HR 4996 RFS
(A) other Federal departments and agen-
cies; and 
(B) persons with expertise relating to mar-
itime and freight operations. 
(b) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE EMERGENCY ORDER RE-
QUIRING INFORMATION SHARING.—On making a unani-
mous determination described in subsection (c), the Com-
mission may issue an emergency order requiring any com-
mon carrier or marine terminal operator to share directly 
with relevant shippers, rail carriers, or motor carriers in-
formation relating to cargo throughput and availability, in 
order to ensure the efficient transportation, loading, and 
unloading of cargo to or from— 
(1) any inland destination or point of origin; 
(2) any vessel; or 
(3) any point on a wharf or terminal. 
(c) DESCRIPTION OF DETERMINATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A determination referred to 
in subsection (b) is a unanimous determination by 
the Commission that congestion of common carriage 
of goods has created an emergency situation of a 
magnitude such that there exists a substantial ad-
verse effect on the competitiveness and reliability of 
the international ocean transportation supply sys-
tem. 
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(2) FACTORS FOR CONSIDERATION.—In issuing 
an emergency order under subsection (b), the Com-
mission shall ensure that such order includes param-
eters relating to temporal and geographic scope, tak-
ing into consideration the likely burdens on ocean 
carriers and marine terminal operators and the like-
ly benefits on congestion relating to the purposes de-
scribed in section 40101 of title 46, United States 
Code. 
(d) PETITIONS FOR EXCEPTION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A common carrier or marine 
terminal operator subject to an emergency order 
issued under this section may submit to the Com-
mission a petition for exception from 1 or more re-
quirements of the emergency order, based on a 
showing of undue hardship or other condition ren-
dering compliance with such a requirement imprac-
tical. 
(2) DETERMINATION.—Not later than 21 days 
after the date on which a petition for exception 
under paragraph (1) is submitted, the Commission 
shall determine whether to approve or deny such pe-
tition by majority vote. 
(3) INAPPLICABILITY PENDING REVIEW.—The 
requirements of an emergency order that is the sub-
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ject of a petition for exception under this subsection 
shall not apply to a petitioner during the period for 
which the petition is pending. 
(e) LIMITATIONS.— 
(1) TERM.—An emergency order issued under 
this section shall remain in effect for a period of not 
longer than 60 days. 
(2) RENEWAL.—The Commission may renew an 
emergency order issued under this section for an ad-
ditional term by a unanimous determination by the 
Commission. 
(f) SUNSET.—The authority provided by this section 
shall terminate on the date that is 2 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act. 
(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) COMMON
CARRIER.—The term ‘‘common 
carrier’’ has the meaning given such term in section 
40102 of title 46, United States Code. 
(2) MOTOR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘motor car-
rier’’ has the meaning given such term in section 
13102 of title 49, United States Code. 
(3) RAIL
CARRIER.—The term ‘‘rail carrier’’ 
has the meaning given such term in section 10102 
of title 49, United States Code. 
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(4) SHIPPER.—The term ‘‘shipper’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 40102 of title 
46, United States Code. 
SEC. 18. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 
The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 
shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 
titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 
Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 
by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro-
vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 
vote on passage. 
Passed the House of Representatives December 8, 
2021. 
Attest: 
CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 
Clerk. 
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