.C. 523), by 

11 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and in12 serting ‘‘Secretary of the department in which 

13 the Coast Guard is operating’’. 

14 (5) GENERAL BRIDGE ACT OF 1946.—The Gen15 eral Bridge Act of 1946 is amended— 

16 (A) in section 502(b) (33 U.S.C. 525(b)), 

17 by striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘Secretary of the department in which 

19 the Coast Guard is operating’’; and 

20 (B) in section 510 (33 U.S.C. 533), by 

21 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each 

22 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the 

23 department in which the Coast Guard is oper24 ating’’. 


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1 (6) INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE ACT OF 1972.—The 

2 International Bridge Act of 1972 is amended— 

3 (A) in section 5 (33 U.S.C. 535c), by 

4 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and in5 serting ‘‘Secretary of the department in which 

6 the Coast Guard is operating’’; 

7 (B) in section 8 (33 U.S.C. 535e), by 

8 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ each 

9 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of the 

10 department in which the Coast Guard is oper11 ating’’; and 

12 (C) by striking section 11 (33 U.S.C. 

13 535h). 

14 SEC. 307. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVEMENTS OF MA15 RINE CASUALTY REPORTING. 

16 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact17 ment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 

18 shall notify the Committee on Transportation and Infra19 structure of the House of Representatives and the Com20 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

21 Senate of the actions the Commandant will take to imple22 ment recommendations on improvements to the Coast 

23 Guard’s marine casualty reporting requirements and pro24 cedures included in— 


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1 (1) the Department of Homeland Security Of2 fice of Inspector General report entitled ‘‘Marine Ac3 cident Reporting, Investigations, and Enforcement 

4 in the United States Coast Guard’’, released on May 

5 23, 2013; and 

6 (2) the Towing Safety Advisory Committee re7 port entitled ‘‘Recommendations for Improvement of 

8 Marine Casualty Reporting’’, released on March 26, 

9 2015. 

10 SEC. 308. RECREATIONAL VESSEL ENGINE WEIGHTS. 

11 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact12 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which 

13 the Coast Guard is operating shall issue regulations 

14 amending table 4 to subpart H of part 183 of title 33, 

15 Code of Federal Regulations (relating to Weights 

16 (Pounds) of Outboard Motor and Related Equipment for 

17 Various Boat Horsepower Ratings), as appropriate to re18 flect ‘‘Standard 30–Outboard Engine and Related Equip19 ment Weights’’ published by the American Boat and Yacht 

20 Council, as in effect on the date of the enactment of this 

21 Act. 


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1 SEC. 309. MERCHANT MARINER MEDICAL CERTIFICATION 

2 REFORM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 75 of title 46, United 

4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘§ 7509. Medical certification by trusted agents 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro8 vision of law and pursuant to regulations prescribed by 

9 the Secretary, a trusted agent may issue a medical certifi10 cate to an individual who— 

11 ‘‘(1) must hold such certificate to qualify for a 

12 license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner’s 

13 document, or endorsement thereto under this part; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(2) is qualified as to sight, hearing, and phys16 ical condition to perform the duties of such license, 

17 certificate, document, or endorsement, as determined 

18 by the trusted agent. 

19 ‘‘(b) PROCESS FOR ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES BY

20 SECRETARY.—A final rule implementing this section shall 

21 include a process for— 

22 ‘‘(1) the Secretary of the department in which 

23 the Coast Guard is operating to issue medical certifi24 cates to mariners who submit applications for such 

25 certificates to the Secretary; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) a trusted agent to defer to the Secretary 

2 the issuance of a medical certificate. 

3 ‘‘(c) TRUSTED AGENT DEFINED.—In this section the 

4 term ‘trusted agent’ means a medical practitioner certified 

5 by the Secretary to perform physical examinations of an 

6 individual for purposes of a license, certificate of registry, 

7 or merchant mariner’s document under this part.’’. 

8 (b) DEADLINE.—Not later than 5 years after the 

9 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 

10 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

11 issue a final rule implementing section 7509 of title 46, 

12 United States Code, as added by this section. 

13 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

14 chapter is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘7509. Medical certification by trusted agents.’’. 

15 SEC. 310. ATLANTIC COAST PORT ACCESS ROUTE STUDY. 

16 (a) ATLANTIC COAST PORT ACCESS ROUTE

17 STUDY.—Not later than April 1, 2016, the Commandant 

18 of the Coast Guard shall conclude the Atlantic Coast Port 

19 Access Route Study and submit the results of such study 

20 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

21 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

22 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

23 (b) NANTUCKET SOUND.—Not later than December 

24 1, 2016, the Commandant of the Coast Guard shall com25 plete and submit to the Committee on Transportation and 


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1 Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 

2 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

3 the Senate a port access route study of Nantucket Sound 

4 using the standards and methodology of the Atlantic Coast 

5 Port Access Route Study, to determine whether the Coast 

6 Guard should revise existing regulations to improve navi7 gation safety in Nantucket Sound due to factors such as 

8 increased vessel traffic, changing vessel traffic patterns, 

9 weather conditions, or navigational difficulty in the vicin10 ity. 

11 SEC. 311. CERTIFICATES OF DOCUMENTATION FOR REC12 REATIONAL VESSELS. 

13 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

14 of this Act, the Secretary of the department in which the 

15 Coast Guard is operating shall issue regulations that— 

16 (1) make certificates of documentation for rec17 reational vessels effective for 5 years; and 

18 (2) require the owner of such a vessel— 

19 (A) to notify the Coast Guard of each 

20 change in the information on which the 

21 issuance of the certificate of documentation is 

22 based, that occurs before the expiration of the 

23 certificate; and 


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1 (B) apply for a new certificate of docu2 mentation for such a vessel if there is any such 

3 change. 

4 SEC. 312. PROGRAM GUIDELINES. 

5 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact6 ment this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall— 

7 (1) develop guidelines to implement the pro8 gram authorized under section 304(a) of the Coast 

9 Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 

10 (Public Law 109–241), including specific actions to 

11 ensure the future availability of able and 

12 credentialed United States licensed and unlicensed 

13 seafarers including— 

14 (A) incentives to encourage partnership 

15 agreements with operators of foreign-flag ves16 sels that carry liquified natural gas, that pro17 vide no less than one training billet per vessel 

18 for United States merchant mariners in order 

19 to meet minimum mandatory sea service re20 quirements; 

21 (B) development of appropriate training 

22 curricula for use by public and private maritime 

23 training institutions to meet all United States 

24 merchant mariner license, certification, and 

25 document laws and requirements under the 


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1 International Convention on Standards of 

2 Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for 

3 Seafarers, 1978; and 

4 (C) steps to promote greater outreach and 

5 awareness of additional job opportunities for 

6 sea service veterans of the United States Armed 

7 Forces; and 

8 (2) submit such guidelines to the Committee 

9 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 

10 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

11 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

12 SEC. 313. REPEALS. 

13 (a) REPEALS, MERCHANT MARINE ACT, 1936.—Sec14 tions 601 through 606, 608 through 611, 613 through 

15 616, 802, and 809 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 

16 U.S.C. 53101 note) are repealed. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Chapter 575 of 

18 title 46, United States Code, is amended— 

19 (1) in section 57501, by striking ‘‘titles V and 

20 VI’’ and inserting ‘‘title V’’; and 

21 (2) in section 57531(a), by striking ‘‘titles V 

22 and VI’’ and inserting ‘‘title V’’. 

23 (c) TRANSFER FROM MERCHANT MARINE ACT, 

24 1936.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 801 of the Merchant 

2 Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. 53101 note)— 

3 (A) is redesignated as section 57522 of 

4 title 46, United States Code, and transferred to 

5 appear after section 57521 of such title; and 

6 (B) as so redesignated and transferred, is 

7 amended— 

8 (i) by striking so much as precedes 

9 the first sentence and inserting the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘§ 57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and in12 spection and auditing’’; 

13 (ii) by striking ‘‘the provision of title 

14 VI or VII of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘this 

15 chapter’’; and 

16 (iii) by striking ‘‘: Provided, That’’ 

17 and all that follows through ‘‘Commis18 sion’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 

20 chapter 575, of title 46, United States Code, is 

21 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec22 tion 57521 the following: 

‘‘57522. Books and records, balance sheets, and inspection and auditing.’’. 

23 (d) REPEALS, TITLE 46, U.S.C.—Section 8103 of 

24 title 46, United States Code, is amended in subsections 


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1 (c) and (d) by striking ‘‘or operating’’ each place it ap2 pears. 

3 SEC. 314. MARITIME DRUG LAW ENFORCEMENT. 

4 (a) PROHIBITIONS.—Section 70503(a) of title 46, 

5 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITIONS.—While on board a covered ves7 sel, an individual may not knowingly or intentionally— 

8 ‘‘(1) manufacture or distribute, or possess with 

9 intent to manufacture or distribute, a controlled sub10 stance; 

11 ‘‘(2) destroy (including jettisoning any item or 

12 scuttling, burning, or hastily cleaning a vessel), or 

13 attempt or conspire to destroy, property that is sub14 ject to forfeiture under section 511(a) of the Com15 prehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act 

16 of 1970 (21 U.S.C. 881(a)); or 

17 ‘‘(3) conceal, or attempt or conspire to conceal, 

18 more than $100,000 in currency or other monetary 

19 instruments on the person of such individual or in 

20 any conveyance, article of luggage, merchandise, or 

21 other container, or compartment of or aboard the 

22 covered vessel if that vessel is outfitted for smug23 gling.’’. 


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1 (b) COVERED VESSEL DEFINED.—Section 70503 of 

2 title 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

3 end the following: 

4 ‘‘(e) COVERED VESSEL DEFINED.—In this section 

5 the term ‘covered vessel’ means— 

6 ‘‘(1) a vessel of the United States or a vessel 

7 subject to the jurisdiction of the United States; or 

8 ‘‘(2) any other vessel if the individual is a cit9 izen of the United States or a resident alien of the 

10 United States.’’. 

11 (c) PENALTIES.—Section 70506 of title 46, United 

12 States Code, is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘A person vio14 lating section 70503’’ and inserting ‘‘A person vio15 lating paragraph (1) of section 70503(a)’’; and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(d) PENALTY.—A person violating paragraph (2) or 

18 (3) of section 70503(a) shall be fined in accordance with 

19 section 3571 of title 18, imprisoned not more than 15 

20 years, or both.’’. 

21 (d) SEIZURE AND FORFEITURE.—Section 70507(a) 

22 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by striking 

23 ‘‘section 70503’’ and inserting ‘‘section 70503 or 70508’’. 

24 (e) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) The heading of section 70503 of title 46, 

2 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘§ 70503. Prohibited acts’’. 

4 (2) The analysis for chapter 705 of title 46, 

5 United States Code, is further amended by striking 

6 the item relating to section 70503 and inserting the 

7 following: 

‘‘70503. Prohibited acts.’’. 

8 SEC. 315. EXAMINATIONS FOR MERCHANT MARINER CRE9 DENTIALS. 

10 (a) DISCLOSURE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 75 of title 46, 

12 United States Code, is further amended by adding 

13 at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 7510. Examinations for merchant mariner creden15 tials 

16 ‘‘(a) DISCLOSURE NOT REQUIRED.—Notwith17 standing any other provision of law, the Secretary is not 

18 required to disclose to the public— 

19 ‘‘(1) a question from any examination for a 

20 merchant mariner credential; 

21 ‘‘(2) the answer to such a question, including 

22 any correct or incorrect answer that may be pre23 sented with such question; and 

24 ‘‘(3) any quality or characteristic of such a 

25 question, including— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the manner in which such question 

2 has been, is, or may be selected for an examina3 tion; 

4 ‘‘(B) the frequency of such selection; and 

5 ‘‘(C) the frequency that an examinee cor6 rectly or incorrectly answered such question. 

7 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN QUESTIONS.—Not8 withstanding subsection (a), the Secretary may, for the 

9 purpose of preparation by the general public for examina10 tions required for merchant mariner credentials, release 

11 an examination question and answer that the Secretary 

12 has retired or is not presently on or part of an examina13 tion, or that the Secretary determines is appropriate for 

14 release. 

15 ‘‘(c) EXAM REVIEW.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

17 after the date of the enactment of the Coast Guard 

18 Authorization Act of 2015, and once every 2 years 

19 thereafter, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 

20 shall commission a working group to review new 

21 questions for inclusion in examinations required for 

22 merchant mariner credentials, composed of— 

23 ‘‘(A) one subject matter expert from the 

24 Coast Guard; 


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1 ‘‘(B) representatives from training facili2 ties and the maritime industry, of whom— 

3 ‘‘(i) one-half shall be representatives 

4 from approved training facilities; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) one-half shall be representatives 

6 from the appropriate maritime industry; 

7 ‘‘(C) at least one representative from the 

8 Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory Com9 mittee; 

10 ‘‘(D) at least two representatives from the 

11 State maritime academies, of whom one shall be 

12 a representative from the deck training track 

13 and one shall be a representative of the engine 

14 license track; 

15 ‘‘(E) representatives from other Coast 

16 Guard Federal advisory committees, as appro17 priate, for the industry segment associated with 

18 the subject examinations; 

19 ‘‘(F) at least one subject matter expert 

20 from the Maritime Administration; and 

21 ‘‘(G) at least one human performance tech22 nology representative. 

23 ‘‘(2) INCLUSION OF PERSONS KNOWLEDGEABLE

24 ABOUT EXAMINATION TYPE.—The working group 


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1 shall include representatives knowledgeable about 

2 the examination type under review. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—The requirement to convene 

4 a working group under paragraph (1) does not apply 

5 unless there are new examination questions to re6 view. 

7 ‘‘(4) BASELINE REVIEW.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Within 1 year after 

9 the date of the enactment of the Coast Guard 

10 Authorization Act of 2015, the Secretary shall 

11 convene the working group to complete a base12 line review of the Coast Guard’s Merchant Mar13 iner Credentialing Examination, including re14 view of— 

15 ‘‘(i) the accuracy of examination ques16 tions; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the accuracy and availability of 

18 examination references; 

19 ‘‘(iii) the length of merchant mariner 

20 examinations; and 

21 ‘‘(iv) the use of standard technologies 

22 in administering, scoring, and analyzing 

23 the examinations. 

24 ‘‘(B) PROGRESS REPORT.—The Coast 

25 Guard shall provide a progress report to the apVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:58 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00087 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4188.RDS H4188

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1 propriate congressional committees on the re2 view under this paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(5) FULL MEMBERSHIP NOT REQUIRED.—The 

4 Coast Guard may convene the working group with5 out all members present if any non-Coast-Guard 

6 representative is present. 

7 ‘‘(6) NONDISCLOSURE AGREEMENT.—The Sec8 retary shall require all members of the working 

9 group to sign a nondisclosure agreement with the 

10 Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(7) TREATMENT OF MEMBERS AS FEDERAL

12 EMPLOYEES.—A member of the working group who 

13 is not a Federal Government employee shall not be 

14 considered a Federal employee in the service or the 

15 employment of the Federal Government, except that 

16 such a member shall be considered a special govern17 ment employee, as defined in section 202(a) of title 

18 18 for purposes of sections 203, 205, 207, 208, and 

19 209 of such title and shall be subject to any admin20 istrative standards of conduct applicable to an em21 ployee of the department in which the Coast Guard 

22 is operating. 

23 ‘‘(8) FORMAL EXAM REVIEW.—The Secretary 

24 shall ensure that the Coast Guard Performance 

25 Technology Center— 


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1 ‘‘(A) prioritizes the review of examinations 

2 required for merchant mariner credentials; and 

3 ‘‘(B) not later than 3 years after the date 

4 of enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization 

5 Act of 2015, completes a formal review, includ6 ing an appropriate analysis, of the topics and 

7 testing methodology employed by the National 

8 Maritime Center for merchant seamen licensing. 

9 ‘‘(9) FACA.—The Federal Advisory Committee 

10 Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to any working 

11 group created under this section to review the Coast 

12 Guard’s merchant mariner credentialing examina13 tions. 

14 ‘‘(d) MERCHANT MARINER CREDENTIAL DE15 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘merchant mariner cre16 dential’ means a merchant seaman license, certificate, or 

17 document that the Secretary is authorized to issue pursu18 ant to this title.’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 

20 such chapter is further amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: 

‘‘7510. Examinations for merchant mariner credentials.’’. 

22 (b) EXAMINATIONS FOR MERCHANT MARINER CRE23 DENTIALS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 71 of title 46, 

2 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

3 end the following: 

4 ‘‘§ 7116. Examinations for merchant mariner creden5 tials 

6 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT FOR SAMPLE EXAMS.—The Sec7 retary shall develop a sample merchant mariner credential 

8 examination and outline of merchant mariner examination 

9 topics on an annual basis. 

10 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Each sample examina11 tion and outline of topics developed under subsection (a) 

12 shall be readily available to the public. 

13 ‘‘(c) MERCHANT MARINER CREDENTIAL DEFINED.— 

14 In this section, the term ‘merchant mariner credential’ has 

15 the meaning that term has in section 7510.’’. 

16 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for 

17 such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 

18 following: 

‘‘7116. Examinations for merchant mariner credentials.’’. 

19 (c) DISCLOSURE TO CONGRESS.—Nothing in this sec20 tion may be construed to authorize the withholding of in21 formation from an appropriate inspector general, the 

22 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

23 the Senate, or the Committee on Transportation and In24 frastructure of the House of Representatives. 


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1 SEC. 316. HIGHER VOLUME PORT AREA REGULATORY DEFI2 NITION CHANGE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 710 of 

4 the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 (Public Law 

5 111–281; 124 Stat. 2986) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(a) HIGHER VOLUME PORTS.—Notwithstanding 

7 any other provision of law, the requirements of subparts 

8 D, F, and G of part 155 of title 33, Code of Federal Regu9 lations, that apply to the higher volume port area for the 

10 Strait of Juan de Fuca at Port Angeles, Washington (in11 cluding any water area within 50 nautical miles seaward), 

12 to and including Puget Sound, shall apply, in the same 

13 manner, and to the same extent, to the Strait of Juan 

14 de Fuca at Cape Flattery, Washington (including any 

15 water area within 50 nautical miles seaward), to and in16 cluding Puget Sound.’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (b) of 

18 such section is amended by striking ‘‘the modification of 

19 the higher volume port area definition required by sub20 section (a).’’ and inserting ‘‘higher volume port require21 ments made applicable under subsection (a).’’. 

22 SEC. 317. RECOGNITION OF PORT SECURITY ASSESSMENTS 

23 CONDUCTED BY OTHER ENTITIES. 

24 Section 70108 of title 46, United States Code, is 

25 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(f) RECOGNITION OF ASSESSMENT CONDUCTED BY

2 OTHER ENTITIES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) CERTIFICATION AND TREATMENT OF AS4 SESSMENTS.—For the purposes of this section and 

5 section 70109, the Secretary may treat an assess6 ment that a foreign government (including, for the 

7 purposes of this subsection, an entity of or operating 

8 under the auspices of the European Union) or inter9 national organization has conducted as an assess10 ment that the Secretary has conducted for the pur11 poses of subsection (a), provided that the Secretary 

12 certifies that the foreign government or international 

13 organization has— 

14 ‘‘(A) conducted the assessment in accord15 ance with subsection (b); and 

16 ‘‘(B) provided the Secretary with sufficient 

17 information pertaining to its assessment (in18 cluding, but not limited to, information on the 

19 outcome of the assessment). 

20 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZATION TO ENTER INTO AN

21 AGREEMENT.—For the purposes of this section and 

22 section 70109, the Secretary, in consultation with 

23 the Secretary of State, may enter into an agreement 

24 with a foreign government (including, for the pur25 poses of this subsection, an entity of or operating 


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1 under the auspices of the European Union) or inter2 national organization, under which parties to the 

3 agreement— 

4 ‘‘(A) conduct an assessment, required 

5 under subsection (a); 

6 ‘‘(B) share information pertaining to such 

7 assessment (including, but not limited to, infor8 mation on the outcome of the assessment); or 

9 ‘‘(C) both. 

10 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.—Nothing in this subsection 

11 shall be construed to— 

12 ‘‘(A) require the Secretary to recognize an 

13 assessment that a foreign government or an 

14 international organization has conducted; or 

15 ‘‘(B) limit the discretion or ability of the 

16 Secretary to conduct an assessment under this 

17 section. 

18 ‘‘(4) NOTIFICATION TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

19 than 30 days before entering into an agreement or 

20 arrangement with a foreign government under para21 graph (2), the Secretary shall notify the Committee 

22 on Homeland Security and the Committee on Trans23 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep24 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, 


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1 Science, and Transportation of the Senate of the 

2 proposed terms of such agreement or arrangement.’’. 

3 SEC. 318. FISHING VESSEL AND FISH TENDER VESSEL CER4 TIFICATION. 

5 (a) ALTERNATIVE SAFETY COMPLIANCE PRO6 GRAMS.—Section 4503 of title 46, United States Code, is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘this section’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘this subsection’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘This section’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in subsection (d), 

12 subsection (a)’’; 

13 (3) in subsection (c)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘This section’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), 

16 subsection (a)’’; and 

17 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(2) Subsection (a) does not apply to a fishing vessel 

19 or fish tender vessel to which section 4502(b) of this title 

20 applies, if the vessel— 

21 ‘‘(A) is at least 50 feet overall in length, and 

22 not more than 79 feet overall in length; and 

23 ‘‘(B)(i) is built after January 1, 2016, and 

24 complies with the alternative safety compliance pro25 gram established under subsection (e); or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) is built after the date of the enactment of 

2 the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015 and be3 fore the establishment of the alternative safety com4 pliance program required under subsection (e), and 

5 complies with the requirements described in sub6 section (f).’’; and 

7 (4) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub8 section (g), and inserting after subsection (d) the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(e)(1) Not later than 5 years after the date of the 

11 enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, 

12 the Secretary shall establish an alternative safety compli13 ance program for fishing vessels or fish tender vessels (or 

14 both) that are described in subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) 

15 of subsection (c)(2). 

16 ‘‘(2) The alternative safety compliance program es17 tablished under paragraph (1) shall include requirements 

18 for— 

19 ‘‘(A) vessel construction; 

20 ‘‘(B) a vessel stability test; 

21 ‘‘(C) vessel stability and loading instructions; 

22 ‘‘(D) an assigned vessel loading mark; 

23 ‘‘(E) a vessel condition survey at least bienni24 ally; 


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1 ‘‘(F) an out-of-water vessel survey at least once 

2 every 5 years; 

3 ‘‘(G) maintenance of records to demonstrate 

4 compliance with the program, and the availability of 

5 such records for inspection; and 

6 ‘‘(H) such other aspects of vessel safety as the 

7 Secretary considers appropriate. 

8 ‘‘(f) The requirements referred to in subsection 

9 (c)(2)(B)(ii) are the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) The vessel is designed by an individual li11 censed by a State as a naval architect or marine en12 gineer, and the design incorporates standards equiv13 alent to those prescribed by a classification society 

14 to which the Secretary has delegated authority 

15 under section 3316 or another qualified organization 

16 approved by the Secretary for purposes of this para17 graph. 

18 ‘‘(2) Construction of the vessel is overseen and 

19 certified as being in accordance with its design by a 

20 marine surveyor of an organization accepted by the 

21 Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(3) The vessel— 

23 ‘‘(A) completes a stability test performed 

24 by a qualified individual; 


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1 ‘‘(B) has written stability and loading in2 structions from a qualified individual that are 

3 provided to the owner or operator; and 

4 ‘‘(C) has an assigned loading mark. 

5 ‘‘(4) The vessel is not substantially modified or 

6 changed without the review and approval of an indi7 vidual licensed by a State as a naval architect or 

8 marine engineer before the beginning of such sub9 stantial modification or change. 

10 ‘‘(5) The vessel undergoes a condition survey at 

11 least biennially to the satisfaction of a marine sur12 veyor of an organization accepted by the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(6) The vessel undergoes an out-of-water sur14 vey at least once every 5 years to the satisfaction of 

15 a certified marine surveyor of an organization ac16 cepted by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(7) Once every 5 years and at the time of a 

18 modification or substantial change to such vessel, 

19 compliance of the vessel with the requirements of 

20 paragraph (3) is reviewed and updated as necessary. 

21 ‘‘(8) For the life of the vessel, the owner of the 

22 vessel maintains records to demonstrate compliance 

23 with this subsection and makes such records readily 

24 available for inspection by an official authorized to 

25 enforce this chapter.’’. 


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1 (b) GAO REPORT ON COMMERCIAL FISHING VESSEL

2 SAFETY.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

5 Comptroller General of the United States shall sub6 mit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra7 structure of the House of Representatives and the 

8 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor9 tation of the Senate a report on commercial fishing 

10 vessel safety. The report shall include— 

11 (A) national and regional trends that can 

12 be identified with respect to rates of marine 

13 causalities, human injuries, and deaths aboard 

14 or involving fishing vessels greater than 79 feet 

15 in length that operate beyond the 3-nautical16 mile demarcation line; 

17 (B) a comparison of United States regula18 tions for classification of fishing vessels to those 

19 established by other countries, including the 

20 vessel length at which such regulations apply; 

21 (C) the additional costs imposed on vessel 

22 owners as a result of the requirement in section 

23 4503(a) of title 46, United States Code, and 

24 how the those costs vary in relation to vessel 

25 size and from region to region; 


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1 (D) savings that result from the applica2 tion of the requirement in section 4503(a) of 

3 title 46, United States Code, including reduc4 tions in insurance rates or reduction in the 

5 number of fishing vessels or fish tender vessels 

6 lost to major safety casualties, nationally and 

7 regionally; 

8 (E) a national and regional comparison of 

9 the additional costs and safety benefits associ10 ated with fishing vessels or fish tender vessels 

11 that are built and maintained to class through 

12 a classification society to the additional costs 

13 and safety benefits associated with fishing ves14 sels or fish tender vessels that are built to 

15 standards equivalent to classification society 

16 construction standards and maintained to 

17 standards equivalent to classification society 

18 standards with verification by independent sur19 veyors; and 

20 (F) the impact on the cost of production 

21 and availability of qualified shipyards, nation22 ally and regionally, resulting from the applica23 tion of the requirement in section 4503(a) of 

24 title 46, United States Code. 


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1 (2) CONSULTATION REQUIREMENT.—In pre2 paring the report under paragraph (1), the Comp3 troller General shall— 

4 (A) consult with owners and operators of 

5 fishing vessels or fish tender vessels, classifica6 tion societies, shipyards, the National Institute 

7 for Occupational Safety and Health, the Na8 tional Transportation Safety Board, the Coast 

9 Guard, academics, and marine safety non10 governmental organizations; and 

11 (B) obtain relevant data from the Coast 

12 Guard including data collected from enforce13 ment actions, boardings, investigations of ma14 rine casualties, and serious marine incidents. 

15 (3) TREATMENT OF DATA.—In preparing the 

16 report under paragraph (1), the Comptroller General 

17 shall— 

18 (A) disaggregate data regionally for each 

19 of the regions managed by the regional fishery 

20 management councils established under section 

21 302 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Con22 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

23 1852), the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries 

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1 eries Commission, and the Gulf States Marine 

2 Fisheries Commission; and 

3 (B) include qualitative data on the types of 

4 fishing vessels or fish tender vessels included in 

5 the report. 

6 SEC. 319. INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE ON 

7 OIL POLLUTION RESEARCH. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7001(a)(3) of the Oil Pol9 lution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2761(a)(3)) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘Minerals Management Service’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘Bureau of Safety and Environmental 

12 Enforcement, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Manage13 ment,’’; and 

14 (2) by inserting ‘‘the United States Arctic Re15 search Commission,’’ after ‘‘National Aeronautics 

16 and Space Administration,’’. 

17 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 7001 of the 

18 Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2761) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (b)(2), in the matter pre20 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘Department 

21 of Transportation’’ and inserting ‘‘department in 

22 which the Coast Guard is operating’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (c)(8)(A), by striking 

24 ‘‘(1989)’’ and inserting ‘‘(2010)’’. 


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1 SEC. 320. INTERNATIONAL PORT AND FACILITY INSPEC2 TION COORDINATION. 

3 Section 825(a) of the Coast Guard Authorization Act 

4 of 2010 (6 U.S.C. 945 note; Public Law 111–281) is 

5 amended in the matter preceding paragraph (1)— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘the department in which the 

7 Coast Guard is operating’’ and inserting ‘‘Homeland 

8 Security’’; and 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘they are integrated and con10 ducted by the Coast Guard’’ and inserting ‘‘the as11 sessments are coordinated between the Coast Guard 

12 and Customs and Border Protection’’. 

13 TITLE IV—FEDERAL MARITIME 

14 COMMISSION 

15 SEC. 401. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 46, United 

17 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘§ 308. Authorization of appropriations 

20 ‘‘There is authorized to be appropriated to the Fed21 eral Maritime Commission $24,700,000 for each of fiscal 

22 years 2016 and 2017 for the activities of the Commission 

23 authorized under this chapter and subtitle IV.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap2 ter 3 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by add3 ing at the end the following: 

‘‘308. Authorization of appropriations.’’. 

4 SEC. 402. DUTIES OF THE CHAIRMAN. 

5 Section 301(c)(3)(A) of title 46, United States Code, 

6 is amended— 

7 (1) in clause (ii) by striking ‘‘units, but only 

8 after consultation with the other Commissioners;’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘units (with such appointments sub10 ject to the approval of the Commission);’’; 

11 (2) in clause (iv) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

12 (3) in clause (v) by striking the period at the 

13 end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(vi) prepare and submit to the Presi16 dent and the Congress requests for appro17 priations for the Commission (with such 

18 requests subject to the approval of the 

19 Commission).’’. 

20 SEC. 403. PROHIBITION ON AWARDS. 

21 Section 307 of title 46, United States Code, is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘The Federal Maritime Commis24 sion’’ and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Maritime Commis2 sion’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

5 the Federal Maritime Commission may not expend any 

6 funds appropriated or otherwise made available to it to 

7 a non-Federal entity to issue an award, prize, commenda8 tion, or other honor that is not related to the purposes 

9 set forth in section 40101.’’. 

10 TITLE V—CONVEYANCES 

11 Subtitle A—Miscellaneous 

12 Conveyances 

13 SEC. 501. CONVEYANCE OF COAST GUARD PROPERTY IN 

14 POINT REYES STATION, CALIFORNIA. 

15 (a) CONVEYANCE.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant of the 

17 Coast Guard shall convey to the County of Marin, 

18 California, all right, title, and interest of the United 

19 States in and to the covered property— 

20 (A) for fair market value, as provided in 

21 paragraph (2); 

22 (B) subject to the conditions required by 

23 this section; and 

24 (C) subject to any other term or condition 

25 that the Commandant considers appropriate 


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1 and reasonable to protect the interests of the 

2 United States. 

3 (2) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—The fair market 

4 value of the covered property shall be— 

5 (A) determined by a real estate appraiser 

6 who has been selected by the County and is li7 censed to practice in California; and 

8 (B) approved by the Commandant. 

9 (3) PROCEEDS.—The Commandant shall de10 posit the proceeds from a conveyance under para11 graph (1) in the Coast Guard Housing Fund estab12 lished by section 687 of title 14, United States Code. 

13 (b) CONDITION OF CONVEYANCE.—As a condition of 

14 any conveyance of the covered property under this section, 

15 the Commandant shall require that all right, title, and in16 terest in and to the covered property shall revert to the 

17 United States if the covered property or any part thereof 

18 ceases to be used for affordable housing, as defined by 

19 the County and the Commandant at the time of convey20 ance, or to provide a public benefit approved by the Coun21 ty. 

22 (c) SURVEY.—The exact acreage and legal descrip23 tion of the covered property shall be determined by a sur24 vey satisfactory to the Commandant. 


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1 (d) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec2 tion may be construed to affect or limit the application 

3 of or obligation to comply with any environmental law, in4 cluding section 120(h) of the Comprehensive Environ5 mental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 

6 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9620(h)). 

7 (e) COVERED PROPERTY DEFINED.—In this section, 

8 the term ‘‘covered property’’ means the approximately 32 

9 acres of real property (including all improvements located 

10 on the property) that are— 

11 (1) located in Point Reyes Station in the Coun12 ty of Marin, California; 

13 (2) under the administrative control of the 

14 Coast Guard; and 

15 (3) described as ‘‘Parcel A, Tract 1’’, ‘‘Parcel 

16 B, Tract 2’’, ‘‘Parcel C’’, and ‘‘Parcel D’’ in the 

17 Declaration of Taking (Civil No. C 71–1245 SC) 

18 filed June 28, 1971, in the United States District 

19 Court for the Northern District of California. 

20 (f) EXPIRATION.—The authority to convey the cov21 ered property under this section shall expire on the date 

22 that is 4 years after the date of the enactment of this 

23 Act. 


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1 SEC. 502. CONVEYANCE OF COAST GUARD PROPERTY IN 

2 TOK, ALASKA. 

3 (a) CONVEYANCE AUTHORIZED.—The Commandant 

4 of the Coast Guard may convey to the Tanana Chiefs’ 

5 Conference all right, title, and interest of the United 

6 States in and to the covered property, upon payment to 

7 the United States of the fair market value of the covered 

8 property. 

9 (b) SURVEY.—The exact acreage and legal descrip10 tion of the covered property shall be determined by a sur11 vey satisfactory to the Commandant. 

12 (c) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—The fair market value of 

13 the covered property shall be— 

14 (1) determined by appraisal; and 

15 (2) subject to the approval of the Commandant. 

16 (d) COSTS OF CONVEYANCE.—The responsibility for 

17 all reasonable and necessary costs, including real estate 

18 transaction and environmental documentation costs, asso19 ciated with a conveyance under this section shall be deter20 mined by the Commandant and the purchaser. 

21 (e) ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The 

22 Commandant may require such additional terms and con23 ditions in connection with a conveyance under this section 

24 as the Commandant considers appropriate and reasonable 

25 to protect the interests of the United States. 


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1 (f) DEPOSIT OF PROCEEDS.—Any proceeds received 

2 by the United States from a conveyance under this section 

3 shall be deposited in the Coast Guard Housing Fund es4 tablished under section 687 of title 14, United States 

5 Code. 

6 (g) COVERED PROPERTY DEFINED.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

8 ‘‘covered property’’ means the approximately 3.25 

9 acres of real property (including all improvements 

10 located on the property) that are— 

11 (A) located in Tok, Alaska; 

12 (B) under the administrative control of the 

13 Coast Guard; and 

14 (C) described in paragraph (2). 

15 (2) DESCRIPTION.—The property described in 

16 this paragraph is the following: 

17 (A) Lots 11, 12 and 13, block ‘‘G’’, Sec18 ond Addition to Hartsell Subdivision, Section 

19 20, Township 18 North, Range 13 East, Cop20 per River Meridian, Alaska as appears by Plat 

21 No. 72–39 filed in the Office of the Recorder 

22 for the Fairbanks Recording District of Alaska, 

23 bearing seal dated 25 September 1972, all con24 taining approximately 1.25 acres and commonly 


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1 known as 2–PLEX – Jackie Circle, Units A 

2 and B. 

3 (B) Beginning at a point being the SE corner of the SE 1⁄4 of the SE 1 4 ⁄4 Section 24, 

5 Township 18 North, Range 12 East, Copper 

6 River Meridian, Alaska; thence running westerly along the south line of said SE 1 7 ⁄4 of the 

NE 1 8 ⁄4 260 feet; thence northerly parallel to the 

east line of said SE 1⁄4 of the NE 1 9 ⁄4 335 feet; 

10 thence easterly parallel to the south line 260 

11 feet; then south 335 feet along the east bound12 ary of Section 24 to the point of beginning; all 

13 containing approximately 2.0 acres and com14 monly known as 4–PLEX – West ‘‘C’’ and Wil15 low, Units A, B, C and D. 

16 (h) EXPIRATION.—The authority to convey the cov17 ered property under this section shall expire on the date 

18 that is 4 years after the date of the enactment of this 

19 Act. 

20 Subtitle B—Pribilof Islands 

21 SEC. 521. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Pribilof Island 

23 Transition Completion Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 522. TRANSFER AND DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY. 

2 (a) TRANSFER.—To further accomplish the settle3 ment of land claims under the Alaska Native Claims Set4 tlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), the Secretary of 

5 Commerce shall, subject to paragraph (2), and notwith6 standing section 105(a) of the Pribilof Islands Transition 

7 Act (16 U.S.C. 1161 note; Public Law 106–562), convey 

8 all right, title, and interest in the following property to 

9 the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Island: 

10 (1) Lots 4, 5, and 6A, Block 18, Tract A, U.S. 

11 Survey 4943, Alaska, the plat of which was Offi12 cially Filed on January 20, 2004, aggregating 

13 13,006 square feet (0.30 acres). 

14 (2) On the termination of the license described 

15 in subsection (b)(3), T. 35 S., R. 131 W., Seward 

16 Meridian, Alaska, Tract 43, the plat of which was 

17 Officially Filed on May 14, 1986, containing 84.88 

18 acres. 

19 (b) FEDERAL USE.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the depart21 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating may op22 erate, maintain, keep, locate, inspect, repair, and re23 place any Federal aid to navigation located on the 

24 property described in subsection (a) as long as the 

25 aid is needed for navigational purposes. 


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1 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—In carrying out sub2 section (a), the Secretary may enter the property, at 

3 any time for as long as the aid is needed for naviga4 tional purposes, without notice to the extent that it 

5 is not practicable to provide advance notice. 

6 (3) LICENSE.—The Secretary of the Depart7 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating may 

8 maintain a license in effect on the date of the enact9 ment of this Act with respect to the real property 

10 and improvements under subsection (a) until the ter11 mination of the license. 

12 (4) REPORTS.—Not later than 2 years after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act and not less than 

14 once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary of the 

15 department in which the Coast Guard is operating 

16 shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources 

17 of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

18 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

19 Senate a report on— 

20 (A) efforts taken to remediate contami21 nated soils on tract 43 described in subsection 

22 (a)(2); 

23 (B) a schedule for the completion of con24 taminated soil remediation on tract 43; and 


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1 (C) any use of tract 43 to carry out Coast 

2 Guard navigation activities. 

3 (c) AGREEMENT ON TRANSFER OF OTHER PROP4 ERTY ON ST. PAUL ISLAND.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the property 

6 transferred under subsection (a), not later than 60 

7 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

8 Secretary of Commerce and the presiding officer of 

9 the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Is10 land shall enter into an agreement to exchange of 

11 property on Tracts 50 and 38 on St. Paul Island 

12 and to finalize the recording of deeds, to reflect the 

13 boundaries and ownership of Tracts 50 and 38 as 

14 depicted on a survey of the National Oceanic and 

15 Atmospheric Administration, to be filed with the Of16 fice of the Recorder for the Department of Natural 

17 Resources for the State of Alaska. 

18 (2) EASEMENTS.—The survey described in sub19 section (a) shall include respective easements grant20 ed to the Secretary and the Alaska native village 

21 corporation for the purpose of utilities, drainage, 

22 road access, and salt lagoon conservation. 

23 SEC. 523. NOTICE OF CERTIFICATION. 

24 Section 105 of the Pribilof Islands Transition Act (16 

25 U.S.C. 1161 note; Public Law 106–562) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘The Sec2 retary’’ and inserting ‘‘Notwithstanding paragraph 

3 (2) and effective beginning on the date the Secretary 

4 publishes the notice of certification required by sub5 section (b)(5), the Secretary’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘sec8 tion 205 of the Fur Seal Act of 1966 (16 

9 U.S.C. 1165)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 205(a) of 

10 the Fur Seal Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 

11 1165(a))’’; and 

12 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(5) NOTICE OF CERTIFICATION.—The Sec14 retary shall promptly publish and submit to the 

15 Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 

16 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

17 Science, and Transportation of the Senate notice 

18 that the certification described in paragraph (2) has 

19 been made.’’; 

20 (3) in subsection (c)— 

21 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

22 by striking ‘‘makes the certification described in 

23 subsection (b)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘publishes the 

24 notice of certification required by subsection 

25 (b)(5)’’; and 


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1 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Section 

2 205’’ and inserting ‘‘Subsections (a), (b), (c), 

3 and (d) of section 205’’; 

4 (4) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub5 section (g); and 

6 (5) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(e) NOTIFICATIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

10 after the Secretary makes a determination under 

11 subsection (f) that land on St. Paul Island, Alaska, 

12 not specified for transfer in the document entitled 

13 ‘Transfer of Property on the Pribilof Islands: De14 scriptions, Terms and Conditions’ or section 522 of 

15 the Pribilof Island Transition Completion Act of 

16 2015 is in excess of the needs of the Secretary and 

17 the Federal Government, the Secretary shall notify 

18 the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Is19 land of the determination. 

20 ‘‘(2) ELECTION TO RECEIVE.—Not later than 

21 60 days after the date receipt of the notification of 

22 the Secretary under subsection (a), the Alaska na23 tive village corporation for St. Paul Island shall no24 tify the Secretary in writing whether the Alaska na25 tive village corporation elects to receive all right, 


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1 title, and interest in the land or a portion of the 

2 land. 

3 ‘‘(3) TRANSFER.—If the Alaska native village 

4 corporation provides notice under paragraph (2) that 

5 the Alaska native village corporation elects to receive 

6 all right, title and interest in the land or a portion 

7 of the land, the Secretary shall transfer all right, 

8 title, and interest in the land or portion to the Alas9 ka native village corporation at no cost. 

10 ‘‘(4) OTHER DISPOSITION.—If the Alaska na11 tive village corporation does not provide notice under 

12 paragraph (2) that the Alaska native village corpora13 tion elects to receive all right, title, and interest in 

14 the land or a portion of the land, the Secretary may 

15 dispose of the land in accordance with other applica16 ble law. 

17 ‘‘(f) DETERMINATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

19 after the date of the enactment of this subsection 

20 and not less than once every 5 years thereafter, the 

21 Secretary shall determine whether property located 

22 on St. Paul Island and not transferred to the Na23 tives of the Pribilof Islands is in excess of the small24 est practicable tract enclosing land— 


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1 ‘‘(A) needed by the Secretary for the pur2 poses of carrying out the Fur Seal Act of 1966 

3 (16 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.); 

4 ‘‘(B) in the case of land withdrawn by the 

5 Secretary on behalf of other Federal agencies, 

6 needed for carrying out the missions of those 

7 agencies for which land was withdrawn; or 

8 ‘‘(C) actually used by the Federal Govern9 ment in connection with the administration of 

10 any Federal installation on St. Paul Island. 

11 ‘‘(2) REPORT OF DETERMINATION.—When a 

12 determination is made under subsection (a), the Sec13 retary shall report the determination to— 

14 ‘‘(A) the Committee on Natural Resources 

15 of the House of Representatives; 

16 ‘‘(B) the Committee on Commerce, 

17 Science, and Transportation of the Senate; and 

18 ‘‘(C) the Alaska native village corporation 

19 for St. Paul Island.’’. 

20 SEC. 524. REDUNDANT CAPABILITY. 

21 (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Except as provided 

22 in subsection (b), section 681 of title 14, United States 

23 Code, as amended by this Act, shall not be construed to 

24 prohibit any transfer or conveyance of lands under this 

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1 posal of infrastructure that supported the former LORAN 

2 system that are associated with the transfer or conveyance 

3 of lands under section 522. 

4 (b) REDUNDANT CAPABILITY.—If, within the 5-year 

5 period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

6 the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

7 is operating determines that a facility on Tract 43, if 

8 transferred under this subtitle, is subsequently required 

9 to provide a positioning, navigation, and timing system to 

10 provide redundant capability in the event GPS signals are 

11 disrupted, the Secretary may— 

12 (1) operate, maintain, keep, locate, inspect, re13 pair, and replace such facility; and 

14 (2) in carrying out the activities described in 

15 paragraph (1), enter, at any time, the facility with16 out notice to the extent that it is not possible to pro17 vide advance notice, for as long as such facility is 

18 needed to provide such capability. 

19 Subtitle C—Conveyance of Coast 

20 Guard Property at Point Spen21 cer, Alaska 

22 SEC. 531. FINDINGS. 

23 The Congress finds as follows: 

24 (1) Major shipping traffic is increasing through 

25 the Bering Strait, the Bering and Chukchi Seas, and 


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1 the Arctic Ocean, and will continue to increase 

2 whether or not development of the Outer Continental 

3 Shelf of the United States is undertaken in the fu4 ture, and will increase further if such Outer Conti5 nental Shelf development is undertaken. 

6 (2) There is a compelling national, State, Alas7 ka Native, and private sector need for permanent in8 frastructure development and for a presence in the 

9 Arctic region of Alaska by appropriate agencies of 

10 the Federal Government, particularly in proximity to 

11 the Bering Strait, to support and facilitate search 

12 and rescue, shipping safety, economic development, 

13 oil spill prevention and response, protection of Alas14 ka Native archaeological and cultural resources, port 

15 of refuge, arctic research, and maritime law enforce16 ment on the Bering Sea, the Chukchi Sea, and the 

17 Arctic Ocean. 

18 (3) The United States owns a parcel of land, 

19 known as Point Spencer, located between the Bering 

20 Strait and Port Clarence and adjacent to some of 

21 the best potential deepwater port sites on the coast 

22 of Alaska in the Arctic. 

23 (4) Prudent and effective use of Point Spencer 

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1 ergy, resources, and leadership of the public and pri2 vate sectors. 

3 (5) It is in the national interest to develop in4 frastructure at Point Spencer that would aid the 

5 Coast Guard in performing its statutory duties and 

6 functions in the Arctic on a more permanent basis 

7 and to allow for public and private sector develop8 ment of facilities and other infrastructure to support 

9 purposes that are of benefit to the United States. 

10 SEC. 532. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this subtitle: 

12 (1) ARCTIC.—The term ‘‘Arctic’’ has the mean13 ing given that term in section 112 of the Arctic Re14 search and Policy Act of 1984 (15 U.S.C. 4111). 

15 (2) BSNC.—The term ‘‘BSNC’’ means the 

16 Bering Straits Native Corporation authorized under 

17 section 7 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

18 Act (43 U.S.C. 1606). 

19 (3) COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Council’’ means the 

20 Port Coordination Council established under section 

21 541. 

22 (4) PLAN.—The term ‘‘Plan’’ means the Port 

23 Management Coordination Plan developed under sec24 tion 541. 


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1 (5) POINT SPENCER.—The term ‘‘Point Spen2 cer’’ means the land known as ‘‘Point Spencer’’ lo3 cated in Townships 2, 3, and 4 South, Range 40 

4 West, Kateel River Meridian, Alaska, between the 

5 Bering Strait and Port Clarence and withdrawn by 

6 Public Land Order 2650 (published in the Federal 

7 Register on April 12, 1962). 

8 (6) SECRETARY.—Except as otherwise specifi9 cally provided, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec10 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

11 is operating. 

12 (7) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

13 of Alaska. 

14 (8) TRACT.—The term ‘‘Tract’’ or ‘‘Tracts’’ 

15 means any of Tract 1, Tract 2, Tract 3, Tract 4, 

16 Tract 5, or Tract 6, as appropriate, or any portion 

17 of such Tract or Tracts. 

18 (9) TRACTS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, AND 6.—The terms 

19 ‘‘Tract 1’’, ‘‘Tract 2’’, ‘‘Tract 3’’, ‘‘Tract 4’’, ‘‘Tract 

20 5’’, and ‘‘Tract 6’’ each mean the land generally de21 picted as Tract 1, Tract 2, Tract 3, Tract 4, Tract 

22 5, or Tract 6, respectively, on the map entitled the 

23 ‘‘Point Spencer Land Retention and Conveyance 

24 Map’’, dated January 2015, and on file with the DeVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:58 Dec 19, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00120 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4188.RDS H4188

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1 partment of Homeland Security and the Department 

2 of the Interior. 

3 SEC. 533. AUTHORITY TO CONVEY LAND IN POINT SPEN4 CER. 

5 (a) AUTHORITY TO CONVEY TRACTS 1, 3, AND 4.— 

6 Within 1 year after the Secretary notifies the Secretary 

7 of the Interior that the Coast Guard no longer needs to 

8 retain jurisdiction of Tract 1, Tract 3, or Tract 4 and 

9 subject to section 534, the Secretary of the Interior shall 

10 convey to BSNC or the State, subject to valid existing 

11 rights, all right, title, and interest of the United States 

12 in and to the surface and subsurface estates of that Tract 

13 in accordance with subsection (d). 

14 (b) AUTHORITY TO CONVEY TRACTS 2 AND 5.— 

15 Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this sec16 tion and subject to section 534, the Secretary of the Inte17 rior shall convey, subject to valid existing rights, all right, 

18 title, and interest of the United States in and to the sur19 face and subsurface estates of Tract 2 and Tract 5 in ac20 cordance with subsection (d). 

21 (c) AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER TRACT 6.—Within 1 

22 year after the date of the enactment of this Act and sub23 ject to sections 534 and 535, the Secretary of the Interior 

24 shall convey, subject to valid existing rights, all right, title, 

25 and interest of the United States in and to the surface 


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1 and subsurface estates of Tract 6 in accordance with sub2 section (e). 

3 (d) ORDER OF OFFER TO CONVEY TRACT 1, 2, 3, 

4 4, OR 5.— 

5 (1) DETERMINATION AND OFFER.— 

6 (A) TRACT 1, 3, OR 4.—If the Secretary 

7 makes the determination under subsection (a) 

8 and subject to section 534, the Secretary of the 

9 Interior shall offer Tract 1, Tract 3, or Tract 

10 4 for conveyance to BSNC under the Alaska 

11 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 

12 et seq.). 

13 (B) TRACT 2 AND 5.—Subject to section 

14 534, the Secretary of the Interior shall offer 

15 Tract 2 and Tract 5 to BSNC under the Alaska 

16 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 

17 et seq.). 

18 (2) OFFER TO BSNC.— 

19 (A) ACCEPTANCE BY BSNC.—If BSNC 

20 chooses to accept an offer of conveyance of a 

21 Tract under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the 

22 Interior shall consider Tract 6 as within 

23 BSNC’s entitlement under section 14(h)(8) of 

24 the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 


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1 U.S.C. 1613(h)(8)) and shall convey such Tract 

2 to BSNC. 

3 (B) DECLINE BY BSNC.—If BSNC declines 

4 to accept an offer of conveyance of a Tract 

5 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Inte6 rior shall offer such Tract for conveyance to the 

7 State under the Act of July 7, 1958 (commonly 

8 known as the ‘‘Alaska Statehood Act’’) (48 

9 U.S.C. note prec. 21; Public Law 85–508). 

10 (3) OFFER TO STATE.— 

11 (A) ACCEPTANCE BY STATE.—If the State 

12 chooses to accept an offer of conveyance of a 

13 Tract under paragraph (2)(B), the Secretary of 

14 the Interior shall consider such Tract as within 

15 the State’s entitlement under the Act of July 7, 

16 1958 (commonly known as the ‘‘Alaska State17 hood Act’’) (48 U.S.C. note prec. 21; Public 

18 Law 85–508) and shall convey such Tract to 

19 the State. 

20 (B) DECLINE BY STATE.—If the State de21 clines to accept an offer of conveyance of a 

22 Tract offered under paragraph (2)(B), such 

23 Tract shall be disposed of pursuant to applica24 ble public land laws. 

25 (e) ORDER OF OFFER TO CONVEY TRACT 6.— 


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1 (1) OFFER.—Subject to section 534, the Sec2 retary of the Interior shall offer Tract 6 for convey3 ance to the State. 

4 (2) OFFER TO STATE.— 

5 (A) ACCEPTANCE BY STATE.—If the State 

6 chooses to accept an offer of conveyance of 

7 Tract 6 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

8 the Interior shall consider Tract 6 as within the 

9 State’s entitlement under the Act of July 7, 

10 1958 (commonly known as the ‘‘Alaska State11 hood Act’’) (48 U.S.C. note prec. 21; Public 

12 Law 85–508) and shall convey Tract 6 to the 

13 State. 

14 (B) DECLINE BY STATE.—If the State de15 clines to accept an offer of conveyance of Tract 

16 6 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the In17 terior shall offer Tract 6 for conveyance to 

18 BSNC under the Alaska Native Claims Settle19 ment Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

20 (3) OFFER TO BSNC.— 

21 (A) ACCEPTANCE BY BSNC.— 

22 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

23 (ii), if BSNC chooses to accept an offer of 

24 conveyance of Tract 6 under paragraph 

25 (2)(B), the Secretary of the Interior shall 


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1 consider Tract 6 as within BSNC’s entitle2 ment under section 14(h)(8) of the Alaska 

3 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

4 1613(h)(8)) and shall convey Tract 6 to 

5 BSNC. 

6 (ii) LEASE BY THE STATE.—The con7 veyance of Tract 6 to BSNC shall be sub8 ject to BSNC negotiating a lease of Tract 

9 6 to the State at no cost to the State, if 

10 the State requests such a lease. 

11 (B) DECLINE BY BSNC.—If BSNC declines 

12 to accept an offer of conveyance of Tract 6 

13 under paragraph (2)(B), the Secretary of the 

14 Interior shall dispose of Tract 6 pursuant to 

15 the applicable public land laws. 

16 SEC. 534. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE, LIABILITY, AND 

17 MONITORING. 

18 (a) ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE.—Nothing in this 

19 Act or any amendment made by this Act may be construed 

20 to affect or limit the application of or obligation to comply 

21 with any applicable environmental law, including section 

22 120(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 

23 Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 

24 9620(h)). 


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1 (b) LIABILITY.—A person to which a conveyance is 

2 made under this subtitle shall hold the United States 

3 harmless from any liability with respect to activities car4 ried out on or after the date of the conveyance of the real 

5 property conveyed. The United States shall remain re6 sponsible for any liability with respect to activities carried 

7 out before such date on the real property conveyed. 

8 (c) MONITORING OF KNOWN CONTAMINATION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—To the extent practicable 

10 and subject to paragraph (2), any contamination in 

11 a Tract to be conveyed to the State or BSNC under 

12 this subtitle that— 

13 (A) is identified in writing prior to the con14 veyance; and 

15 (B) does not pose an immediate or long16 term risk to human health or the environment, 

17 may be routinely monitored and managed by the 

18 State or BSNC, as applicable, through institutional 

19 controls. 

20 (2) INSTITUTIONAL CONTROLS.—Institutional 

21 controls may be used if— 

22 (A) the Administrator of the Environ23 mental Protection Agency and the Governor of 

24 the State concur that such controls are protec25 tive of human health and the environment; and 


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1 (B) such controls are carried out in ac2 cordance with Federal and State law. 

3 SEC. 535. EASEMENTS AND ACCESS. 

4 (a) USE BY COAST GUARD.—The Secretary of the In5 terior shall make each conveyance of any relevant Tract 

6 under this subtitle subject to an easement granting the 

7 Coast Guard, at no cost to the Coast Guard— 

8 (1) use of all existing and future landing pads, 

9 airstrips, runways, and taxiways that are located on 

10 such Tract; and 

11 (2) the right to access such landing pads, air12 strips, runways, and taxiways. 

13 (b) USE BY STATE.—For any Tract conveyed to 

14 BSNC under this subtitle, BSNC shall provide to the 

15 State, if requested and pursuant to negotiated terms with 

16 the State, an easement granting to the State, at no cost 

17 to the State— 

18 (1) use of all existing and future landing pads, 

19 airstrips, runways, and taxiways located on such 

20 Tract; and 

21 (2) a right to access such landing pads, air22 strips, runways, and taxiways. 

23 (c) RIGHT OF ACCESS OR RIGHT OF WAY.—If the 

24 State requests a right of access or right of way for a road 

25 from the airstrip to the southern tip of Point Spencer, 


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1 the location of such right of access or right of way shall 

2 be determined by the State, in consultation with the Sec3 retary and BSNC, so that such right of access or right 

4 of way is compatible with other existing or planned infra5 structure development at Point Spencer. 

6 (d) ACCESS EASEMENT ACROSS TRACTS 2, 5, AND

7 6.—In conveyance documents to the State and BSNC 

8 under this subtitle, the Coast Guard shall retain an access 

9 easement across Tracts 2, 5, and 6 reasonably necessary 

10 to afford the Coast Guard with access to Tracts 1, 3, and 

11 4 for its operations. 

12 (e) ACCESS.—Not later than 30 days after the date 

13 of the enactment of this Act, the Coast Guard shall pro14 vide to the State and BSNC, access to Tracts for plan15 ning, design, and engineering related to remediation and 

16 use of and construction on those Tracts. 

17 (f) PUBLIC ACCESS EASEMENTS.—No public access 

18 easements may be reserved to the United States under 

19 section 17(b) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

20 (43 U.S.C. 1616(b)) with respect to the land conveyed 

21 under this subtitle. 

22 SEC. 536. RELATIONSHIP TO PUBLIC LAND ORDER 2650. 

23 (a) TRACTS NOT CONVEYED.—Any Tract that is not 

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1 suant to Public Land Order 2650 (published in the Fed2 eral Register on April 12, 1962). 

3 (b) TRACTS CONVEYED.—For any Tract conveyed 

4 under this subtitle, Public Land Order 2650 shall auto5 matically terminate upon issuance of a conveyance docu6 ment issued pursuant to this subtitle for such Tract. 

7 SEC. 537. ARCHEOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES. 

8 Conveyance of any Tract under this subtitle shall not 

9 affect investigations, criminal jurisdiction, and responsibil10 ities regarding theft or vandalism of archeological or cul11 tural resources located in or on such Tract that took place 

12 prior to conveyance under this subtitle. 

13 SEC. 538. MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS. 

14 (a) PREPARATION OF MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIP15 TIONS.—As soon as practicable after the date of the enact16 ment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior in consulta17 tion with the Secretary shall prepare maps and legal de18 scriptions of Tract 1, Tract 2, Tract 3, Tract 4, Tract 

19 5, and Tract 6. In doing so, the Secretary of the Interior 

20 may use metes and bounds legal descriptions based upon 

21 the official survey plats of Point Spencer accepted by the 

22 Bureau of Land Management on December 6, 1978, and 

23 on information provided by the Secretary. 

24 (b) SURVEY.—Not later than 5 years after the date 

25 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 


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1 shall survey Tracts conveyed under this subtitle and pat2 ent the Tracts in accordance with the official plats of sur3 vey. 

4 (c) LEGAL EFFECT.—The maps and legal descrip5 tions prepared under subsection (a) and the surveys pre6 pared under subsection (b) shall have the same force and 

7 effect as if the maps and legal descriptions were included 

8 in this Act. 

9 (d) CORRECTIONS.—The Secretary of the Interior 

10 may correct any clerical and typographical errors in the 

11 maps and legal descriptions prepared under subsection (a) 

12 and the surveys prepared under subsection (b). 

13 (e) AVAILABILITY.—Copies of the maps and legal de14 scriptions prepared under subsection (a) and the surveys 

15 prepared under subsection (b) shall be available for public 

16 inspection in the appropriate offices of— 

17 (1) the Bureau of Land Management; and 

18 (2) the Coast Guard. 

19 SEC. 539. CHARGEABILITY FOR LAND CONVEYED. 

20 (a) CONVEYANCES TO ALASKA.—The Secretary of 

21 the Interior shall charge any conveyance of land conveyed 

22 to the State of Alaska pursuant to this subtitle against 

23 the State’s remaining entitlement under section 6(b) of 

24 the Act of July 7, 1958 (commonly known as the ‘‘Alaska 

25 Statehood Act’’; Public Law 85–508; 72 Stat. 339). 


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1 (b) CONVEYANCES TO BSNC.—The Secretary of the 

2 Interior shall charge any conveyance of land conveyed to 

3 BSNC pursuant to this subtitle, against BSNC’s remain4 ing entitlement under section 14(h)(8) of the Alaska Na5 tive Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1613(h)(8)). 

6 SEC. 540. REDUNDANT CAPABILITY. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

8 (b), section 681 of title 14, United States Code, as amend9 ed by this Act, shall not be construed to prohibit any 

10 transfer or conveyance of lands under this subtitle or any 

11 actions that involve the dismantling or disposal of infra12 structure that supported the former LORAN system that 

13 are associated with the transfer or conveyance of lands 

14 under this subtitle. 

15 (b) CONTINUED ACCESS TO AND USE OF FACILI16 TIES.—If the Secretary of the department in which the 

17 Coast Guard is operating determines, within the 5-year 

18 period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

19 that a facility on any of Tract 1, Tract 3, or Tract 4 that 

20 is transferred under this subtitle is subsequently required 

21 to provide a positioning, navigation, and timing system to 

22 provide redundant capability in the event GPS signals are 

23 disrupted, the Secretary may, for as long as such facility 

24 is needed to provide redundant capability— 


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1 (1) operate, maintain, keep, locate, inspect, re2 pair, and replace such facility; and 

3 (2) in carrying out the activities described in 

4 paragraph (1), enter, at any time, the facility with5 out notice to the extent that it is not possible to pro6 vide advance notice. 

7 SEC. 541. PORT COORDINATION COUNCIL FOR POINT SPEN8 CER. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a Port 

10 Coordination Council for the Port of Point Spencer. 

11 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall consist of a 

12 representative appointed by each of the following: 

13 (1) The State. 

14 (2) BSNC. 

15 (c) DUTIES.—The duties of the Council are as fol16 lows: 

17 (1) To develop a Port Management Coordina18 tion Plan to help coordinate infrastructure develop19 ment and operations at the Port of Point Spencer, 

20 that includes plans for— 

21 (A) construction; 

22 (B) funding eligibility; 

23 (C) land use planning and development; 

24 and 


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1 (D) public interest use and access, emer2 gency preparedness, law enforcement, protection 

3 of Alaska Native archaeological and cultural re4 sources, and other matters that are necessary 

5 for public and private entities to function in 

6 proximity together in a remote location. 

7 (2) Update the Plan annually for the first 5 

8 years after the date of the enactment of this Act and 

9 biennially thereafter. 

10 (3) Facilitate coordination among BSNC, the 

11 State, and the Coast Guard, on the development and 

12 use of the land and coastline as such development 

13 relates to activities at the Port of Point Spencer. 

14 (4) Assess the need, benefits, efficacy, and de15 sirability of establishing in the future a port author16 ity at Point Spencer under State law and act upon 

17 that assessment, as appropriate, including taking 

18 steps for the potential formation of such a port au19 thority. 

20 (d) PLAN.—In addition to the requirements under 

21 subsection (c)(1) to the greatest extent practicable, the 

22 Plan developed by the Council shall facilitate and support 

23 the statutory missions and duties of the Coast Guard and 

24 operations of the Coast Guard in the Arctic. 


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1 (e) COSTS.—Operations and management costs for 

2 airstrips, runways, and taxiways at Point Spencer shall 

3 be determined pursuant to provisions of the Plan, as nego4 tiated by the Council. 

5 TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

6 SEC. 601. MODIFICATION OF REPORTS. 

7 (a) DISTANT WATER TUNA FLEET.—Section 421(d) 

8 of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 

9 2006 (46 U.S.C. 8103 note) is amended by striking ‘‘On 

10 March 1, 2007, and annually thereafter’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘Not later than July 1 of each year’’. 

12 (b) ANNUAL UPDATES ON LIMITS TO LIABILITY.— 

13 Section 603(c)(3) of the Coast Guard and Maritime 

14 Transportation Act of 2006 (33 U.S.C. 2704 note) is 

15 amended by striking ‘‘on an annual basis.’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘not later than January 30 of the year following each year 

17 in which occurs an oil discharge from a vessel or nonvessel 

18 source that results or is likely to result in removal costs 

19 and damages (as those terms are defined in section 1001 

20 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701)) that 

21 exceed liability limits established under section 1004 of the 

22 Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2704).’’. 

23 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the date 

24 of the enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the 

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1 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating a report de2 tailing the specifications and capabilities for interoperable 

3 communications the Commandant determines are nec4 essary to allow the Coast Guard to successfully carry out 

5 its missions that require communications with other Fed6 eral agencies, State and local governments, and non7 governmental entities. 

8 SEC. 602. SAFE VESSEL OPERATION IN THE GREAT LAKES. 

9 The Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Trans10 portation Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–281) is amend11 ed— 

12 (1) in section 610, by— 

13 (A) striking the section enumerator and 

14 heading and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 610. SAFE VESSEL OPERATION IN THE GREAT 

16 LAKES.’’; 

17 (B) striking ‘‘existing boundaries and any 

18 future expanded boundaries of the Thunder 

19 Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Under20 water Preserve’’ and inserting ‘‘boundaries of 

21 any national marine sanctuary that preserves 

22 shipwrecks or maritime heritage in the Great 

23 Lakes’’; and 

24 (C) inserting before the period at the end 

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1 ments for such sanctuary do not allow taking 

2 up or discharging ballast water in such sanc3 tuary’’; and 

4 (2) in the table of contents in section 2, by 

5 striking the item relating to such section and insert6 ing the following: 

‘‘Sec. 610. Safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes.’’. 

7 SEC. 603. USE OF VESSEL SALE PROCEEDS. 

8 (a) AUDIT.—The Comptroller General of the United 

9 States shall conduct an audit of funds credited in each 

10 fiscal year after fiscal year 2004 to the Vessel Operations 

11 Revolving Fund that are attributable to the sale of obso12 lete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet that 

13 were scrapped or sold under sections 57102, 57103, and 

14 57104 of title 46, United States Code, including— 

15 (1) a complete accounting of all vessel sale pro16 ceeds attributable to the sale of obsolete vessels in 

17 the National Defense Reserve Fleet that were 

18 scrapped or sold under sections 57102, 57103, and 

19 57104 of title 46, United States Code, in each fiscal 

20 year after fiscal year 2004; 

21 (2) the annual apportionment of proceeds ac22 counted for under paragraph (1) among the uses au23 thorized under section 308704 of title 54, United 

24 States Code, in each fiscal year after fiscal year 

25 2004, including— 


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1 (A) for National Maritime Heritage 

2 Grants, including a list of all annual National 

3 Maritime Heritage Grant grant and subgrant 

4 awards that identifies the respective grant and 

5 subgrant recipients and grant and subgrant 

6 amounts; 

7 (B) for the preservation and presentation 

8 to the public of maritime heritage property of 

9 the Maritime Administration; 

10 (C) to the United States Merchant Marine 

11 Academy and State maritime academies, includ12 ing a list of annual awards; and 

13 (D) for the acquisition, repair, recondi14 tioning, or improvement of vessels in the Na15 tional Defense Reserve Fleet; and 

16 (3) an accounting of proceeds, if any, attrib17 utable to the sale of obsolete vessels in the National 

18 Defense Reserve Fleet that were scrapped or sold 

19 under sections 57102, 57103, and 57104 of title 46, 

20 United States Code, in each fiscal year after fiscal 

21 year 2004, that were expended for uses not author22 ized under section 308704 of title 54, United States 

23 Code. 

24 (b) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 180 

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1 troller General shall submit the audit conducted in sub2 section (a) to the Committee on Armed Services, the Com3 mittee on Natural Resources, and the Committee on 

4 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep5 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

6 and Transportation of the Senate. 

7 SEC. 604. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES COST ASSESS8 MENT. 

9 (a) COST ASSESSMENT.—The Secretary of the de10 partment in which the Coast Guard is operating shall seek 

11 to enter into an arrangement with the National Academy 

12 of Sciences under which the Academy, by no later than 

13 365 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, shall 

14 submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra15 structure of the House of Representatives and the Com16 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

17 Senate an assessment of the costs incurred by the Federal 

18 Government to carry out polar icebreaking missions. The 

19 assessment shall— 

20 (1) describe current and emerging requirements 

21 for the Coast Guard’s polar icebreaking capabilities, 

22 taking into account the rapidly changing ice cover in 

23 the Arctic environment, national security consider24 ations, and expanding commercial activities in the 


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1 Arctic and Antarctic, including marine transpor2 tation, energy development, fishing, and tourism; 

3 (2) identify potential design, procurement, leas4 ing, service contracts, crewing, and technology op5 tions that could minimize life-cycle costs and opti6 mize efficiency and reliability of Coast Guard polar 

7 icebreaker operations in the Arctic and Antarctic; 

8 and 

9 (3) examine— 

10 (A) Coast Guard estimates of the procure11 ment and operating costs of a Polar icebreaker 

12 capable of carrying out Coast Guard maritime 

13 safety, national security, and stewardship re14 sponsibilities including— 

15 (i) economies of scale that might be 

16 achieved for construction of multiple ves17 sels; and 

18 (ii) costs of renovating existing polar 

19 class icebreakers to operate for a period of 

20 no less than 10 years. 

21 (B) the incremental cost to augment the 

22 design of such an icebreaker for multiuse capa23 bilities for scientific missions; 


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1 (C) the potential to offset such incremental 

2 cost through cost-sharing agreements with 

3 other Federal departments and agencies; and 

4 (D) United States polar icebreaking capa5 bility in comparison with that of other Arctic 

6 nations, and with nations that conduct research 

7 in the Arctic. 

8 (b) INCLUDED COSTS.—For purposes of subsection 

9 (a), the assessment shall include costs incurred by the 

10 Federal Government for— 

11 (1) the lease or operation and maintenance of 

12 the vessel or vessels concerned; 

13 (2) disposal of such vessels at the end of the 

14 useful life of the vessels; 

15 (3) retirement and other benefits for Federal 

16 employees who operate such vessels; and 

17 (4) interest payments assumed to be incurred 

18 for Federal capital expenditures. 

19 (c) ASSUMPTIONS.—For purposes of comparing the 

20 costs of such alternatives, the Academy shall assume 

21 that— 

22 (1) each vessel under consideration is— 

23 (A) capable of breaking out McMurdo Sta24 tion and conducting Coast Guard missions in 

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1 tory in the Arctic (as that term is defined in 

2 section 112 of the Arctic Research and Policy 

3 Act of 1984 (15 U.S.C. 4111)); and 

4 (B) operated for a period of 30 years; 

5 (2) the acquisition of services and the operation 

6 of each vessel begins on the same date; and 

7 (3) the periods for conducting Coast Guard 

8 missions in the Arctic are of equal lengths. 

9 (d) USE OF INFORMATION.—In formulating cost pur10 suant to subsection (a), the National Academy of Sciences 

11 may utilize information from other Coast Guard reports, 

12 assessments, or analyses regarding existing Coast Guard 

13 Polar class icebreakers or for the acquisition of a polar 

14 icebreaker for the Federal Government. 

15 SEC. 605. PENALTY WAGES. 

16 (a) FOREIGN AND INTERCOASTAL VOYAGES.—Sec17 tion 10313(g) of title 46, United States Code, is amend18 ed— 

19 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘all claims in a class action 

21 suit by seamen’’ and inserting ‘‘each claim by 

22 a seaman’’; and 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘the seamen’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘the seaman’’; and 

25 (2) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘class action’’; and 

2 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘, by 

3 a seaman who is a claimant in the suit,’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘by the seaman’’. 

5 (b) COASTWISE VOYAGES.—Section 10504(c) of such 

6 title is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘all claims in a class action 

9 suit by seamen’’ and inserting ‘‘each claim by 

10 a seaman’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘the seamen’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘the seaman’’; and 

13 (2) in paragraph (3)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘class action’’; and 

15 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘, by 

16 a seaman who is a claimant in the suit,’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘by the seaman’’. 

18 SEC. 606. RECOURSE FOR NONCITIZENS. 

19 Section 30104 of title 46, United States Code, is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 

22 the first sentence; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTION ON RECOVERY FOR NON25 RESIDENT ALIENS EMPLOYED ON FOREIGN PASSENGER


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1 VESSELS.—A claim for damages or expenses relating to 

2 personal injury, illness, or death of a seaman who is a 

3 citizen of a foreign nation, arising during or from the en4 gagement of the seaman by or for a passenger vessel duly 

5 registered under the laws of a foreign nation, may not be 

6 brought under the laws of the United States if— 

7 ‘‘(1) such seaman was not a permanent resident 

8 alien of the United States at the time the claim 

9 arose; 

10 ‘‘(2) the injury, illness, or death arose outside 

11 the territorial waters of the United States; and 

12 ‘‘(3) the seaman or the seaman’s personal rep13 resentative has or had a right to seek compensation 

14 for the injury, illness, or death in, or under the laws 

15 of— 

16 ‘‘(A) the nation in which the vessel was 

17 registered at the time the claim arose; or 

18 ‘‘(B) the nation in which the seaman main19 tained citizenship or residency at the time the 

20 claim arose. 

21 ‘‘(c) COMPENSATION DEFINED.—As used in sub22 section (b), the term ‘compensation’ means— 

23 ‘‘(1) a statutory workers’ compensation remedy 

24 that complies with Standard A4.2 of Regulation 4.2 

25 of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) in the absence of the remedy described in 

2 paragraph (1), a legal remedy that complies with 

3 Standard A4.2 of Regulation 4.2 of the Maritime 

4 Labour Convention, 2006, that permits recovery for 

5 lost wages, pain and suffering, and future medical 

6 expenses.’’. 

7 SEC. 607. COASTWISE ENDORSEMENTS. 

8 (a) ‘‘ELETTRA III’’.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sections 

10 12112 and 12132, of title 46, United States Code, 

11 and subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the Secretary 

12 of the department in which the Coast Guard is oper13 ating may issue a certificate of documentation with 

14 a coastwise endorsement for the vessel M/V Elettra 

15 III (United States official number 694607). 

16 (2) LIMITATION ON OPERATION.—Coastwise 

17 trade authorized under a certificate of documenta18 tion issued under paragraph (1) shall be limited to 

19 the carriage of passengers and equipment in associa20 tion with the operation of the vessel in the Puget 

21 Sound region to support marine and maritime 

22 science education. 

23 (3) TERMINATION OF EFFECTIVENESS OF CER24 TIFICATE.—A certificate of documentation issued 

25 under paragraph (1) shall expire on the earlier of— 


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1 (A) the date of the sale of the vessel or the 

2 entity that owns the vessel; 

3 (B) the date any repairs or alterations are 

4 made to the vessel outside of the United States; 

5 or 

6 (C) the date the vessel is no longer oper7 ated as a vessel in the Puget Sound region to 

8 support the marine and maritime science edu9 cation. 

10 (b) ‘‘F/V RONDYS’’.—Notwithstanding section 12132 

11 of title 46, United States Code, the Secretary of the de12 partment in which the Coast Guard is operating may issue 

13 a certificate of documentation with a coastwise endorse14 ment for the F/V Rondys (O.N. 291085) 

15 SEC. 608. INTERNATIONAL ICE PATROL. 

16 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR REPORT.—Not later than 

17 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

18 Commandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the Com19 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

20 Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infra21 structure of the House of Representatives a report that 

22 describes the current operations to perform the Inter23 national Ice Patrol mission and on alternatives for car24 rying out that mission, including satellite surveillance 

25 technology. 


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1 (b) ALTERNATIVES.—The report required by sub2 section (a) shall include whether an alternative— 

3 (1) provides timely data on ice conditions with 

4 the highest possible resolution and accuracy; 

5 (2) is able to operate in all weather conditions 

6 or any time of day; and 

7 (3) is more cost effective than the cost of cur8 rent operations. 

9 SEC. 609. ASSESSMENT OF OIL SPILL RESPONSE AND 

10 CLEANUP ACTIVITIES IN THE GREAT LAKES. 

11 (a) ASSESSMENT.—The Commandant of the Coast 

12 Guard, in consultation with the Administrator of the Na13 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the 

14 head of any other agency the Commandant determines ap15 propriate, shall conduct an assessment of the effectiveness 

16 of oil spill response activities specific to the Great Lakes. 

17 Such assessment shall include— 

18 (1) an evaluation of new research into oil spill 

19 impacts in fresh water under a wide range of condi20 tions; and 

21 (2) an evaluation of oil spill prevention and 

22 clean up contingency plans, in order to improve un23 derstanding of oil spill impacts in the Great Lakes 

24 and foster innovative improvements to safety tech25 nologies and environmental protection systems. 


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1 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Com3 mandant of the Coast Guard shall submit to the Congress 

4 a report on the results of the assessment required by sub5 section (a). 

6 SEC. 610. REPORT ON STATUS OF TECHNOLOGY DETECT7 ING PASSENGERS WHO HAVE FALLEN OVER8 BOARD. 

9 Not later than 18 months after the date of the enact10 ment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast Guard 

11 shall submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, 

12 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Com13 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

14 of Representatives that— 

15 (1) describes the status of technology for imme16 diately detecting passengers who have fallen over17 board; 

18 (2) includes a recommendation to cruise lines 

19 on the feasibility of implementing technology that 

20 immediately detects passengers who have fallen over21 board, factoring in cost and the risk of false 

22 positives; 

23 (3) includes data collected from cruise lines on 

24 the status of the integration of the technology de25 scribed in paragraph (2) on cruise ships, including— 


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1 (A) the number of cruise ships that have 

2 the technology to capture images of passengers 

3 who have fallen overboard; and 

4 (B) the number of cruise lines that have 

5 tested technology that can detect passengers 

6 who have fallen overboard; and 

7 (4) includes information on any other available 

8 technologies that cruise ships could integrate to as9 sist in facilitating the search and rescue of a pas10 senger who has fallen overboard. 

11 SEC. 611. VENUE. 

12 Section 311(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

13 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1861(d)) 

14 is amended by striking the second sentence and inserting 

15 ‘‘In the case of Hawaii or any possession of the United 

16 States in the Pacific Ocean, the appropriate court is the 

17 United States District Court for the District of Hawaii, 

18 except that in the case of Guam and Wake Island, the 

19 appropriate court is the United States District Court for 

20 the District of Guam, and in the case of the Northern 

21 Mariana Islands, the appropriate court is the United 

22 States District Court for the District of the Northern 

23 Mariana Islands.’’. 


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1 SEC. 612. DISPOSITION OF INFRASTRUCTURE RELATED TO 

2 E–LORAN. 

3 (a) DISPOSITION OF INFRASTRUCTURE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 17 of title 14, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘§ 681. Disposition of infrastructure related to E– 

8 LORAN 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not carry out 

10 activities related to the dismantling or disposal of infra11 structure comprising the LORAN–C system until the date 

12 on which the Secretary provides to the Committee on 

13 Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on 

14 Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 

15 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

16 and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate notice 

17 of a determination by the Secretary that such infrastruc18 ture is not required to provide a positioning, navigation, 

19 and timing system to provide redundant capability in the 

20 event the Global Positioning System signals are disrupted. 

21 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) does not apply to 

22 activities necessary for the safety of human life. 

23 ‘‘(c) DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On any date after the noti25 fication is made under subsection (a), the Adminis26 trator of General Services, acting on behalf of the 


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1 Secretary, may, notwithstanding any other provision 

2 of law, sell any real and personal property under the 

3 administrative control of the Coast Guard and used 

4 for the LORAN–C system, subject to such terms 

5 and conditions that the Secretary believes to be nec6 essary to protect government interests and program 

7 requirements of the Coast Guard. 

8 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF PROCEEDS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) AVAILABILITY OF PROCEEDS.—The 

10 proceeds of such sales, less the costs of sale in11 curred by the General Services Administration, 

12 shall be deposited as offsetting collections into 

13 the Coast Guard ‘Environmental Compliance 

14 and Restoration’ account and, without further 

15 appropriation, shall be available until expended 

16 for— 

17 ‘‘(i) environmental compliance and 

18 restoration purposes associated with the 

19 LORAN–C system; 

20 ‘‘(ii) the costs of securing and main21 taining equipment that may be used as a 

22 backup to the Global Positioning System 

23 or to meet any other Federal navigation 

24 requirement; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the demolition of improvements 

2 on such real property; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) the costs associated with the sale 

4 of such real and personal property, includ5 ing due diligence requirements, necessary 

6 environmental remediation, and reimburse7 ment of expenses incurred by the General 

8 Services Administration. 

9 ‘‘(B) OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLI10 ANCE AND RESTORATION ACTIVITIES.—After 

11 the completion of activities described in sub12 paragraph (A), the unexpended balances of 

13 such proceeds shall be available for any other 

14 environmental compliance and restoration ac15 tivities of the Coast Guard.’’. 

16 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis at 

17 the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 

18 at the end the following: 

‘‘681. Disposition of infrastructure related to E–LORAN.’’. 

19 (3) CONFORMING REPEALS.— 

20 (A) Section 229 of the Howard Coble 

21 Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act 

22 of 2014 (Public Law 113–281; 128 Stat. 

23 3040), and the item relating to that section in 

24 section 2 of such Act, are repealed. 


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1 (B) Subsection 559(e) of the Department 

2 of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010 

3 (Public Law 111–83; 123 Stat. 2180) is re4 pealed. 

5 (b) AGREEMENTS TO DEVELOP BACKUP POSI6 TIONING, NAVIGATION, AND TIMING SYSTEM.—Section 

7 93(a) of title 14, United States Code, is amended by strik8 ing ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of paragraph 

9 (23), by striking the period at the end of paragraph (24) 

10 and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding at the end the fol11 lowing the following: 

12 ‘‘(25) enter into cooperative agreements, con13 tracts, and other agreements with Federal entities 

14 and other public or private entities, including aca15 demic entities, to develop a positioning, navigation, 

16 and timing system to provide redundant capability in 

17 the event Global Positioning System signals are dis18 rupted, which may consist of an enhanced LORAN 

19 system.’’. 

20 SEC. 613. PARKING. 

21 Section 611(a) of the Howard Coble Coast Guard and 

22 Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 (Public Law 113– 

23 281; 128 Stat. 3064) is amended by adding at the end 

24 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(3) REIMBURSEMENT.—Through September 30, 

2 2017, additional parking made available under paragraph 

3 (2) shall be made available at no cost to the Coast Guard 

4 or members and employees of the Coast Guard.’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives December 10, 

2015. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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