II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1326 

To amend certain maritime programs of the Department of Transportation, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 13, 2015 

Mrs. FISCHER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To amend 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Maritime Administra5 tion Enhancement Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CADET COMMITMENT AGREEMENTS. 

7 Section 51306(a) of title 46, United States Code, is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

10 striking ‘‘must’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’; 


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1 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol2 lows: 

3 ‘‘(2) obtain a merchant mariner license, unlim4 ited as to horsepower or tonnage, issued by the 

5 United States Coast Guard as an officer in the mer6 chant marine of the United States, accompanied by 

7 the appropriate national and international endorse8 ments and certifications required by the Coast 

9 Guard for service aboard vessels on domestic and 

10 international voyages, without limitation, before 

11 graduation from the Academy;’’; 

12 (3) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol13 lows: 

14 ‘‘(3) for at least 6 years after graduation from 

15 the Academy, maintain— 

16 ‘‘(A) a valid merchant mariner license, un17 limited as to horsepower or tonnage, issued by 

18 the United States Coast Guard as an officer in 

19 the merchant marine of the United States, ac20 companied by the appropriate national and 

21 international endorsements and certifications 

22 required by the Coast Guard for service aboard 

23 vessels on domestic and international voyages, 

24 without limitation; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a valid transportation worker identi2 fication credential; and 

3 ‘‘(C) a United States Coast Guard medical 

4 certificate;’’; and 

5 (4) by amending paragraph (4) to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(4) apply for, and accept if tendered, an ap8 pointment as a commissioned officer in the Navy Re9 serve (including the Strategic Sealift Officer Pro10 gram, Navy Reserve), the Coast Guard Reserve, or 

11 any other reserve component of an armed force of 

12 the United States, and, if tendered the appointment, 

13 to serve, meet the participation requirements, and 

14 maintain active status in good standing, as deter15 mined by the program manager of the appropriate 

16 military service, for at least 8 years after the date 

17 of commissioning;’’. 

18 SEC. 3. STUDENT INCENTIVE PAYMENT AGREEMENTS. 

19 Section 51509 of title 46, United States Code, is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (b)— 

22 (A) by inserting ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZED

23 USES.—’’ before the last sentence and indenting 

24 accordingly; 


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1 (B) in the matter preceding paragraph (3), 

2 by striking ‘‘Payments’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) IN

3 GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph 

4 (2), payments’’ and indenting accordingly; and 

5 (C) by inserting after paragraph (1), the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may modify 

8 the payments made to an individual under para9 graph (1), but the total amount of payments to that 

10 individual may not exceed $32,000.’’; 

11 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘Merchant 

12 Marine Reserve’’ and inserting ‘‘Strategic Sealift Of13 ficer Program’’; 

14 (3) in subsection (d)— 

15 (A) by amending paragraph (2) to read as 

16 follows: 

17 ‘‘(2) obtain a merchant mariner license, without 

18 limitation as to tonnage or horsepower, from the 

19 United States Coast Guard as an officer in the mer20 chant marine of the United States, accompanied by 

21 the appropriate national and international endorse22 ments and certification required by the Coast Guard 

23 for service aboard vessels on domestic and inter24 national voyages, without limitation, within three 


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1 months of completion of the course of instruction at 

2 the academy the individual is attending;’’; 

3 (B) by amending paragraph (3) to read as 

4 follows: 

5 ‘‘(3) for at least 6 years after graduation from 

6 the academy, maintain— 

7 ‘‘(A) a valid merchant mariner license, un8 limited as to horsepower or tonnage, issued by 

9 the United States Coast Guard as an officer in 

10 the merchant marine of the United States, ac11 companied by the appropriate national and 

12 international endorsements and certifications 

13 required by the Coast Guard for service aboard 

14 vessels on domestic and international voyages, 

15 without limitation; 

16 ‘‘(B) a valid transportation worker identi17 fication credential; and 

18 ‘‘(C) a United States Coast Guard medical 

19 certificate;’’ and 

20 (C) by amending paragraph (4) to read as 

21 follows: 

22 ‘‘(4) apply for, and accept, if tendered, an ap23 pointment as a commissioned officer in the Navy Re24 serve (including the Strategic Sealift Officer Pro25 gram, Navy Reserve), the Coast Guard Reserve, or 


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1 any other reserve component of an armed force of 

2 the United States, and, if tendered the appointment, 

3 to serve and meet the participation requirements 

4 and to maintain active status in good standing, as 

5 determined by the program manager of the appro6 priate military service, for at least 8 years after the 

7 date of commissioning;’’; 

8 (4) by amending subsection (e)(1) to read as 

9 follows: 

10 ‘‘(1) ACTIVE DUTY.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of De12 fense may order an individual to serve on active 

13 duty in the armed forces of the United States 

14 for a period of not more than 2 years if— 

15 ‘‘(i) the individual has attended an 

16 academy under this section for more than 

17 2 academic years, but less than 3 academic 

18 years; 

19 ‘‘(ii) the individual has accepted the 

20 payments described in subsection (b) in an 

21 amount totaling at least $8,000; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) the Secretary of Transportation 

23 has determined that the individual has 

24 failed to fulfill the part of the agreement 

25 described in subsection (d)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(B) 3 OR MORE YEARS.—The Secretary 

2 of Defense may order an individual to serve on 

3 active duty in the armed forces of the United 

4 States for a period of not more than 3 years 

5 if— 

6 ‘‘(i) the individual has attended an 

7 academy under this section for 3 or more 

8 academic years; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the individual has accepted the 

10 payments described in subsection (b) in an 

11 amount totaling at least $16,000; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) the Secretary of Transportation 

13 has determined that the individual has 

14 failed to fulfill the part of the agreement 

15 described in subsection (d)(1). 

16 ‘‘(C) HARDSHIP WAIVER.—In cases of 

17 hardship as determined by the Secretary of 

18 Transportation, the Secretary of Transportation 

19 may waive this paragraph in whole or in part.’’; 

20 and 

21 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(h) ALTERNATIVE SERVICE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) SERVICE AS COMMISSIONED OFFICER.—An 

24 individual who, for the 5-year period following grad25 uation from an academy, serves as a commissioned 


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1 officer on active duty in an armed force of the 

2 United States or as a commissioned officer of the 

3 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

4 or the Public Health Service shall be excused from 

5 the requirements of paragraphs (3) through (5) of 

6 subsection (d). 

7 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION OR WAIVER.—The Sec8 retary may modify or waive any of the terms and 

9 conditions set forth in subsection (d) through the 

10 imposition of alternative service requirements.’’. 

11 SEC. 4. FEDERAL UNEMPLOYMENT TAX ACT. 

12 Section 3305 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

13 (26 U.S.C. 3305) is amended by striking ‘‘Secretary of 

14 Commerce’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary 

15 of Transportation’’. 

16 SEC. 5. SHORT SEA TRANSPORTATION DEFINED. 

17 Paragraph (1) of section 55605 of title 46, United 

18 States Code, is amended— 

19 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or’’; 

20 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘and’’; 

21 and 

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

23 ‘‘(C) shipped in discrete units or packages 

24 that are handled individually, palletized, or 

25 unitized for purposes of transportation; or 


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1 ‘‘(D) freight vehicles carried aboard com2 muter ferry boats; and’’. 

3 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NA4 TIONAL SECURITY ASPECTS OF THE MER5 CHANT MARINE FOR FISCAL YEARS 2016 AND 

6 2017. 

7 (a) FISCAL YEAR 2016.—Funds are hereby author8 ized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2016, to be available 

9 without fiscal year limitation if so provided in appropria10 tions Acts, for the use of the Department of Transpor11 tation for Maritime Administration programs associated 

12 with maintaining national security aspects of the mer13 chant marine, as follows: 

14 (1) For expenses necessary for operations of the 

15 United States Merchant Marine Academy, 

16 $80,000,000, of which— 

17 (A) $65,000,000 shall remain available 

18 until expended for Academy operations; and 

19 (B) $15,000,000 shall remain available 

20 until expended for capital asset management at 

21 the Academy. 

22 (2) For expenses necessary to support the State 

23 maritime academies, $22,200,000, of which— 

24 (A) $2,300,000 shall remain available until 

25 expended for student incentive payments; 


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1 (B) $2,400,000 shall remain available until 

2 expended for direct payments to such acad3 emies; 

4 (C) $15,000,000 shall remain available 

5 until expended for maintenance and repair of 

6 State maritime academy training vessels; and 

7 (D) $2,500,000 shall remain available until 

8 expended for a National Security Multi-Mission 

9 Vessel Design Program. 

10 (3) For expenses necessary to support Maritime 

11 Administration operations and programs, 

12 $50,400,000. 

13 (4) For expenses necessary to dispose of vessels 

14 in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, $4,000,000 

15 to remain available until expended. 

16 (5) For expenses to maintain and preserve a 

17 United States-flag merchant marine to serve the na18 tional security needs of the United States under 

19 chapter 531 of title 46, United States Code, 

20 $186,000,000. 

21 (6) For administrative expenses of the loan 

22 guarantees authorized by chapter 537 of title 46, 

23 United States Code, $3,100,000 to remain available 

24 until expended. 


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1 (b) FISCAL YEAR 2017.—Funds are hereby author2 ized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2017, to be available 

3 without fiscal year limitation if so provided in appropria4 tions Acts, for the use of the Department of Transpor5 tation for Maritime Administration programs associated 

6 with maintaining national security aspects of the mer7 chant marine, as follows: 

8 (1) For expenses necessary for operations of the 

9 United States Merchant Marine Academy, 

10 $80,000,000, of which— 

11 (A) $65,000,000 shall remain available 

12 until expended for Academy operations; and 

13 (B) $15,000,000 shall remain available 

14 until expended for capital asset management at 

15 the Academy. 

16 (2) For expenses necessary to support the State 

17 maritime academies, $22,200,000, of which— 

18 (A) $2,300,000 shall remain available until 

19 expended for student incentive payments; 

20 (B) $2,400,000 shall remain available until 

21 expended for direct payments to such acad22 emies; 

23 (C) $15,000,000 shall remain available 

24 until expended for maintenance and repair of 

25 State maritime academy training vessels; and 


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1 (D) $2,500,000 shall remain available until 

2 expended for a National Security Multi-Mission 

3 Vessel Design Program. 

4 (3) For expenses necessary to support Maritime 

5 Administration operations and programs, 

6 $50,400,000. 

7 (4) For expenses necessary to dispose of vessels 

8 in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, $4,000,000 

9 to remain available until expended. 

10 (5) For expenses to maintain and preserve a 

11 United States-flag merchant marine to serve the na12 tional security needs of the United States under 

13 chapter 531 of title 46, United States Code, 

14 $186,000,000. 

15 (6) For administrative expenses of the loan 

16 guarantees authorized by chapter 537 of title 46, 

17 United States Code, $3,100,000 to remain available 

18 until expended. 

Æ 


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