I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 517

To direct the Commandant of the Coast Guard to convey the Coast Guard 

Cutter BRAMBLE, upon its scheduled decommissioning, to the Port 

Huron Museum of Arts and History located in Port Huron, Michigan, 

for use for education and historical display. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 31, 2003

Mrs. MILLER of Michigan introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL

To direct the Commandant of the Coast Guard to convey 

the Coast Guard Cutter BRAMBLE, upon its scheduled 

decommissioning, to the Port Huron Museum of Arts 

and History located in Port Huron, Michigan, for use 

for education and historical display.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. CONVEYANCE OF DECOMMISSIONED COAST 

4 GUARD CUTTER BRAMBLE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the scheduled decommis6 sioning of the Coast Guard Cutter BRAMBLE, the Com7 mandant of the Coast Guard shall convey all right, title, 
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1 and interest of the United States in and to that vessel 

2 to the Port Huron Museum of Arts and History (a non3 profit corporation under the laws of the State of Michigan; 

4 in this section referred to as the the ‘‘recipient’’), located 

5 in Port Huron, Michigan, without consideration, if—

6 (1) the recipient agrees—

7 (A) to use the vessel for purposes of edu8 cation and historical display; 

9 (B) not to use the vessel for commercial 

10 transportation purposes; 

11 (C) to make the vessel available to the 

12 United States Government if needed for use by 

13 the Commandant in time of war or a national 

14 emergency; and 

15 (D) to hold the Government harmless for 

16 any claims arising from exposure to hazardous 

17 materials, including asbestos and poly18 chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), after conveyance 

19 of the vessel, except for claims arising from the 

20 use by the Government under subparagraph 

21 (C); 

22 (2) the recipient has funds available that will be 

23 committed to operate and maintain the vessel con24 veyed in good working condition, in the form of 
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1 cash, liquid assets, or a written loan commitment, 

2 and in an amount of at least $700,000; and 

3 (3) the recipient agrees to any other conditions 

4 the Commandant considers appropriate. 

5 (b) MAINTENANCE AND DELIVERY OF VESSEL.—

6 Prior to conveyance of the vessel under this section, the 

7 Commandant shall, to the extent practical, and subject to 

8 other Coast Guard mission requirements, make every ef9 fort to maintain the integrity of the vessel and its equip10 ment until the time of delivery. If a conveyance is made 

11 under this section, the Commandant shall deliver the ves12 sel at the place where the vessel is located, in its present 

13 condition, and without cost to the Government. The con14 veyance of the vessel under this section shall not be consid15 ered a distribution in commerce for purposes of section 

16 6(e) of Public Law 94–469 (15 U.S.C. 2605(e)). 

17 (c) OTHER EXCESS EQUIPMENT.—The Commandant 

18 may convey to the recipient any excess equipment or parts 

19 from other decommissioned Coast Guard vessels for use 

20 to enhance the vessel’s operability and function as an his21 torical display.

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