I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5925 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish a program to provide 
grants to owners of cargo vessels being rerouted from the western sea-
board of the United States through the Panama Canal, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 
Mr. GIMENEZ (for himself, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Ms. SALAZAR, Mr. DIAZ- 
BALART, Mr. MAST, Mr. MCKINLEY, Mr. MOONEY, Mr. GOHMERT, Ms. 
MALLIOTAKIS, Mr. ROUZER, Mr. HARRIS, and Mr. CAWTHORN) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Over-
sight and Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within 
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish a 
program to provide grants to owners of cargo vessels 
being rerouted from the western seaboard of the United 
States through the Panama Canal, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Supply Chain Emer-
gency Response Act’’. 
SEC. 2. EMERGENCY INCENTIVE PROGRAM FOR REROUT-
ING CARGO VESSELS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation, 
acting through the Administrator of the Maritime Admin-
istration, shall establish a program to provide grants to 
eligible entities to cover toll costs associated with rerouting 
cargo vessels from ports along the western seaboard of the 
United States through the Panama Canal to ports along 
the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern seaboard of the United 
States. 
(b) GRANT AMOUNT.—A grant provided under this 
section shall be in an amount equal to the cost of the toll 
fees at the Panama Canal. 
(c) DOCUMENTATION
REQUIRED.—To receive a 
grant under this section, an eligible entity shall submit 
to the Administrator documentation that such eligible en-
tity— 
(1) had an agreement to dock a cargo vessel at 
a port along the western seaboard of the United 
States and intends to reroute such cargo vessel from 
such port through the Panama Canal to a port along 
the Gulf of Mexico or the eastern seaboard of the 
United States; and 
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(2) has an agreement to dock such cargo vessel 
at such port along the Gulf of Mexico or the eastern 
seaboard of the United States. 
(d) ENTITIES INELIGIBLE FOR GRANT.—Any indi-
vidual who is a member of the Chinese Communist Party 
or any company owned, in whole or in part, by the Chinese 
Communist Party may not receive a grant under this sec-
tion. 
(e) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this sec-
tion, the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means the owner of a cargo 
vessel who intends to reroute such cargo vessel from a port 
along the western seaboard of the United States through 
the Panama Canal to a destination located in the United 
States. 
(f) FUNDING.—Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, not more than $125,000,000 of the total amount 
of unobligated funds made available under the CARES 
Act (Public Law 116–136) may be used to carry out this 
section. 
SEC. 3. USE OF COVID RELIEF FUNDS TO OFFSET SHIPPING 
COSTS. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a State 
or unit of local government may use any unobligated funds 
made available to such State or unit of local government 
under the CARES Act (Public Law 116–136) for costs 
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related to rerouting cargo vessels from the western sea-
board of the United States to the eastern seaboard of the 
United States. 
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON COLLECTION OF PORT FEES. 
Any marine terminal operator (as such term is de-
fined in section 40102 of title 46, United States Code) 
who is operating a port located along the western seaboard 
of the United States may not collect port fees from a re-
cipient of a grant under section 2 who has rerouted a 
cargo vessel from such port due to the inability of such 
port to receive such vessel. 
SEC. 5. DEFINITION OF CARGO VESSEL. 
In this Act, the term ‘‘cargo vessel’’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 199.30 of title 46, Code of Fed-
eral Regulations. 
Æ 
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