II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4538 

To adjust certain ownership and other requirements for passenger vessels, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 13, 2024 

Mr. LEE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to 

the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To adjust certain ownership and other requirements for 

passenger vessels, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Open America’s Ports 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REPEAL OF PVSA AND ADJUSTMENT OF JONES ACT 

7 REQUIREMENTS FOR PASSENGER VESSELS. 

8 (a) REPEAL OF PVSA DOMESTIC REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 Section 55103 of title 46, United States Code (commonly 


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1 referred to as the ‘‘Passenger Vessel Services Act of 

2 1886’’), is repealed. 

3 (b) ADJUSTMENT OF JONES ACT REQUIREMENTS.— 

4 Chapter 121 of title 46, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in section 12103, by adding at the end the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(d) NONAPPLICABILITY.—The requirements of this 

8 section shall not apply to any vessel that transports pas9 sengers between ports or places in the United States to 

10 which the coastwise laws apply, either directly or via a 

11 foreign port.’’; 

12 (2) in section 12112(a)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘except 

14 in the case of a vessel described in subpara15 graph (C) of paragraph (2),’’ before ‘‘satisfies’’; 

16 and 

17 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

19 ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon; 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by strik21 ing ‘‘; and’’ and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

22 (iii) by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(C) transports passengers between ports or 

25 places in the United States to which the coastwise 


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1 laws apply, either directly or via a foreign port; 

2 and’’; and 

3 (3) in section 12121(b), by striking ‘‘55102, 

4 and 55103’’ and inserting ‘‘and 55102’’. 

5 (c) ADJUSTMENT OF CITIZENSHIP AND NAVY RE6 SERVE REQUIREMENTS.—Section 8103(k) of title 46, 

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

8 ‘‘(k) EXEMPTION FOR PASSENGER VESSELS.—Sub9 sections (a) and (b) shall not apply to any vessel that 

10 transports passengers between ports or places in the 

11 United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either 

12 directly or via a foreign port.’’. 

13 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 551 of title 46, 

15 United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by repealing section 55104; and 

17 (B) in section 55121— 

18 (i) in the section heading, by striking 

19 ‘‘and passengers’’; 

20 (ii) by striking subsection (a); 

21 (iii) by striking ‘‘(b)’’ and all that fol22 lows through ‘‘States.—’’; and 

23 (iv) by striking ‘‘sections 55102 and 

24 55103 of this title do’’ and inserting ‘‘sec25 tion 55102 of this title does’’. 


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1 (2) ADDITIONAL CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

2 Section 11504(f) of the James M. Inhofe National 

3 Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 

4 (Public Law 117–263) is amended by striking 

5 ‘‘55103,’’. 

6 SEC. 3. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

7 Nothing in the amendments made by this Act shall 

8 be construed to exempt a vessel that transports passengers 

9 between ports or places in the United States to which the 

10 coastwise laws apply, either directly or via a foreign port, 

11 from any applicable law of the United States except as 

12 explicitly provided in such amendments. 

Æ 


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