II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2444 

To authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard for fiscal years 2015 through 

2016, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 5, 2014 

Mr. BEGICH (for himself, Mr. ROCKEFELLER, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. THUNE, and 

Ms. CANTWELL) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard for fiscal 

years 2015 through 2016, 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 ‘‘Coast Guard Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 2015 

6 and 2016’’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION 


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Sec. 101. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 102. Authorized levels of military strength and training. 

TITLE II—ORGANIZATION 

Sec. 201. Commandant; appointment. 

Sec. 202. Prevention and response workforces. 

Sec. 203. Clarification of Coast Guard ice operations mission. 

Sec. 204. Coast Guard centers of expertise. 

Sec. 205. Research, development, testing, and evaluation. 

Sec. 206. Arctic maritime domain awareness. 

Sec. 207. Annual Board of Visitors. 

TITLE III—PERSONNEL 

Sec. 301. Flag officers; determination of unfitness. 

Sec. 302. Acquisition workforce expedited hiring authority. 

Sec. 303. Post-service maritime employment opportunities. 

Sec. 304. Coast Guard remission of indebtedness. 

Sec. 305. Coast Guard family support and child care. 

Sec. 306. Active duty for emergency augmentation of regular forces. 

Sec. 307. Expedited reimbursement for medical goods and services. 

TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION 

Sec. 401. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request. 

Sec. 402. Recovery of travel and subsistence costs for prevention services. 

Sec. 403. Retired servicemembers and family members serving on advisory committees. 

Sec. 404. Housing choices for Coast Guard families with special medical needs. 

Sec. 405. Authority to construct Coast Guard child development center facilities. 

Sec. 406. Heavy polar icebreaker design and construction. 

Sec. 407. Forward operating facilities. 

Sec. 408. Enhanced national response capability. 

Sec. 409. Updates to fines and penalties. 

Sec. 410. Technical amendment; Coast Guard Academy charges and fees for attendance. 

TITLE V—SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION 

Sec. 501. Prompt intergovernmental notice of marine casualties. 

Sec. 502. Drug testing reporting. 

Sec. 503. Protection and fair treatment of seafarers. 

Sec. 504. Vessel requirements for notices of arrival and departure and automatic identification system. 

Sec. 505. Improved safety information for vessels. 

Sec. 506. Prompt publication of oil spill information. 

Sec. 507. Area contingency plans. 

Sec. 508. Coast Guard response plan requirements. 

TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 601. Waivers. 

Sec. 602. Inflationary adjustment for Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council. 


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1 TITLE I—AUTHORIZATION 

2 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

3 Funds are authorized to be appropriated for each of 

4 fiscal years 2015 and 2016 for necessary expenses of the 

5 Coast Guard as follows: 

6 (1) For the operation and maintenance of the 

7 Coast Guard, $6,981,036,000 for each of fiscal 

8 years 2015 and 2016, of which $24,500,000 is au9 thorized each fiscal year to be derived from the Oil 

10 Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out the purposes 

11 of section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 

12 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)). 

13 (2) For the acquisition, construction, rebuild14 ing, and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 

15 and offshore facilities, vessels, and aircraft, includ16 ing equipment related thereto, $1,545,312,000 for 

17 each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016 to remain avail18 able until expended, of which— 

19 (A) $20,000,000 is authorized each fiscal 

20 year to be derived from the Oil Spill Liability 

21 Trust Fund to carry out the purposes of section 

22 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 

23 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)); and 

24 (B) $55,000,000 is authorized each fiscal 

25 year for a service life extension of 7 to 10 years 


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1 for the Coast Guard Cutter POLAR SEA 

2 (WAGB 11). 

3 (3) For operation and maintenance of the Coast 

4 Guard Reserve program, including personnel and 

5 training costs, equipment, and services, 

6 $140,016,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 and 

7 2016. 

8 (4) For research, development, testing, and 

9 evaluation of technologies, materials, and human 

10 factors directly related to improving the performance 

11 of the Coast Guard’s mission in support of search 

12 and rescue, aids to navigation, marine safety, marine 

13 environmental protection, enforcement of laws and 

14 treaties, ice operations, and defense readiness, 

15 $19,890,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016. 

16 (5) For retired pay (including the payment of 

17 obligations otherwise chargeable to lapsed appropria18 tions for this purpose), payments under the Retired 

19 Serviceman’s Family Protection and Survivor Ben20 efit Plans, and payments for medical and dental care 

21 of retired personnel and their dependents under 

22 chapter 55 or title 10, United States Code, 

23 $1,460,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 and 

24 2016, to remain available until expended. 


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1 (6) For alteration or removal of bridges over 

2 navigable waters of the United States constituting 

3 obstructions to navigation, and for personnel and 

4 administrative costs associated with the Alteration of 

5 Bridges Program, $16,000,000 for each of fiscal 

6 years 2015 and 2016. 

7 (7) For environmental compliance and restora8 tion functions under chapter 19 of title 14, United 

9 States Code, $16,701,000 for each of fiscal years 

10 2015 and 2016, to remain available until expended. 

11 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZED LEVELS OF MILITARY STRENGTH 

12 AND TRAINING. 

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

14 authorized an end-of-year strength for active duty per15 sonnel of 47,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016. 

16 (b) MILITARY TRAINING STUDENT LOADS.—The 

17 Coast Guard is authorized average military training stu18 dent loads for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016 as fol19 lows: 

20 (1) For recruit and special training, 2,500 stu21 dent years. 

22 (2) For flight training, 165 student years. 

23 (3) For professional training in military and ci24 vilian institutions, 350 student years. 

25 (4) For officer acquisition, 1,200 student years. 


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1 TITLE II—ORGANIZATION 

2 SEC. 201. COMMANDANT; APPOINTMENT. 

3 Section 44 of title 14, United States Code, is amend4 ed by inserting after the first sentence the following: ‘‘The 

5 term of an appointment, and any reappointment, shall 

6 begin on June 1 of the current year and end 4 years later 

7 on May 31, except that, in the event of death, retirement, 

8 resignation, or reassignment, or when the needs of the 

9 Service demand, the Secretary may alter the date on which 

10 the term begins or ends as long as the term is no longer 

11 than 4 years.’’. 

12 SEC. 202. PREVENTION AND RESPONSE WORKFORCES. 

13 Section 57 of title 14, United States Code, is amend14 ed— 

15 (1) in subsection (b)— 

16 (A) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

17 the end; 

18 (B) in paragraph (3) by striking the period 

19 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

20 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(4) waterways operations manager shall have 

22 knowledge, skill, and practical experience with re23 spect to marine transportation system management; 

24 or 


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1 ‘‘(5) port and facility safety and security spe2 cialist shall have knowledge, skill, and practical ex3 perience with respect to the safety, security, and en4 vironmental protection responsibilities associated 

5 with maritime ports and facilities.’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (c) by striking ‘‘or marine 

7 safety engineer’’ and inserting ‘‘marine safety engi8 neer, waterways operations manager, or port and fa9 cility safety and security specialist’’; and 

10 (3) in subsection (f)(2) by striking ‘‘investigator 

11 or marine safety engineer.’’ and inserting ‘‘investi12 gator, marine safety engineer, waterways operations 

13 manager, or port and facility safety and security 

14 specialist.’’. 

15 SEC. 203. CLARIFICATION OF COAST GUARD ICE OPER16 ATIONS MISSION. 

17 (a) COAST GUARD PROVISION OF FEDERAL

18 ICEBREAKING SERVICES.—Chapter 5 of title 14, United 

19 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 86 the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘§ 87. Provision of icebreaking services 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro23 vision of law, except as provided in subsection (b), the 

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1 ices, on an advance payment or reimbursable basis, to 

2 each Federal agency that requires icebreaking services. 

3 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—In the event that a Federal agen4 cy requires icebreaking services and the Coast Guard is 

5 unable to provide the services, the Federal agency may 

6 acquire icebreaking services from another entity.’’. 

7 (b) PRIORITY OF COAST GUARD MISSIONS IN POLAR

8 REGIONS.— 

9 (1) SECTION 110.—Section 110(b)(2) of the 

10 Arctic Research and Policy Act of 1984 (15 U.S.C. 

11 4109(b)(2)) is amended— 

12 (A) by inserting ‘‘to execute the statutory 

13 missions of the Coast Guard and’’ after ‘‘need14 ed’’; and 

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘and all budget authority 

16 related to such operations’’ after ‘‘projects,’’. 

17 (2) SECTION 312.—Section 312(c) of the Ant18 arctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act of 

19 1984 (16 U.S.C. 2441(c)) is amended by inserting 

20 ‘‘to execute the statutory missions of the Coast 

21 Guard and’’ after ‘‘needed’’. 

22 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con23 tents for chapter 5 of title 14, United States Code, is 

24 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 86 

25 the following: 

‘‘87. Provision of icebreaking services.’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. COAST GUARD CENTERS OF EXPERTISE. 

2 Section 58(b) of title 14, United States Code, is 

3 amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(b) MISSIONS.—A center shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) promote, facilitate, and conduct education, 

6 training, and research programs; 

7 ‘‘(2) develop and maintain a repository of infor8 mation on operations, practices, and resources; and 

9 ‘‘(3) perform and support any mission of the 

10 Coast Guard that the Commandant may specify.’’. 

11 SEC. 205. RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TESTING, AND EVAL12 UATION. 

13 (a) RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TESTING, AND

14 EVALUATION.—Section 93 of title 14, United States Code, 

15 is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a)(4), by striking ‘‘agencies 

17 and with private agencies;’’ and inserting ‘‘agencies, 

18 private agencies, and, through the Secretary with 

19 the concurrence of the Secretary of State, with for20 eign government agencies;’’; and 

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

22 ‘‘(f) EQUIPMENT, TECHNOLOGY, AND TECH23 NIQUES.—For the purposes of subsection (a)(4), the Com24 mandant is authorized to possess, use, and consume any 

25 personal property or materials of another government 

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1 cy, subject to the conditions regarding foreign government 

2 agencies imposed by that subsection, for the purpose of 

3 conducting research, development, testing, evaluation, and 

4 demonstration of equipment, technology, or a technique.’’. 

5 (b) TUITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM COVERAGE OF

6 TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS.— 

7 Section 93(a)(7) of title 14, United States Code, is amend8 ed by inserting ‘‘and those textbooks, manuals, and other 

9 materials required as a part of such training or courses 

10 of instruction’’ after ‘‘correspondence courses,’’. 

11 (c) LEASE OF TIDELANDS AND SUBMERGED LANDS

12 UNDER CONTROL OF THE COAST GUARD.—Section 93 of 

13 title 14, United States Code, as amended by subsection 

14 (a) of this section, is further amended by adding at the 

15 end the following: 

16 ‘‘(g) LEASE OF TIDELANDS AND SUBMERGED

17 LANDS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) EXCEPTION FROM MAXIMUM LEASE

19 TERM.—Notwithstanding subsection (a)(13), a lease 

20 described in paragraph (2) may be for such term in 

21 excess of 5 years as the Commandant considers ap22 propriate. 

23 ‘‘(2) LEASE DESCRIBED.—A lease referred to in 

24 paragraph (1) is a lease of the following: 


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1 ‘‘(A) Tidelands under the control of the 

2 Coast Guard. 

3 ‘‘(B) Submerged lands under the control of 

4 the Coast Guard.’’. 

5 SEC. 206. ARCTIC MARITIME DOMAIN AWARENESS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 of title 14, United 

7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘§ 154. Interagency Arctic Maritime Domain Aware10 ness Committee 

11 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

13 to establish an Interagency Arctic Maritime Domain 

14 Awareness Committee (referred to in this section as 

15 the ‘Committee’). The Commandant shall chair the 

16 Committee. 

17 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Committee 

18 shall be to improve maritime domain awareness in 

19 the Arctic— 

20 ‘‘(A) by promoting interagency cooperation 

21 and coordination; 

22 ‘‘(B) by employing joint, interagency, and 

23 international capabilities; and 

24 ‘‘(C) by facilitating the sharing of informa25 tion, intelligence, and data related to the Arctic 


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1 maritime domain between the participating 

2 agencies and departments under paragraph (3). 

3 ‘‘(3) PARTICIPATING AGENCIES AND DEPART4 MENTS.—The Committee shall coordinate the par5 ticipation by and sharing of information, intel6 ligence, and data related to the Arctic maritime do7 main between the following: 

8 ‘‘(A) the Department of Homeland Secu9 rity; 

10 ‘‘(B) the Department of Defense; 

11 ‘‘(C) the Department of Transportation; 

12 ‘‘(D) the Department of State; 

13 ‘‘(E) the Department of the Interior; 

14 ‘‘(F) the National Aeronautics and Space 

15 Administration; 

16 ‘‘(G) the National Oceanic and Atmos17 pheric Administration; 

18 ‘‘(H) the Environmental Protection Agen19 cy; and 

20 ‘‘(I) the National Science Foundation. 

21 ‘‘(b) ORGANIZATION.—The Secretary and the head of 

22 an agency or a department under subsection (a)(3) may— 

23 ‘‘(1) by agreement, on a reimbursable basis or 

24 otherwise, provide representation on the Committee; 


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1 ‘‘(2) by agreement, on a reimbursable basis or 

2 otherwise, share personnel, services, equipment, and 

3 facilities with the Committee for the purpose under 

4 subsection (a)(2); and 

5 ‘‘(3) to the extent possible, and consistent with 

6 applicable law, extend the authorities provided under 

7 their enabling statutes to the other participating de8 partments and agencies in furtherance of the pur9 pose under subsection (a)(2). 

10 ‘‘(c) INFORMATION SHARING.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the 

12 head of each participating agency and department 

13 under subsection (a)(3), to the maximum extent per14 missible under law, shall share through the Com15 mittee all applicable information, intelligence, and 

16 data related to maritime domain awareness in the 

17 Arctic. 

18 ‘‘(2) COLLECTION AND USE.—Subject to appli19 cable confidentiality and privacy laws, the Secretary, 

20 through the Committee, shall oversee and coordinate 

21 the collection, storage, analysis, and use of all appli22 cable information, intelligence, and data shared 

23 under paragraph (1). 

24 ‘‘(d) 5-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN.—Not later than 180 

25 days after the date that the Committee is established 


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1 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall develop a 5-year 

2 strategic plan to guide interagency and international inter3 governmental cooperation and coordination for the pur4 pose of improving maritime domain awareness in the Arc5 tic. The Secretary shall update the plan periodically. 

6 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 ‘‘(1) ARCTIC.—The term ‘Arctic’ has the mean8 ing given the term in section 112 of the Arctic Re9 search and Policy Act of 1984 (15 U.S.C. 4111). 

10 ‘‘(2) MARITIME DOMAIN AWARENESS.—The 

11 term ‘maritime domain awareness’ means the effec12 tive understanding of anything associated with the 

13 maritime domain that could impact the safety, secu14 rity, economy, or environment of the United 

15 States.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con17 tents for chapter 7 of title 14, United States Code, is 

18 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

19 153 the following: 

‘‘154. Interagency Arctic Maritime Domain Awareness Committee.’’. 

20 SEC. 207. ANNUAL BOARD OF VISITORS. 

21 Section 194 of title 14, United States Code, is 

22 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘§ 194. Annual Board of Visitors 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A Board of Visitors to the Coast 

3 Guard Academy is established to review and make rec4 ommendations on the operation of the Academy. 

5 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The membership of the 

7 Board shall consist of the following: 

8 ‘‘(A) The chairman of the Committee on 

9 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

10 Senate, or the chairman’s designee. 

11 ‘‘(B) The chairman of the Committee on 

12 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

13 of Representatives, or the chairman’s designee. 

14 ‘‘(C) 3 Members of the Senate designated 

15 by the Vice President. 

16 ‘‘(D) 4 Members of the House of Rep17 resentatives designated by the Speaker of the 

18 House of Representatives. 

19 ‘‘(E) 6 individuals designated by the Presi20 dent. 

21 ‘‘(2) LENGTH OF SERVICE.— 

22 ‘‘(A) MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—A Member 

23 of Congress designated under subparagraph (C) 

24 or (D) of paragraph (1) as a member of the 

25 Board shall be designated as a member in the 


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1 first session of a Congress and serve for the du2 ration of that Congress. 

3 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALS DESIGNATED BY THE

4 PRESIDENT.—Each individual designated by the 

5 President under subparagraph (E) of para6 graph (1) shall serve as a member of the Board 

7 for 3 years, except that any such member whose 

8 term of office has expired shall continue to 

9 serve until a successor is appointed. 

10 ‘‘(3) DEATH OR RESIGNATION OF A MEMBER.— 

11 If a member of the Board dies or resigns, a suc12 cessor shall be designated for any unexpired portion 

13 of the term of the member by the official who des14 ignated the member. 

15 ‘‘(c) ACADEMY VISITS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) ANNUAL VISIT.—The Board shall visit the 

17 Academy annually to review the operation of the 

18 Academy. 

19 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL VISITS.—With the approval 

20 of the Secretary, the Board or individual members 

21 of the Board may make other visits to the Academy 

22 in connection with the duties of the Board or to con23 sult with the Superintendent of the Academy. 

24 ‘‘(d) SCOPE OF REVIEW.—The Board shall review, 

25 with respect to the Academy— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the state of morale and discipline; 

2 ‘‘(2) the curriculum; 

3 ‘‘(3) the instruction; 

4 ‘‘(4) the physical equipment; 

5 ‘‘(5) the fiscal affairs; and 

6 ‘‘(6) other matters relating to the Academy that 

7 the Board determines appropriate. 

8 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the date 

9 of an annual visit of the Board under subsection (c)(1), 

10 the Board shall submit to the Secretary, the Committee 

11 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, 

12 and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

13 of the House of Representatives a report on the actions 

14 of the Board during such visit and the recommendations 

15 of the Board pertaining to the Academy. 

16 ‘‘(f) ADVISORS.—If approved by the Secretary, the 

17 Board may consult with advisors in carrying out this sec18 tion. 

19 ‘‘(g) REIMBURSEMENT.—Each member of the Board 

20 and each adviser consulted by the Board under subsection 

21 (f) shall be reimbursed, to the extent permitted by law, 

22 by the Coast Guard for actual expenses incurred while en23 gaged in duties as a member or an adviser.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—PERSONNEL 

2 SEC. 301. FLAG OFFICERS; DETERMINATION OF UNFITNESS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter D of chapter 11 of 

4 title 14, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

5 end the following: 

6 ‘‘§ 316. Flag officers; determination of unfitness 

7 ‘‘When the Coast Guard is not operating as a service 

8 in the Navy— 

9 ‘‘(1) section 1216(d) of title 10 shall not apply 

10 with respect to any member who is a flag officer 

11 being processed for retirement by reason of age or 

12 length of service; and 

13 ‘‘(2) the Secretary may, with respect to any 

14 member who is a flag officer being processed for re15 tirement by reason of age or length of service— 

16 ‘‘(A) retire such member under section 

17 1201 of title 10; 

18 ‘‘(B) place such member on the temporary 

19 disability retired list under section 1202 of title 

20 10; or 

21 ‘‘(C) separate such member from the Coast 

22 Guard under section 1203 of title 10; 

23 by reason of unfitness to perform the duties of the 

24 flag officer’s office, grade, rank, or rating without 

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1 ommendation of the Assistant Secretary of Defense 

2 for Health Affairs.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con4 tents for subchapter D of chapter 11 of title 14, United 

5 States Code, is amended by adding at the end, the fol6 lowing: 

‘‘316. Flag officers; determination of unfitness.’’. 

7 SEC. 302. ACQUISITION WORKFORCE EXPEDITED HIRING 

8 AUTHORITY. 

9 Section 404(b) of the Coast Guard Authorization Act 

10 of 2010 (124 Stat. 2951), as amended by section 218 of 

11 the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 

12 2012 (126 Stat. 1558), is amended by striking ‘‘2015’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘2017’’. 

14 SEC. 303. POST-SERVICE MARITIME EMPLOYMENT OPPOR15 TUNITIES. 

16 (a) MERCHANT MARINE POST-SERVICE CAREER OP17 PORTUNITIES.—Not later than 180 days after the date of 

18 enactment of this Act, the Commandant of the Coast 

19 Guard shall take steps to promote better awareness, on 

20 an ongoing basis, among Coast Guard personnel regarding 

21 post-service use of Coast Guard training, education, and 

22 practical experience as qualifying experience in satisfac23 tion of requirements for merchant mariner credentials 

24 under section 11.213 of title 46, Code of Federal Regula25 tions. 


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1 (b) TIMELY PROVISION OF SEA SERVICE LET2 TERS.—Chapter 11 of title 14, United States Code, is 

3 amended by inserting after section 427 the following: 

4 ‘‘§ 428. Timely provision of sea service letters 

5 ‘‘A member of the Coast Guard who will retire or sep6 arate from the Service and who is eligible to receive a sea 

7 service letter shall be provided such sea service letter, at 

8 the member’s request, not later than 90 days after making 

9 such request.’’. 

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con11 tents for chapter 11 of title 14, United States Code, is 

12 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

13 427 the following: 

‘‘428. Timely provision of sea service letters.’’. 

14 SEC. 304. COAST GUARD REMISSION OF INDEBTEDNESS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 461 of title 14, United 

16 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘§ 461. Remission of indebtedness 

18 ‘‘The Secretary or the Secretary’s designee may have 

19 remitted or cancelled any part of an individual’s indebted20 ness to the United States or any instrumentality of the 

21 United States if— 

22 ‘‘(1) the indebtedness was incurred while the in23 dividual served on active duty as a member of the 

24 Coast Guard; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the Secretary or the Secretary’s designee 

2 considers remitting or cancelling any part of the in3 debtedness to be in the best interest of the United 

4 States.’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con6 tents for chapter 13 of title 14, United States Code, is 

7 amended by striking the item relating to section 461 and 

8 inserting the following: 

‘‘461. Remission of indebtedness.’’. 

9 SEC. 305. COAST GUARD FAMILY SUPPORT AND CHILD 

10 CARE. 

11 (a) SECTION REDESIGNATIONS.— 

12 (1) REIMBURSEMENT FOR ADOPTION EX13 PENSES.—Chapter 13 of part I of title 14, United 

14 States Code, is amended by redesignating section 

15 514 as section 541. 

16 (2) CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.—Chapter 

17 13 of part I of title 14, United States Code, is 

18 amended by redesignating section 515 as section 

19 552. 

20 (b) GENERAL PROVISIONS.—Part I of title 14, 

21 United States Code, is amended by inserting before sec22 tion 541, as redesignated, the following: 


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1 ‘‘CHAPTER 14—COAST GUARD FAMILY 

2 SUPPORT AND CHILD CARE AUTHORITIES 

3 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER A—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

4 ‘‘§ 531. Work-life policies and programs 

5 ‘‘The Commandant is authorized— 

6 ‘‘(1) to establish a program for the purpose of 

7 developing and promulgating policies that promote 

8 or support the well-being of Coast Guard active 

9 duty, reserve, and civilian personnel, and their fami10 lies; 

11 ‘‘(2) to implement and oversee the policies 

12 under paragraph (1) as the Commandant considers 

13 necessary; and 

14 ‘‘(3) to perform such other duties as the Com15 mandant considers necessary to promote or support 

16 the well-being of Coast Guard active duty, reserve, 

17 and civilian personnel, and their families. 

18 ‘‘§ 532. Surveys of Coast Guard families 

19 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding any other provi20 sion of law, the Commandant, in order to determine the 

21 effectiveness of Federal programs that promote or support 

22 the well-being of Coast Guard active duty, reserve, and 

23 civilian personnel, and their families, may survey— 

24 ‘‘(1) any Coast Guard active duty, reserve, or 

25 civilian personnel; 


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1 ‘‘(2) any retired Coast Guard member or civil2 ian personnel; 

3 ‘‘(3) the immediate family of any member or 

4 personnel described under paragraph (1) or para5 graph (2); and 

6 ‘‘(4) any survivor of a deceased member. 

7 ‘‘(b) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—Participation in 

8 any survey conducted under this section shall be vol9 untary. 

10 ‘‘(c) FEDERAL RECORDKEEPING.—With respect to a 

11 survey authorized under subsection (a) that includes a 

12 person referred to in that subsection who is not an em13 ployee of the United States or is not otherwise considered 

14 an employee of the United States for the purposes of sec15 tion 3502(3)(A)(i) of title 44, the person shall be consid16 ered an employee of the United States for the purposes 

17 of that section. 

18 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER B—COAST GUARD FAMILY 

19 SUPPORT’’. 

20 (c) COAST GUARD FAMILY SUPPORT.—Part I of title 

21 14, United States Code, is amended by inserting after sec22 tion 541, as redesignated, the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 542. Education and training opportunities for 

2 Coast Guard spouses 

3 ‘‘(a) TUITION ASSISTANCE; EDUCATION AND TRAIN4 ING.—The Commandant may provide, subject to the avail5 ability of appropriations, tuition assistance to an eligible 

6 spouse of a member of the Coast Guard in achieving— 

7 ‘‘(1) the education and training required for a 

8 degree or credential, that expands employment and 

9 portable career opportunities for the spouse, at an 

10 accredited college, university, or technical school in 

11 the United States; or 

12 ‘‘(2) the education prerequisites and profes13 sional licensure or credentialing required by a gov14 ernment or government-sanctioned licensing body for 

15 an occupation that expands employment and port16 able career opportunities for the spouse. 

17 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this sec18 tion— 

19 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE SPOUSE.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible 

21 spouse’ means the spouse of a member of the 

22 Coast Guard who is serving on active duty, in23 cluding a spouse who receives transitional sup24 port in the case of such a member who is dis25 charged due to domestic violence. 


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1 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘eligible 

2 spouse’ does not include— 

3 ‘‘(i) a person who is married to, but 

4 legally separated from, a member of the 

5 Coast Guard under court order or statute 

6 of any State or territorial possession of the 

7 United States; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) a person who is eligible for tui9 tion assistance as a member of the armed 

10 forces. 

11 ‘‘(2) PORTABLE CAREER OPPORTUNITIES.—The 

12 term ‘portable career opportunities’ includes an oc13 cupation requiring education, training, or both, that 

14 results in a credential that is recognized by an in15 dustry, profession, or specific type of business. 

16 ‘‘§ 543. Youth sponsorship initiatives 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant is authorized 

18 to establish, within any Coast Guard unit, an initiative 

19 to help integrate into new communities the dependent chil20 dren of members of the Coast Guard when the members 

21 receive permanent change of station orders. 

22 ‘‘(b) DESCRIPTION OF INITIATIVE.—A youth spon23 sorship initiative under this section shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) apply to a dependent child who resides in 

2 the new community due to a permanent change of 

3 station order; 

4 ‘‘(2) provide for the involvement of a dependent 

5 child of a member of the Coast Guard in the de6 pendent child’s new Coast Guard community; and 

7 ‘‘(3) primarily focus on children in their preteen 

8 and teenage years.’’. 

9 (d) COAST GUARD CHILD CARE.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL; DEFINITIONS.—Part I of title 

11 14, United States Code, is amended by inserting be12 fore section 552, as redesignated, the following: 

13 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER C—COAST GUARD CHILD CARE 

14 ‘‘§ 551. Definitions 

15 ‘‘In this subchapter: 

16 ‘‘(1) CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT.—The term 

17 ‘child abuse and neglect’ has the meaning given the 

18 term in section 3 of the Child Abuse Prevention and 

19 Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 note). 

20 ‘‘(2) CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER EM21 PLOYEE.—The term ‘child development center em22 ployee’ means a civilian employee of the Coast 

23 Guard who is employed to work in a Coast Guard 

24 child development center regardless of whether the 


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1 employee is paid from appropriated or non2 appropriated funds. 

3 ‘‘(3) COAST GUARD CHILD DEVELOPMENT CEN4 TER.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Coast 

6 Guard child development center’ means a facil7 ity on Coast Guard property or on property 

8 under the jurisdiction of the commander of a 

9 Coast Guard unit, at which child care services 

10 are provided for members of the Coast Guard. 

11 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘Coast 

12 Guard child development center’ does not in13 clude a child care services facility for which 

14 space is allotted under section 590 of title 40. 

15 ‘‘(4) COMPETITIVE SERVICE POSITION.—The 

16 term ‘competitive service position’ means a position 

17 in the competitive service (as defined in section 

18 2102(a)(1) of title 5). 

19 ‘‘(5) FAMILY HOME DAYCARE.—The term ‘fam20 ily home daycare’ means home-based child care serv21 ices provided for a member of the Coast Guard by 

22 an individual who— 

23 ‘‘(A) is certified by the Commandant as 

24 qualified to provide home-based child care serv25 ices; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) provides home-based child care serv2 ices on a regular basis in exchange for mone3 tary compensation.’’. 

4 (2) CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.— 

5 (A) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense 

6 of the Congress that the amount of appro7 priated funds available during a fiscal year for 

8 operating expenses for Coast Guard child devel9 opment services should be, at a minimum, not 

10 less than the amount of child development cen11 ter fee receipts that are estimated to be col12 lected by the Coast Guard during that fiscal 

13 year. In this subparagraph, the term ‘‘child de14 velopment center fee receipts’’ means those 

15 nonappropriated funds derived from fees paid 

16 by members of the Coast Guard for child care 

17 services provided at Coast Guard child develop18 ment centers. 

19 (B) HEADINGS.—Section 552 of title 14, 

20 United States Code, as redesignated, is amend21 ed— 

22 (i) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘IN

23 GENERAL.—’’ before ‘‘The Commandant’’; 


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1 (ii) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting 

2 ‘‘FUNDING FOR CHILD DEVELOPMENT

3 SERVICES.—’’ before ‘‘The Commandant’’; 

4 (iii) in subsection (b)(2)(A), by insert5 ing ‘‘PARENT FEES.—’’ before ‘‘The Com6 mandant’’; 

7 (iv) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by insert8 ing ‘‘WAIVER AUTHORITY.—’’ before ‘‘Fees 

9 to be charged’’; and 

10 (v) in subsection (b)(2)(C), by insert11 ing ‘‘FEE COLLECTION AND USE.—’’ be12 fore ‘‘The Commandant’’. 

13 (3) CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER STANDARDS

14 AND INSPECTIONS.—Part I of title 14, United 

15 States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) in section 552, as redesignated— 

17 (i) by striking subsections (c) and (e); 

18 and 

19 (ii) by redesignating subsection (d) as 

20 subsection (c); and 

21 (B) by adding after section 552, as redes22 ignated, the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 553. Child development center standards and in2 spections 

3 ‘‘(a) EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT STAND4 ARDS.—The Commandant shall require that each child de5 velopment center meets applicable health and safety 

6 standards. 

7 ‘‘(b) SAFETY STANDARDS.—The Commandant shall 

8 require that each child development center under this sub9 chapter meets such safety standards as the Commandant 

10 considers appropriate to ensure the health, safety, and 

11 welfare of the children and employees at the child develop12 ment center. 

13 ‘‘(c) INSPECTIONS.—The Commandant shall provide 

14 for regular and unannounced inspections of each child de15 velopment center under this subchapter to ensure compli16 ance with this section. 

17 ‘‘(d) NATIONAL REPORTING.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant shall 

19 maintain and publicize a means by which an indi20 vidual can report— 

21 ‘‘(A) any suspected violation of— 

22 ‘‘(i) standards of operation; 

23 ‘‘(ii) health or safety standards; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) other law or standards; 

25 ‘‘(B) any suspected child abuse or neglect; 

26 or 


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1 ‘‘(C) any other deficiency at a Coast Guard 

2 child development center or in family home 

3 daycare. 

4 ‘‘(2) ANONYMOUS REPORTING.—The Com5 mandant shall ensure that a report under paragraph 

6 (1) can be made anonymously if so desired by the 

7 individual making the report. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURES.—The Commandant shall 

9 establish procedures for investigating a report under 

10 paragraph (1).’’. 

11 (4) ADDITIONAL CHILD CARE PROVISIONS.— 

12 Part I is amended by adding after section 553 the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘§ 554. Child development center employees 

15 ‘‘(a) TRAINING.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant shall 

17 prescribe a training program for Coast Guard child 

18 development center employees. Satisfactory comple19 tion of the training program shall be a condition of 

20 employment for an employee of a Coast Guard child 

21 development center. The Commandant shall require 

22 each employee complete the training program not 

23 later than 6 months after the date that the employee 

24 is employed as a Coast Guard child development 

25 center employee. 


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1 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—The training 

2 program shall include, at a minimum, instruction in 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(A) Early childhood development. 

5 ‘‘(B) Activities and disciplinary techniques 

6 appropriate to children of different ages. 

7 ‘‘(C) Child abuse and neglect prevention 

8 and detection. 

9 ‘‘(D) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and 

10 other emergency medical procedures. 

11 ‘‘(3) USE OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE PRO12 GRAMS.—The Commandant may use Department of 

13 Defense training programs on a reimbursable or 

14 nonreimbursable basis, for purposes of complying 

15 with the requirements of this subsection. 

16 ‘‘(b) TRAINING AND CURRICULUM SPECIALISTS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) SPECIALIST REQUIRED.—The Com18 mandant shall require that at least 1 employee at 

19 each Coast Guard child development center be a spe20 cialist in training and curriculum development with 

21 appropriate credentials and experience. 

22 ‘‘(2) DUTIES.—The duties of the employee 

23 under paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

24 ‘‘(A) Special teaching activities at the 

25 Coast Guard child development center. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Daily oversight and instruction of 

2 other child care employees at the Coast Guard 

3 child development center. 

4 ‘‘(C) Daily assistance in the preparation of 

5 lesson plans. 

6 ‘‘(D) Assisting with child abuse and ne7 glect prevention and detection at the Coast 

8 Guard child development center. 

9 ‘‘(E) Advising the director of the Coast 

10 Guard child development center on the perform11 ance of the other child care employees. 

12 ‘‘(3) COMPETITIVE SERVICE.—Each employee 

13 under paragraph (1) shall be an employee in a com14 petitive service position. 

15 ‘‘§ 555. Parent partnerships with child development 

16 centers 

17 ‘‘(a) PARENT BOARDS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) FORMATION.—The Commandant shall re19 quire that there be formed at each Coast Guard 

20 child development center a board of parents, to be 

21 composed of parents of children attending the cen22 ter. 

23 ‘‘(2) FUNCTIONS.—Each parent board shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) meet periodically with the staff and 

25 the commander of the unit served by the center 


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1 at which the parent board is formed, for the 

2 purpose of discussing problems and concerns; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) be responsible, together with the staff 

5 of that center, for coordinating the parent par6 ticipation initiative required under subsection 

7 (b). 

8 ‘‘(3) FACA.—A board of parents under this 

9 subsection shall not be subject to the Federal Advi10 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 

11 ‘‘(b) PARENT PARTICIPATION INITIATIVE.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commandant is au13 thorized to establish a parent participation initiative 

14 at each Coast Guard child development center to en15 courage and facilitate parent participation in edu16 cational and related activities at the center. 

17 ‘‘(2) FEE REDUCTION AUTHORITY.—The Com18 mandant, in the case of a parent who participates in 

19 an initiative adopted under paragraph (1), may es20 tablish fees at a lower rate than charged under sec21 tion 552(b)(2)(A) for that parent.’’. 

22 (e) COMMANDANT; GENERAL POWERS.—Section 

23 93(a)(7) of title 14, United States Code, as amended by 

24 section 205 of this Act, is further amended by inserting 


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1 ‘‘, and to eligible spouses under section 542,’’ after ‘‘Coast 

2 Guard’’. 

3 (f) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

4 (1) Section 652 of the National Defense Au5 thorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993 (14 U.S.C. 514 

6 note) is amended by striking ‘‘section 514’’ each 

7 place it appears and inserting ‘‘section 541’’. 

8 (2) The table of contents for part I of title 14, 

9 United States Code, is amended— 

10 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

11 514; 

12 (B) by striking the item relating to section 

13 515; and 

14 (C) by adding after the item relating to 

15 section 518 the following: 

‘‘CHAPTER 14. COAST GUARD FAMILY SUPPORT AND CHILD CARE

AUTHORITIES

‘‘SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS

‘‘531. Work-life policies and programs. 

‘‘532. Surveys of Coast Guard families 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER B. COAST GUARD FAMILY SUPPORT

‘‘541. Reimbursement for adoption expenses. 

‘‘542. Education and training opportunities for Coast Guard spouses. 

‘‘543. Youth sponsorship initiatives. 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER C. COAST GUARD CHILD CARE

‘‘551. Definitions. 

‘‘552. Child development services. 

‘‘553. Child development center standards and inspections. 

‘‘554. Child development center employees. 

‘‘555. Parent partnerships with child development centers.’’. 


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1 SEC. 306. ACTIVE DUTY FOR EMERGENCY AUGMENTATION 

2 OF REGULAR FORCES. 

3 Section 712(a) of title 14, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘another’’ and inserting ‘‘any 

6 other’’; 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘prevention of’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘prevention of—’’; 

9 (3) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘an imminent’’ 

10 and indenting accordingly; 

11 (4) in paragraph (1), as redesignated, by strik12 ing ‘‘unit.’’ and inserting ‘‘unit; and’’; and 

13 (5) by inserting at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(2) a major disaster or emergency (as defined 

15 in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 

16 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 5122)), or a discharge (as defined in section 311(a) 

18 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 

19 U.S.C. 1321(a))) that the Commandant has classi20 fied as a spill of national significance under the Na21 tional Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Con22 tingency Plan (part 300 of title 40, Code of Federal 

23 Regulations), the Secretary may, without the con24 sent of the member affected, order to active duty for 

25 a continuous period of not more than 120 days an 

26 organized training unit of the Coast Guard Ready 


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1 Reserve, a member thereof, or a member not as2 signed to a unit organized to serve as a unit.’’. 

3 SEC. 307. EXPEDITED REIMBURSEMENT FOR MEDICAL 

4 GOODS AND SERVICES. 

5 Notwithstanding section 1085 of title 10, United 

6 States Code, or any other requirements under chapter 55 

7 of that title providing for the reimbursement of inpatient 

8 or outpatient medical or dental care that the Department 

9 of Defense or a military department has provided to a 

10 member or former member of the Coast Guard or a de11 pendent thereof, the Secretary of the department in which 

12 the Coast Guard is operating, in lieu of such reimburse13 ment, shall transfer from funds appropriated for the oper14 ating expenses of the Coast Guard an amount determined 

15 by the Board of Actuaries to represent the value of care 

16 that the Department of Defense or a military department 

17 shall provide, during the fiscal year in which funds are 

18 made available, to a member or former member of the 

19 Coast Guard or a dependent thereof. 

20 TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATION 

21 SEC. 401. TRANSMISSION OF ANNUAL COAST GUARD AU22 THORIZATION REQUEST. 

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

24 amended by inserting after section 662 the following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 662a. Transmission of annual Coast Guard author2 ization request 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after the 

4 date on which the President submits to Congress a budget 

5 request for a fiscal year pursuant to section 1105 of title 

6 31, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Com7 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 

8 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

9 House of Representatives a Coast Guard authorization re10 quest with respect to that fiscal year. 

11 ‘‘(b) COAST GUARD AUTHORIZATION REQUEST DE12 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘Coast Guard authoriza13 tion request’ means proposed legislation that, with respect 

14 to the Coast Guard for the relevant fiscal year, includes— 

15 ‘‘(1) recommended end-of-year strengths for ac16 tive duty personnel and military training student 

17 loads for that fiscal year, as described in section 

18 661; 

19 ‘‘(2) recommended authorizations of appropria20 tions for that fiscal year, including with respect to 

21 matters described in section 662; and 

22 ‘‘(3) any other matter the Secretary considers 

23 appropriate for inclusion in a Coast Guard author24 ization bill.’’. 

25 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con26 tents for chapter 17 of title 14, United States Code, is 


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1 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

2 662 the following: 

‘‘662a. Transmission of annual Coast Guard authorization request.’’. 

3 SEC. 402. RECOVERY OF TRAVEL AND SUBSISTENCE COSTS 

4 FOR PREVENTION SERVICES. 

5 (a) TITLE 46, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 2110 

6 of title 46, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘appropriate 

8 travel and subsistence costs incurred providing a 

9 service or thing of value under this subtitle and’’ 

10 after ‘‘recover’’; and 

11 (2) in subsection (d), by inserting at the end 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(3) Amounts received as reimbursement for 

14 appropriate travel and subsistence costs incurred 

15 providing a service or thing of value under this sec16 tion may be credited to the account from which ex17 pended. 

18 ‘‘(4) Reimbursement for services provided under 

19 this section may include in kind reimbursement for 

20 transportation, travel, and subsistence.’’. 

21 (b) TITLE 14, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 664 

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

23 (1) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘appropriate 

24 travel and subsistence costs incurred by the Coast 


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1 Guard in providing a service or thing of value,’’ after 

2 ‘‘for the fee or charge the’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (e), by inserting ‘‘and, as ap4 propriate, for travel and subsistence costs incurred 

5 when providing a service or thing of value’’ after 

6 ‘‘charge’’; and 

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

8 ‘‘(h) Reimbursement for services provided by the 

9 Coast Guard may include in-kind reimbursement for 

10 transportation, travel, and subsistence.’’. 

11 SEC. 403. RETIRED SERVICEMEMBERS AND FAMILY MEM12 BERS SERVING ON ADVISORY COMMITTEES. 

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

14 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘§ 679. Retired servicemembers and family members 

17 serving on advisory committees 

18 ‘‘A committee within the Coast Guard that advises 

19 or assists the Coast Guard in the performance of any func20 tion that affects members of military families and includes 

21 in its membership a retired Coast Guard member or a 

22 member of a military family shall not be considered an 

23 advisory committee under the Federal Advisory Com24 mittee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) solely because of such member25 ship.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for chapter 17 of title 14, United States Code, is 

3 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

4 678 the following: 

‘‘679. Retired servicemembers and family members serving on advisory committees.’’. 

5 SEC. 404. HOUSING CHOICES FOR COAST GUARD FAMILIES 

6 WITH SPECIAL MEDICAL NEEDS. 

7 (a) SECTION REDESIGNATIONS.—Chapter 18 of part 

8 I of title 14, United States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating section 685 as section 682; 

10 (2) by redesignating section 687 as section 683; 

11 and 

12 (3) by redesignating section 688 as section 684. 

13 (b) HOUSING CHOICES FOR COAST GUARD FAMILIES

14 WITH SPECIAL MEDICAL NEEDS.—Chapter 18 of part I 

15 of title 14, United States Code, as amended by subsection 

16 (a) of this section, is further amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘§ 685. Housing choices for Coast Guard families with 

19 special medical needs 

20 ‘‘The remoteness or driving distance from a hospital 

21 of an area shall not be the basis, in policy, for preventing 

22 a member of the Coast Guard with a dependent with spe23 cial medical needs, such as diabetes, asthma, or moderate 

24 disabilities, from requesting and being granted assignment 


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1 to a particular area, unless the Commandant has deter2 mined that such needs cannot be sufficiently met with ap3 propriate services while residing in that area.’’. 

4 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) Section 682(b) of title 14, United States 

6 Code, as redesignated, is amended by striking ‘‘sec7 tion 687’’ and inserting ‘‘section 683’’. 

8 (2) The table of contents for part I of title 14, 

9 United States Code, is amended— 

10 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

11 685; 

12 (B) by striking the item relating to section 

13 687; 

14 (C) by striking the item relating to section 

15 688; and 

16 (D) by adding after the item relating to 

17 section 681 the following: 

‘‘682. Conveyance of real property. 

‘‘683. Coast Guard Housing Fund. 

‘‘684. Reports. 

‘‘685. Housing choices for Coast Guard families with special medical needs.’’. 

18 SEC. 405. AUTHORITY TO CONSTRUCT COAST GUARD CHILD 

19 DEVELOPMENT CENTER FACILITIES. 

20 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Section 681 of title 14, 

21 United States Code, is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (a)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘housing or military unac2 companied housing,’’ and inserting ‘‘housing, 

3 military unaccompanied housing, or Coast 

4 Guard child development center facilities,’’; and 

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

6 ‘‘(3) Coast Guard child development center fa7 cilities.’’; and 

8 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘housing or 

9 military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, or Coast 

11 Guard child development center facilities’’. 

12 (b) CONVEYANCE OF REAL PROPERTY.—Section 682 

13 of title 14, United States Code, as redesignated under sec14 tion 404 of this Act, is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘housing and 

16 military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, and 

18 Coast Guard child development center facilities’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘housing 

20 and military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, and 

22 Coast Guard child development center facilities’’; 

23 and 

24 (3) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ‘‘housing or 

25 military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 


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1 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, or Coast 

2 Guard child development center facilities’’. 

3 (c) COAST GUARD HOUSING FUND.—Section 683 of 

4 title 14, United States Code, as redesignated under section 

5 404 of this Act, is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ‘‘housing or 

7 military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, or Coast 

9 Guard child development center facilities’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ‘‘housing 

11 and military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, and 

13 Coast Guard child development center facilities’’; 

14 and 

15 (3) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘housing and 

16 military unaccompanied housing’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied housing, and 

18 Coast Guard child development center facilities’’. 

19 (d) DEFINITIONS.—Section 680 of title 14, United 

20 States Code, is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through 

22 (4) as paragraphs (2) through (6), respectively; 

23 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2), as redes24 ignated, the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Coast Guard child development 

2 center facilities’ means buildings and ancillary sup3 porting facilities constructed and maintained by the 

4 Coast Guard to provide child care services for mem5 bers of the Coast Guard.’’; 

6 (3) in paragraph (2), as redesignated, by strik7 ing ‘‘housing and military unaccompanied housing’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied 

9 housing, and Coast Guard child development center 

10 facilities’’; and 

11 (4) in paragraph (3), as redesignated, by strik12 ing ‘‘housing and military unaccompanied housing’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘housing, military unaccompanied 

14 housing, and Coast Guard child development center 

15 facilities’’. 

16 SEC. 406. HEAVY POLAR ICEBREAKER DESIGN AND CON17 STRUCTION. 

18 (a) COMPETITIVE BIDDING AUTHORITY.—Notwith19 standing the requirement of section 3316(a) of title 46, 

20 United States Code regarding classification services for 

21 vessels owned by the United States Government, the Com22 mandant of the Coast Guard, consistent with the require23 ments of chapter 15 of title 14, United States Code, and 

24 other applicable Federal law, as a part of any project or 

25 program established for the acquisition of 1 or more new 


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1 heavy polar icebreakers for the Coast Guard, may solicit 

2 bids and proposals and enter into contracts that include 

3 the provision of classification services by any classification 

4 society to which the Secretary of the department in which 

5 the Coast Guard is operating has delegated the authority 

6 to provide those services for vessels not owned by the 

7 United States Government. 

8 (b) LIMITATION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the depart10 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating may not 

11 expend amounts appropriated for the Coast Guard 

12 for any of fiscal years 2015 through 2024, for— 

13 (A) design activities related to a capability 

14 of a Polar-Class Icebreaker that is based solely 

15 on an operational requirement of another Fed16 eral department or agency, except for amounts 

17 appropriated for design activities for a fiscal 

18 year before fiscal year 2016; or 

19 (B) long-lead-time materials, production, 

20 or post-delivery activities related to such a ca21 pability. 

22 (2) OTHER AMOUNTS.—Amounts made avail23 able to the Secretary under an agreement with an24 other Federal department or agency and expended 

25 on a capability of a Polar-Class Icebreaker that is 


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1 based solely on an operational requirement of that or 

2 another Federal department or agency shall not be 

3 treated as amounts expended by the Secretary for 

4 purposes of the limitation established under para5 graph (1). 

6 SEC. 407. FORWARD OPERATING FACILITIES. 

7 The Secretary of the department in which the Coast 

8 Guard is operating is authorized to construct or lease 

9 hangar, berthing, and messing facilities in the Arctic Re10 gion and Bering Sea-Aleutian Islands operating area. The 

11 facilities shall— 

12 (1) support aircraft maintenance, including ex13 haust ventilation, heat, engine wash system, head fa14 cilities, fuel, ground support services, and electrical 

15 power; 

16 (2) provide shelter for both current helicopter 

17 assets and those projected to be located at Air Sta18 tion Kodiak, Alaska, for at least 20 years; and 

19 (3) provide berthing and messing facilities for 

20 maintenance and aircrew personnel. 

21 SEC. 408. ENHANCED NATIONAL RESPONSE CAPABILITY. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 311 of the Federal Water 

23 Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321) is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)(23)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘Unit’’ each place it ap2 pears and inserting ‘‘Functions’’; and 

3 (B) by striking ‘‘established’’ and inserting 

4 ‘‘maintained’’; 

5 (2) in subsection (j)(2), by striking ‘‘NATIONAL

6 RESPONSE UNIT’’ through ‘‘acting through the Na7 tional Response Unit’’ and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘NATIONAL RESPONSE FUNCTIONS.—The Sec9 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

10 is operating—’’; and 

11 (3) in subsection (j)(4)(C)(vi), by striking ‘‘, 

12 and into operating procedures of the National Re13 sponse Unit’’. 

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 4202(b) of 

15 the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 1321 note) is 

16 amended— 

17 (1) by striking paragraph (2); and 

18 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

19 paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively. 

20 SEC. 409. UPDATES TO FINES AND PENALTIES. 

21 (a) AIDS TO NAVIGATION AND FALSE DISTRESS

22 MESSAGES.—Chapter 5 of title 14, United States Code, 

23 is amended— 

24 (1) in section 83, by striking ‘‘$100’’ and in25 serting ‘‘$1,500’’; 


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1 (2) in section 84, by striking ‘‘$500’’ and in2 serting ‘‘$5,000’’; 

3 (3) in section 85, by striking ‘‘$100’’ and in4 serting ‘‘$1,500’’; and 

5 (4) in section 88(c)(2), by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘$10,000’’. 

7 (b) COAST GUARD ENSIGNS AND PENNANTS.—Sec8 tion 638(b) of title 14, United States Code, is amended 

9 by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$50,000’’. 

10 (c) UNAUTHORIZED USE OF WORDS ‘‘COAST

11 GUARD’’.—Section 639 of title 14, United States Code, 

12 is amended by striking ‘‘$1,000’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘$10,000’’. 

14 SEC. 410. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT; COAST GUARD ACAD15 EMY CHARGES AND FEES FOR ATTENDANCE. 

16 Section 197(b) of title 14, United States Code, is 

17 amended by striking ‘‘of Homeland Security’’. 

18 TITLE V—SHIPPING AND 

19 NAVIGATION 

20 SEC. 501. PROMPT INTERGOVERNMENTAL NOTICE OF MA21 RINE CASUALTIES. 

22 Section 6101 of title 46, United States Code, is 

23 amended by inserting after subsection (b) the following: 

24 ‘‘(c) NOTICE TO STATE AND TRIBAL GOVERN25 MENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT TO NOTIFY.—Not later 

2 than 24 hours after receiving notice of a reportable 

3 marine casualty under this section, the Secretary 

4 shall report the marine casualty to the designated 

5 official of— 

6 ‘‘(A) each appropriate State agency of a 

7 State; and 

8 ‘‘(B) each tribal government of an Indian 

9 tribe (as defined in section 102 of the Federally 

10 Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 

11 U.S.C. 479a)) that has jurisdiction concurrent 

12 with the United States or is adjacent to waters 

13 in which the marine casualty occurred. 

14 ‘‘(2) DESIGNATED OFFICIAL.—Each State and 

15 tribal government referred to in paragraph (1) shall 

16 identify for the Secretary the designated official to 

17 receive a report under paragraph (1).’’. 

18 SEC. 502. DRUG TESTING REPORTING. 

19 Section 7706 of title 46, United States Code, is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘an applicant 

22 for employment by a Federal agency,’’ after ‘‘Fed23 eral agency,’’; and 

24 (2) in subsection (c), by— 


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1 (A) inserting ‘‘or an applicant for employ2 ment by a Federal agency’’ after ‘‘an em3 ployee’’; and 

4 (B) striking ‘‘the employee.’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘the employee or the applicant.’’. 

6 SEC. 503. PROTECTION AND FAIR TREATMENT OF SEA7 FARERS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 111 of title 46, United 

9 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘§ 11113. Protection and fair treatment of seafarers 

12 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section shall be 

13 to ensure the protection and fair treatment of seafarers. 

14 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL FUND.— 

15 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

16 the Treasury a special fund known as the Support 

17 of Seafarers Fund. 

18 ‘‘(2) USE OF AMOUNTS IN FUND.—The 

19 amounts deposited into the Fund shall be available 

20 to the Secretary, without fiscal year limitation— 

21 ‘‘(A) to pay necessary support under sub22 section (c)(1); and 

23 ‘‘(B) to reimburse a shipowner for nec24 essary support for the duration of a seafarer’s 


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1 involvement in an investigation under sub2 section (c)(2). 

3 ‘‘(3) AMOUNTS CREDITED TO FUND.—Notwith4 standing any other provision of law, the Fund may 

5 receive— 

6 ‘‘(A) any moneys ordered to be paid to the 

7 Fund in the form of community service under 

8 section 8B1.3 of the United States Sentencing 

9 Guidelines Manual or to the extent permitted 

10 under paragraph (4); and 

11 ‘‘(B) amounts reimbursed or recovered 

12 under subsection (e). 

13 ‘‘(4) PREREQUISITE FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE

14 CREDITS.—The Fund may receive credits under 

15 paragraph (3)(A) if the unobligated balance of the 

16 Fund is less than $5,000,000. 

17 ‘‘(5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.— 

18 There is authorized to be appropriated, from the 

19 Fund, for each fiscal year such sums as may be nec20 essary for the purposes set forth in paragraph (2). 

21 ‘‘(6) REPORT REQUIRED.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

23 submit to Congress, concurrent with the Presi24 dent’s budget submission for a given fiscal year, 

25 a report that describes— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the amounts credited to the Fund 

2 under paragraph (3) for the preceding fis3 cal year; 

4 ‘‘(ii) in detail, the activities for which 

5 amounts were charged; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) the projected level of expendi7 tures from the Fund for the upcoming fis8 cal year, based on— 

9 ‘‘(I) on-going activities; and 

10 ‘‘(II) new cases, derived from his11 toric data. 

12 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) 

13 shall not apply to obligations during the first 

14 fiscal year during which amounts are credited 

15 to the Fund. 

16 ‘‘(7) FUND MANAGER.—The Secretary shall 

17 designate a Fund manager who shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) ensure the visibility and account19 ability of transactions utilizing the Fund; 

20 ‘‘(B) prepare the report under paragraph 

21 (6); 

22 ‘‘(C) monitor the unobligated balance of 

23 the Fund; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) provide notice to the Secretary and 

2 the Attorney General whenever the unobligated 

3 balance of the Fund is less than $5,000,000. 

4 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may— 

5 ‘‘(1) pay, from amounts appropriated from the 

6 Fund, necessary support of— 

7 ‘‘(A) a seafarer that— 

8 ‘‘(i) enters, remains, or is paroled into 

9 the United States; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) is involved in an investigation, 

11 reporting, documentation, or adjudication 

12 of any matter that is related to the admin13 istration or enforcement of any treaty, law, 

14 or regulation by the Coast Guard; and 

15 ‘‘(B) a seafarer that the Secretary deter16 mines was abandoned in the United States; and 

17 ‘‘(2) reimburse, from amounts appropriated 

18 from the Fund, a shipowner that has provided nec19 essary support of a seafarer who has been paroled 

20 into the United States to facilitate an investigation, 

21 reporting, documentation, or adjudication of any 

22 matter that is related to the administration or en23 forcement of any treaty, law, or regulation by the 

24 Coast Guard, for the costs of necessary support if 


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1 the Secretary determines that reimbursement is nec2 essary to avoid serious injustice. 

3 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

4 construed— 

5 ‘‘(1) to create a right, benefit, or entitlement to 

6 necessary support; or 

7 ‘‘(2) to compel the Secretary to pay or reim8 burse the cost of necessary support. 

9 ‘‘(e) REIMBURSEMENT; RECOVERY.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A shipowner shall reim11 burse the Fund an amount equal to the total 

12 amount paid from the Fund for necessary support of 

13 a seafarer plus a surcharge of 25 percent of the 

14 total amount if— 

15 ‘‘(A) the shipowner— 

16 ‘‘(i) during the course of an investiga17 tion, reporting, documentation, or adju18 dication of any matter that the Coast 

19 Guard referred to a United States Attor20 ney or the Attorney General, fails to pro21 vide necessary support of a seafarer who 

22 was paroled into the United States to fa23 cilitate the investigation, reporting, docu24 mentation, or adjudication; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) subsequently receives a criminal 

2 penalty; or 

3 ‘‘(B) the shipowner, under any cir4 cumstance, abandons a seafarer in the United 

5 States, as determined by the Secretary. 

6 ‘‘(2) ENFORCEMENT.—If a shipowner fails to 

7 reimburse the Fund under paragraph (1), the Sec8 retary may— 

9 ‘‘(A) proceed in rem against the vessel on 

10 which the affected seafarer served in the Fed11 eral district court for the district in which the 

12 vessel is found; and 

13 ‘‘(B) withhold or revoke the clearance re14 quired under section 60105 of any vessel of the 

15 shipowner wherever the vessel is found. 

16 ‘‘(3) REMEDY.—A vessel may obtain clearance 

17 from the Secretary after it is withheld or revoked 

18 under paragraph (2)(B) if the shipowner reimburses 

19 the Fund the amount required under paragraph (1). 

20 ‘‘(f) BOND AND SURETY.— 

21 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may require 

22 a bond or a surety satisfactory as an alternative to 

23 withholding or revoking clearance under subsection 

24 (e) if, in the opinion of the Secretary, the bond or 

25 surety satisfactory is necessary to facilitate an invesVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:50 Jun 07, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2444.IS S2444

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1 tigation, reporting, documentation, or adjudication 

2 of any matter that is related to the administration 

3 or enforcement of any treaty, law, or regulation by 

4 the Coast Guard. 

5 ‘‘(2) SURETY CORPORATIONS.—A surety cor6 poration may provide a bond or surety satisfactory 

7 under paragraph (1) if the surety corporation is au8 thorized by the Secretary of the Treasury under sec9 tion 9305 of title 31 to provide surety bonds under 

10 section 9304 of title 31. 

11 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION.—The authority to require a 

12 bond or surety satisfactory or to request the with13 holding or revocation of the clearance under sub14 section (e) applies to any investigation, reporting, 

15 documentation, or adjudication of any matter that is 

16 related to the administration or enforcement of any 

17 treaty, law, or regulation by the Coast Guard. 

18 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 ‘‘(1) ABANDONS; ABANDONED.—The term 

20 ‘abandons’ or ‘abandoned’ means— 

21 ‘‘(A) a shipowner’s unilateral severance of 

22 ties with a seafarer; or 

23 ‘‘(B) a shipowner’s failure to provide nec24 essary support of a seafarer. 


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1 ‘‘(2) FUND.—The term ‘Fund’ means the Sup2 port of Seafarers Fund established under this sec3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(3) NECESSARY SUPPORT.—The term ‘nec5 essary support’ means normal wages, lodging, sub6 sistence, clothing, medical care (including hos7 pitalization), repatriation, and any other expense the 

8 Secretary considers appropriate. 

9 ‘‘(4) SEAFARER.—The term ‘seafarer’ means an 

10 alien crewman who is employed or engaged in any 

11 capacity on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction 

12 of the United States. A seafarer is a claimant for 

13 the purposes of section 30509 of this title. 

14 ‘‘(5) SHIPOWNER.—The term ‘shipowner’ 

15 means an individual or entity that owns, has an 

16 ownership interest in, or operates a vessel subject to 

17 the jurisdiction of the United States. 

18 ‘‘(6) VESSEL SUBJECT TO THE JURISDICTION

19 OF THE UNITED STATES.—The term ‘vessel subject 

20 to the jurisdiction of the United States’ has the 

21 meaning given the term in section 70502(c), except 

22 that it excludes— 

23 ‘‘(A) a vessel— 


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1 ‘‘(i) that is owned by the United 

2 States, a State or political subdivision 

3 thereof, or a foreign nation; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) that is not engaged in commerce; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(B) a bareboat— 

7 ‘‘(i) that is chartered and operated by 

8 the United States, a State or political sub9 division thereof, or a foreign nation; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) that is not engaged in commerce. 

11 ‘‘(h) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may prescribe 

12 regulations to implement this section.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con14 tents for chapter 111 of title 46, United States Code, is 

15 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

16 11112 the following: 

‘‘11113. Protection and fair treatment of seafarers.’’. 

17 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

18 authorized to be appropriated to the Support of Seafarers 

19 Fund $1,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 and 2016. 

20 SEC. 504. VESSEL REQUIREMENTS FOR NOTICES OF AR21 RIVAL AND DEPARTURE AND AUTOMATIC 

22 IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM. 

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

24 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the depart25 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating shall publish 


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1 a final rule implementing the proposed rule ‘‘Vessel Re2 quirements for Notices of Arrival and Departure, and 

3 Automatic Identification System’’ (73 Fed. Reg. 76295). 

4 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The Secretary of the 

5 department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall 

6 ensure, with respect to a final rule issued under subsection 

7 (a), that any notice of arrival or notice of departure re8 quirement in the final rule applies to vessels in a manner 

9 consistent with the regulations promulgated under section 

10 109(a) of the Security and Accountability for Every Port 

11 Act of 2006 (33 U.S.C. 1223 note) and with section 704 

12 of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 

13 2012 (126 Stat. 1580). 

14 SEC. 505. IMPROVED SAFETY INFORMATION FOR VESSELS. 

15 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

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

17 Coast Guard is operating shall establish a permitting proc18 ess by which an operator of a marine exchange or other 

19 non-Federal vessel traffic information service may apply 

20 for permission to use the automatic identification system 

21 to transmit weather, ice, and other important navigation 

22 safety information to vessels. 


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1 SEC. 506. PROMPT PUBLICATION OF OIL SPILL INFORMA2 TION. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—In any response to an oil spill in 

4 which the Coast Guard serves as the Federal on-scene co5 ordinator leading a unified command, the Commandant of 

6 the Coast Guard shall publish, on a publicly accessible 

7 website, all written incident action plans prepared and ap8 proved as a part of the response to the oil spill. 

9 (b) TIMELINESS AND DURATION.—The Commandant 

10 of the Coast Guard shall— 

11 (1) publish each incident action plan under sub12 section (a) promptly after the incident action plan is 

13 approved for implementation by the unified com14 mand, but not later than 12 hours after the begin15 ning of the operational period for which the plan is 

16 prepared; and 

17 (2) ensure that each incident action plan under 

18 subsection (a) remains publicly accessible on the 

19 website under subsection (a) for the duration of the 

20 response to the applicable oil spill. 

21 (c) REDACTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION.—The 

22 Commandant may redact information from an incident ac23 tion plans published under subsection (a) to the extent 

24 necessary to comply with applicable privacy laws and other 

25 laws regarding the protection of personal information. 


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1 SEC. 507. AREA CONTINGENCY PLANS. 

2 Section 311(j)(4) of the Federal Water Pollution 

3 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(4)) is amended— 

4 (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘, and of 

5 tribal governments of Indian tribes (as defined in 

6 section 102 of the Federally Recognized Indian 

7 Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a))’’ after 

8 ‘‘and local agencies’’; 

9 (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii)— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘and local’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘, local, and tribal’’; and 

12 (B) by striking ‘‘wildlife;’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘wildlife, including advance planning with re14 spect to the closing and reopening of fishing 

15 grounds following a discharge;’’; 

16 (3) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by striking ‘‘and 

17 local’’ and inserting ‘‘, local, and tribal’’; and 

18 (4) in subparagraph (C)— 

19 (A) in clause (iv), by inserting ‘‘and tribal 

20 governments of Indian tribes’’ after ‘‘local agen21 cies,’’; 

22 (B) by redesignating clauses (vii) and (viii) 

23 as clauses (viii) and (ix), respectively; and 

24 (C) by inserting after clause (vi) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(vii) develop a framework for ad2 vance planning and decisionmaking with 

3 respect to the closing and reopening of 

4 fishing grounds following a discharge, in5 cluding protocols and standards for the 

6 closing and reopening of fishing areas;’’. 

7 SEC. 508. COAST GUARD RESPONSE PLAN REQUIREMENTS. 

8 (a) VESSEL RESPONSE PLAN CONTENTS.—The Sec9 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is op10 erating shall require that each vessel response plan pre11 pared for a mobile offshore drilling unit include informa12 tion from the facility response plan prepared for the mo13 bile offshore drilling unit regarding the planned response 

14 to a worst case discharge, and to a threat of such a dis15 charge. 

16 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

17 (1) MOBILE OFFSHORE DRILLING UNIT.—The 

18 term ‘‘mobile offshore drilling unit’’ has the meaning 

19 given the term in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution 

20 Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701). 

21 (2) RESPONSE PLAN.—The term ‘‘response 

22 plan’’ means a response plan prepared under section 

23 311(j) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

24 (33 U.S.C. 1321(j)). 


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1 (3) WORST CASE DISCHARGE.—The term 

2 ‘‘worst case discharge’’ has the meaning given the 

3 term under section 311(a) of the Federal Water Pol4 lution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(a)). 

5 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec6 tion shall be construed to require the Coast Guard to re7 view or approve a facility response plan for a mobile off8 shore drilling unit. 

9 TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

10 SEC. 601. WAIVERS. 

11 (a) F/V WESTERN CHALLENGER.—Notwithstanding 

12 sections 12112 and 12132 and chapter 551 of title 46, 

13 United States Code, the Secretary of the department in 

14 which the Coast Guard is operating may issue a license 

15 under chapter 121 for the F/V WESTERN CHAL16 LENGER (IMO number 5388108). 

17 (b) JOHN CRAIG.— 

18 (1) EXEMPTION.—Section 8902 of title 46, 

19 United States Code, shall not apply to the vessel 

20 JOHN CRAIG (United States official number 

21 1110613) when such vessel is operating on the por22 tion of the Kentucky River, Kentucky, located at ap23 proximately mile point 158, in Pool Number 9, be24 tween Lock and Dam Number 9 and Lock and Dam 

25 Number 10. 


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1 (2) APPLICATION.—The exemption under para2 graph (1) shall apply on and after the date on which 

3 the Secretary of the department in which the Coast 

4 Guard is operating determines that a licensing re5 quirement has been established under Kentucky 

6 State law that applies to an operator of the vessel 

7 JOHN CRAIG. 

8 SEC. 602. INFLATIONARY ADJUSTMENT FOR REGIONAL 

9 CITIZENS’ ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

10 Section 5002(k)(3) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 

11 (33 U.S.C. 2732(k)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘not more 

12 than $1,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘not less than 

13 $1,400,000’’. 

Æ 


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