II 

Calendar No. 295 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2029 

[Report No. 109–183] 

To amend and enhance certain maritime programs of the Department of 

Transportation, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 17, 2005 

Mr. STEVENS, from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, reported the following original bill; which was read twice and 

placed on the calendar 

A BILL 

To amend and enhance certain maritime programs of the 

Department of Transportation, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Maritime Administration Enhancement Act of 2005’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
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TITLE I—ENHANCEMENT OF MARITIME PROGRAMS. 

Sec. 101. United States Maritime Service. 

Sec. 102. War risk insurance for merchant marine vessels. 

Sec. 103. Maritime education and training. 

Sec. 104. Authority to dispose of obsolete government vessels. 

Sec. 105. Awards and medals. 

Sec. 106. Elimination of tariffs on certain national defense activities. 

Sec. 107. Availability of funds from application fees for deepwater port licenses. 

Sec. 108. Availability of funds from administrative waivers of coastwise trade 

laws for eligible vessels. 

Sec. 109. Amendment to vessel operations revolving fund. 

Sec. 110. Right to use Maritime Administration decoration. 

Sec. 111. Hawaii port infrastructure expansion program. 

Sec. 112. Payments for State and regional maritime academies. 

Sec. 113. Reduction of report burden. 

Sec. 114. Assistance for small shipyards and maritime communities. 

TITLE II—LOAN GUARANTEE PROGRAM ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES

Sec. 201. Redesignation of duplicate numbered sections. 

Sec. 202. Transfer of authority for Title XI non-fishing loan guarantee decisions to MARAD. 

1 TITLE I—ENHANCEMENT OF 

2 MARITIME PROGRAMS 

3 SEC. 101. UNITED STATES MARITIME SERVICE. 

4 Section 1306(a) of the Maritime Education and 

5 Training Act of 1980 (46 U.S.C. App. 1295e(a)), is 

6 amended by inserting ‘‘and to perform functions to assist 

7 the United States merchant marine, as determined nec8 essary by the Secretary,’’ after ‘‘United States’’ the sec9 ond place it appears. 

10 SEC. 102. WAR RISK INSURANCE FOR MERCHANT MARINE 

11 VESSELS. 

12 Section 1208(a) of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 

13 (46 U.S.C. App. 1288(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘Upon 

14 the request of the Secretary of Transportation, the Sec15 retary of the Treasury may invest or reinvest all or any 
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1 part of the fund in securities of the United States or in 

2 securities guaranteed as to principal and interest by the 

3 United States.’’ and inserting ‘‘The Secretary of Trans4 portation may request the Secretary of the Treasury to 

5 invest such portion of the fund as is not, in the judgment 

6 of the Secretary of Transportation, required to meet the 

7 current needs of the fund. Such investments shall be made 

8 by the Secretary of the Treasury in public debt securities 

9 of the United States, with maturities suitable to the need 

10 of the fund, and bearing interest rates determined by the 

11 Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration cur12 rent market yields on outstanding marketable obligations 

13 of the United States of comparable maturity.’’. 

14 SEC. 103. MARITIME EDUCATION AND TRAINING. 

15 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION TO THE UNITED

16 STATES MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY.—Section 

17 1303(b)(2) of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. 

18 App. 1295b(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(C) Notwithstanding any other provision of 

21 law, an individual appointed as a cadet may not be 

22 admitted to the Academy as a student, unless at the 

23 time of the taking of the official oath upon entry 

24 into the Merchant Marine Academy, that individual 

25 satisfies the physical and mental requirements of the 
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1 Department of Defense to be appointed or enlisted 

2 as a Midshipman, United States Naval Reserve. Fol3 lowing admission to the Academy, notwithstanding 

4 any other provision of law, such individual may con5 tinue as a student only if that individual continues 

6 to satisfy the physical and mental standards set 

7 forth in this subparagraph unless the Secretary of 

8 Transportation waives the standards.’’. 

9 (b) RESERVE TRAINING COMPLIANCE AND ARMED

10 FORCES PERFORMANCE REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR

11 UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY GRAD12 UATES.—Section 1303(e) of the Merchant Marine Act, 

13 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1295b(e)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking subparagraph (D) of paragraph 

15 (1) and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(D) to apply for an appointment as, to accept 

17 if tendered an appointment as, and to serve and per18 form all required duties and comply with all require19 ments as, a commissioned officer in Ready Reserve 

20 status in the United States Naval Reserve (including 

21 the Merchant Marine Reserve and the United States 

22 Naval Reserve), any other Reserve component of an 

23 armed force of the United States, or any other 

24 equivalent, as determined by the Secretary;’’; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 
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1 ‘‘(6)(A) In order to meet the requirements of para2 graph (1)(D), a graduate of the Academy shall perform 

3 all directed training and obey all orders and directions re4 quired by the relevant Reserve Component and remain 

5 qualified in Ready Reserve classification for a period of 

6 not less than 6 years, as required by the regulations of 

7 the applicable armed service unless such compliance is 

8 waived by the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of 

9 the Department in which the United States Coast Guard 

10 is operating. 

11 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding section 552a of title 5, United 

12 States Code, the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary 

13 of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating, 

14 and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and At15 mospheric Administration— 

16 ‘‘(i) shall report the status of obligated service 

17 of an individual graduate upon request of the Mari18 time Administration; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) may, in their discretion, notify the Mari20 time Administration of the default in performance of 

21 an graduate in the performance of the graduate’s 

22 duties, either on active duty or in the Ready Reserve 

23 Component of their respective service, or as a com24 missioned officer of the National Oceanic and At25 mospheric Administration. 
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1 ‘‘(C) A report or notice under subparagraph (B) shall 

2 identify the graduate determined to have been defaulted 

3 and provide all required information as to why such grad4 uate has been defaulted. Upon receipt of such a report 

5 or notice, such graduate may be considered to be in de6 fault of the graduate’s service obligations by the Maritime 

7 Administration, and be subject to all remedies the Mari8 time Administration may have with respect to such a de9 fault.’’. 

10 (c) AUTHORITY FOR ADDITIONAL TRAINING LOCA11 TIONS FOR STUDENTS AT THE UNITED STATES MER12 CHANT MARINE ACADEMY.—Section 1303(f) of the Mer13 chant Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1295b(f) is 

14 amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ in paragraph (2); 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘organizations.’’ in paragraph 

17 (3) and inserting ‘‘organizations; and’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(4) on such other vessels as the Secretary de20 termines to be valuable for the education of cadets 

21 at the Academy or in the interest of national secu22 rity.’’. 

23 (d) SERVICE IN THE ARMED FORCES AND ALTER24 NATE SERVICE REQUIREMENTS.—Section 1303(e) of the 

25 Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1295b(e)), 
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1 as amended by subsection (b) of this section, is further 

2 amended by adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘(7) An individual who serves as a commissioned offi4 cer on active duty in an armed force of the United States 

5 or in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra6 tion for the 5 years immediately following graduation from 

7 the Academy shall be excused from the requirements of 

8 subparagraphs (1)(C), (1)(D), and (1)(E). 

9 ‘‘(8) The Secretary may modify or waive any of the 

10 terms and conditions set forth in paragraph (1) through 

11 the imposition of alternative service requirements.’’. 

12 (e) GLOBAL MARITIME AND TRANSPORTATION

13 SCHOOL.—Title XIII of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 

14 (46 U.S.C. App. 1295 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

15 the end the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 1309. OPERATION OF THE GLOBAL MARITIME AND 

17 TRANSPORTATION SCHOOL. 

18 ‘‘(a) OPERATION AS NONAPPROPRIATED FUND IN19 STRUMENTALITY.—After the date of enactment of the 

20 Maritime Administration Enhancement Act of 2005, the 

21 Global Maritime and Transportation School shall continue 

22 to operate as a nonappropriated fund instrumentality of 

23 the United States under the jurisdiction of the Depart24 ment of Transportation, Maritime Administration. 

25 ‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Under the general super2 vision of the Department of Transportation, Mari3 time Administration, GMATS shall develop, admin4 ister, and provide educational, training, and profes5 sional development activities, including educational 

6 activities, for Federal agencies, Federal employees, 

7 nonprofit organizations, other entities, and members 

8 of the general public, as well as carry out such other 

9 projects and activities that may be authorized by the 

10 Superintendent. 

11 ‘‘(2) TRAINING SERVICES.—The training serv12 ices and educational activities provided by GMATS 

13 shall be available to the Armed Forces of the United 

14 States and Commissioned Officers of the National 

15 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Federal 

16 and State agencies, Federal and State employees, 

17 nonprofit organizations, private companies or orga18 nizations, and private individuals of the United 

19 States or foreign countries friendly to the United 

20 States. 

21 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL REQUESTS FOR SERVICES.—Re22 quests for training or other services from the Armed 

23 Forces of the United States or other agencies of the 

24 United States may be made pursuant to the provi-
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1 sions of section 1535 of title 31, United States 

2 Code. 

3 ‘‘(c) FEES AND DONATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) COLLECTION OF FEES.—GMATS may 

5 charge and retain fair and reasonable fees for the 

6 activities provided. 

7 ‘‘(2) ACCEPTANCE ANDMAKING OF DONA8 TIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) GMATS may accept, use, hold, dis10 pose, and administer gifts, bequests, and de11 vises of money, securities, and other real or per12 sonal property made for the benefit of, or in 

13 connection with GMATS. 

14 ‘‘(B) GMATS shall not accept a donation 

15 from a person that is actively engaged in a pro16 curement activity with GMATS or has an inter17 est that may be substantially affected by the 

18 performance or nonperformance of an official 

19 duty of a member of the Board or an employee 

20 of GMATS. 

21 ‘‘(C) GMATS is authorized to make gifts 

22 to the Department of Transportation and the 

23 Secretary is authorized to accept gifts from 

24 GMATS for any purpose. 
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1 ‘‘(3) NOT FEDERAL FUNDS.—Fees collected 

2 under paragraph (1) and amounts received under 

3 paragraph (2) shall not be considered to be Federal 

4 funds and shall not be required to be deposited in 

5 the Treasury of the United States. GMATS shall not 

6 be funded by appropriated funds. 

7 ‘‘(d) USE OF USMMA FACULTY AND STAFF.— 

8 ‘‘(1) PAYMENT.—GMATS may provide payment 

9 to United States Merchant Marine Academy faculty 

10 and staff for teaching and other services for 

11 GMATS, but only to the extent that the provision of 

12 such teaching or services does not interfere or con13 flict with the official duties of the faculty and staff 

14 and are approved by the Superintendent. 

15 ‘‘(2) CONTRACTING AUTHORITY.—The Academy 

16 may enter into contracts with GMATS to provide 

17 faculty and staff of the Academy for teaching and 

18 other services and, to the extent of the actual costs 

19 incurred by the Academy under said contracts, cred20 it such funds received under such contracts to the 

21 Academy’s appropriations, notwithstanding those 

22 provisions of law relating to the deposit of miscella23 neous receipts into the Treasury. 

24 ‘‘(e) GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF SUPERINTENDENT.—The 

2 Superintendent is responsible for the overall super3 vision and administration of GMATS and the deter4 mination of its policies. In implementing this respon5 sibility, the Superintendent shall appoint members to 

6 the Board and shall designate one member as the 

7 Senior Managing Director and may designate other 

8 Managing Directors as necessary. 

9 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD.—The Super10 intendent may delegate to the Board the Super11 intendent’s responsibility to advise and oversee the 

12 supervision and administration of GMATS. The 

13 Board may consist of both United States Merchant 

14 Marine Academy employees and non-Academy em15 ployees, as determined by the Superintendent. The 

16 Board shall be subject to regulation by the Secretary 

17 and shall report to the Superintendent. 

18 ‘‘(3) AUTHORITY OF THE SENIOR MANAGING

19 DIRECTOR.—The Superintendent may delegate to 

20 the Senior Managing Director of GMATS the au21 thority to manage, administer, and operate GMATS. 

22 ‘‘(4) DUTIES OF THE MANAGING DIRECTORS.— 

23 The Senior Managing Director shall be responsible, 

24 subject to the supervision and direction of the Board 

25 and the Superintendent, for carrying out the func-
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1 tions of GMATS. All other Managing Directors shall 

2 be responsible, subject to the supervision and direc3 tion of the Senior Managing Director, for carrying 

4 out the functions of GMATS. 

5 ‘‘(5) BORROWING ANDINVESTMENT AUTHOR6 ITY.—The Board, with the approval of the Super7 intendent, may authorize the Senior Managing Di8 rector— 

9 ‘‘(A) to borrow money on the credit of 

10 GMATS; and 

11 ‘‘(B) to invest funds held in excess of the 

12 current operating requirements of GMATS for 

13 purposes of maintaining a reasonable reserve. 

14 ‘‘(6) LIABILITY.—The Managing Directors and 

15 the other members of the Board shall not be held 

16 personally liable for any loss or damage that may ac17 crue to GMATS as the result of any act performed 

18 within the scope of their duties under this section. 

19 ‘‘(f) EMPLOYEES.—Employees of GMATS are em20 ployees of a nonappropriated fund instrumentality of the 

21 United States. 

22 ‘‘(g) NOT A FEDERAL AGENCY.—The GMATS shall 

23 not be considered a Federal agency for purposes of— 

24 ‘‘(1) the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

25 U.S.C. ); or 
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1 ‘‘(2) sections 552 and 552a of title 5, United 

2 States Code. 

3 ‘‘(h) ACQUISITION AND DISPOSAL OF PROPERTY.— 

4 In order to carry out the activities of GMATS, GMATS 

5 may— 

6 ‘‘(1) acquire goods, services, and real property 

7 by lease, purchase. or otherwise; 

8 ‘‘(2) maintain, enlarge, or remodel any such 

9 property; 

10 ‘‘(3) have sole control of any such personal or 

11 real property; and 

12 ‘‘(4) dispose of real and personal property with13 out regard to the Federal Property and Administra14 tive Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 101 et seq.). 

15 ‘‘(i) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—GMATS may enter 

16 into contracts and leases without regard to the Federal 

17 Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 

18 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) or any other law that prescribes proce19 dures for the procurement of property or service by an 

20 executive agency. 

21 ‘‘(j) USE OF DEPARTMENT FACILITIES AND RE22 SOURCES.—GMATS may use the facilities and resources 

23 of the Department of Transportation, with the approval 

24 of the Superintendent, but only if any costs incurred by 

25 the Department that are attributable solely to GMATS op-
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1 erations and all costs incurred by GMATS arising out of 

2 such operations are paid using funds of GMATS or the 

3 Department of Transportation receives other consider4 ation for paying for such costs. Any reimbursement may 

5 be retained by the United States Merchant Marine Acad6 emy and credited to the charged appropriations account. 

7 ‘‘(k) AUDITS OF RECORDS.—The financial records of 

8 GMATS shall be made available to the Department of 

9 Transportation Inspector General, upon request, for pur10 poses of conducting an audit. 

11 ‘‘(l) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

12 ‘‘(1) GMATS.—The term ‘GMATS’ means the 

13 Global Maritime and Transportation School at the 

14 United States Merchant Marine Academy, a non15 appropriated fund instrumentality of the Maritime 

16 Administration of the United States Department of 

17 Transportation. 

18 ‘‘(2) BOARD.—The term ‘Board’ means the 

19 GMATS Board of Directors. 

20 ‘‘(3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means a 

21 member of the GMATS Board. 

22 ‘‘(4) MANAGING DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Man23 aging Director’ means a member of the Board who 

24 is an employee of GMATS with operational responsi-
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1 bility for the organization, but not a Federal em2 ployee. 

3 ‘‘(5) SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR.—The term 

4 ‘Senior Managing Director’ means the Managing Di5 rector designated the ‘Senior Managing Director’ by 

6 the Superintendent, as set forth in subsection (e) of 

7 this section. 

8 ‘‘(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 

9 the Secretary of Transportation. 

10 ‘‘(7) SUPERINTENDENT.—The term ‘Super11 intendent’ means the Superintendent of the United 

12 States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, 

13 New York, operated by the Maritime Administra14 tion, United States Department of Transportation 

15 or, in the absence of the Superintendent, the Super16 intendent’s authorized designee or such other person 

17 as the Secretary may designate.’’. 

18 SEC. 104. AUTHORITY TO DISPOSE OF OBSOLETE GOVERN19 MENT VESSELS. 

20 (a) REPEAL OF LIMITATION ON SCRAPPING.—Sec21 tion 3502 of the Floyd D. Spence National Defense Au22 thorization Act of Fiscal Year 2001 (Pub. L. 106-398; 

23 114 Stat.1654A-490) is amended24 (1) by striking subsection (c); 
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1 (2) redesignating subsections (d), (e), and (f) as 

2 subsections (c), (d), and (e), respectively; and 

3 (3) striking ‘‘subsection (d)(1)’’ in subsections 

4 ((d) and (e), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘sub5 section (c)(1)’’. 

6 (b) TRANSFER OF TITLE OF OBSOLETE VESSELS TO

7 BE DISPOSEDOF AS ARTIFICIAL REEFS.—Paragraph (4) 

8 of section 4 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to authorize ap9 propriations for the fiscal year 1973 for certain maritime 

10 programs of the Department of Commerce, and for related 

11 purposes’’ (Pub. L. 92-402; 16 U.S.C. 1220a) is amended 

12 to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(4) the transfer would be at no cost to the 

14 government (except for any financial assistance pro15 vided under section 1220(c)(1) of this title) with the 

16 State taking delivery of such obsolete ships and ti17 tles in an ‘as-is—where-is’ condition at such place 

18 and time designated as may be determined by the 

19 Secretary of Transportation.’’. 

20 SEC. 105. AWARDS AND MEDALS. 

21 Section 5(c) of the Merchant Marine Decorations and 

22 Medals Act (46 U.S.C. App. 2004(c)) is amended by strik23 ing ‘‘provide at cost, or authorize for the manufacture and 

24 sale at reasonable prices by private persons—’’ and insert25 ing ‘‘provide—’’. 
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1 SEC. 106. ELIMINATION OF TARIFFS ON CERTAIN NA2 TIONAL DEFENSE ACTIVITIES. 

3 (a) DUTY-FREE TREATMENT FOR EMERGENCY WAR

4 MATERIALS IMPORTEDFOR USE BY THE MARITIME AD5 MINISTRATION.— 

6 (1) The superior text to subheading 9808.00.30 

7 of chapter 98 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of 

8 the United States is amended by inserting ‘‘or the 

9 Maritime Administration’’ after ‘‘departments’’. 

10 (2) Subheading 9808.00.30 of chapter 98 of the 

11 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States is 

12 re-designated as subheading 9808.00.35. 

13 (3) The amendments made by this subsection 

14 shall be effective with respect to goods entered, or 

15 withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or 

16 after the fifteenth day after the date of enactment 

17 of this Act. 

18 (b) REPAIRS MADE TO VESSELS OPERATEDAS PART

19 OF THE NATIONAL DEFENSE RESERVE FLEET.—Section 

20 466 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1466) is amend21 ed by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections 

22 (h) and (i), respectively, and inserting after subsection (f) 

23 the following: 

24 ‘‘(g) NATIONAL DEFENSE RESERVE FLEET EXCEP25 TION.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The duty imposed under 

2 subsection (a) shall not apply to the cost of equip3 ment, or any part thereof purchased, of repair parts 

4 or materials used, or expenses of repairs made in a 

5 foreign country for any vessel operated as part of 

6 the National Defense Reserve Fleet when the vessel 

7 is under the jurisdictional control of the Department 

8 of Defense if equivalent equipment, parts, repair 

9 parts, or materials made in the United States, or re10 pairs made in the United States were determined by 

11 the Secretary of Transportation not to be reasonably 

12 available. 

13 ‘‘(2) REPORT ON DETERMINATIONS.—The Sec14 retary of Transportation shall transmit a report to 

15 the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

16 Transportation and the House of Representatives 

17 Committee on Armed Services setting forth the cir18 cumstances under which any such determination was 

19 made by the Secretary.’’. 

20 SEC. 107. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS FROM APPLICATION 

21 FEES FOR DEEPWATER PORT LICENSES. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Fees collected pursuant to the 

23 processing of applications for licenses for ownership, con24 struction, and operation of deepwater ports, as authorized 

25 by section 5 of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 
19 

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1 1504), shall be credited to the Maritime Administration 

2 for deposit into its operations and training account. Fees 

3 credited pursuant to this section shall be used to defray 

4 administrative expenses and for enhancements and im5 provements to the program’s operations, and shall be 

6 available until expended. 

7 (b) LIMITATION.—The amount of fees credited to the 

8 Administration under this section may not exceed 

9 $450,000 per fiscal year. 

10 SEC. 108. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS FROM ADMINISTRATIVE 

11 WAIVERS OF COASTWISE TRADE LAWS FOR 

12 ELIGIBLE VESSELS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 3302 of 

14 title 31, United States Code, fees collected pursuant to 

15 the processing of Administrative Waivers of the Coastwise 

16 Trade Laws for Eligible Vessels, as authorized by title V 

17 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1998 (46 U.S.C. 

18 12106 note)— 

19 (1) shall be credited as offsetting collections to 

20 the Maritime Administration for deposit into its Op21 erations and Training account; 

22 (2) shall be available for expenditure to defray 

23 administrative expenses and for enhancements and 

24 improvements to the program’s operations; and 

25 (3) shall remain available until expended. 
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1 (b) LIMITATION.—The amount of fees credited to the 

2 Administration under this section may not exceed $50,000 

3 per fiscal year. 

4 SEC. 109. AMENDMENT TO VESSEL OPERATIONS REVOLV5 ING FUND. 

6 Section 801 of the Act of June 2, 1951 (46 U.S.C. 

7 App. 1241a) is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 801. VESSEL OPERATIONS REVOLVING FUND. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

10 Treasury, for the purposes set forth in subsection (b), a 

11 Vessel Operations Revolving Fund which shall be available 

12 without appropriation to the Secretary of Transportation. 

13 All amounts in the Fund shall be available for the pur14 poses of the Fund, notwithstanding any other provision 

15 of law, and shall remain available until expended. 

16 ‘‘(b) USES.—Amounts in the Fund shall be available 

17 for— 

18 ‘‘(1) all expenses and charges relating to the 

19 maintenance, repair, and operation of vessels under 

20 the jurisdiction of the Secretary; 

21 ‘‘(2) all expenses and charges relating to the 

22 maintenance, repair, and operation of the facilities 

23 necessary to preserve and maintain such vessels; 

24 ‘‘(3) payment of all costs of, and indirect costs 

25 that are reasonably related to, contracting, procure-
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1 ment, inspection, storage, management, distribution, 

2 and accountability of vessels under the jurisdiction 

3 of the Secretary and such property, facilities, and 

4 nonpersonal services as the Secretary deems nec5 essary for the operation and maintenance of such 

6 vessels; 

7 ‘‘(4) expenses incurred in activating, repairing, 

8 and deactivating vessels under the jurisdiction of the 

9 Secretary; 

10 ‘‘(5) the acquisition of such vessels for the Na11 tional Defense Reserve Fleet as both the Secretary 

12 and the Secretary of Navy deem necessary; 

13 ‘‘(6) necessary expenses incurred in the protec14 tion, preservation, maintenance, acquisition, or use 

15 of vessels of the National Defense Reserve Fleet in16 volved in mortgage foreclosure or forfeiture pro17 ceedings instituted by the United States Govern18 ment, including payment of prior claims and liens, 

19 expenses of sale, and other related charges; and 

20 ‘‘(7) costs and expenses incurred to repair dam21 ages to Government property under the jurisdiction 

22 or control of the Secretary that is used in connection 

23 with the National Defense Reserve Fleet. 

24 ‘‘(c) CREDITS TO THE FUND.— 
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

2 provision of law, there shall be credited to and re3 tained by the Fund— 

4 ‘‘(A) all amounts received in connection 

5 with vessel operations for vessels under the ju6 risdiction of the Secretary; except that there 

7 shall be no surcharge on charter hire or similar 

8 collection in connection with vessel operations 

9 for the purpose of the reserve described in sub10 section (c)(2); and 

11 ‘‘(B) any reimbursements, advances, 

12 setoffs, refunds, or recoveries arising out of or 

13 relating to the operation and maintenance of 

14 vessels of the National Defense Reserve Fleet 

15 under the jurisdiction of the Secretary, includ16 ing any recoveries from litigation, arbitration, 

17 or otherwise. 

18 ‘‘(2) RESERVE.—There shall be established 

19 and retained in the Fund from litigation and 

20 arbitration recoveries a reserve, not to exceed 

21 $30,000,000 at any one time, for use as a re22 serve for unscheduled repairs and other nec23 essary expenses in connection with casualties to 

24 vessels in the National Reserve Fleet. 
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1 ‘‘(d) LAWS RELATING TO SEAMEN.—Subject to the 

2 provisions of sections 1(a) and (c), 3(c), and 4 of the Act 

3 of March 24, 1943 (50 U.S.C. App. 1291(a) and (c), 

4 1293(c), 1294), seamen employed on vessels in the cus5 tody of the Secretary and operated through the Sec6 retary’s ship managers or general agents may be so em7 ployed by such ship managers or agents in accordance 

8 with customary commercial practices in the maritime in9 dustry without regard to any of the laws on employment 

10 of persons by the United States. 

11 ‘‘(e) ADVANCEMENTS.—With the approval of the Di12 rector of the Office of Management and Budget, the Sec13 retary may advance amounts the Secretary considers nec14 essary from the Fund to the Maritime Administration Op15 erations and Training appropriation account for purposes 

16 of carrying out duties and powers related to the mainte17 nance, repair, and operation of vessels under the jurisdic18 tion of the Secretary, without regard to the limitations on 

19 amounts stated in the Operations and Training appropria20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(f) LIMITATIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts made available to 

23 the Secretary for purposes of this section or any 

24 other law may not be used to pay for a vessel de25 scribed in paragraph (2) unless the compensation to 
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1 be paid is computed under section 56303 of title 46, 

2 United States Code, as that section is interpreted by 

3 the Comptroller General. 

4 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE VESSELS.—Paragraph (1) ap5 plies to a vessel— 

6 ‘‘(A) the title to which is acquired by the 

7 Government by requisition or purchase; 

8 ‘‘(B) the use of which is taken by requisi9 tion or agreement; or 

10 ‘‘(C) that is lost while insured by the Gov11 ernment. 

12 ‘‘(3) NONAPPLICABLE VESSELS.—Paragraph 

13 (1) does not apply to a vessel under a construction14 differential subsidy contract.’’. 

15 SEC. 110. RIGHT TO USE MARITIME ADMINISTRATION 

16 DECORATION. 

17 Section 8 of the Merchant Marine Decorations and 

18 Medals Act (46 U.S.C. App. 2007) is amended by insert19 ing ‘‘or the Secretary of Transportation,’’ after ‘‘Act,’’. 

20 SEC. 111. HAWAII PORT INFRASTRUCTURE EXPANSION 

21 PROGRAM. 

22 Amounts appropriated or otherwise made available 

23 for any fiscal year for an intermodal marine facility com24 prising a component of the Hawaii Port Infrastructure 
25 

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1 Expansion Program, and any non-Federal contributions 

2 made available for that program, shall be— 

3 (1) transferred to and administered by the Ad4 ministrator of the Maritime Administration; and 

5 (2) subject only to such conditions and require6 ments as may be required by the Maritime Adminis7 tration. 

8 SEC. 112. PAYMENTS FOR STATE AND REGIONAL MARITIME 

9 ACADEMIES. 

10 (a) ANNUAL PAYMENT.—Section 1304(d)(1)(C)(ii) 

11 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 

12 1295c(d)(1)(C)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘$200,000’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘subject to the availability of appropriations, 

14 $300,000 for fiscal year 2006, $400,000 for fiscal year 

15 2007, and $500,000 for fiscal year 2008 and each fiscal 

16 year thereafter’’. 

17 (b) SCHOOL SHIP FUEL PAYMENT.—Section 

18 1304(c)(2) of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. 

19 App. 1295c(c)(2)) is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘The Secretary may pay to any 

21 State maritime academy’ and inserting ‘(A) The 

22 Secretary shall, subject to the availability of appro23 priations, pay to each State maritime academy’; and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following: 
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1 ‘‘(B) The amount of the payment to a State maritime 

2 academy under this paragraph shall not exceed— 

3 ‘‘(i) $100,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

4 ‘‘(ii) $200,000 for fiscal year 2007; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) $300,000 for fiscal year 2008 and each 

6 fiscal year thereafter.’’. 

7 SEC. 113. REDUCTION OF REPORT BURDEN. 

8 Section 3502 of the Floyd D. Spence National De9 fense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (114 Stat. 

10 1654A-492), as amended by section 104, is further 

11 amended by striking subsection (d), as redesignated, and 

12 redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (d). 

13 SEC. 114. ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL SHIPYARDS AND MARI14 TIME COMMUNITIES. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—The Adminis16 trator of the Maritime Administration shall establish a 

17 program to provide assistance to State and local govern18 ments— 

19 (1) to provide assistance in the form of grants, 

20 loans, and loan guarantees to small shipyards for 

21 capital improvements; and 

22 (2) for maritime training programs in commu23 nities whose economies are substantially related to 

24 the maritime industry. 
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1 (b) AWARDS.—In providing assistance under the pro2 gram, the Administrator shall— 

3 (1) take into account— 

4 (A) the economic circumstances and condi5 tions of maritime communities; and 

6 (B) the local, State, and regional economy 

7 in which the communities are located; and 

8 (2) strongly encourage State, local, and regional 

9 efforts to promote economic development and train10 ing that will enhance the economic viability of and 

11 quality of life in maritime communities. 

12 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Assistance provided under this 

13 section may be used— 

14 (1) to make capital and related improvements 

15 in small shipyards located in or near maritime com16 munities; 

17 (2) to encourage, assist in, or provide training 

18 for residents of maritime communities that will en19 hance the economic viability of those communities; 

20 and 

21 (3) for such other purposes as the Adminis22 trator determines to be consistent with and supple23 mental to such activities. 

24 (d) PROHIBITED USES.—Grants awarded under this 

25 section may not be used to construct buildings or other 
28 

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1 physical facilities or to acquire land unless such use is spe2 cifically approved by the Administrator in support of sub3 section (c)(5). 

4 (e) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.— 

5 (1) FEDERAL FUNDING.—Except as provided in 

6 paragraph (2), Federal funds for any eligible project 

7 under this section shall not exceed 75 percent of the 

8 total cost of such project. 

9 (2) EXCEPTIONS.— 

10 (A) SMALL PROJECTS.—Paragraph (1) 

11 shall not apply to grants under this section for 

12 stand alone projects costing not more than 

13 $25,000. The amount under this subparagraph 

14 shall be indexed to the consumer price index 

15 and modified each fiscal year after the annual 

16 publication of the consumer price index. 

17 (B) REDUCTION IN MATCHING REQUIRE18 MENT.—If the Administrator determines that a 

19 proposed project merits support and cannot be 

20 undertaken without a higher percentage of Fed21 eral financial assistance, the Administrator may 

22 award a grant for such project with a lesser 

23 matching requirement than is described in 

24 paragraph (1). 

25 (f) APPLICATION.— 
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall de2 termine who, as an eligible applicant, may submit an 

3 application, at such time, in such form, and con4 taining such information and assurances as the Ad5 ministrator may require. 

6 (2) MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR PAYMENT OR

7 REIMBURSEMENT.—Each application submitted 

8 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

9 (A) a comprehensive description of— 

10 (i) the need for the project; 

11 (ii) the methodology for implementing 

12 the project; and 

13 (iii) any existing programs or arrange14 ments that can be used to supplement or 

15 leverage assistance under the program. 

16 (3) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS.—The Adminis17 trator, in consultation with the Office of the Inspec18 tor General, shall issue guidelines to establish appro19 priate accounting, reporting, and review procedures 

20 to ensure that— 

21 (A) grant funds are used for the purposes 

22 for which they were made available; 

23 (B) grantees have properly accounted for 

24 all expenditures of grant funds; and 
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1 (C) grant funds not used for such purposes 

2 and amounts not obligated or expended are re3 turned. 

4 (4) PROJECT APPROVAL REQUIRED.—The Ad5 ministrator may not award a grant under this sec6 tion unless the Administrator determines that— 

7 (A) sufficient funding is available to meet 

8 the matching requirements of subsection (e); 

9 (B) the project will be completed without 

10 unreasonable delay; and 

11 (C) the recipient has authority to carry out 

12 the proposed project. 

13 (g) AUDITS AND EXAMINATIONS.—All grantees 

14 under this section shall maintain such records as the Ad15 ministrator may require and make such records available 

16 for review and audit by the Administrator. 

17 (h) SMALL SHIPYARD DEFINED.—In this section, the 

18 term ‘‘small shipyard’’ means a shipyard that— 

19 (1) is a small business concern (within the 

20 meaning of section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 

21 U.S.C. 632); and 

22 (2) does not have more than 600 employees. 

23 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator of 
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1 the Maritime Administration for each of fiscal years 2006 

2 through 2010 to carry out this section— 

3 (1) $5,000,000 for training grants; and 

4 (2) $25,000,000 for capital and related im5 provement grants. 

6 TITLE II—LOAN GUARANTEE 

7 PROGRAM ADMINISTRATIVE 

8 CHANGES 

9 SEC. 201. REDESIGNATION OF DUPLICATE NUMBERED SEC10 TIONS. 

11 Title XI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 (46 

12 U.S.C. App. 1271 et seq.) is amended by redesignating 

13 the second sections 1111 and 1112, as added by section 

14 303 of the Sustainable Fisheries Act (Public Law 104- 

15 297; 110 Stat. 3616) as sections 1113 and 1114, respec16 tively. 

17 SEC. 202. TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY FOR TITLE XI NON18 FISHING LOAN GUARANTEE DECISIONS TO 

19 MARAD. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XI of the Merchant Marine 

21 Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1271 et seq.) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘Secretary’’ each place it ap23 pears and inserting ‘‘Secretary or Administrator’’ 

24 in— 

25 (A) section 1101 (c), (f), and (g); 
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1 (B) section 1102; 

2 (C) section 1103(a), (b), (c), (e), (g), and 

3 (h); 

4 (D) section 1104A, except in— 

5 (i) subsection (b)(7) and the undesig6 nated paragraph that follows; 

7 (ii) paragraphs (1), (2), (3)(B), and 

8 (4) of subsection (d); 

9 (iii) subsection (e)(2)(F) the second 

10 place it appears; 

11 (iv) subsection (j); and 

12 (v) subsection (n)(1) the first place it 

13 appears; 

14 (E) section 1104B; 

15 (F) section 1105(a), (b), (c), and (e); 

16 (G) section 1105(d) the first, second, 

17 third, fifth, and last places it appears; and 

18 (H) sections 1108, 1109 (except in sub19 section (c)), and 1113 (as redesignated by sec20 tion 201 of this title); 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘Secretary’’ and inserting ‘‘Ad22 ministrator’’ in— 

23 (A) section 1103(i); 

24 (B) section 1103(j) the first place it ap25 pears; 
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1 (C) section 1104A(b)(7) each place it ap2 pears but not in the undesignated paragraph 

3 that follows subsection (b)(7); 

4 (D) section 1104A(d)(1)(A) each place it 

5 appears except the first; 

6 (E) section 1104A(d)(3) each place it ap7 pears except in subparagraph (B); 

8 (F) section 1104A(j)(1) the first, fifth, and 

9 seventh places it appears; 

10 (G) section 1104A(n) each place it appears 

11 except the first; 

12 (H) section 1110 each place it appears ex13 cept the first and fourth places it appears in 

14 subsection (b); 

15 (I) section 1111(a) and (b)(2) each place 

16 it appears; 

17 (J) section 1111(b)(4) each place it ap18 pears except the first; and 

19 (K) section 1112 each place it appears; 

20 and 

21 (3) by striking ‘‘Secretary’s’’ in sections 

22 1108(g)(1) and 1109(d)(3) and inserting ‘‘Sec23 retary’s or Administrator’s’’. 

24 (b) ADDITIONAL AND CONFORMING TITLE XI 

25 CHANGES.— 
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1 (1) Section 1101 is amended— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘title,’’ and all that follows 

3 in subsection (n) and inserting ‘‘title.’’; and 

4 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(p) The term ‘Administrator’ means the Ad6 ministrator of the Maritime Administration.’’. 

7 (2) Section 1103(j) is amended by striking ‘‘In 

8 guaranteeing and entering commitments to guar9 antee under this section,’’ and inserting ‘‘If the Sec10 retary or Administrator seeks a priority for a com11 mitment to guarantee under this section,’’. 

12 (3) Section 1104A(d) is amended— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘Secretary of Transpor14 tation’’ in paragraphs (1)(A) and (3)(B) and 

15 inserting ‘‘Administrator’’; 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘the waiver’’ in paragraph 

17 (4)(B) and inserting ‘‘if deemed necessary by 

18 the Secretary or Administrator, the waiver’’; 

19 (C) by striking ‘‘the increased’’ in para20 graph (4)(B) and inserting ‘‘any significant in21 crease in’’. 

22 (4) Section 1104A(f) is amended— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘financial structures, or 

24 other risk factors identified by the Secretary or 

25 Administrator.’’ in paragraph (2), as amended 
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1 by subsection (a) of this section, and inserting 

2 ‘‘or financial structures.’’; 

3 (B) by adding at the end of paragraph (2) 

4 ‘‘The Secretary or Administrator shall not es5 tablish by rule, regulation, or procedure any re6 quirement for independent analysis that is, or is 

7 intended to be, applied uniformly to loan guar8 antee applications without regard to such risk 

9 factors.’’; 

10 (C) by striking ‘‘financial structures, or 

11 other risk factors identified by the Secretary or 

12 Administrator.’’ in paragraph (3), as amended 

13 by subsection (a) of this section, and inserting 

14 ‘‘or financial structures.’’; and 

15 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(5) A third party independent analysis conducted 

17 under paragraph (2) shall be performed by a private sector 

18 expert in assessing such risk factors who is selected by 

19 the Administrator. No Federal funds shall be expended to 

20 conduct any review of any application under this title, or 

21 any modification of an existing loan guarantee, by any 

22 party that is not an expert in maritime finance or oper23 ations.’’. 
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1 (5) Section 1104A(j)(2) is amended by striking 

2 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘The Administrator’’. 

4 (6) Section 1104A(l) is amended by adding at 

5 the end ‘‘The Administrator shall retain in the Mari6 time Administration adequate resources with suffi7 cient expertise to perform the functions prescribed 

8 by this title so that no assistance from the Depart9 ment of Transportation or any other Federal agency 

10 is required to carry out this title.’’. 

11 (7) Section 1104A(m) is amended by striking 

12 the last sentence and inserting ‘‘If the Secretary or 

13 Administrator has waived a requirement under sec14 tion 1104A(d), the loan agreement shall include re15 quirements for additional payments, collateral, or eq16 uity contributions to meet such waived requirement 

17 upon the occurrence of verifiable conditions indi18 cating that the obligor’s financial condition enables 

19 the obligor to meet the waived requirement.’’. 

20 (8) Section 1104A(n)(1) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘The Administrator’’. 

23 (9) Section 1111 is amended— 
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•S 2029 RS 

1 (A) by striking ‘‘SECRETARY OF 

2 TRANSPORTATION’’ in the section head3 ing and inserting ‘‘ADMINISTRATOR’’; 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘Secretary of Transpor5 tation’’ each place it appears and inserting 

6 ‘‘Administrator’’; 

7 (c) CONFORMING CHANGES IN OTHER STATUTES.— 

8 (1) Section 401(a) of the Ocean Shipping Re9 form Act of 1998 (46 U.S.C. App. 1273a(a)) is 

10 amended by striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘Administrator of the Maritime Ad12 ministration’’. 

13 (2) Section 101 of Public Law 85-469 (46 

14 U.S.C. 1280) is amended by inserting ‘‘or the Ad15 ministrator of the Maritime Administration’’ after 

16 ‘‘Secretary’’. 

17 (3) Section 3527 of the Maritime Security Act 

18 of 2003 (46 U.S.C. App. 1280b) is amended by 

19 striking ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘the Administrator of the Maritime Administra21 tion’’. 

22 (4) Section 3528 of the Maritime Security Act 

23 of 2003 (46 U.S.C. App. 1271 note) is repealed. 
Calendar No. 295 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2029 

[Report No. 109–183] 

A BILL 

To amend and enhance certain maritime programs 

other purposes. of the Department of Transportation, and for 

NOVEMBER 17, 2005 

Read twice and placed on the calendar