104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 2940
AN ACT
To amend the Deepwater Port Act of 1974.
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 2940
AN ACT
To amend the Deepwater Port Act of 1974.
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 ‘‘Deepwater Port Mod-
ernization Act’’.
SEC. 2. DECLARATIONS OF PURPOSE AND POLICY.
(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to—
(1) update and improve the Deepwater Port Act
of 1974;
(2) assure that the regulation of deepwater
ports is not more burdensome or stringent than nec-
essary in comparison to the regulation of other
modes of importing or transporting oil;
(3) recognize that deepwater ports are generally
subject to effective competition from alternative
transportation modes and eliminate, for as long as
a port remains subject to effective competition, un-
necessary Federal regulatory oversight or involve-
ment in the ports’ business and economic decisions;
and
(4) promote innovation, flexibility, and effi-
ciency in the management and operation of deep-
water ports by removing or reducing any duplicative,
unnecessary, or overly burdensome Federal regula-
tions or license provisions.
(b) POLICY.—Section 2(a) of the Deepwater Port Act
of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1501(a)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(3);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (4) and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by inserting at the end the following:
‘‘(5) promote the construction and operation of
deepwater ports as a safe and effective means of im-
porting oil into the United States and transporting
oil from the outer continental shelf while minimizing
tanker traffic and the risks attendant thereto; and
‘‘(6) promote oil production on the outer con-
tinental shelf by affording an economic and safe
means of transportation of outer continental shelf oil
to the United States mainland.’’.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
(a) ANTITRUST LAWS.—Section 3 of the Deepwater
Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1502) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (3); and
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through
(19) as paragraphs (3) through (18), respectively.
(b) DEEPWATER PORT.—The first sentence of sec-
tion 3(9) of such Act, as redesignated by subsection (a),
is amended by striking ‘‘such structures,’’ and all that fol-
lows through ‘‘section 23.’’ and inserting the following:
‘‘structures, located beyond the territorial sea and off the
coast of the United States and which are used or intended
for use as a port or terminal for the transportation, stor-
age, and further handling of oil for transportation to any
State, except as otherwise provided in section 23, and for
other uses not inconsistent with the purposes of this Act,
including transportation of oil from the United States
outer continental shelf.’’.
SEC. 4. LICENSES.
(a) ELIMINATION OF UTILIZATION RESTRICTIONS.—
Section 4(a) of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33
U.S.C. 1503(a)) is amended by striking all that follows
the second sentence.
(b) ELIMINATION
OF PRECONDITION
TO LICENS-
ING.—Section 4(c) of such Act is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (7); and
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (8), (9), and
(10) as paragraphs (7), (8), and (9), respectively.
(c) CONDITIONS PRESCRIBED BY SECRETARY.—Sec-
tion 4(e)(1) of such Act is amended by striking the first
sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘In issuing a license
for the ownership, construction, and operation of a deep-
water port, the Secretary shall prescribe those conditions
which the Secretary deems necessary to carry out the pro-
visions and requirements of this Act or which are other-
wise required by any Federal department or agency pursu-
ant to the terms of this Act. To the extent practicable,
conditions required to carry out the provisions and re-
quirements of this Act shall be addressed in license condi-
tions rather than by regulation and, to the extent prac-
ticable, the license shall allow a deepwater port’s operating
procedures to be stated in an operations manual approved
by the Coast Guard rather than in detailed and specific
license conditions or regulations; except that basic stand-
ards and conditions shall be addressed in regulations.’’.
(d) ELIMINATION OF RESTRICTION RELATING TO
APPLICATIONS.—Section 4(e)(2) of such Act is amended
by striking ‘‘application’’ and inserting ‘‘license’’.
(e) FINDINGS REQUIRED FOR TRANSFERS.—Section
4(f) of such Act is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(f) AMENDMENTS, TRANSFERS, AND REINSTATE-
MENTS.—The Secretary may amend, transfer, or reinstate
a license issued under this Act if the Secretary finds that
the amendment, transfer, or reinstatement is consistent
with the requirements of this Act.’’.
SEC. 5. INFORMATIONAL FILINGS.
Section 5(c) of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33
U.S.C. 1504(c)) is amended by adding the following:
‘‘(3) Upon written request of any person subject to
this subsection, the Secretary may make a determination
in writing to exempt such person from any of the informa-
tional filing provisions enumerated in this subsection or
the regulations implementing this section if the Secretary
determines that such information is not necessary to facili-
tate the Secretary’s determinations under section 4 of this
Act and that such exemption will not limit public review
and evaluation of the deepwater port project.’’.
SEC. 6. ANTITRUST REVIEW.
Section 7 of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33
U.S.C. 1506) is repealed.
SEC. 7. OPERATION.
(a) AS COMMON CARRIER.—Section 8(a) of the
Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33 U.S.C. 1507(a)) is
amended by inserting after ‘‘subtitle IV of title 49, United
States Code,’’ the following: ‘‘and shall accept, transport,
or convey without discrimination all oil delivered to the
deepwater port with respect to which its license is issued,’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 8(b) of
such Act is amended by striking the first sentence and
the first 3 words of the second sentence and inserting the
following: ‘‘A licensee is not discriminating under this sec-
tion and’’.
SEC. 8. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND NAVI-
GATIONAL SAFETY.
Section 10(a) of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974 (33
U.S.C. 1509(a)) is amended—
(1) by inserting after ‘‘international law’’ the
following: ‘‘and the provision of adequate opportuni-
ties for public involvement’’;
(2) by striking ‘‘shall prescribe by regulation
and enforce procedures with respect to any deep-
water port, including, but not limited to,’’ and in-
serting the following: ‘‘shall prescribe and enforce
procedures, either by regulation (for basic standards
and conditions) or by the licensee’s operations man-
ual, with respect to’’; and
(3) by redesignating clauses (A), (B), and (C)
as clauses (1), (2), and (3), respectively.
Passed the House of Representatives September 18,
1996.
Attest:
Clerk.