Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 202 / Friday, October 18, 2024 / Notices 83941 

3NTSB Safety Recommendation R–23–23 

recommends that FRA ‘‘[i]ssue a safety alert to 

railroads regarding the importance of establishing 

roadway maintenance machine standoff distances 

that take into account the ability of an operator to 

see a worker or object in the track gauge behind a 

roadway maintenance machine.’’ 

Importance of Clear Communications 

and Compliance with Applicable Rules 

and Procedures during the additional 

safety briefings. 

FRA considers this Safety Advisory 

responsive to NTSB Safety 

Recommendation R–23–23 3 and FRA 

encourages all railroad industry 

members to take actions consistent with 

the recommendations of this Advisory. 

FRA may modify this Safety Advisory, 

issue additional safety advisories, or 

take other appropriate action necessary 

to ensure the highest level of safety on 

the Nation’s railroads, including 

pursuing other corrective measures 

under its rail safety authority. 

Issued in Washington, DC. 

John Karl Alexy, 

Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, 

Chief Safety Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2024–24118 Filed 10–17–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Maritime Administration 

Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement; Extension and 

Modification 

AGENCY: Maritime Administration, 

Department of Transportation. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Maritime Administration 

(MARAD) announces the extension of 

the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement (VISA) until October 1, 2029, 

pursuant to Section 708 of the Defense 

Production Act of 1950, as amended. 

VISA is intended to make intermodal 

shipping services/systems, including 

ships, ships’ space, intermodal facilities 

and equipment, and related 

management services, available to the 

Department of Defense (DoD) as 

required to support the emergency 

deployment and sustainment of U.S. 

Armed Forces through cooperation 

among the maritime industry, the 

Department of Transportation (DOT), 

and DoD. In addition to extending VISA 

for an additional 5 years for existing 

participants, MARAD is modifying 

VISA for new applicants by making 

certain modifications to the Agreement, 

including clarification of what is meant 

by shipping services/systems, and the 

required vessel certifications for 

program entry. MARAD has also 

updated references to authorities and 

statutory and regulatory citations. 

DATES: This agreement will be effective 

on October 1, 2024, superseding the 

existing VISA agreement, as published 

in the Federal Register on October 29, 

2014 (79 FR 64462–70) and renewed on 

September 30, 2019 (84 FR 51710–11). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David J. Hatcher, Office of Sealift 

Support, Room W25–310, Maritime 

Administration, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, 

(202) 366–0688, Fax (202) 366–5904. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

708 of the Defense Production Act of 

1950, as amended (50 U.S.C. 4558) (DPA 

Sec. 708), authorizes the President to 

consult with representatives of industry, 

business, finance, agriculture, labor, and 

other interests to establish voluntary 

emergency preparedness agreements, 

following a finding that conditions exist 

which may pose a direct threat to the 

national defense or its preparedness 

programs. It further authorizes the 

President to delegate that authority to 

individuals who are appointed by and 

with the advice and consent of the 

Senate, upon the condition that such 

individuals obtain the prior approval of 

the Attorney General after the Attorney 

General’s consultation with the Federal 

Trade Commission (FTC). Section 401 of 

Executive Order (E.O.) 13603 (Mar. 16, 

2012) delegated this authority of the 

President to the Secretary of 

Transportation (SecTrans), among 

others. In accordance with 49 CFR 

1.93(l), SecTrans delegated VISA’s 

sponsorship authority to the Maritime 

Administrator, in consultation and 

coordination with the DOT’s Office of 

Intelligence, Security and Emergency 

Response. Through advance 

arrangements in joint planning, VISA 

participants will provide capacity to 

support a significant portion of surge 

and sustainment requirements in the 

deployment of U.S. military forces 

during a time of war or national 

emergency, or whenever the Secretary of 

Defense (or delegate) determines that it 

is necessary for national security or 

contingency operations. 

The text of VISA was first published 

in the Federal Register on February 13, 

1997, effective for an initial two-year 

term expiring on February 13, 1999 (62 

FR 6838–46). The VISA document had 

been extended and subsequently 

published in the Federal Register every 

two years. Effective September 30, 2009, 

Congress amended DPA Sec. 708 to note 

that each voluntary agreement expires 

five (5) years after the date it becomes 

effective. MARAD updated the VISA 

agreement language most recently in 

2014, as published in the Federal 

Register on October 29, 2014 (79 FR 

64462–70), and extended the effective 

period of that language by five years 

until October 1, 2024, by notice in the 

Federal Register on September 30, 2019 

(84 FR 51710–11). The agreement 

published in this notice incorporates, 

among other changes: (1) updates to 

vessel eligibility requirements, as first 

published in the Federal Register on 

January 31, 2018 (83 FR 4552–54); (2) 

changes to the requirements for 

coastwise trading waivers under 46 

U.S.C. 501, pursuant to statutory 

amendments enacted in 2021 and 2022; 

(3) clarifications of certain definitions 

and obligations on VISA stakeholders; 

and (4) certain non-substantive clerical 

updates. 

In accordance with DPA Sec. 

708(f)(2), the Maritime Administrator 

continues to find that VISA is necessary 

to respond to direct threats to the 

national defense or its preparedness 

programs, and sought a concurrent 

finding from the Assistant Attorney 

General for the Antitrust Division, 

Department of Justice (whose authority 

has been delegated from the Attorney 

General in accordance with 28 CFR 

0.40(l)), in consultation with the Chair 

of the Federal Trade Commission, that 

the objectives of VISA may not be 

reasonably achieved through either a 

voluntary plan having fewer 

anticompetitive effects or the absence of 

such a voluntary agreement or plan of 

action. By notice in the Federal Register 

on October 2, 2024 (89 FR 80264–65), 

the Assistant Attorney General for the 

Antitrust Division, Department of 

Justice, in consultation with the Chair of 

the Federal Trade Commission, made 

such a concurrent finding on September 

26, 2024. Therefore, in accordance with 

DPA Sec. 708(f)(2), VISA may be 

extended for another five-year term. The 

text published herein supersedes the 

2014 language, as renewed in 2019, for 

an effective period of five years, ending 

October 1, 2029. Copies of this 

agreement will be made available to the 

public upon request. 

Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement (VISA) 

Table of Contents 

Definitions 

Preface 

I. Purpose 

II. Authorities 

A. MARAD 

B. USTRANSCOM 

III. General 

A. Concept 

B. Responsibilities 


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C. Termination of Charter, Leases and 

Other Contractual Arrangements 

D. Modification/Amendment of This 

Agreement 

E. Administrative Expenses 

F. Record Keeping 

G. MARAD Reporting Requirements 

IV. Joint Planning Advisory Group (JPAG) 

V. Activation of VISA Contingency 

Provisions 

A. General 

B. Notification of Activation 

C. Voluntary Capacity 

D. Stage I 

E. Stage II 

F. Stage III 

G. Partial Activation 

VI. Participant Terms and Conditions 

A. Participation 

B. Agreement of Participant 

C. Effective Date and Duration of 

Agreement 

D. Participant Termination of VISA 

E. Carrier Coordination Agreements 

F. Vessel Qualifications 

G. Enrollment of Intermodal Capacity— 

Vessels, Facilities, and Equipment 

H. War Risk Insurance 

I. Antitrust Defense 

J. Breach of Contract Defense 

K. Vessel Sharing Agreements 

VII. Application and Agreement 

Abbreviations 

CCA—Carrier Coordination Agreement 

CFR—Code of Federal Regulations 

CONOPS—Concept of Operations 

DoD—United States Department of Defense 

DOJ—United States Department of Justice 

DOT—United States Department of 

Transportation 

DPA—Defense Production Act of 1950, as 

amended (50 U.S.C. Chapter 55) 

E.O.–Executive Order 

FEMA—Federal Emergency Management 

Agency 

FMC—Federal Maritime Commission 

FOIA—Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 

552) 

FTC—Federal Trade Commission 

JCS—Joint Chiefs of Staff 

JPAG—Joint Planning Advisory Group 

MARAD—Maritime Administration 

MSP—Maritime Security Program (46 U.S.C. 

53101–11) 

SecDef—United States Secretary of Defense 

SecTrans—United States Secretary of 

Transportation 

U.S.C.—United States Code 

USCG—United States Coast Guard 

USTRANSCOM—United States 

Transportation Command, inclusive of its 

military service component commands Air 

Mobility Command, Military Sealift 

Command, and Military Surface 

Deployment and Distribution Command, 

and its subordinate command Joint 

Enabling Capabilities Command 

VISA—Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement 

VSA—Vessel Sharing Agreement 

Definitions 

For purposes of this Agreement, the 

following definitions apply: 

Administrator—Maritime Administrator, 

unless otherwise stipulated. 

Agreement—Agreement (proper noun) refers 

to VISA. 

Attorney General—Attorney General of the 

United States. 

Broker—A person who arranges for 

transportation of cargo for a fee. 

Carrier Coordination Agreement (CCA)—An 

agreement between two or more 

Participants or between Participant and 

non-Participant carriers to coordinate their 

services in a Contingency, including 

agreements to: (1) charter vessels or 

portions of the cargo-carrying capacity of 

vessels; (2) share cargo handling 

equipment, chassis, containers and 

ancillary transportation equipment; (3) 

share wharves, warehouse, marshaling 

yards and other marine terminal facilities; 

and (4) coordinate the movement of 

vessels. 

Charter—Any agreement or commitment by 

which the possession or services of a vessel 

are secured for a period, or for one or more 

voyages, whether or not by a demise of the 

vessel. 

Combatant Commander—Any of the military 

officers defined under 10 U.S.C. 164. 

Commander—Combatant Commander, 

USTRANSCOM, unless otherwise 

stipulated. 

Commercial—Transportation service 

provided for profit by privately owned (not 

government owned) vessels to a private or 

government shipper. The type of service 

may be either common carrier or contract 

carriage. 

Contingency—A military operation that is 

either designated by the Secretary of 

Defense as a contingency operation or 

becomes a contingency operation as a 

matter of law, in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 

101(a)(13). 

Contract carrier—A for-hire carrier who does 

not hold out regular service to the general 

public, but instead contracts, for agreed 

compensation, with a particular shipper for 

the carriage of cargo in all or a particular 

part of a ship for a specified period of time 

or on a specified voyage or voyages. 

Controlling interest—More than a 50-percent 

interest by stock ownership. 

Dry cargo—Includes (1) any non-liquid good 

or commodity and (2) liquids shipped in 

pre-packaged containers (such as bottled 

drinking water). It does not include any 

bulk liquid cargo shipped directly in the 

holds of vessels. 

Foreign-flag vessel—A vessel registered or 

documented under the laws of a country 

other than the United States of America. 

Intermodal equipment—Containers 

(including specialized equipment), chassis, 

trailers, tractors, cranes, and other materiel 

handling equipment, as well as other 

ancillary items. 

Management services—Management 

expertise and experience, intermodal 

terminal management, information 

resources, and control and tracking 

systems. 

Military Services—Includes the armed 

services identified in 10 U.S.C. 101(a)(4): 

United States Army, United States Navy, 

United States Air Force, United States 

Marine Corps, United States Space Force, 

and United States Coast Guard. 

Ocean common carrier—In accordance with 

46 U.S.C. 40102, an entity holding itself 

out to the general public to provide 

transportation by water of passengers or 

cargo for compensation that (1) assumes 

responsibility for transportation from port 

or point of receipt to port or point of 

destination, and (2) operates and utilizes a 

vessel operating on the high seas for all or 

part of that transportation. 

Operator—An ocean common carrier or 

contract carrier that owns or controls or 

manages vessels by which ocean 

transportation is provided. 

Organic sealift—For the purposes of this 

Agreement, ships considered to be under 

government control or long-term charter, 

including Fast Sealift Ships, Ready Reserve 

Force vessels and commercial ships under 

long-term charter to DoD. 

Participant—A vessel operator that (1) 

successfully applies to join VISA, in 

accordance with Section VII of this 

document, and (2) enters into a 

USTRANSCOM VISA Contingency 

Contract. This may be augmented under 

the terms of Section VI(A) of this 

document. 

Person—Includes individuals and 

corporations, partnerships, and 

associations existing under or authorized 

by the laws of the United States or any 

state, territory, district, or possession 

thereof, or of a foreign country. 

Service contract—As defined in 46 U.S.C. 

40102(21), a contract between a shipper (or 

a shipper’s association) and an ocean 

common carrier (or conference) in which 

the shipper makes a commitment to 

provide a certain minimum quantity of 

cargo or freight revenue over a fixed time 

period, and the ocean common carrier or 

conference commits to a certain rate or rate 

schedule, as well as a defined service level 

(such as assured space, transit time, port 

rotation, or similar service features). The 

contract may also specify provisions in the 

event of nonperformance on the part of 

either party. 

Standby—The interval between the effective 

date of a Participant’s acceptance into 

VISA and the activation of any stage, and 

the periods between deactivation of all 

stages and any later activation of any stage. 

U.S.-flag Vessel—A commercial vessel 

registered or documented under the laws of 

the United States of America in accordance 

with 46 U.S.C. Chapter 121 and any 

associated regulations and instructions 

promulgated by USCG. 

USTRANSCOM VISA Contingency 

Contract—The contract between a 

signatory party to VISA and 

USTRANSCOM establishing the minimum 

terms and conditions for VISA capacity 

activation. Attachment I of the contract is 

executed and signed by MSC, MARAD, 

USTRANSCOM and the individual carrier 

to enroll that carrier’s vessel capacity into 

VISA Stages I, II and III. 

Vessel Sharing Agreement (VSA) Capacity— 

Space chartered to a Participant for 

carriage of cargo, under its commercial 

contracts, service contracts or in common 


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carriage, aboard vessels shared with 

another carrier or carriers pursuant to a 

commercial vessel sharing agreement 

under which the carriers may compete 

with each other for the carriage of cargo. 

In U.S. foreign trades the agreement is filed 

with the Federal Maritime Commission 

(FMC) in conformity with the Shipping Act 

of 1984 and implementing regulations. 

Volunteer—Any vessel owner or operator 

who is an ocean carrier and who offers to 

make capacity, resources, or systems 

available to support contingency 

requirements. 

Preface 

The Administrator, pursuant to the 

authority contained in Section 708 of 

the Defense Production Act of 1950, as 

amended (50 U.S.C. 4558), in 

cooperation with DoD, developed the 

Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement 

(VISA) to provide DoD with assured 

access to the commercial sealift and 

intermodal shipping services/systems 

necessary to meet wartime, national 

emergency, national security, or 

contingency operation requirements. 

United States Transportation 

Command (USTRANSCOM) procures 

commercial shipping capacity to meet 

requirements for ships and intermodal 

shipping services/systems through 

arrangements with common carriers, 

with contract carriers and by charter. 

DoD (through USTRANSCOM) and DOT 

(through MARAD) maintain and operate 

a fleet of ships owned by or under 

charter to the Federal Government to 

meet the logistics needs of the Military 

Services and Combatant Commanders 

that cannot be met by existing 

commercial service. Governmentcontrolled ships are selectively 

activated for peacetime military tests 

and exercises, and to satisfy military 

operational requirements that cannot be 

met by commercial shipping in time of 

war, national emergency, or military 

contingency. Foreign-flag shipping is 

used in accordance with applicable 

laws, regulations, and policies. 

VISA has been established to provide 

DoD with a coordinated, seamless 

transition from peacetime to armed 

conflict for the acquisition of 

commercial sealift and intermodal 

capability to augment DoD’s organic 

sealift capabilities. This Agreement 

establishes the terms, conditions, and 

general procedures by which persons or 

parties may become VISA Participants. 

Through advance joint planning among 

USTRANSCOM, MARAD and the 

Participants, Participants may provide 

predetermined capacity in designated 

stages to support DoD Contingency 

requirements. During contingencies, 

Participants are afforded maximum 

flexibility to adjust commercial 

operations by Carrier Coordination 

Agreements (CCAs), in accordance with 

applicable law. 

Participants will be afforded the first 

opportunity to meet DoD peacetime and 

Contingency sealift requirements within 

applicable law and regulations, to the 

extent that the Government’s 

operational requirements are met. In the 

event VISA Participants are unable to 

fully meet Contingency requirements, 

the shipping capacity made available 

under VISA may be supplemented by 

ships/capacity from non-Participants in 

accordance with applicable law and by 

ships requisitioned under 46 U.S.C. 

56301. In addition, containers and 

chassis made available under VISA may 

be supplemented by services and 

equipment acquired by USTRANSCOM 

or accessed by the Administrator. 

I. Purpose 

A. The Administrator has determined, 

in accordance with DPA Section 

708(c)(1), that conditions exist that may 

pose a direct threat to the national 

defense of the United States or its 

preparedness programs and, under the 

provisions of Section 708, has certified 

to the Attorney General that an 

emergency preparedness agreement for 

utilization of U.S.-flag commercial 

vessels and intermodal shipping 

services/systems is necessary for the 

national defense. The Attorney General, 

in consultation with the FTC Chair, has 

issued a finding that dry cargo shipping 

capacity to meet national defense 

requirements cannot be provided by the 

industry through a voluntary agreement 

having less anticompetitive effects or 

without a voluntary agreement. 

B. VISA provides a responsive 

transition from peace to contingency 

operations through pre-coordinated 

agreements for sealift capacity to 

support DoD contingency requirements 

and establishes procedures for the 

commitment of intermodal shipping 

services/systems to satisfy such 

requirements. 

VISA will change from standby to 

active status upon activation by 

appropriate authority of any of the 

stages described in Section V. 

C. VISA promotes and facilitates 

DoD’s use of existing commercial 

transportation resources and integrated 

intermodal transportation systems, in a 

manner which minimizes disruption to 

commercial operations, whenever 

possible. 

D. Participants’ capacity which may 

be committed pursuant to this 

Agreement may include all intermodal 

shipping services/systems/facilities and 

all ship types, including container, 

geared container, partial container, 

container/bulk, container/roll-on/rolloff, roll-on/roll-off (of all varieties), 

multi-purpose/heavy lift, breakbulk 

ships, and tug and barge combinations. 

E. 46 U.S.C. 53107 directs SecTrans to 

establish an Emergency Preparedness 

Agreement in conjunction with SecDef, 

as part of the Maritime Security Program 

(MSP), that requires MSP participants to 

make their commercial transportation 

resources (including services) available 

to SecDef during times of armed 

conflict, national emergency, or 

whenever SecDef determines that such 

resources are necessary for national 

security or Contingency operations. 

VISA is the designated Emergency 

Preparedness Agreement for MSP, and 

participation in VISA fulfills the 

requirements of 46 U.S.C. 53107 on 

MSP participants. 

II. Authorities 

A. Department of Transportation and 

MARAD 

1. DPA Section 708, as amended (50 

U.S.C. 4558); E.O. 13603; E.O. 12656; 49 

CFR 1.93(l); 49 CFR 1.81(a)(10). 

2. Section 401 of E.O. 13603 delegated 

the authority of the President under 

Section 708 to SecTrans, among others. 

By 49 CFR 1.93(l), in consultation and 

coordination with DOT’s Office of 

Intelligence, Security and Emergency 

Response, SecTrans delegated to the 

Administrator the authority under 

which VISA is sponsored. 

3. 46 U.S.C. 53107. 

4. 46 U.S.C. 501(b). 

B. Department of Defense and 

USTRANSCOM 

1. 10 U.S.C. 113, 161–69. 

2. Unified Command Plan, 

designating the Commander as the DoD 

Single Manager for Transportation, 

including ‘‘[p]roviding common-user 

and commercial transportation, terminal 

management, and aerial refueling.’’ 

3. DoD Directive (DoDD) 4500.09, 

Transportation and Traffic Management, 

designating the Commander as the DoD 

single manager for transportation for 

other than Service-unique or theaterassigned assets and provide commonuser and commercial air, land, and sea 

transportation and delegating functions 

to serve as the DoD representative for 

Maritime Security Fleet actions that 

SecDef is authorized to take under 46 

U.S.C. Ch. 531. 

4. DoD Instruction 4500.57, which 

further designates the Commander as 

the DoD authority to request MARAD 

activation of Ready Reserve Force (RRF) 

vessels pursuant to 46 U.S.C. 57100, 

which may be used for contingency 

operations, exercises, training and 


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testing, and other defense purposes for 

which scheduled or chartered 

commercial sealift assets are not 

available or suitable. 

III. General 

A. Concept 

1. VISA provides for the staged, timephased availability of Participants’ 

shipping services/systems to meet 

SecDef-directed DoD Contingency 

requirements in the most demanding 

defense-oriented sealift emergencies and 

for less demanding defense-oriented 

situations through pre-negotiated 

Contingency contracts between the 

government and Participants. Such 

arrangements will be jointly planned 

among MARAD, USTRANSCOM, and 

Participants in peacetime to allow for 

effective, efficient, and best valued use 

of commercial sealift capacity, provide 

DoD assured access, and minimize 

commercial disruption, whenever 

possible. 

a. Stages I and II provide for prenegotiated contingency contracts 

between USTRANSCOM and 

Participants to provide sealift capacity 

against all projected DoD Contingency 

requirements. These agreements will be 

executed in accordance with approved 

DoD contracting methodologies. 

b. Stage III will provide for additional 

capacity to DoD when Stages I and II 

commitments or volunteered capacity 

are insufficient to meet Contingency 

requirements, and adequate shipping 

services from non-participants are not 

available through established DoD 

contracting practices or U.S. 

Government treaty agreements. 

2. Activation will be in accordance 

with procedures outlined in Section V 

of this Agreement. 

3. Following is the prioritized order 

for utilization of commercial sealift 

capacity to meet DoD peacetime and 

Contingency requirements: 

a. U.S.-flag vessel capacity operated 

by a Participant and U.S.-flag VSA 

capacity of a Participant. 

b. U.S.-flag vessel capacity operated 

by a non-Participant. 

c. Combination U.S./foreign-flag 

vessel capacity operated by a Participant 

and combination U.S./foreign-flag VSA 

capacity of a Participant. 

d. Combination U.S./foreign-flag 

vessel capacity operated by a nonParticipant. 

e. U.S. owned or operated foreign-flag 

vessel capacity and VSA capacity of a 

Participant. 

f. U.S. owned or operated foreign-flag 

vessel capacity and VSA capacity of a 

non-Participant. 

g. Foreign-owned or operated foreignflag vessel capacity of a non-Participant. 

4. Under Section VI.F. of this 

Agreement, Participants may implement 

CCAs to fulfill their contractual 

commitments to meet VISA 

requirements. 

B. Responsibilities 

1. SecDef, through USTRANSCOM, 

will: 

a. Define time-phased requirements 

for Contingency sealift capacity and 

resources required in Stages I, II, and III 

to augment DoD sealift resources. 

b. Keep MARAD and Participants 

apprised of Contingency sealift capacity 

required and resources committed to 

Stages I and II. 

c. Obtain Contingency sealift capacity 

through the implementation of specific 

pre-negotiated USTRANSCOM 

Contingency contracts with Participants. 

d. Notify the Administrator upon 

activation of any stage of VISA. 

e. Co-chair (with MARAD) the Joint 

Planning Advisory Group (JPAG) (see 

section IV). 

f. Establish procedures, in accordance 

with applicable law and regulation, 

providing Participants with necessary 

determinations for use of foreign-flag 

vessels to replace an equivalent U.S.- 

flag capacity to transport a Participant’s 

normal peacetime DoD cargo, when 

Participant’s U.S.-flag assets are 

removed from regular service to meet 

VISA Contingency requirements. 

g. Provide a reasonable time to permit 

an orderly return of a Participant’s 

vessel(s) to its regular schedule and 

termination of its foreign-flag capacity 

arrangements as determined through 

coordination between USTRANSCOM 

and the Participants. 

h. Review and endorse Participants’ 

requests to MARAD for use of foreignflag replacement capacity for non-DoD 

government cargo, when U.S.-flag 

capacity is required to meet 

Contingency requirements. 

2. SecTrans, through MARAD, will: 

a. Review the amount of sealift 

resources committed under 

USTRANSCOM contracts to Stages I and 

II and notify USTRANSCOM if a 

particular level of VISA commitment 

will have serious adverse impact on the 

U.S.-flag Merchant Marine’s ability to 

provide essential maritime 

transportation and intermodal shipping 

services. MARAD’s analysis will be 

based on the consideration that all VISA 

Stage I and II capacity committed will 

be activated. This notification will occur 

on an as required basis upon the 

Commander’s acceptance of VISA 

commitments from the Participants. If 

advised by MARAD, USTRANSCOM 

will adjust the size of the stages or 

provide MARAD with justification for 

maintaining the size of those stages. 

USTRANSCOM and MARAD will 

coordinate to ensure that the volume of 

sealift assets committed to Stages I and 

II will not have an adverse national 

economic impact. 

b. Coordinate with DOJ for the 

expedited approval of CCAs. 

c. Upon request by the Commander 

and approval by SecDef to activate Stage 

III, allocate sealift capacity and 

intermodal assets to meet DoD 

Contingency requirements. DoD will 

have priority consideration in any 

allocation situation. 

d. Establish procedures, pursuant to 

46 U.S.C. 53107(f), for determinations 

regarding the selection, equivalency, 

and duration of the use of foreign-flag 

vessels to replace U.S.-flag vessel 

capacity to transport the cargo of a 

Participant which has entered into an 

operating agreement under 46 U.S.C. 

53103 whose U.S.-flag vessel capacity 

has been removed from regular service 

to meet VISA contingency requirements. 

Such foreign-flag vessels shall be 

eligible to transport cargo that is subject 

to U.S.-flag preference cargo 

requirements of 10 U.S.C. 2631 (with 

respect to military cargo or cargo 

otherwise transported by DoD) and 46 

U.S.C. 55302–05 (with respect to all 

other cargoes shipped by, or on account 

of, an agency of the United States 

Government). However, any procedures 

regarding the use of such foreign-flag 

vessels to transport cargo subject to 10 

U.S.C. 2631 must have an approved 

waiver in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 

2631 and its implementing delegations 

and regulations. 

e. Co-chair (with USTRANSCOM) the 

JPAG. 

f. Review requests by Participants to 

the Secretary of Homeland Security 

under 46 U.S.C. 501(b) to waive 

compliance with the coastwise 

transportation requirements under 46 

U.S.C. 55102 if U.S. coastwise-qualified 

vessels are activated under VISA and 

make determinations of U.S. coastwisequalified vessel non-availability during 

a VISA activation. To the extent 

feasible, participants with U.S. 

coastwise-qualified vessels or vessel 

capacity will use CCAs or other 

arrangements to fulfill their VISA 

commitments to protect their ability to 

maintain domestic services for their 

commercial customers and to fulfill 

their commercial peacetime 

commitments with U.S.-flag vessels. In 

situations where the activation of VISA 

deprives a Participant of all or a portion 

of its U.S. coastwise-qualified vessels or 

vessel capacity and, at the same time, 

creates a general shortage of U.S. 

coastwise-qualified vessel(s) or vessel 


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capacity on the domestic market, based 

on market surveys, Participants with 

coastwise-qualified tonnage may apply 

for vessel-specific waivers under 46 

U.S.C. 501(b). The vessel(s) or vessel 

capacity for which such waivers are 

requested will be approximately equal 

to the U.S. coastwise-qualified vessel(s) 

or vessel capacity chartered or under 

contract to DoD. 

C. Termination of Charters, Leases and 

Other Contractual Arrangements 

1. USTRANSCOM will notify the 

Administrator as soon as possible of the 

prospective termination of charters, 

leases, management service contracts or 

other contractual arrangements made by 

DoD under this Agreement. 

2. In the event of general 

requisitioning of ships under 46 U.S.C. 

56301, the Administrator will consider 

commitments made with DoD under 

this Agreement when selecting those 

vessels designated for requisition by, 

purchase by, or charter for the use of, 

the Government. 

D. Modification of This Agreement 

1. The Attorney General may modify 

this Agreement, in writing, after 

consultation with the FTC Chair, 

SecTrans, through their representative 

MARAD, and SecDef, through their 

representative the Commander. 

Although Participants may withdraw 

from this Agreement pursuant to 

Section VI.D, they remain subject to 

VISA as modified until such 

withdrawal. 

2. The Administrator, Commander, 

and Participants may modify this 

Agreement at any time by mutual 

agreement, but only in writing with the 

approval of the Attorney General and 

the FTC Chair. 

3. Participants may propose 

modifications to this Agreement at any 

time. 

E. Administrative Expenses 

Administrative and out-of-pocket 

expenses incurred by a participant must 

be borne solely by the Participant. 

F. Record Keeping 

1. MARAD will maintain carrier VISA 

application records in accordance with 

applicable DOT directives. Once a 

carrier is selected as a VISA Participant, 

MARAD will forward a copy of the 

VISA application form to 

USTRANSCOM. 

2. In accordance with 44 CFR 

332.2(c), MARAD will record JPAG 

meetings and make a full and verbatim 

transcript available for public 

inspection upon request, subject to 

FOIA exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552(b). 

MARAD will send this transcript, and 

any voluntary agreement resulting from 

the meeting, to the Attorney General, 

the FTC Chair, the FEMA 

Administrator, any other party or 

repository required by law, and to 

Participants upon their request. 

3. USTRANSCOM will be the official 

custodian of records related to the 

Contingency contracts to be used under 

this Agreement, including specific 

information on enrollment of a 

Participant’s capacity in VISA. 

4. In accordance with 44 CFR 

332.3(d), a Participant must maintain for 

five (5) years all minutes of meetings, 

transcripts, records, documents, and 

other data, including any 

communications with other Participants 

or with any other member of the 

industry or their representatives, related 

to the administration of VISA, including 

planning related to and implementation 

of Stage activations of this Agreement. 

Each Participant agrees to make such 

records available to the Administrator, 

the Commander, the Attorney General, 

and the FTC Chair for inspection and 

copying at reasonable times and upon 

reasonable notice. Any record 

maintained by MARAD or 

USTRANSCOM pursuant to paragraphs 

1, 2, or 3 of this subsection must be 

available for public inspection and 

copying unless exempted under FOIA 

on the grounds specified in 5 U.S.C. 

552(b)(1), (b)(3), or (b)(4), in accordance 

with DPA Section 708 and 

implementing regulations at 44 CFR part 

332.5. 

G. MARAD Reporting Requirements 

MARAD will report to the FEMA 

Administrator, as required, on the status 

and use of this Agreement. 

IV. Joint Planning Advisory Group 

(JPAG) 

A. The Joint Planning Advisory Group 

(JPAG) provides USTRANSCOM, 

MARAD and VISA Participants a 

planning forum to: 

1. Analyze DoD Contingency sealift/ 

intermodal service and resource 

requirements. 

2. Identify commercial sealift capacity 

that may be used to meet DoD 

requirements, related to Contingencies 

and, as requested by USTRANSCOM, 

exercises and special movements. 

3. Develop and recommend CONOPS 

to meet DoD-approved Contingency 

requirements and, as requested by 

USTRANSCOM, exercises and special 

movements. 

B. JPAG will be co-chaired by 

MARAD and USTRANSCOM and will 

convene as jointly determined by the cochairs. 

C. JPAG will consist of designated 

representatives from MARAD, 

USTRANSCOM, each Participant, and 

maritime labor. Other attendees may be 

invited at the discretion of the co-chairs 

as necessary to meet JPAG requirements. 

Representatives will provide technical 

advice and support to ensure maximum 

coordination, efficiency, and 

effectiveness in the use of Participants’ 

resources. All Participants will be 

invited to all open JPAG meetings. For 

selected JPAG meetings, attendance may 

be limited to designated Participants to 

meet specific operational requirements. 

1. The co-chairs may establish 

working groups within JPAG. 

Participants may be assigned to working 

groups as necessary to develop specific 

CONOPS. 

2. Each working group will be cochaired by representatives designated by 

MARAD and USTRANSCOM. 

D. JPAG will not be used for contract 

negotiations and/or contract discussions 

between carriers and DoD; such 

negotiations and/or discussions will be 

in accordance with applicable DoD 

contracting policies and procedures. 

E. The JPAG co-chairs will: 

1. Notify the Attorney General, the 

FTC Chair, Participants, and the 

maritime labor representative of the 

time, place, and nature of each JPAG 

meeting. 

2. Provide for publication in the 

Federal Register of a notice of the time, 

place, and nature of each JPAG meeting. 

If the meeting is open, a Federal 

Register notice will be published 

reasonably in advance of the meeting. If 

a meeting is closed, a Federal Register 

notice will be published within ten (10) 

days after the meeting and will include 

the reasons for closing the meeting. 

3. Establish the agenda for each JPAG 

meeting and be responsible for 

adherence to the agenda. 

4. Provide for a full and complete 

transcript or other record of each 

meeting and provide one copy each of 

transcript or other record to the 

Attorney General, the FTC Chair, and to 

Participants, upon request. 

F. Security Measures—The co-chairs 

will develop and coordinate appropriate 

security measures so that Contingency 

planning information can be shared 

with Participants to enable them to plan 

their commitments. 

V. Activation of VISA Contingency 

Provisions 

A. General 

VISA may be activated at the request 

of SecDef as needed to support 

Contingency operations. Activating 

voluntary commitments of capacity to 


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support such operations will be in 

accordance with pre-negotiated 

Contingency contracts between 

USTRANSCOM and Participants. 

B. Notification of Activation 

1. The Commander will notify the 

Administrator of the activation of Stages 

I, II, and III. 

2. The Administrator will notify the 

Attorney General and the FTC Chair 

when it has been determined by DoD 

that activation of any Stage of VISA is 

necessary to meet DoD Contingency 

requirements. 

C. Voluntary Capacity 

1. Throughout the activation of any 

Stages of this Agreement, DoD may 

utilize voluntary commitment of sealift 

capacity or systems. 

2. Requests for volunteer capacity will 

be extended simultaneously to both 

Participants and other carriers. First 

priority for utilization will be given to 

Participants who have signed Stage I 

and/or II USTRANSCOM Contingency 

contracts and are capable of meeting the 

operational requirements. Participants 

providing voluntary capacity may 

request USTRANSCOM to activate their 

pre-negotiated Contingency contracts; to 

the maximum extent possible, 

USTRANSCOM, where appropriate, will 

support such requests. Volunteered 

capacity will be credited against 

Participants’ staged commitments, in 

the event such stages are subsequently 

activated. 

3. In the event Participants are unable 

to fully meet Contingency requirements, 

or do not voluntarily offer to provide the 

required capacity, the shipping capacity 

made available under VISA may be 

supplemented by ships/capacity from 

non-Participants. 

4. When voluntary capacity does not 

meet DoD Contingency requirements, 

DoD will activate the VISA stages as 

necessary. 

D. Stage I 

1. Stage I will be activated in whole 

or in part by the Commander, with 

approval of SecDef, when voluntary 

capacity commitments are insufficient 

to meet DoD Contingency requirements. 

The Commander will notify the 

Administrator upon activation. 

2. USTRANSCOM will implement 

Stage I Contingency contracts as needed 

to meet operational requirements. 

E. Stage II 

1. Stage II will be activated, in whole 

or in part, when Contingency 

requirements exceed the capability of 

Stage I and/or voluntarily committed 

resources. 

2. Stage II will be activated by the 

Commander, with approval of SecDef, 

following the same procedures 

discussed in paragraph D above. 

F. Stage III 

1. Stage III will be activated, in whole 

or in part, when Contingency 

requirements exceed the capability of 

Stages I and II, and other shipping 

services are not available. This stage 

involves DoD use of capacity and 

vessels operated by Participants which 

will be furnished to DoD when required 

in accordance with this Agreement. The 

capacity and vessels are allocated by 

MARAD on behalf of SecTrans to the 

Commander. 

2. Stage III will be activated by the 

Commander upon approval by SecDef. 

Upon activation, SecDef will request 

SecTrans to allocate sealift capacity 

based on DoD requirements, in 

accordance with Title 1 of DPA (50 

U.S.C. 4511–18), to meet the 

Contingency requirement. All 

Participants’ capacity committed to 

VISA is subject to use during Stage III. 

3. Upon allocation of sealift assets by 

SecTrans, through its designated 

representative MARAD, the Commander 

will execute Contingency contracts with 

Participants, using standard negotiating 

procedures. Until execution of such 

contract, the Participant agrees that the 

assets remain subject to the provisions 

46 U.S.C. 56301. 

G. Partial Activation 

As used in this Section V, the term 

activation in part of any Stage under 

this Agreement means one of the 

following: 

1. Activation of only a portion of the 

committed capacity of some, but not all, 

of the Participants in any Stage that is 

activated; or 

2. Activation of the entire committed 

capacity of some, but not all, of the 

Participants in any Stage that is 

activated; or 

3. Activation of only a portion of the 

entire committed capacity of all the 

Participants in any Stage that is 

activated. 

VI. Participant Terms and Conditions 

A. Participation 

1. Any U.S.-flag vessel operator 

organized under the laws of a State or 

Territory of the United States, or the 

District of Columbia, may become a 

Participant in this Agreement by 

submitting an executed copy of the form 

referenced in Section VII, and by 

entering into a VISA Contingency 

Contract with USTRANSCOM, which 

establishes a legal obligation to perform 

and the compensation methodology for 

all services rendered. 

2. Consideration of a Participant’s 

overall vessel capacity, intermodal 

resources, facilities and equipment 

includes (1) assets owned or operated by 

the applicant vessel operator described 

in VI.A.1 above, and (2) all United 

States subsidiaries and affiliates of the 

vessel operator that own, operate, 

control, or bareboat charter vessels and 

intermodal equipment in the regular 

course of their business and in which 

the vessel operator holds a controlling 

interest. 

3. Upon request of the applicant 

executing the form referenced in Section 

VII, Participants may include their 

controlled non-domestic subsidiaries 

and affiliates as part of their capacity 

commitment, provided that the 

Administrator, in coordination with the 

Commander, grants specific approval for 

their inclusion. 

4. Any vessel owner or operator 

receiving payments under a Maritime 

Security Program (MSP) Operating 

Agreement, in accordance with 46 

U.S.C. 53106, must become a Participant 

with respect to all vessels enrolled in 

MSP at all times until the date the MSP 

Operating Agreement would have 

terminated according to its original 

terms. The MSP operator must be 

enrolled in VISA as a Stage III 

Participant, at a minimum. Such 

participation will satisfy the 

requirement for an MSP participant to 

be enrolled in an emergency 

preparedness program approved by 

SecDef as provided in 46 U.S.C. 53107. 

5. A Participant is subject only to the 

provisions of this Agreement. 

6. MARAD shall publish a list of 

Participants periodically in the Federal 

Register. 

B. Agreement of Participant 

1. Each Participant agrees to provide 

commercial sealift and/or intermodal 

shipping services/systems in accordance 

with USTRANSCOM VISA Contingency 

contracts. USTRANSCOM will review 

and approve each Participant’s 

commitment to ensure it meets DoD 

Contingency requirements. A 

Participant’s capacity commitment to 

Stages I and II will be one of the 

considerations in determining the level 

of DoD peacetime contracts awarded, 

except for U.S. coastwise-qualified 

vessel capacity as discussed in 

paragraph 4, below. 

2. USTRANSCOM may also enter into 

Contingency contracts, not linked to 

peacetime contract commitments, with 

Participants, as required to meet Stage I 

and II requirements. 


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3. Commitment of Participants’ 

resources to VISA is as follows: 

a. Stage III: A carrier desiring to 

participate in DoD peacetime contracts/ 

traffic must commit no less than 50% of 

its total U.S.-flag capacity into Stage III. 

Carriers receiving payments under MSP 

Operating Agreements will have vessels 

receiving such assistance enrolled in 

Stage III. Participants’ capacity under 

long-term charter to DoD will be 

considered organic to DoD and does not 

count towards the Participant’s 

Contingency commitment during the 

period of the charter. Participants whose 

capacity is utilized under Stage III 

activation will be compensated based 

upon the negotiated rates by the 

Participant and USTRANSCOM within 

the USTRANSCOM Contingency 

Contract. 

b. Stages I and II: DoD will annually 

develop and publish minimum 

commitment requirements for Stages I 

and II. Normally, the awarding of a longterm DoD contract (i.e., one year or 

longer), exclusive of charters, will 

include the annual predesignated 

minimum commitment to Stages I and/ 

or II. Participants desiring to bid on DoD 

peacetime contracts will be required to 

provide commitment levels to meet 

DoD-established Stage I and/or II 

minimums on an annual basis. 

Participants may gain additional 

consideration for peacetime contract 

cargo allocation awards by committing 

capacity to Stages I and II beyond the 

specified minimums. If the Participant 

is awarded a contract reflecting such a 

commitment, that commitment must 

become the actual amount of a 

Participant’s U.S.-flag capacity 

commitment to Stages I and II. A 

Participant’s Stage III U.S.-flag capacity 

commitment must represent its total 

minimum VISA commitment. That 

Participant’s Stage I and II capacity 

commitments, as well as any volunteer 

capacity contribution by Participant, are 

portions of Participant’s total VISA 

commitment. Participants activated 

during Stages I and II will be 

compensated in accordance with prenegotiated USTRANSCOM VISA 

Contingency contracts. 

4. Participants exclusively operating 

vessels engaged in domestic trades will 

be required to commit 50% of that 

capacity to Stage III. Such Participants 

will not be required to commit capacity 

to Stages I and II as a consideration of 

domestic peacetime traffic and/or 

contract award. However, such 

Participants may voluntarily agree to 

commit capacity to Stages I and/or II. 

5. The Participant owning, operating, 

or controlling an activated ship or ship 

capacity will provide intermodal 

equipment and management services 

needed to utilize the ship and 

equipment at not less than the 

Participant’s normal efficiency, in 

accordance with the pre-negotiated 

USTRANSCOM VISA Contingency 

contracts implementing this Agreement. 

6. Each Participant acknowledges and 

agrees to abide by all provisions of DPA 

Section 708, as amended, and 

regulations related thereto which are 

promulgated by SecTrans, the Attorney 

General, and the FTC Chair. 49 CFR part 

33 establishes procedures for assigning 

the priority for use and the allocation of 

shipping services, containers, and 

chassis to meet emergency 

requirements. JPAG will inform 

Participants of new and amended rules 

and regulations as they are issued in 

accordance with law and administrative 

due process. Although Participants may 

withdraw from VISA, they remain 

subject to all of the terms of this 

Agreement. 

C. Effective Date and Duration of the 

Agreement 

1. Participation in this Agreement is 

effective upon execution by MARAD of 

the submitted form referenced in 

Section VII, and approval by 

USTRANSCOM by execution of an 

USTRANSCOM VISA Contingency 

Contract, for Stage III, at a minimum. 

2. VISA participation remains in 

effect until the Participant terminates 

the Agreement in accordance with 

paragraph D below, or termination of 

the Agreement in accordance with 44 

CFR Sec. 332.4. Notwithstanding 

termination of VISA or participation in 

VISA, obligations pursuant to executed 

DoD peacetime contracts must remain in 

effect for the term of such contracts and 

are subject to all terms and conditions 

thereof. 

D. Participant Termination of VISA 

1. Except as provided in paragraph 2 

below, a Participant may terminate its 

participation in VISA upon written 

notice to the Administrator. Such 

termination will become effective 30 

days after written notice is received, 

unless obligations incurred under VISA 

by virtue of activation of any 

Contingency contract cannot be fulfilled 

prior to the termination date, in which 

case the Participant must complete the 

performance of such obligations. 

Voluntary termination by a carrier of its 

VISA participation shall not act to 

terminate or otherwise mitigate any 

separate contractual commitment 

entered into with DoD. 

2. A Participant having an MSP 

Operating Agreement with MARAD 

must not withdraw from this Agreement 

at any time during the original term of 

the MSP Operating Agreement. 

3. A Participant’s withdrawal, or 

termination of this Agreement, will not 

deprive a Participant of an antitrust 

defense otherwise available to it in 

accordance with DPA Section 708 for 

the fulfillment of obligations incurred 

prior to withdrawal or termination. 

E. Carrier Coordination Agreements 

(CCA) 

1. When any Stage of VISA is 

activated or when DoD has requested 

volunteer capacity pursuant to Section 

V.B. of VISA, Participants may 

implement approved CCAs to meet the 

needs of DoD and to minimize the 

disruption of their services to the civil 

economy. 

2. A CCA for which the parties seek 

the benefit of DPA Section 708(j) must 

be identified as such and be submitted 

to the Administrator for approval and 

certification in accordance with DPA 

Section 708(f)(1)(A). Upon approval and 

certification, the Administrator will 

transmit the Agreement to the Attorney 

General for a finding in accordance with 

DPA Section 708(f)(1)(B). Parties to 

approved CCAs may avail themselves of 

the antitrust defenses set forth in DPA 

Section 708(j). Nothing in VISA 

precludes Participants from engaging in 

lawful conduct (including carrier 

coordination activities) that lies outside 

the scope of an approved CCA; but 

antitrust defenses will not be available 

pursuant to DPA Section 708(j) for such 

conduct. 

3. Participants may seek approval for 

CCAs at any time. 

F. Vessel Qualifications 

1. All vessels enrolled in VISA must 

be capable of operating in worldwide/ 

intercontinental trades for dry cargoes 

(i.e., not tankers) and must be capable of 

carrying military cargoes, including 

hazardous cargoes, on transoceanic 

voyages. Participants must provide 

evidence of this capability for all vessels 

they seek to enroll by submitting USCG 

certificates of inspection, international 

load line certificates, classification 

society survey reports, and/or 

documents of compliance for the 

carriage of certain goods or operation in 

certain worldwide geographic regions, 

as appropriate. 

2. Participants may apply to enroll 

either self-propelled vessels, tugs-andbarges, or both. If applying with tugsand-barges, Participants or applicants 

must provide MARAD satisfactory 

evidence that tug service of sufficient 

horsepower will be available for all 

barges proposed for enrollment in VISA, 


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and of the barges’ capacity to carry 

military cargoes intercontinentally. 

3. If Participants offer vessels that 

they operate under bareboat charter, 

such charters must state that the vessel’s 

owner will not interfere with the 

charterer’s obligation to commit the 

chartered vessels to VISA for the 

duration of the charter. If a Participant 

offering tug-and-barge capacity does not 

own or bareboat charter sufficient tug 

service for the barges it owns, then it 

must submit time charters for the 

additional tugs needed to cover its barge 

capacity, valid through the period of its 

VISA enrollment. 

G. Enrollment of Intermodal Capacity 

Vessels, Facilities, and Equipment 

1. Participant will prepare a list 

identifying the ships/capacity and 

intermodal facilities, connections, and 

equipment committed by a Participant 

to each Stage of VISA and submit such 

list to USTRANSCOM within seven 

calendar days after a carrier has become 

a Participant. USTRANSCOM will 

maintain a record of all such 

commitments. Participants will notify 

USTRANSCOM of any changes not later 

than seven days prior to the change. 

2. USTRANSCOM will provide a copy 

of each Participant’s VISA commitment 

data and all changes to MARAD. 

3. In accordance with DPA Section 

708, as amended, and implementing 

regulations at 44 CFR part 332.5, any 

information made available to 

administer this agreement or plan of 

action must be made available for public 

inspection and copying subject to FOIA 

exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(1), 

(b)(3), or (b)(4). Information which a 

Participant identifies as privileged or 

business confidential/proprietary data 

shall be withheld from public disclosure 

in accordance with DPA Sections 

708(h)(3) and 705(e), or which qualifies 

for exemption from public disclosure 

under 5 U.S.C. 552(b). 

4. Enrolled ships are required to 

comply with 46 CFR part 307, 

Establishment of Mandatory Position 

Reporting System for Vessels. 

H. War Risk Insurance 

1. Where commercial war risk 

insurance is not available on reasonable 

terms and conditions, DOT will provide 

non-premium government war risk 

insurance, subject to the provisions of 

46 U.S.C. 53905. 

2. Pursuant to 46 CFR 308.1(c), the 

Administrator will find each ship 

enrolled or utilized under this 

Agreement eligible for U.S. Government 

war risk insurance. 

I. Antitrust Defense 

1. Under the provisions of DPA 

Section 708(j), each carrier must have 

available as a defense to any civil or 

criminal action brought under the 

antitrust laws of the United States, or 

any similar law of any State, Territory, 

or the District of Columbia, with respect 

to any action taken to develop or carry 

out this Agreement, that such act was 

taken in the course of developing or 

carrying out this Agreement and that the 

Participant complied with the 

provisions of DPA and any regulation 

thereunder, and acted in accordance 

with the terms of this Agreement. 

2. This defense will not be available 

to the Participant for any action 

occurring after termination of this 

Agreement. This defense will not be 

available upon the modification of this 

Agreement with respect to any 

subsequent action that is beyond the 

scope of the modified text of this 

Agreement, except that no such 

modification will be accomplished in a 

way that will deprive the Participant of 

antitrust defense for the fulfillment of 

obligations incurred. 

3. This defense will be available only 

if and to the extent that the Participant 

asserting it demonstrates that the action, 

which includes a discussion or 

agreement, was within the scope of this 

Agreement. 

4. The person asserting the defense 

bears the burden of proof. 

5. The defense will not be available if 

the person against whom it is asserted 

shows that the action was taken for the 

purpose of violating the antitrust laws. 

6. As appropriate, the Administrator, 

on behalf of SecTrans, and DoD will 

support agreements filed by Participants 

with FMC that are related to the standby 

or Contingency implementation of 

VISA. 

J. Breach of Contract Defense 

Under the provisions of DPA Section 

708, in any action in any Federal court 

or the courts of any State, Territory, or 

the District of Columbia for breach of 

contract, there will be available as a 

defense that the alleged breach of 

contract was caused predominantly by 

action taken by a Participant during an 

emergency (including action taken in 

imminent anticipation of an emergency) 

to carry out this Agreement. Such 

defense will not release the party 

asserting it from any obligation under 

applicable law to mitigate damages to 

the greatest extent possible. 

K. Vessel Sharing Agreements (VSA) 

1. VISA allows Participants the use of 

a VSA to utilize non-Participant U.S.- 

flag or foreign-owned and operated 

foreign-flag vessel capacity as a 

substitute for VISA Contingency 

capability provided that: 

a. The foreign-flag capacity is utilized 

in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2631, 46 

U.S.C. 55302–05, and associated 

delegations and/or regulations. 

b. The use of a VSA, either currently 

in use or a new proposal, as a 

substitution to meet DoD Contingency 

requirements is agreed upon by 

USTRANSCOM and MARAD. 

c. The Participant carrier 

demonstrates adequate control over the 

offered VSA capacity during the period 

of utilization. 

d. Participant’s service requirements 

are satisfied. 

e. Participant is responsible to DoD 

for the carriage or services contracted 

for. Though VSA capacity may be 

utilized to fulfill a Contingency 

commitment, a Participant’s U.S.-flag 

VSA capacity in another Participant’s 

vessel will not act in a manner to 

increase a Participant’s capacity 

commitment to VISA. 

2. Participants will apprise MARAD 

and USTRANSCOM in advance of any 

change in a VSA of which it is a 

member, if such changes reduce the 

availability of Participant capacity 

provided for in any approved and 

accepted Contingency Concept of 

Operations. 

3. Participants will not act as a broker 

for DoD cargo unless requested by 

USTRANSCOM. 

VII. Application and Agreement 

The Administrator, in coordination 

with the Commander, has adopted the 

following form, titled Application to 

Participate in the Voluntary Intermodal 

Sealift Agreement, by which intermodal 

ship operators may apply to become a 

Participant in this Agreement. The form 

incorporates, by reference, the terms of 

this Agreement. 

United States of America, Department 

of Transportation, Maritime 

Administration 

Application To Participate in the 

Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement 

The applicant identified below hereby 

applies to participate in the Maritime 

Administration’s agreement entitled 

‘‘Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement.’’ The text of said Agreement 

is published in llllllFederal 

Register llllll, llllll, l

20l. This Agreement is authorized 

under Section 708 of the Defense 

Production Act of 1950, as amended (50 

U.S.C. 4558). Regulations governing this 

Agreement appear at 44 CFR part 332 


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The applicant, if selected, hereby 

acknowledges and agrees to the 

incorporation by reference into this 

Application and Agreement of the entire 

text of the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement published in llllll

Federal Register llllll, llll

ll, l20l, as though said text were 

physically recited herein. 

The Applicant, as a Participant, agrees 

to comply with the provisions of 

Section 708 of the Defense Production 

Act of 1950, as amended, the regulations 

of 44 CFR part 332 and the terms of the 

Voluntary Intermodal Sealift 

Agreement. Further, the applicant, if 

selected as a Participant, hereby agrees 

to contractually commit to make 

specifically enrolled vessels or capacity, 

intermodal equipment and management 

of intermodal transportation systems 

available for use by the Department of 

Defense and to other Participants as 

discussed in this Agreement and the 

subsequent USTRANSCOM Voluntary 

Intermodal Sealift Agreement 

Contingency Contract for the purpose of 

meeting national defense requirements. 

Attest: 

lllllllllllllllllll

(Corporate Secretary) 

Effective Date: 

lllllllllllllllllll

(Secretary) lllllllllllll

(Applicant-Corporate Name) lllll

(Signature) 

lllllllllllllllllll

(Position Title) 

United States of America, Department of 

Transportation, Maritime 

Administration 

By: 

lllllllllllllllllll

Maritime Administrator 

(Authority: Section 708 of the Defense 

Production Act, as amended (50 U.S.C. 4558), 

49 CFR 1.93(l), E.O. 13603, 49 CFR 

1.81(a)(10), E.O. 12656) 

By Order of the Maritime Administrator. 

T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr., 

Secretary, Maritime Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2024–23974 Filed 10–17–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–81–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of Foreign Assets Control 

Notice of OFAC Sanctions Actions 

AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets 

Control, Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of the 

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets 

Control (OFAC) is publishing the names 

of one or more persons that have been 

placed on OFAC’s Specially Designated 

Nationals and Blocked Persons List 

(SDN List) based on OFAC’s 

determination that one or more 

applicable legal criteria were satisfied. 

All property and interests in property 

subject to U.S. jurisdiction of these 

persons are blocked, and U.S. persons 

are generally prohibited from engaging 

in transactions with them. 

DATES: This action was issued on 

October 15, 2024. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section for relevant dates. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

OFAC: Associate Director for Global 

Targeting, 202–622–2420; Assistant 

Director for Licensing, 202–622–2480; 

or Assistant Director for Sanctions 

Compliance, 202–622–2490 or https://

ofac.treasury.gov/contact-ofac. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Availability 

The SDN List and additional 

information concerning OFAC sanctions 

programs are available on OFAC’s 

website: https://ofac.treasury.gov. 

Notice of OFAC Actions 

On October 15, 2024, OFAC 

determined that the property and 

interests in property subject to U.S. 

jurisdiction of the following persons are 

blocked under the relevant sanctions 

authorities listed below. 

Individual 

1. BARAKAT, Khaled (a.k.a. ‘‘Rabah’’), 

Canada; DOB 01 Jun 1972; POB Ramallah, 

Palestinian Territories; Gender Male; 

Secondary sanctions risk: section 1(b) of 

Executive Order 13224, as amended by 

Executive Order 13886; Passport AG669835 

(Canada) expires 25 May 2028 (individual) 

[SDGT] (Linked To: POPULAR FRONT FOR 

THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE). 

Designated pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(A) 

of Executive Order 13224 of September 23, 

2001, ‘‘Blocking Property and Prohibiting 

Transactions With Persons Who Commit, 

Threaten to Commit, or Support Terrorism,’’ 

66 FR 49079, as amended by Executive Order 

13886 of September 9, 2019, ‘‘Modernizing 

Sanctions To Combat Terrorism,’’ 84 FR 

48041 (E.O. 13224, as amended), for having 

acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, 

directly or indirectly, the POPULAR FRONT 

FOR THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE, a 

person whose property and interests in 

property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 13224. 

Entity 

1. SAMIDOUN PALESTINIAN PRISONER 

SOLIDARITY NETWORK (a.k.a. LE RESEAU 

DE SOLIDARITE AUX PRISONNIERS 

PALESTINIENS SAMIDOUN; a.k.a. 

SAMIDOUN; a.k.a. ‘‘HIRAK’’), Vancouver, 

British Columbia, Canada; London, United 

Kingdom; Secondary sanctions risk: section 

1(b) of Executive Order 13224, as amended 

by Executive Order 13886; Organization 

Established Date 2011 to 2012; National ID 

No. 12793741 (Canada); UK Company 

Number 13885242 (United Kingdom) [SDGT] 

(Linked To: POPULAR FRONT FOR THE 

LIBERATION OF PALESTINE). 

Designated pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(A) 

of E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, 

controlled, or directed by, or has acted or 

purported to act for or on behalf of, directly 

or indirectly, the POPULAR FRONT FOR 

THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE, a person 

whose property and interests in property are 

blocked pursuant to E.O. 13224. 

Lisa M. Palluconi, 

Acting Director, Office of Foreign Assets 

Control. 

[FR Doc. 2024–24134 Filed 10–17–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4810–AL–P 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

Privacy Act of 1974; System of 

Records 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs 

(VA). 

ACTION: Notice of a modified system of 

records. 

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Privacy Act of 

1974, notice is hereby given that the 

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is 

modifying the system of records titled, 

‘‘VA Child Care Subsidy Program 

Records-VA’’ (165VA05CCSP). This 

system contains the records used by the 

Child Care Records Management System 

(CCRMS) which provides a mechanism 

for online application processing; 

subsidy benefit requests; and the 

tracking, filing, retrieving, and storing of 

documents. 

DATES: Comments on this modified 

system of records must be received no 

later than November 18, 2024. If no 

public comment is received during the 

period allowed for comment or unless 

otherwise published in the Federal 

Register by VA, the modified system of 

records will become effective a 

minimum of 30 days after the date of 

publication in the Federal Register. If 

VA receives public comments, VA shall 

review the comments to determine 

whether any changes to the notice are 

necessary. 

ADDRESSES: Comments concerning the 

modified system of records may be 

submitted through www.Regulations.gov 

or mailed to VA Privacy Service, 810 

Vermont Avenue NW, (005X6F), 

Washington, DC 20420. Comments 

should indicate they are submitted in 

response to ‘‘VA Child Care Subsidy 

Program Records—VA’’ 

(165VA05CCSP). Comments received 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES