I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION H. R. 10493 
To support the national defense and economic security of the United States 
by supporting vessels, ports, and shipyards of the United States and 
the U.S. maritime workforce. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 18, 2024 
Mr. KELLY of Mississippi (for himself and Mr. GARAMENDI) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services, 
and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, Foreign Affairs, Oversight and 
Accountability, Education and the Workforce, Financial Services, the Ju-
diciary, Natural Resources, Science, Space, and Technology, and Vet-
erans’ Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the juris-
diction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To support the national defense and economic security of 
the United States by supporting vessels, ports, and ship-
yards of the United States and the U.S. maritime work-
force. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity 
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and Security for America Act of 2024’’ or the ‘‘SHIPS 
for America Act of 2024’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. Sense of Congress. 
Sec. 4. Definitions. 
TITLE I—OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY 
Sec. 101. Maritime Security Advisor; Maritime Security Board. 
Sec. 102. Maritime Transportation System National Advisory Committee. 
Sec. 103. Direct hire authority. 
Sec. 104. Implementation plan. 
Sec. 105. Federal Maritime Commission report on vessels of the United States. 
TITLE II—MARITIME SECURITY TRUST FUND 
Sec. 201. Apportionment of the Maritime Security Trust Fund. 
Sec. 202. Regular tonnage taxes; Presidential suspension of tonnage taxes and 
light money. 
TITLE III—SEALIFT CAPABILITY 
Sec. 301. Sealift capability. 
Sec. 302. National Freight Strategic Plan. 
Sec. 303. Foreign shipping practices; controlled carriers. 
TITLE IV—VESSELS OF THE UNITED STATES IN INTERNATIONAL 
COMMERCE 
Subtitle A—Strategic Sealift Programs 
Sec. 401. Strategic Commercial Fleet. 
Sec. 402. Maritime Security Program. 
Sec. 403. Cable security fleet. 
Sec. 404. Tanker Security Fleet. 
Sec. 405. Modification to duties relating to equipment and repair of vessels. 
Subtitle B—Cargo Preference 
Sec. 411. United States Government cargo. 
Sec. 412. Cargo preference implementation regulations. 
Sec. 413. Cargo preference oversight and audit. 
Sec. 414. Financing the transportation of agricultural products. 
Sec. 415. Importation from China on American ships. 
Sec. 416. Priority for vessels of the United States. 
Sec. 417. Moving cargo on vessels of the United States. 
Sec. 418. Transportation requirements for certain exports sponsored by the 
Secretary of Agriculture. 
Sec. 419. Clarifying amendments. 
Sec. 420. Energizing American shipbuilding. 
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Sec. 421. Ship America Office. 
Subtitle C—Regulatory Reform 
Sec. 431. Alternate standards. 
Sec. 432. Rulemaking committee on commercial maritime regulations and 
standards. 
Sec. 433. Amendments to Shipowners’ Limitation of Liability Act of 1851. 
TITLE V—SHIPBUILDING 
Subtitle A—Shipbuilding Financial Incentives 
Sec. 501. Shipbuilding financial incentives. 
Sec. 502. Assistance for small shipyards. 
Sec. 503. Federal ship financing (title XI) program. 
Sec. 504. Construction reserve fund. 
Sec. 505. Capital construction fund. 
Sec. 506. Anticipated commercial vessel construction survey. 
Sec. 507. Streamlined environmental review. 
Sec. 508. Eligibility for loan guarantees. 
Sec. 509. Reports. 
Sec. 510. Export control report. 
Subtitle B—Department of Defense Programs 
Sec. 511. Assessment of the use of commercial best practices for Navy ship-
building. 
Sec. 512. Plan of action for use of Defense Production Act of 1950 authorities. 
Sec. 513. Strategy on development of naval rearm-at-sea capability. 
Sec. 514. Military Sealift Command. 
Subtitle C—Shipbuilding Innovation and Infrastructure 
Sec. 521. United States Center for Maritime Innovation. 
Sec. 522. National Shipbuilding Research Program. 
Sec. 523. Assessment on Marine infrastructure readiness. 
TITLE VI—WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT 
Subtitle A—Workforce Incentives 
Sec. 601. Public service loan forgiveness for Merchant Marines. 
Sec. 602. Eligibility for educational assistance. 
Sec. 603. Eligibility of mariners to attend Naval Postgraduate School. 
Sec. 604. Reimbursement of qualifying spouse relicensing costs and business 
costs. 
Sec. 605. Noncompetitive eligibility for Federal employment. 
Sec. 606. United States Merchant Marine Career Retention Program. 
Subtitle B—Workforce Pipeline 
Sec. 611. Maritime and shipbuilding recruiting campaign. 
Sec. 612. Centers of Excellence for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and 
Education. 
Sec. 613. Maritime Career and Technical Education Advisory Committee. 
Sec. 614. Military Candidates to Mariner Careers Recruitment Exchange. 
Sec. 615. Maritime worker data collection. 
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Sec. 616. Military to maritime transition. 
Sec. 617. Early maritime education and youth involvement. 
Sec. 618. International scholarship for mariner and naval architecture ex-
changes. 
Subtitle C—United States Merchant Marine Academy and State Maritime 
Academies 
Sec. 621. Authorization of appropriations for United States Merchant Marine 
Academy infrastructure and facilities modernization. 
Sec. 622. United States Merchant Marine Academy. 
Sec. 623. Retirement service credit for service as a midshipman at the United 
States Merchant Marine Academy. 
Sec. 624. State maritime academies. 
Sec. 625. Military to mariner enrollment at a State Maritime Academy. 
Sec. 626. Enforcement of service obligation requirements. 
Sec. 627. Fuel funding for training ships operated by State maritime acad-
emies. 
Sec. 628. State Maritime Academy Sea Term Scholarship Programs. 
Sec. 629. Naval joint exercise involvement for training ships operated by State 
maritime academies. 
Subtitle D—Maritime Credentialing Modernization 
Sec. 631. Merchant mariner credentialing modernization. 
Sec. 632. Revising merchant mariner deck training requirements. 
Sec. 633. Inspections for transportation security. 
Sec. 634. Technical amendments relating to references to seamen. 
Sec. 635. Renewal of merchant mariner licenses and documents. 
Sec. 636. Merchant seamen licenses, certificates, and documents; manning of 
vessels. 
Sec. 637. Reactivation of expired license. 
TITLE VII—AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 
1986 
Sec. 701. Establishment of the Maritime Security Trust Fund. 
Sec. 702. United States Vessel Investment Credit. 
Sec. 703. Certain payments for maritime security excluded from gross income. 
Sec. 704. Elimination of 30-day limitation on domestic operations. 
Sec. 705. Qualifying shipping activities. 
Sec. 706. Qualifying vessel. 
Sec. 707. Credit for construction of shipyard facilities. 
Sec. 708. Tax incentives relating to merchant marine capital construction 
funds. 
Sec. 709. Exemption of student incentive payment agreements from gross in-
come. 
Sec. 710. Maritime fuel tax parity. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Strategic sealift, made up of Government 
and commercial vessels and mariners, is a critical 
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capability for executing the maritime defense strat-
egy and the wartime and peacetime economy of the 
United States. 
(2) Ensuring a modern and ready capability 
will 
require 
significant 
investment, 
policy 
prioritization, and the innovation of the people of the 
United States. 
(3) The worldwide ocean economy is worth be-
tween $3,000,000,000,000 and $6,000,000,000,000, 
according to the United Nations Conference on 
Trade and Development. Yet, vessels of the United 
States carry less than 2 percent of United States 
international commercial cargoes by weight. 
(4) The United States has fewer than 200 
oceangoing vessels of the United States, of which 
only approximately 80 vessels participate in inter-
national commerce, compared with more than 5,500 
Chinese documented vessels. 
(5) With oceans on both sides, the United 
States has always been a maritime Nation. Through-
out history, the strength of a maritime Nation has 
been directly tied to the strength of its maritime in-
dustry, and the United States won 2 world wars on 
the back of a strong maritime industry. 
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(6) Decades of neglect by the United States 
Government and private industry has weakened the 
shipbuilding capacity and maritime workforce of the 
United States, contributing to a declining fleet of 
shipping vessels of the United States to bring 
United States goods to market and support the 
United States military during wartime. 
(7) Today, there are just 20 shipbuilders in the 
United States capable of building oceangoing ves-
sels—down from more than 80 at the end of the 
Second World War. 
(8) During World War II, the United States 
merchant marine powered the Allies to victory with 
more than 10,000 oceangoing vessels of the United 
States. Today there are just 80 vessels of the United 
States engaged in international trade. 
(9) The People’s Republic of China has made 
investments in the maritime industry a strategic pri-
ority over the past 20 years. 
(10) As of 2023, shipyards in the United States 
had fewer than 5 shipbuilding orders for oceangoing 
vessels, while shipyards in the People’s Republic of 
China had more than 1,700 orders, according to 
BRS Group. According to the Office of Naval Intel-
ligence, the People’s Republic of China became the 
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world’s top shipbuilding and shipping nation, boast-
ing 230 times more shipbuilding capacity than the 
United States. 
(11) With just 12,000 United States merchant 
mariners operating oceangoing vessels, the United 
States may not have a sufficient number of mariners 
to fully power the strategic sealift vessels necessary 
in a future prolonged conflict. 
(12) The American Civil Society of Engineers 
assesses that the United States has a national main-
tenance backlog amounting to $125,000,000,000 for 
bridges, 
$163,000,000,000 
for 
ports, 
and 
$6,800,000,000 for inland waterways. 
(13) The maritime industry is inherently inter-
national. Eighty percent of United States goods are 
imported by sea, of which 98 percent come into the 
United States on foreign documented vessels. Only 2 
percent of such goods come into the United States 
on vessels of the United States, leaving the United 
States economy disproportionately dependent on 
oceangoing trade controlled by often adversarial for-
eign nations. The Nation’s ability to provide services 
in both international and interstate commerce is 
critical to national and economic defense. 
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(14) Since November 2023, vessels engaged in 
international commerce have been threatened by the 
Houthis, which has threatened global supply chains, 
increased costs, and required naval force protection 
operations in the Red Sea through the United 
States-led Operation Prosperity Guardian that 
formed in December 2023. 
(15) A fleet of commercial shipping vessels of 
the United States, crewed with citizen mariners, that 
is competitive in domestic and international trade, 
and commercial fleets participating in the United 
States peacetime economy enhance the United 
States military’s readiness, allow the United States 
to more strategically compete with China, and un-
derwrites the security and survival of the United 
States in times of crisis and war. 
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that the United States 
must— 
(1) create a more favorable domestic and global 
maritime environment for vessels of the United 
States engaged in international commerce, ship-
building, ship repair, maritime logistics, the mari-
time workforce, and naval power, contributing to as-
sured access to the world’s oceans free from coercion 
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from strategic competitors and asymmetric adver-
saries; 
(2) increase domestic shipbuilding and ship re-
pair capacity, with programs and policies that enable 
the growth of United States shipyards and the mari-
time industrial base, enhance military sealift capac-
ity, expand the United States maritime workforce, 
and enhance national security; 
(3) revitalize the international fleet of vessels of 
the United States and foster a comparative advan-
tage for the United States through targeted incen-
tives and regulatory reforms to make the fleet com-
petitive with international carriers and to gain a sus-
tainable share of the global maritime market in 
order to bolster supply chains, strengthen economic 
security, and lower prices; 
(4) take all measures necessary to ensure that 
sufficient military, civil, and commercial resources 
will be available with assured access to meet defense 
deployment needs and essential economic activities 
for our Nation in times of crisis, war, or peace; 
(5) recognize that a vibrant commercial ship-
building industry provides redundancies and creates 
economies of scale that improve military, Coast 
Guard, and Government shipbuilding and support 
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military operations through strategic sealift to de-
fend the freedom of the seas; 
(6) ensure better coordination between Federal 
agencies, including the Maritime Administration, the 
United States Coast Guard, the Department of De-
fense, the Federal Maritime Commission, and all 
other Federal agencies with a maritime nexus, to 
protect, regulate, and support the United States 
maritime industry, resolve disputes, and implement 
a whole-of-Government national maritime strategy; 
(7) establish reliable long-term demand signals 
for, and investments in, oceangoing commercial ves-
sels that are built in the United States, documented 
under the laws of the United States, and crewed by 
United States mariners; 
(8) evaluate past and present maritime efforts 
to take actions to revitalize the United States mari-
time industry; 
(9) strengthen the United States intercoastal 
and domestic trade fleet, which is the foundation 
upon which a revitalized United States-documented 
shipping and domestic shipbuilding industry will be 
built; 
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(10) recognize the important role that the sup-
port craft, passenger, and fishing vessel fleet play in 
the United States maritime industry; 
(11) encourage the shipping of commercial 
cargo on vessels of the United States, with the aim 
of growing the size and carrying capacity of the 
international fleet of vessels of the United States; 
(12) grow the shipping capacity of vessels of 
the United States and guarantee United States Gov-
ernment cargo during peacetime; 
(13) develop a whole-of-Government effort to 
expand, develop, and protect the maritime work-
force; 
(14) recognize the need for more workers in the 
maritime sector and stimulate growth in the United 
States maritime and shipbuilding industries, includ-
ing by increasing access to early maritime education, 
commissioning national marketing campaigns to 
demonstrate how United States shipbuilding, United 
States-documented shipping, and maritime workers 
are critical to national security, and implementing 
workforce accelerator programs; 
(15) remove barriers to training mariners, in-
cluding reevaluating Coast Guard training require-
ments regarding faculty credentials, instructional fa-
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cility designs, sea time requirements, and other iden-
tified barriers, consistent with international treaty 
obligations; 
(16) expand and nurture a robust mariner 
workforce that enhances the national security and 
strategic sealift readiness of the United States by in-
creasing the number of United States mariners and 
improving existing pathways and establishing new 
pathways for new, current, and former merchant 
mariners to go to sea; 
(17) recognize that the United States Merchant 
Marine Academy and our State maritime academies 
are critical to training the next generation of li-
censed officers and engineers on vessels of the 
United States; 
(18) invest and innovate in domestic ship-
building, ship repair, and the shipping capabilities 
and capacity of vessels of the United States to ad-
vance the power and influence of the maritime in-
dustry of the United States; 
(19) drive multi-stakeholder research, develop-
ment, assessment, and deployment of emerging ma-
rine technologies and best practices related to the 
maritime transportation system to ensure United 
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States leadership in next-generation shipbuilding, 
ship repair, and maritime logistics; 
(20) drive modern business and manufacturing 
approaches, such as innovative maritime logistics, 
clean fuels, and advanced nuclear energy, human- 
machine teaming, additive manufacturing, and other 
advanced technologies; 
(21) review and update regulations governing 
vessel design and engineering, vessel and facility op-
eration, and merchant mariner credentialing, in 
order to revitalize the United States maritime indus-
try; 
(22) seek mutually beneficial relationships with 
treaty allies and strategic partners to grow the do-
mestic shipping and shipbuilding industries of the 
United States and to share the burden of providing 
freedom of navigation on the high seas, while de- 
risking the United States maritime domain from the 
People’s Republic of China, foreign countries of con-
cern, and asymmetric or emerging maritime threats; 
(23) harden critical maritime infrastructure and 
networks, and incrementally replace infrastructure 
built by foreign adversaries with domestic-built and 
allied-built infrastructure; and 
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(24) promote the values of the United States 
for quality of life, worker safety, environmental stew-
ardship, maritime independence, freedom of the 
seas, and the resilience of our oceans, seas, and in-
land waterways. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) 
APPROPRIATE
COMMITTEES
OF
CON-
GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con-
gress’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Armed Services, the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans-
portation, and the Committee on Appropria-
tions of the Senate; and 
(B) the Committee on Armed Services, the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc-
ture, and the Committee on Appropriations of 
the House of Representatives. 
(2) DOMESTIC COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘domes-
tic commerce’’ means the transportation of goods or 
passengers between places in the United States. 
(3) FOREIGN COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘foreign 
commerce’’ means— 
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(A) commerce or trade between the United 
States, its territories or possessions, or the Dis-
trict of Columbia, and a foreign country; and 
(B) commerce or trade between foreign 
countries. 
(4) FOREIGN
COUNTRY
OF
CONCERN.—The 
term ‘‘foreign country of concern’’ means— 
(A) a country that is a covered nation (as 
defined in section 4872(d) of title 10, United 
States Code); and 
(B) any country that the Maritime Admin-
istrator, in consultation with the Secretary of 
Defense, the Secretary of State, the Director of 
National Intelligence, and the Chair of the Fed-
eral Maritime Commission, determines to be en-
gaged in conduct that is detrimental to the na-
tional security or foreign policy of the United 
States. 
(5) FOREIGN ENTITY.—The term ‘‘foreign enti-
ty’’— 
(A) means— 
(i) a government of a foreign country 
or a foreign political party; 
(ii) a natural person who is not a law-
ful permanent resident of the United 
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States, a citizen of the United States, or 
any other protected individual (as such 
term is defined in section 274B(a)(3) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3))); or 
(iii) a partnership, association, cor-
poration, organization, or other combina-
tion of persons organized under the laws of 
or having its principal place of business in 
a foreign country; and 
(B) includes— 
(i) any person owned by, controlled 
by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direc-
tion of an entity listed in subparagraph 
(A); 
(ii) any person, wherever located, who 
acts as an agent, representative, or em-
ployee of an entity listed in subparagraph 
(A); 
(iii) any person who acts in any other 
capacity at the order, request, or under the 
direction or control, of an entity listed in 
subparagraph (A), or of a person whose 
activities are directly or indirectly super-
vised, directed, controlled, financed, or 
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subsidized in whole or in majority part by 
an entity listed in subparagraph (A); 
(iv) any person who directly or indi-
rectly through any contract, arrangement, 
understanding, relationship, or otherwise, 
owns 25 percent or more of the equity in-
terests of an entity listed in subparagraph 
(A); 
(v) any person with significant re-
sponsibility to control, manage, or direct 
an entity listed in subparagraph (A); 
(vi) any person, wherever located, who 
is a citizen or resident of a country con-
trolled by an entity listed in subparagraph 
(A); or 
(vii) any corporation, partnership, as-
sociation, or other organization organized 
under the laws of a country controlled by 
an entity listed in subparagraph (A). 
(6) FOREIGN ENTITY OF CONCERN.—The term 
‘‘foreign entity of concern’’ means any foreign entity 
that is— 
(A) designated as a foreign terrorist orga-
nization by the Secretary of State under section 
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219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1189); 
(B) included on the list of specially des-
ignated nationals and blocked persons main-
tained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control 
of the Department of the Treasury; 
(C) owned by, controlled by, or subject to 
the jurisdiction or direction of a government of 
a foreign country of concern; 
(D) alleged by the Attorney General to 
have been involved in activities for which a con-
viction was obtained under— 
(i) chapter 37 of title 18, United 
States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Es-
pionage Act’’) (18 U.S.C. 792 et seq.); 
(ii) section 951 or 1030 of title 18, 
United States Code; 
(iii) chapter 90 of title 18, United 
States Code (commonly known as the 
‘‘Economic Espionage Act of 1996’’); 
(iv) the Arms Export Control Act (22 
U.S.C. 2751 et seq.); 
(v) section 224, 225, 226, 227, or 236 
of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 
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U.S.C. 2274, 2275, 2276, 2277, and 
2284); 
(vi) the Export Control Reform Act of 
2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.); or 
(vii) the International Emergency 
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et 
seq.); 
(E) designated by the Federal Maritime 
Commission as a controlled carrier under chap-
ter 407 of title 46, United States Code; 
(F) found by the Federal Maritime Com-
mission to be practicing unfavorable conditions 
in foreign trade under chapter 421 or 423 of 
title 46, United States Code; or 
(G) determined by the Maritime Adminis-
trator, in consultation with the Secretary of De-
fense, the Secretary of State, the Director of 
National Intelligence, and the Chair of the Fed-
eral Maritime Commission, to be engaged in un-
authorized conduct that is detrimental to the 
national security or foreign policy of the United 
States. 
(7) VESSEL
OF
THE
UNITED
STATES.—The 
term ‘‘vessel of the United States’’ has the meaning 
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given that term in section 116 of title 46, United 
States Code. 
TITLE I—OVERSIGHT AND 
ACCOUNTABILITY 
SEC. 101. MARITIME SECURITY ADVISOR; MARITIME SECU-
RITY BOARD. 
(a) AMENDMENTS.—Chapter 504 of part A of sub-
title V of title 46, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking the chapter heading and insert-
ing the following: ‘‘OVERSIGHT AND AC-
COUNTABILITY’’; and 
(2) by striking section 50401 and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘§ 50401. Maritime Security Advisor; Maritime Secu-
rity Board 
‘‘(a) MARITIME SECURITY ADVISOR.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days 
after the date of enactment of this section, the 
President shall appoint a Special Advisor to the 
President (to be known as the ‘Maritime Security 
Advisor’) for coordinating national maritime affairs 
and policy, including developing, updating, and im-
plementing the National Maritime Strategy as re-
quired under section 50114 of this title. 
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now or hereafter vested in the Maritime 
Security Advisor and to prescribe their du-
ties; and 
‘‘(ii) enter into contracts and other 
arrangements for studies, analyses, and 
other services with public agencies and 
with private persons, organizations, or in-
stitutions, and make such payments as the 
Maritime Security Advisor deems necessary 
to carry out the provisions of this section. 
‘‘(b) MARITIME SECURITY BOARD.—Not later than 
90 days after the date of enactment of this section, the 
President shall establish a board, to be known as the ‘Mar-
itime Security Board’ (in this section referred to as the 
‘Board’). 
‘‘(1) COMPOSITION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall be 
comprised of the following individuals and rep-
resentatives: 
‘‘(i) The Maritime Security Advisor 
described in subsection (a). 
‘‘(ii) The Maritime Administrator. 
‘‘(iii) The Commandant of the Coast 
Guard. 
‘‘(iv) The Secretary of the Navy. 
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‘‘(v) The Commander of the United 
States Transportation Command. 
‘‘(vi) The Chair of the Federal Mari-
time Commission. 
‘‘(vii) The Assistant Secretary of the 
Army for Civil Works. 
‘‘(viii) The Commander of the Mili-
tary Sealift Command. 
‘‘(ix) The Commander of Naval Sea 
Systems Command. 
‘‘(x) The chief United States delegate 
to the International Maritime Organiza-
tion. 
‘‘(xi) The Under Secretary of Com-
merce for Oceans and Atmosphere. 
‘‘(xii) The Commissioner for Customs 
and Border Protection. 
‘‘(xiii) The Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget, or their des-
ignee. 
‘‘(xiv) The Secretary of Transpor-
tation, or their designee. 
‘‘(xv) The Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity, or their designee. 
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‘‘(xvi) The Secretary of State, or their 
designee. 
‘‘(xvii) The Secretary of Labor, or 
their designee. 
‘‘(xviii) The Secretary of Agriculture, 
or their designee. 
‘‘(xix) The Secretary of Commerce, or 
their designee. 
‘‘(xx) The Secretary of the Treasury, 
or their designee. 
‘‘(xxi) The Administrator of the Envi-
ronmental Protection Agency, or their des-
ignee. 
‘‘(xxii) The United States Trade Rep-
resentative, or their designee. 
‘‘(xxiii) The Administrator of the 
United States Agency for International 
Development, or their designee. 
‘‘(xxiv) From the Department of De-
fense— 
‘‘(I) the Secretary of Defense, or 
their designee; 
‘‘(II) a representative of the 
Army, as appointed by the Secretary 
of Defense; 
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‘‘(III) a representative of the Air 
Force, as appointed by the Secretary 
of Defense; and 
‘‘(IV) a representative of the 
Navy, as appointed by the Secretary 
of Defense. 
‘‘(B) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—The individ-
uals and representatives listed in clauses (xiii) 
through (xxiv) shall be nonvoting members. 
‘‘(C) CHAIR.—The Maritime Security Ad-
visor shall serve as the Chair of the Board. 
‘‘(2) DUTIES.—Consistent with the National 
Maritime Strategy under section 50114 of this title, 
the Board shall carry out the following duties: 
‘‘(A) Supporting the development of the 
marine transportation system of the United 
States, including— 
‘‘(i) assessing the adequacy of the ma-
rine 
transportation 
system 
(including 
ports, waterways, channels, and their inter-
modal connections); 
‘‘(ii) promoting the integration of the 
marine transportation system with other 
modes of transportation and other uses of 
the marine environment; and 
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‘‘(iii) coordinating, improving the co-
ordination of, and making recommenda-
tions with regard to Federal policies that 
impact the marine transportation system. 
‘‘(B) Establishing policy priorities relating 
to, and conducting independent oversight over, 
the financial assistance programs under part C 
of subtitle V of this title, including— 
‘‘(i) not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of the SHIPS for Amer-
ica Act of 2024 and annually thereafter, 
establishing targets for the number, type, 
and requirements of vessels to be included 
in each of— 
‘‘(I) the Maritime Security Fleet 
(consistent with the most recent Mo-
bility Capability Requirements Study 
produced by United States Transpor-
tation Command); 
‘‘(II) the Cable Security Fleet; 
‘‘(III) the Tanker Security Fleet 
(consistent with the most recent Mo-
bility Capability Requirements Study 
produced by United States Transpor-
tation Command); 
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‘‘(IV) the Strategic Commercial 
Fleet; and 
‘‘(V) the Shipbuilding Financial 
Incentives Program; 
‘‘(ii) submitting annual recommenda-
tions to the appropriate committees of 
Congress for any needed changes in the 
authorized number of vessels eligible to 
participate in the programs under part C 
of subtitle V of this title; and 
‘‘(iii) conducting oversight of the ad-
ministration of such financial assistance 
programs to ensure such programs support 
the strategic sealift objectives and policy of 
the United States, as established in section 
59101 of this title. 
‘‘(C) Supporting the Maritime Adminis-
trator in all efforts to conduct independent 
oversight of passenger and cargo preference re-
quirements and supporting efforts to enable 
cargo to be carried on vessels of the United 
States, including— 
‘‘(i) conducting oversight and coordi-
nating interagency efforts to comply with 
cargo preference requirements established 
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under chapter 553 of this title and section 
2631 of title 10; 
‘‘(ii) independently verifying that all 
Federal agencies follow the requirements 
for cargoes procured, furnished, or fi-
nanced by the United States Government 
under section 55305 of this title, and noti-
fying the appropriate committees of Con-
gress of any identified violations of the re-
quirements of such section; 
‘‘(iii) conducting outreach among non-
governmental stakeholders, including pri-
vate industry, to encourage more cargo to 
be moved on vessels of the United States; 
‘‘(iv) developing recommendations for 
regulations to be issued by Federal agen-
cies to preference the movement of cargo 
on vessels of the United States; and 
‘‘(v) submitting recommendations to 
the appropriate committees of Congress for 
changes to laws relating to passenger and 
cargo preferences for the purpose of estab-
lishing a more robust fleet of vessels of the 
United States. 
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‘‘(D) Conducting independent oversight 
and developing guidance and recommendations 
related to the enforcement of the requirements 
of chapters 121 and 551 of this title. 
‘‘(E) Coordinating national efforts to de-
velop a robust maritime workforce that en-
hances the national security and strategic sea-
lift readiness of the United States, including— 
‘‘(i) coordinating and conducting over-
sight of interagency efforts and partner-
ships with the maritime industry and 
qualified labor organizations to recruit, 
train, and retain qualified licensed and un-
licensed merchant mariners; and 
‘‘(ii) coordinating and conducting 
oversight of interagency efforts and part-
nerships with the shipbuilding industry to 
recruit, train, and retain qualified workers 
in the shipbuilding industry of the United 
States. 
‘‘(F) Establishing national priorities for re-
search and development of next-generation tech-
nologies to enhance United States leadership in 
the shipbuilding and maritime industries, in-
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cluding through the Center for Maritime Inno-
vation established under section 50307. 
‘‘(G) Coordinating interagency efforts to 
ensure vessels of the United States operating in 
international commerce are privileged in regula-
tion, taxation, fees, insurance, and policy com-
pared to foreign vessels conducting trade with 
a United States-domiciled entity, while remain-
ing consistent with the international obligations 
of the United States. 
‘‘(H) Coordinating efforts to protect ves-
sels of the United States operating in inter-
national or domestic commerce from physical 
and cybersecurity threats. 
‘‘(I) Conducting oversight of the use of 
funds from the Maritime Security Trust Fund 
established under section 9512 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986, and making rec-
ommendations to Congress for expenditures 
from the Trust Fund. 
‘‘(J) Conducting studies on subjects re-
lated to the maritime industry and international 
shipping, and undertaking other efforts related 
to strengthening the maritime security of the 
United States. 
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‘‘(K) Carrying out other duties, as as-
signed by the President in consultation with the 
Maritime Security Advisor, related to the mari-
time industry, shipbuilding, ship repair, stra-
tegic sealift, and the marine transportation sys-
tem of the United States. 
‘‘(3) MEETINGS.—The Board shall meet not 
less frequently than quarterly. 
‘‘(4) STAFF.—The Board may hire staff to sup-
port its activities. 
‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2025 through 2034, from the Maritime Secu-
rity Trust Fund established under section 9512 of the In-
ternal Revenue Code of 1986 to the Maritime Security 
Board to staff the Board and carry out the duties de-
scribed in this section. 
‘‘(d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after the President establishes the Maritime Security 
Board under this section, and annually thereafter, 
the Board shall submit a report to the appropriate 
committees of Congress describing— 
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‘‘(A) the actions that the Board has taken 
to carry out the duties required of the Board 
under subsection (b)(2); and 
‘‘(B) a list of recommended actions that 
the Board recommends Congress take to en-
hance the strength of the United States mari-
time industry and support the economic and na-
tional security needs of the United States. 
‘‘(2) APPROPRIATE
COMMITTEES
OF
CON-
GRESS.—In this section, the term ‘appropriate com-
mittees of Congress’ has the meaning given that 
term in section 4 of the SHIPS for America Act of 
2024.’’. 
(b) CLARIFICATION; TRANSITION.— 
(1) CLARIFICATION.—The activities of the 
United States Committee on the Marine Transpor-
tation System shall be carried out by the Maritime 
Security Board. 
(2) TRANSITION.—The Secretary of Transpor-
tation, shall take such steps as may be necessary for 
the orderly transition from the United States Com-
mittee on the Marine Transportation System sup-
ported pursuant to section 50401 of title 46, United 
States Code, as in effect on the day the before the 
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date of enactment of this Act, to the Maritime Secu-
rity Board. 
(c) 
NATIONAL
MARITIME
STRATEGY.—Section 
50114 of title 46, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking subsection (a), and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 
the Maritime Security Advisor, in consultation with 
the Maritime Security Board, shall develop a Na-
tional Maritime Strategy and submit that National 
Maritime Strategy to the appropriate committees of 
Congress (as that term is defined in section 4 of the 
SHIPS for America Act of 2024). 
‘‘(2) TRANSITION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 
(1), if a national maritime strategy has been devel-
oped and submitted in accordance with this section, 
as in effect on the day before the date of enactment 
of the SHIPS for America Act of 2024, in the 1- 
year period before such date of enactment, the Mari-
time Security Advisor shall implement and update 
that national maritime strategy and shall not de-
velop a new national maritime strategy.’’; and 
(2) by striking subsections (c) and (d) and in-
serting the following: 
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‘‘(ix) At least one member to rep-
resent State and local governmental enti-
ties. 
‘‘(B) Additional members shall represent 
private sector entities that reflect a cross-sec-
tion 
of 
maritime 
industries, 
including 
credentialed United States merchant mariners, 
port and water stakeholders, academia, and 
labor, of whom— 
‘‘(i) 3 shall be appointed by the ma-
jority leader of the Senate; 
‘‘(ii) 3 shall be appointed by the mi-
nority leader of the Senate; 
‘‘(iii) 3 shall be appointed by the 
Speaker of the House of Representatives; 
and 
‘‘(iv) 3 shall be appointed by the mi-
nority leader of the House of Representa-
tives. 
‘‘(C) The Maritime Security Advisor may 
appoint additional members of the Committee, 
including additional representatives from the 
United States Merchant Marine Academy, State 
maritime academies, or other Federal agencies, 
as the Secretary considers appropriate.’’; and 
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