Puerto Rico Recovery Act
Bill: S.4999 | Sponsor: Sen. Lee, Mike (R-UT)
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works

Summary:
Puerto Rico Recovery Act
This bill requires the U.S. Coast Guard to provide temporary exemptions from certain Jones Act restrictions to vessels providing relief to Puerto Rico for areas affected by Hurricane Fiona. The Jones Act requires that vessels transporting merchandise or passengers between Puerto Rico and other U.S. ports be built in the United States, be at least 75% owned by U.S. citizens , and be mostly crewed by U.S. Citizens.
The exemptions are valid for one year or until the end of the major disaster declaration of September 22, 2022, for Puerto Rico, whichever comes first.

To provide exemptions from certain Jones Act restrictions to vessels 
  providing disaster relief to Puerto Rico for the areas affected by 
                            Hurricane Fiona.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Puerto Rico Recovery Act''.

SEC. 2. TEMPORARY EXEMPTIONS FROM JONES ACT RESTRICTIONS FOR VESSELS 
              PROVIDING HURRICANE RELIEF TO PUERTO RICO.

    (a) Temporary Exemption for Puerto Rican Hurricane Relief.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding sections 12112, 12103, and 
        55102 of title 46, United States Code, the Secretary of the 
        department in which the Coast Guard is operating (referred to 
        in this section as ``the Secretary'') shall exempt a vessel 
        from the requirements of such sections if the Secretary 
        determines that the owner or operator of the vessel has 
        reasonably demonstrated that the exemption is needed to provide 
        disaster relief to Puerto Rico for areas affected by Hurricane 
        Fiona.
            (2) Process.--
                    (A) Request.--An owner or operator of a vessel may 
                request an exemption under paragraph (1), and the 
                Secretary shall approve or deny the request by not 
                later than 72 hours after the request is made.
                    (B) Public denial statement.--In any case where the 
                Secretary denies an exemption request under 
                subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall promptly provide 
                a public, detailed statement regarding the reasoning 
                and analysis for the denial.
                    (C) Deemed approval.--If the Secretary does not 
                approve or deny a request according to the terms of 
                subparagraph (A), the request shall be deemed to be 
                approved.
    (b) Period of Exemption.--An exemption approved under subsection 
(a) shall be valid until the earlier of--
            (1) the date that is 1 year after the date on which the 
        exemption was approved; or
            (2) the date on which the major disaster declared by the 
        President under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
        Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121) on 
        September 22, 2022 expires.
    (c) Applicability.--This section, and any exemption issued under 
this section, shall cease to have effect on the date described in 
subsection (b)(2).
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