I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4355
To strengthen port security by establishing an improved container security 
regime, to expand on the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, 
to strengthen the Coast Guard port security mission, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 12, 2004
Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California (for herself, Mr. TURNER of Texas, Mr. 
MARKEY, Mr. DICKS, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. AN-
DREWS, Ms. MCCARTHY of Missouri, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mrs. 
CHRISTENSEN, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. MEEK of Florida, and Mr. CHAN-
DLER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee 
on Ways and Means, 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 strengthen port security by establishing an improved con-
tainer security regime, to expand on the Maritime Trans-
portation Security Act of 2002, to strengthen the Coast 
Guard port security mission, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Secure Containers 
from Overseas and Seaports from Terrorism Act’’ or the 
‘‘Secure COAST Act’’. 
TITLE I—BUREAU OF CUSTOMS 
AND 
BORDER 
PROTECTION 
SECURITY PROGRAMS 
SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO THE HOMELAND SECURITY ACT 
OF 2002. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV of the Homeland Secu-
rity Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subtitle: 
‘‘Subtitle G—Bureau of Customs 
and Border Protection Security 
Programs 
‘‘SEC. 481. STANDARDS AND VERIFICATION PROCEDURES 
FOR THE SECURITY OF MARITIME CARGO 
CONTAINERS. 
‘‘(a) 
STANDARDS
AND
VERIFICATION
PROCE-
DURES.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of the Secure COAST Act, the Secretary, act-
ing through the Under Secretary for Border and Trans-
portation 
Security, 
shall 
establish 
standards 
and 
verification procedures for the security of maritime cargo 
containers moving within the intermodal transportation
system, including standards for sealing and procedures for 
seal verifications for cargo containers at loading. 
‘‘(b) 
REQUIREMENTS.—The 
standards 
and 
verification procedures established pursuant to subsection 
(a) shall be consistent with the cargo container security 
recommendations of Operation Safe Commerce, the inter-
agency Container Working Group, and the Smart and Se-
cure Trade Lane program and shall meet the following 
additional requirements: 
‘‘(1) SEAL STANDARDS.—Maritime cargo con-
tainers shall at a minimum be affixed with a secu-
rity seal equivalent to the level ‘D’ high security seal 
(as certified by the International Organization for 
Standardization (ISO); Certification No. 17712) at 
loading. 
‘‘(2) SEAL VERIFICATION.—Procedures shall be 
established for the verification of security seals de-
scribed in paragraph (1), including procedures to de-
termine which individuals and entities in the inter-
modal transportation system are responsible for seal-
ing maritime cargo containers, recording of seal 
numbers, changes to such numbers if a container is 
opened, and anomalies relating to security seals.
‘‘(c) EVALUATION OF CONTAINER TRACKING TECH-
NOLOGIES, CONTAINER TARGETING, AND SECURITY OF 
EMPTY CONTAINERS.—
‘‘(1) 
EVALUATION.—The 
Secretary, 
acting 
through the Under Secretary for Border and Trans-
portation Security, shall carry out the following: 
‘‘(A) 
CONTAINER
TRACKING
TECH-
NOLOGIES.—The Secretary shall evaluate the 
security benefits of existing technology for con-
tainer tracking from the point of loading to its 
final destination, such as electronic seals or in-
trusion detection devices that can detect a phys-
ical breach of a container. In addition to deter-
mining the security benefits, the Secretary shall 
determine the costs, infrastructure, communica-
tion system, required to deploy such technology 
in the intermodal transportation system, includ-
ing incentives for investment in such tech-
nology. 
‘‘(B) CONTAINER
TARGETING.—The Sec-
retary shall evaluate trade information, in addi-
tion to cargo manifest information, such as pur-
chase orders, port of origin data, and trans-
shipment data, which would improve the ability
of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protec-
tion to carry out risk analysis of containers. 
‘‘(C) SECURITY OF EMPTY CONTAINERS.—
The Secretary shall evaluate the practices and 
policies in place to secure shipment of empty 
containers at United States ports and shall de-
velop recommendations with respect to whether 
additional regulations or legislation is necessary 
to ensure the safe and secure delivery of cargo 
and to prevent potential acts of terrorism in-
volving such containers. 
‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of the Secure COAST 
Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a report that 
contains the results of the evaluations carried out 
under paragraph (1), including any recommenda-
tions thereto. 
‘‘SEC. 482. VALIDATION OF SECURITY MEASURES UNDER 
THE C-TPAT PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) GENERAL VALIDATION.—Not later than Sep-
tember 30, 2005, and on an annual basis thereafter, the 
Commissioner of the Bureau of Customs and Border Pro-
tection shall conduct on site validations of each individual 
and entity participating in the C-TPAT program to ensure
that the individual or entity is implementing appropriate 
security measures under the program. The Commissioner 
may certify private security companies to carry out the 
validation process described in the preceding sentence. 
‘‘(b) SPECIFIC
VALIDATION.—The Commissioner 
shall establish inspection teams under the C-TPAT pro-
gram to evaluate the program’s security requirements and, 
as circumstances warrant, to carry out unannounced in-
spections of individuals and entities participating in the 
program to ensure compliance with the security require-
ments. 
‘‘(c) PENALTIES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE.—The Com-
missioner shall establish penalties for non-compliance with 
the requirements of the C-TPAT program by individuals 
and entities participating in the program, including proba-
tion or expulsion from the program, as appropriate. 
‘‘SEC. 483. DEPLOYMENT OF RADIATION DETECTION POR-
TAL EQUIPMENT; INTEGRATED CARGO IN-
SPECTION SYSTEM. 
‘‘(a) DEPLOYMENT OF RADIATION DETECTION POR-
TAL EQUIPMENT.—
‘‘(1) DEPLOYMENT.—Not later than September 
30, 2005, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Cus-
toms and Border Protection shall deploy radiation 
detection portal equipment at all United States sea-
ports, other United States ports of entry, and major 
facilities as determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than December 31, 
2004, the Commissioner shall submit to the appro-
priate congressional committees a report on the im-
plementation of the requirement under paragraph 
(1). 
‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.—
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Com-
missioner $297,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 to carry 
out this subsection. 
‘‘(b) INTEGRATED CARGO INSPECTION SYSTEM.—
‘‘(1) PLAN.—The Commissioner of the Bureau 
of Customs and Border Protection shall develop a 
plan to integrate radiation detection portal equip-
ment with gamma-ray inspection technology equip-
ment at United States seaports and foreign seaports 
that are participating the Container Security Initia-
tive in order to facilitate the detection of nuclear 
weapons in maritime cargo containers. Such plan 
shall include methods for automatic identification of 
containers and vehicles for inspection in a timely 
manner and a data sharing network capable of 
transmitting gamma-ray images and cargo data 
among relevant ports and the National Targeting
Center of the Bureau of Customs and Border Pro-
tection. 
‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of the Secure COAST 
Act, the Commissioner shall prepare and submit to 
the appropriate congressional committees a report 
that contains—
‘‘(A) a description of the plan developed 
under paragraph (1), including any infrastruc-
ture improvements required at the seaports in-
volved; 
‘‘(B) an estimate of the costs associated 
with implementation of the plan; and 
‘‘(C) an estimate of the timeframe for im-
plementation of the plan. 
‘‘SEC. 484. STAFFING ASSESSMENT OF SEAPORT SECURITY 
MISSIONS. 
‘‘(a) STUDY.—The Commissioner of the Bureau of 
Customs and Border Protection shall conduct a study to 
determine the number of Bureau inspectors and other ap-
propriate personnel that should be stationed at United 
States seaports and foreign seaports that are participating 
in the Container Security Initiative (CSI) to support in-
creased inspections of low risk cargo, deployment of per-
sonnel at foreign seaports for a period of at least one year,
and the manning of radiation portal monitors installed at 
such seaports. In determining such number of Bureau in-
spectors, the Commissioner shall take into account the re-
quirements contained in the other sections of this subtitle. 
‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of the Secure COAST Act, the Com-
missioner shall prepare and submit to the appropriate con-
gressional committees a report that contains the results 
of the study conducted under subsection (a). 
‘‘SEC. 485. CSI REPORT. 
‘‘Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact-
ment of the Secure COAST Act, and on an annual basis 
thereafter, the Secretary, acting through the Commis-
sioner of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, 
shall prepare and submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees a report that contains all cargo inspection data 
at foreign seaports participating in the Container Security 
Initiative (CSI) for the prior year. The initial report shall 
include the plan for the ‘strategic port’ phase of the CSI. 
‘‘SEC. 486. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this subtitle: 
‘‘(1) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—The term ‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’ means—
‘‘(A) the Committee on Appropriations, the 
Committee on Ways and Means, the Select 
Committee on Homeland Security (or any suc-
cessor committee), and the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 
of Representatives; and 
‘‘(B) the Committee on Appropriations, the 
Committee on Finance, the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation, and the 
Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Sen-
ate. 
‘‘(2) BUREAU OF CUSTOMS AND BORDER PRO-
TECTION OR BUREAU.—The term ‘Bureau of Cus-
toms and Border Protection’ or ‘Bureau’ means the 
Bureau of Customs and Border Protection of the 
Department. 
‘‘(3) 
COMMISSIONER.—The 
term 
‘Commis-
sioner’ means the Commissioner of the Bureau of 
Customs and Border Protection. 
‘‘(4) CONTAINER
SECURITY
INITIATIVE
OR 
CSI.—The term ‘Container Security Initiative’ or 
‘CSI’ means the program carried out by the Bureau 
of Customs and Border Protection under which Bu-
reau personnel are deployed to major seaports out-
side the United States to work with their host coun-
try counterparts to—
‘‘(A) establish security criteria to identify 
high-risk maritime cargo containers bound for 
the United States based on advance informa-
tion; 
‘‘(B) identify and pre-screen such maritime 
cargo containers for chemical, biological, or nu-
clear weapons through examination or inspec-
tion; and 
‘‘(C) develop secure or ‘smart’ maritime 
cargo containers. 
‘‘(5) C-TPAT PROGRAM.—The term ‘C-TPAT 
program’ means the Customs-Trade Partnership 
Against Terrorism program carried out by the Bu-
reau of Customs and Border Protection under which 
importers, brokers, air, sea, and land carriers, and 
other individuals and entities in the intermodal 
transportation system voluntarily enter into partner-
ships with the Bureau to establish and carry out a 
validation process to ensure that participants are im-
plementing appropriate security measures to protect 
the system from being compromised by individual 
terrorists and terrorist organizations.
‘‘(6) 
INTERAGENCY
CONTAINER
WORKING 
GROUP.—The term ‘Interagency Container Working 
Group’ means the working group consisting of rep-
resentatives of the former United States Customs 
Service and the National Infrastructure Security 
Committee of the Department of Transportation 
that provided recommendations relating to the secu-
rity of intermodal cargo containers to the Office of 
Homeland Security in the Executive Office of the 
President. 
‘‘(7) OPERATION SAFE COMMERCE.—The term 
‘Operation Safe Commerce’ means the program car-
ried out by the Department of Transportation and 
the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to 
fund business initiatives designed to enhance secu-
rity for maritime cargo containers moving within the 
intermodal transportation system. 
‘‘(8) SMART AND SECURE TRADE LANE PRO-
GRAM.—The term ‘Smart and Secure Trade Lane 
Program’ means the program carried out by the 
intermodal transportation industry to provide secu-
rity and ensure efficiency throughout the intermodal 
transportation system, specifically by developing 
technology to improve the security of intermodal 
cargo containers and to improve information sharing
within the industry relating to such security and ef-
ficiency.’’
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is 
amended by adding after the items relating to subtitle F 
of title IV the following new items:
‘‘Subtitle G—Bureau of Customs and Border Protection Security Programs 
‘‘Sec. 481. Standards for the security of maritime cargo containers. 
‘‘Sec. 482. Validation of security measures under the C-TPAT program. 
‘‘Sec. 483. Deployment of radiation detection portal equipment; integrated 
cargo inspection system. 
‘‘Sec. 484. Staffing assessment of seaport security missions. 
‘‘Sec. 485. CSI report. 
‘‘Sec. 486. Definitions.’’.
SEC. 102. REMOVAL AND STORAGE OF UNCLAIMED MER-
CHANDISE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 701 of title 46, United 
States Code, is amended—
(1) by redesignating section 70117 as section 
70118; and 
(2) by inserting after section 70116 the fol-
lowing new section: 
‘‘§ 70117. Removal and storage of unclaimed mer-
chandise 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro-
vision of law, the Secretary shall require any uncleared, 
imported merchandise remaining on the pier or wharf onto 
which it was unladen for more than 7 calendar days to 
be removed from the pier or wharf and deposited in the
public stores or a general order warehouse, where it shall 
be inspected for determination of contents, and thereafter 
a permit for its delivery may be granted. 
‘‘(b) PENALTY.—The Secretary may impose an ad-
ministrative penalty of $5,000 for each bill of lading for 
general order merchandise remaining on a wharf or pier 
in violation of subsection (a).’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis 
for chapter 701 of title 46, United States Code, is amend-
ed by striking the last item and inserting the following:
‘‘70117. Removal and storage of unclaimed merchandise. 
‘‘70118. Civil penalty.’’.
TITLE II—PORT SECURITY 
SEC. 201. ADMINISTRATION OF PORT SECURITY GRANTS BY 
SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY. 
(a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—Section 70107(a) of title 
46, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Under Secretary for 
Border and Transportation Security of the Department of 
Homeland Security shall establish a grant program for 
making a fair and equitable allocation of funds to imple-
ment Area Maritime Transportation Security Plans and 
to help fund compliance with Federal security plan among 
port authorities, facility operators, and State and local 
agencies required to provide security services. Grants shall 
be made on the basis of the need to address vulnerabilities
in security subject to review and comment by the appro-
priate Federal Maritime Security Coordinators and the 
Maritime Administration. The grant program shall take 
into account national economic and strategic defense con-
cerns and shall be coordinated with the Director of the 
Office of Domestic Preparedness to ensure that the grant 
process is consistent with other Department of Homeland 
Security grant programs.’’. 
(b) LETTER OF INTENT.—
(1) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security may issue a letter of intent to a 
seaport committing to obligate from future budget 
authority available for grants under section 70107 of 
title 46, United States Code,, an amount equal to 
not more than the Federal share of the costs of a 
security improvement project (including project de-
sign and interest costs) having a total cost of 
$10,000,000 or more. 
(2) NOTICE
TO
CONGRESS.—The Secretary 
shall transmit to the Committees on Appropriations 
and Homeland Security of the House of Representa-
tives and the Committees on Appropriations and 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen-
ate a written notification at least 3 days before the 
issuance of a letter of intent under this subsection.
(3) LIMITATIONS.—A letter of intent issued 
under this subsection is not an obligation of the 
Government for purposes of section 1501 of title 31, 
United States Code, and shall not be considered to 
be an administrative commitment for financing. An 
obligation or administrative commitment pursuant to 
a letter of intent issued under this subsection may 
be made only as amounts are provided in appropria-
tions Acts to carry out the project that is the subject 
of the letter. 
(4) STATUTORY
CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 
this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the ob-
ligation of amounts pursuant to a letter of intent 
under this subsection in the same fiscal year as the 
letter of intent is issued. 
(5) APPLICATION
OF
ADDITIONAL
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—The Secretary may require as a condition 
for issuance of a letter of intent under this sub-
section such reasonable administrative requirements 
as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 
SEC. 202. PORT SECURITY GRANT FUNDING. 
Section 70107(h) of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 
out subsections (a) through (g)—
‘‘(1) $537,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; and 
‘‘(2) such sums as are necessary for each subse-
quent fiscal year.’’. 
SEC. 203. DEVELOPMENT OF LONG-RANGE VESSEL TRACK-
ING SYSTEM. 
Section 70115 of title 46, United States Code, is 
amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘(a) In General.—’’ before the 
first sentence; 
(2) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’; 
and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) PLAN.—(1) The Secretary shall, by no later 
than December 31, 2004, issue a plan to develop and im-
plement the vessel tracking system required by subsection 
(a). 
‘‘(2) The plan—
‘‘(A) shall be designed to ensure that the vessel 
tracking system is capable of providing information 
regarding the position of each vessel traveling to the 
United States from an overseas port, throughout the 
voyage of the vessel;
‘‘(B) shall designate—
‘‘(i) the Federal agencies that are respon-
sible for the operation of the system; and 
‘‘(ii) the Federal, State, and local agencies 
and persons in the private sector that will have 
access to the information provided by the sys-
tem; 
‘‘(C) shall include timelines, costs, and other re-
sources required to operate such a system; and 
‘‘(D) shall require that, during the 96-hour pe-
riod preceding the entry of a vessel into a port in 
the United States, information regarding the loca-
tion of the vessel—
‘‘(i) shall be submitted to the Secretary; 
and 
‘‘(ii) shall be available to Federal, State, 
and local agencies and persons in the private 
sector that are otherwise authorized to have ac-
cess to the information. 
‘‘(3) The Secretary shall submit the plan to the Com-
mittee of Appropriations, the Committee on Transpor-
tation and Infrastructure, and the Select Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation, and the Committee
on Governmental Affairs of the Senate, by not later than 
the 180 days after the date of the enactment of this sub-
section.’’. 
SEC. 204. MARITIME INFORMATION REPORT. 
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a plan 
for the implementation of section 70113 of title 46, United 
States Code. The plan shall—
(1) identify all Federal agencies with maritime 
information relating to vessels, crew, passengers, 
cargo, and cargo shippers; 
(2) establish a timeline for coordinating the ef-
forts of those Federal agencies in the collection of 
maritime information; 
(3) establish a timeline for the incorporation 
into implementation of such section of information 
on vessel movements derived through the implemen-
tation of sections 70114 and 70115 of title 46, 
United States Code; and 
(4) include recommendations on co-locating 
agency personnel in order to maximize expertise, 
minimize cost, and avoid redundancy.
SEC. 205. NATIONAL MARITIME TRANSPORTATION SECU-
RITY PLAN. 
No later than 180 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
submit to the appropriate congressional committees the 
National Maritime Transportation Security Plan required 
under section 70103 of title 46, United States Code. 
SEC. 206. FUNDING FOR COLLABORATIVE PROGRAM FOR 
DEVELOPMENT OF MARITIME INFORMATION 
SHARING AND ANALYSIS CAPABILITY. 
(a) FISCAL YEAR 2005.—Of the amounts authorized 
to be appropriated to the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity, $3,000,000 shall be available for a grant to assist 
the maritime industry to develop and operare a 
colloaborative maritime information sharing and analysis 
capability. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that—
(1) the President should include in budget re-
quests submitted for fiscal years 2006 and 2007 suf-
ficient funds to ensure that such a maritime infor-
mation sharing and analysis capability is fully oper-
ational before fiscal year 2008; and 
(2) the maritime industry should pay at least 
half of the operating costs of such capability in-
curred in fiscal year 2008 and thereafter.
SEC. 207. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES 
DEFINED. 
In this title the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means the Committee on Transportation and In-
frastructure, the Select Committee on Homeland Security, 
and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science 
and Transportation and the Committee on Appropriations 
of the Senate. 
TITLE III—STRENGTHENING THE 
COAST GUARD 
SEC. 301. ACCELERATION OF INTEGRATED DEEPWATER 
PROGRAM. 
In addition to any other amounts authorized, there 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Home-
land Security $1,892,000,000 for the acquisition and con-
struction of vessels, aircraft, shore and offshore facilities 
and other components associated with the Integrated 
Deepwater System in accordance with the report required 
by section 888 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (116 
Stat. 2250). 
SEC. 302. AIS INFRASTRUCTURE. 
In addition to any other amounts authorized, there 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Home-
land Security $4,000,000 for the acquisition and construc-
tion of shore-based equipment and infrastructure associ-
ated with the Automated Identification System authorized 
by section 70114 of title 46, United States Code, for ports 
that do not have Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Services. 
SEC. 303. INCREASE IN AUTHORIZED COAST GUARD PER-
SONNEL. 
The Coast Guard is authorized an end-of-year 
strength for active duty personnel of 50,000 as of Sep-
tember 30 of each of 2004, 2005, and 2006. 
SEC. 304. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING NAMING 
NEW VESSELS UNDER THE DEEPWATER PRO-
GRAM FOR CITIES OF THE UNITED STATES. 
It is the sense of the Congress that the Coast Guard 
should consider including in its naming protocols for new 
vessels constructed under the Deepwater Program the 
names of cities of the United States, in recognition of their 
support and friendly relationship to the Coast Guard and 
the challenge to cities in the United States from terrorism.
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