Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015

Bill: 114-hr-4188
Sponsor: Rep. Hunter, Duncan D. [R-CA-50]
Introduced: 2015-12-08 in the House
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Accounting and auditing
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Appropriations
Arctic Ocean
Arctic and polar regions
Atlantic Ocean
Aviation and airports
California
Civil actions and liability
Coast guard
Congressional oversight
Department of Homeland Security
Disability and paralysis
District of Columbia
Drug trafficking and controlled substances
Drug, alcohol, tobacco use
Educational technology and distance education
Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Executive agency funding and structure
Federal Maritime Commission
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government lending and loan guarantees
Government studies and investigations
Great Lakes
Health care costs and insurance
Higher education
Historic sites and heritage areas
Housing supply and affordability
Land transfers
Licensing and registrations
Marine and coastal resources, fisheries
Marine and inland water transportation
Marine pollution
Massachusetts
Military education and training
Military facilities and property
Military medicine
Military personnel and dependents
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
National Guard and reserves
Navigation, waterways, harbors
Oil and gas
Pacific Ocean
Performance measurement
Pollution liability
Public contracts and procurement
Puget Sound
Terrorism
Transportation employees
Transportation programs funding
Transportation safety and security
Washington State
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2015-12-08
text: 

Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015

 This bill authorizes appropriations for the Coast Guard for FY2016-FY2017 as well as an end-of-year strength for active duty personnel of 43,000 for each of them and specified average military training student loads. 
 The bill amends specified federal law with respect to:
 
 
the Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard and vice admirals;
 
Coast Guard remission of indebtedness;
 
acquisition reform;
 
Coast Guard Auxiliary jurisdiction;
 
Coast Guard communities;
 
Polar icebreakers;
 
air facility closures;
 
discontinuance of an aid to navigation;
 
mission performance measures;
 
communications;
 
Coast Guard graduate maritime operations education;
 
professional development;
 
senior enlisted member continuation boards;
 
Coast Guard member pay;
 
transfer of funds necessary to provide medical care;
 
participation of the Coast Guard Academy in federal, state, or other educational research grants; 
 
the National Coast Guard Museum;
 
investigations of misconduct;
 
eligibility of Coast Guard members for combat-related special compensation; and
 
Coast Guard leave policies.
 
 
The bill also revises shipping and navigation requirements relating to:
 
 
survival craft,
 
vessel replacement,
 
the model years for recreational vessels,
 
merchant mariner credential expiration harmonization,
 
safety zones for permitted marine events,
 
improvements of marine casualty reporting,
 
recreational vessel engine weights,
 
merchant mariner medical certification reform,
 
an Atlantic Coast port access route study,
 
certificates of documentation for recreational vessels,
 
maritime drug law enforcement,
 
examinations for merchant mariner credentials,
 
the higher volume port area regulatory definition change,
 
recognition of port security assessments conducted by foreign entities,
 
fishing vessel and fish tender vessel certification,
 
the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research, and
 
international port and facility inspection coordination.
 
 
The bill reauthorizes the Federal Maritime Commission for FY2016-FY2017.
 
The bill also makes conveyances of Coast Guard property in Point Reyes Station, California, in Tok, Alaska, in the Pribilof Islands, and at Point Spencer, Alaska.
 
The bill prescribes requirements for:
 
 
modification of certain Coast Guard reports,
 
safe vessel operation in the Great Lakes,
 
the use of vessel sale proceeds,
 
a National Academy of Sciences polar icebreaking icebreaking mission cost assessment,
 
elimination of class actions for seamen's penalty wages,
 
nonrecourse of noncitizen seamen for injury or death claims,
 
coastwise endorsements,
 
the International Ice Patrol,
 
assessment of oil spill response and cleanup activities in the Great Lakes,
 
the status of technology detecting passengers who have fallen overboard,
 
disposition of infrastructure related to E-LORAN, and
 
Coast Guard member and employee parking at the Department of Homeland Security St. Elizabeth Campus in Washington, D.C.
 

action_date: 2015-12-10
text: 
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)
 

Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015

 TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS 
(Sec. 101) This bill authorizes appropriations for the Coast Guard for FY2016-FY2017 as well as an end-of-year strength for active duty personnel of 43,000 for each of them and specified average military training student loads.
 
The President shall submit to Congress along with the FY2017, FY2019, and quadrennial budgets a Coast Guard manpower requirements plan.
 
There must be a prior authorization of appropriations for the Coast Guard Reserve program and the removal of bridges over U.S. navigable waters that obstruct navigation. But the requirement for prior authorization of appropriations shall no longer apply to research, development, test, or evaluation related to intelligence systems and capabilities.
 
The Coast Guard may use certain FY2016-FY2017 funds to select a design for and construct an icebreaker capable of buoy tending to enhance icebreaking capacity on the Great Lakes. The bill authorizes appropriations for these fiscal years for preacquisition activities for a new polar icebreaker, including initial specification development and feasibility studies.
 
TITLE II--COAST GUARD
 
(Sec. 201) The grade of the Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard shall be increased from vice admiral to admiral, and the Chief of Staff of the Coast Guard shall be a vice admiral.
 
(Sec. 202) The President may designate within the executive branch, outside the Coast Guard or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the Department of Commerce, positions of importance and responsibility held by officers with the grade of vice admiral.
 
(Sec. 203) The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may have remitted or cancelled any part of a person's indebtedness to the United States or any U.S. instrumentality if: (1) the indebtedness was incurred while the person served on active duty as a Coast Guard member; and (2) remitting or cancelling the indebtedness is in the best U.S. interest.
 
(Sec. 204) The test and evaluation master plan for any Level 1 or Level 2 acquisition project or program must identify:
 
 
the performance data to be used to determine whether key performance parameters have been resolved, and 
 
the test and evaluation results required to demonstrate that a capability, asset, or subsystem meets performance requirements.
 
 
The report accompanying the Coast Guard's annual capital investment plan shall include a life-cycle cost estimate and specified impact assessments for each new capital asset, as well as recommended funding levels.
 
The Coast Guard shall:
 
 
implement a standard for tracking operational days at sea for cutters that does not include days during which they are undergoing maintenance or repair;
 
submit to Congress a revised fleet mix analysis of Coast Guard fixed wing aircraft;
 
include in the biennial long-term major acquisitions plan the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to be decommissioned or to be acquired, together with certain estimated funding levels; and
 
report to Congress quarterly updates of the assessment of the risks associated with all current major acquisition programs.
 
 
(Sec. 205) The Coast Guard Auxiliary may patrol a waterway only if: (1) it is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard jurisdiction, or (2) a state or other proper authority has requested the patrol.
 
The Coast Guard shall review the waterways patrolled by the Auxiliary in the most recently completed fiscal year to determine whether they are eligible or ineligible for patrol.
 
(Sec. 206) The bill reduces from 90 to 30 days the deadline for the Coast Guard to notify Congress before approving a community as Coast Guard City, USA.
 
(Sec. 207) The Coast Guard may contract for the acquisition of Polar Icebreakers and associated equipment using incremental funding. The Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating (the Secretary in this Act unless otherwise noted) shall:
 
 
complete a materiel condition assessment with respect to the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea, and
 
determine whether it is cost effective to reactivate the Polar Sea when compared with other options as part of a strategy to maintain polar icebreaking services.
 
 
(Sec. 208) The Secretary may not before January 1, 2018: (1) close a Coast Guard air facility that was in operation on November 30, 2014; or (2) retire, transfer, relocate, or deploy an aviation asset from such an air facility for the purpose of closing it.
 
The Secretary may close or terminate operations at such an air facility after that date only if:
 
 
 remaining search and rescue capabilities maintain the safety of the maritime public in the facility's area;
 
regional or local prevailing weather and marine conditions, including water temperatures or unusual tide and current conditions, do not require the facility's continued operation; and
 
Coast Guard search and rescue standards related to search and response times are met.
 
 
The Secretary may, however, implement any reasonable management efficiencies within an air station and air facility network, such as modifying the operational posture of units or reallocating resources as necessary to ensure the safety of the maritime public nationwide.
 
The Secretary shall develop and submit to Congress rotary wing strategic plans, including contingency and capital investment plans, to adequately address contingencies arising from potential future aviation casualties or the planned or unplanned retirement of rotary wing airframes to avoid to the greatest extent practicable any substantial gap or diminishment in Coast Guard operational capabilities.
 
(Sec. 210) The Secretary shall establish a process for the discontinuance of an aid to navigation (other than a seasonal or temporary aid) established, maintained, or operated by the Coast Guard.
 
(Sec. 211) The Government Accountability Office (GAO) shall assess the efficacy of the Coast Guard's Standard Operational Planning Process with respect to annual mission performance measures.
 
(Sec. 212) If DHS determines that there are at least two such communications systems certified by the Department of Defense Joint Interoperability Test Center (DOD JITC), the Secretary shall carry out a pilot program across at least three components of the DHS to assess the effectiveness of a communications system that:
 
 
provides for multiagency collaboration and interoperability and wide-area, secure, and peer-invitation-based and acceptance-based multimedia communications;
 
is DOD JITC-certified; and
 
is composed of commercially available, off-the-shelf technology.
 
 
(Sec. 213) The Secretary shall establish an education program for Coast Guard members and employees that:
 
 
 offers a master's degree in maritime operations;
 
is relevant to professional development;
 
provides resident and distant education options, including ability to use them both; and
 
is conducted using existing academic programs at an accredited public academic institution located near a significant number of Coast Guard, maritime, and other DHS law enforcement personnel, and can simulate operations normally conducted at a command center.
 
 
(Sec. 214) The Coast Guard shall develop and implement a plan to conduct every two years a multirater assessment for each Coast Guard: (1) flag officer, (2) member of the Senior Executive Service, and (3) officer nominated for promotion to the grade of flag officer.
 
A multirater assessment is a review that seeks opinion from members senior to the reviewee as well as the reviewee's peers and subordinates.
 
The Coast Guard shall also: (1) develop and offer at least once each year a training course for flag officers and employees on the workings of the Congress, and (2) report to Congress on Coast Guard leadership development.
 
(Sec. 215) This bill repeals requirements and Enlisted Personnel Board procedures for the involuntary retirement of enlisted Coast Guard members with 20 or more years of active military service.
 
(Sec. 216) The Coast Guard shall: (1) audit annually the pay and allowances for the members transferred to new units during the year, and (2) report to Congress on alternative methods for notifying members of the Coast Guard of their monthly earnings.
 
(Sec. 217) DHS shall transfer to DOD, from amounts appropriated for Coast Guard operating expenses, or from amounts appropriated for the retired pay for former Coast Guard members, an amount representing the actuarial valuation of treatment or care (not provided under TRICARE):
 
 
that DOD shall provide to current or former members of the Coast Guard and their dependents at facilities under DOD or military department jurisdiction (except those Medicare-eligible or for whom treatment or care payment is made from the Medicare-Eligible Retiree Health Care Fund), and
 
for which a reimbursement would otherwise be made.

 
No transfer shall be made under this section for any period during which the Coast Guard operates as a service in the Navy.
 
(Sec. 218) The Coast Guard may on a sole source basis enter into a contract, cooperative agreement, lease, or licensing agreement with a qualified tax-exempt nonprofit organization established by the Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association solely to support academic research and apply for and administer federal, state, or other educational research grants on behalf of the Coast Guard Academy.
 
(Sec. 219) The Secretary shall not expend any funds appropriated to the Coast Guard (currently, any federal funds) for the engineering, design, or construction of a National Coast Guard Museum. This allows the expenditure of other federal funds for the Museum.
 
The priority use of federal operation and maintenance funds for the Museum should be to preserve and protect historic Coast Guard artifacts (as under current law), including the design, fabrication, and installation of exhibits or displays in which such artifacts are included.
 
(Sec. 220) The DHS Inspector General, when investigating an allegation of misconduct by a flag officer or member of the Senior Executive Service serving in the Coast Guard, shall do so in a manner consistent with DOD policies and consult with the DOD Inspector General.
 
(Sec. 221) The Secretary shall issue procedures and criteria, including those of DOD, to use in determining whether the disability of a Coast Guard member is combat-related and so eligible for combat-related special compensation.
 
Such a disability shall include one incurred during aviation duty, diving duty, rescue swimmer or similar duty, and hazardous service duty onboard a small vessel (such as surfman duty):
 
 
in the performance of duties for which certain special or incentive pay was paid;
 
in the performance of duties related to law enforcement, including drug or migrant interdiction, defense readiness, or search and rescue; or
 
while engaged in a training exercise for the performance of such a duty.
 
 
(Sec. 222) The Secretary shall promulgate a rule, policy, or memorandum providing leave associated with the birth or adoption of a child to Coast Guard officers and enlisted members that is similar to and equal in duration and compensation to any similar rule promulgated by the Secretary of the Navy.
 
TITLE III--SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION
 
(Sec. 301) This bill suspends application of the requirement that a passenger vessel be equipped with survival craft that ensures that no part of an individual is immersed in water, and applies it only to vessels that operate in cold waters and that are built or undergo a major conversion after January 1, 2016. 
 
The Secretary may:
 
 
revise regulations for lifesaving equipment and arrangements for small passenger vessels to provide a higher standard of safety than current regulations, and 
 
allow a passenger vessel to be equipped with a life-saving appliance or arrangement of an innovative or novel design that provides an equal or higher standard of safety than currently required.
 
 
(Sec. 302) The Secretary shall make a minimum of $59 million of direct loan obligations available each fiscal year for repairs or replacements of fishing vessels according to historic uses.
 
The Fisheries Financing Act is amended to declare that the prohibition against federal direct loans or loan guarantees for the construction or rebuilding of fishing vessels exceeding specified dimensions shall not apply to vessels in fisheries under the jurisdiction of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, and managed under a fishery management plan issued under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, or in the Pacific whiting fishery managed under such a plan under the jurisdiction of the Pacific Fishery Management Council.
 
Any fishing vessel operated in fisheries under such jurisdictions and managed under such plans, and that is replaced by a vessel constructed or rebuilt with a federal loan or loan guarantee, may not be used to harvest fish in any fishery under the jurisdiction of any regional fishery management council but the North Pacific Fishery Management Council or the Pacific Fishery Management Council.
 
(Sec. 303) In establishing a model year for recreational vessels and associated equipment, the Secretary shall begin it on June 1 of one year and end it on July 31 of the following year, which shall also be the year designated.
 
(Sec. 304) The Secretary shall establish a process meeting specified criteria to harmonize the expiration dates of merchant mariner credentials, mariner medical certificates, and radar observer endorsements for individuals applying for a new merchant mariner credential or for renewal of an existing one.
 
This process, however, shall not apply to individuals:
 
 
 holding a merchant mariner credential with an active Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping endorsement or a federal first-class pilot endorsement, or
 
who have been issued a time-restricted medical certificate.
 
 
(Sec. 305) The Secretary shall also establish a process to:
 
 
 account for the number of safety zones established for permitted marine events;
 
differentiate whether the event sponsor who requested a permit for such an event is an individual, an organization, or a government entity; and
 
account for Coast Guard resources utilized to enforce safety zones established for permitted marine events, including the number of Coast Guard or Coast Guard Auxiliary vessels used and patrol hours required.
 
 
(Sec. 307 ) The Coast Guard shall notify Congress of actions it will take to implement recommendations on improvements to its marine casualty reporting requirements and procedures included in specified reports.
 
(Sec. 308) The Secretary shall amend regulations relating to weights (pounds) of outboard motor and related equipment for various boat horsepower ratings to reflect Standard 30-Outboard Engine and Related Equipment Weights published by the American Boat and Yacht Council.
 
(Sec. 309) A medical practitioner certified by the Secretary to perform physical examinations for purposes of a license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner's document may issue a medical certificate to an individual who: (1) must hold a medical certificate to qualify for a license, certificate of registry, merchant mariner's document, or endorsement; and (2) is qualified as to sight, hearing, and physical condition to perform required duties.
 
(Sec. 310) The Coast Guard must complete: (1) by April 1, 2016, the Atlantic Coast Port Access Route Study, and (2) by December 1, 2016, a port access route study of Nantucket Sound using the standards and methodology of the Atlantic Coast Port Access Route Study to determine whether navigation safety regulations for the Sound should be revised.
 
(Sec. 311) The Secretary shall issue regulations that make certificates of documentation for recreational vessels effective for five years and require a vessel owner to: (1) notify the Coast Guard of each change in the information on which the issuance of the certificate of documentation is based, and (2) apply for a new certificate of documentation for the vessel if there is any such change.
 
(Sec. 312) The Department of Transportation shall develop guidelines to implement a program to promote the transportation of liquefied natural gas to the United States on U.S.-flag vessels, including specified actions to ensure the future availability of able and credentialed U.S.-licensed and unlicensed seafarers.
 
(Sec. 313) The Merchant Marine Act, 1936 is amended to repeal authority for the operating-differential subsidy for vessels in foreign trade or in off-season cruises, and related contract requirements.
 
(Sec. 314) No individual may knowingly or intentionally:
 
 
 destroy, or attempt or conspire to destroy, property subject to forfeiture under the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970; or
 
conceal, or attempt or conspire to conceal, more than $100,000 in currency or other monetary instruments on the individual's person or in any conveyance, article of luggage, and so forth aboard a vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction if that vessel is outfitted for smuggling.
 
 
Criminal penalties are prescribed for violations.
 
(Sec. 315) The Secretary is not required to disclose to the public a question from any examination for a merchant seamen license, certificate, or document, let alone the answer.
 
Every two years the Coast Guard shall commission a working group to review new questions for inclusion in examinations required for merchant mariner credentials; and within one year after enactment of this Act the Secretary shall convene the working group to complete a baseline review of the Coast Guard's Merchant Mariner Credentialing Examination.
 
The Secretary shall also develop a sample merchant mariner credential examination and outline of merchant mariner examination topics on an annual basis.
 
(Sec. 316) The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 is revised with regard to the application to Cape Flattery, Washington, of certain requirements for tank vessel response plans for oil, response plan requirements for vessels carrying animal fats and vegetable oils as a primary cargo, and response plan requirements for vessels carrying other non-petroleum oils as a primary cargo.
 
The application of these requirements to the higher volume port area for the Strait of Juan de Fuca at Port Angeles, Washington (including any water area within 50 nautical miles seaward), to and including Puget Sound, shall be deemed also to apply, in the same manner, and to the same extent, to the Strait of Juan de Fuca at Cape Flattery, Washington (including any water area within 50 nautical miles seaward), to and including Puget Sound.
 
(Sec. 317) The Secretary may treat as one of the Secretary's own any assessment of the effectiveness of a foreign port's antiterrorism measures conducted by a foreign government (including an entity of or operating under the auspices of the European Union) or by an international organization, if certain requirements are met.
 
(Sec. 318) This bill exempts from American Bureau of Shipping certification requirements certain fishing or fish tender vessels of between 50 and 79 feet in length which are built:
 
 
after January 1, 2016, and comply with the alternative safety compliance program established under this section; or
 
after the enactment of this Act and before establishment of the the alternative safety compliance program, but comply with certain requirements.
 
 
The Secretary shall establish an alternative safety compliance program for these fishing vessels or fish tender vessels (or both) which meets specified criteria.
 
GAO shall report to Congress on commercial fishing vessel safety.
 
(Sec. 319) The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 is amended to drop the Minerals Management Service from membership on the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research and add the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
 
(Sec. 320) The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 is amended with respect to international port and facility inspection coordination to shift assessment authority from the Secretary to DHS and require DHS to develop a process by which the assessments are coordinated between the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection.
 
TITLE IV--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION
 
(Sec. 401) The bill reauthorizes the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) for FY2016-FY2017.
 
(Sec. 402) The FMC Chairman's duties shall include preparing and submitting to the President and the Congress requests for appropriations for the FMC, subject to FMC approval.
 
(Sec. 403) The FMC may not transfer any funds appropriated or otherwise made available to it to a non-Federal entity to issue an award, prize, commendation, or other honor that is not related to specified ocean shipping purposes.
 
TITLE V--CONVEYANCES
 
Subtitle A--Miscellaneous Conveyances
 
(Sec. 501) The Coast Guard shall convey 32 acres of federal land (including all buildings, structures, utilities, and facilities on the land) known as CAMSPAC Housing in Point Reyes Station to Marin County, California, to be used for affordable housing or to provide a public benefit approved by the County.
 
(Sec. 502) The Coast Guard may also convey 3.25 acres of Coast Guard real property (including all improvements located on the property) in Tok, Alaska, to the Tanana Chiefs' Conference upon payment to the United States of the property's fair market value.
 
Subtitle B--Pribilof Islands
 

Pribilof Island Transition Completion Act of 2015

 
(Sec. 522) The Fur Seal Act of 1966 is amended to direct the Department of Commerce to convey all right, title, and interest in specified federal property to the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Island (one of a group of five the Pribilof Islands off the coast of mainland Alaska named Saint Paul, Saint George, Walrus, Otter, and Sea Lion Rock).
 
The Secretary may operate, repair, and replace any federal aid to navigation located on the property as long as the aid is needed for navigational purposes.
 
(Sec. 523) Commerce must promptly publish and submit to the Senate a notice of certification that Alaska has confirmed that no further corrective action is required at sites and operable units covered by the Pribilof Islands Environmental Restoration Agreement between the NOAA and Alaska.
 
(sec. 524) Section 612 of this Act shall not be construed to prohibit any transfer or conveyance of lands under this subtitle or any actions that involve the dismantling or disposal of infrastructure that supported the former long-range radio aid to navigation (LORAN) system that are associated with the transfer or conveyance of lands to the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Island.
 
 If the Secretary, however, determines within five years after enactment of this Act, that a facility on Tract 43, if transferred under this subtitle, is subsequently required to provide a positioning, navigation, and timing system to provide redundant capability in the event Global Positioning System (GPS) signals are disrupted, the Secretary may: (1) operate, repair, and replace that facility; and (2) enter the facility, at any time, without notice to the extent that advance notice is impossible, for as long as the facility is needed to provide such capability.
 Subtitle C--Conveyance of Coast Guard Property at Point Spencer, Alaska 
(Sec. 533) If the Coast Guard no longer needs to retain jurisdiction over such Tracts, the Department of the Interior shall convey to the Bering Straits Native Corporation (BSNC) the surface and subsurface estates of Tracts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 as identified on the map titled "Point Spencer Land Retention and Conveyance Map," dated January 2015, and to Alaska the Tract 6 surface and subsurface estates, in accordance with specified terms.
 
(Sec. 534) The bill prescribes environmental compliance, liability, and contamination monitoring requirements.
 
(Sec. 535) The Secretary shall subject each conveyance of any relevant Tract to an easement granting the Coast Guard, at no cost to it: (1) use of all existing and future landing pads, airstrips, runways, and taxiways located on the Tract; and (2) the right to access them.
 
The BSNC shall provide to the state, if requested and pursuant to negotiated terms, an easement granting the state, at no cost to it: (1) use of all existing and future landing pads, airstrips, runways, and taxiways located on the Tract; and (2) the right to access them.
 
(Sec. 536) Any Tract that is not conveyed under this subtitle shall remain withdrawn pursuant to Public Land Order 2650; and for any Tract that is conveyed Public Land Order 2650 shall automatically terminate upon issuance of a conveyance document.
 
(Sec. 540) Section 612 of this Act shall not be construed to prohibit any transfer or conveyance of lands under this subtitle or any actions that involve the dismantling or disposal of infrastructure that supported the former LORAN system that are associated with the transfer or conveyance of lands to the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Island.
 
 If the Secretary, however, determines within five years after enactment of this Act, that a facility on any of Tract 1, Tract 3, or Tract 4, if transferred under this subtitle, is subsequently required to provide a positioning, navigation, and timing system to provide redundant capability in the event GPS signals are disrupted, the Secretary may: (1) operate, repair, and replace that facility; and (2) enter the facility, at any time, without notice to the extent that advance notice is impossible, for as long as the facility is needed to provide such capability.
 
(Sec. 541) The bill establishes the Port Coordination Advisory Council for the Port of Point Spencer, consisting of one representative each appointed by the state and by the BSNC, to develop a Port Management Coordination Plan to help coordinate infrastructure development and operations at the Port of Point Spencer, including plans for specified activities.
 
TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS
 
(Sec. 601) The Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 is amended to:
 
 
change the deadline for annual reports of the Coast Guard and the National Marine Fisheries Service on the distant water tuna fleet, and 
 
replace the requirement for an annual update to a certain report on limits to liability with one for an update only after an oil discharge from a vessel or nonvessel source that results or is likely to result in removal costs and damages exceeding liability limits under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990.
 
 
The Coast Guard shall also report to Congress, within 60 days after enactment of this Act, on the specifications and capabilities for interoperable communications necessary to allow the Coast Guard to carry out successfully missions that require communications with other federal agencies, state and local governments, and nongovernmental entities.
 
(Sec. 602) The Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 is amended to revise the declaration that bars the Secretary and the Environmental Protection Agency from prohibiting a vessel operating within the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve from taking up or discharging ballast water to allow for safe and efficient vessel operation if the uptake or discharge meets all federal and state ballast water management requirements that would apply if the area were not a marine sanctuary.
 
The bar on such a prohibition shall extend to any national marine sanctuary that preserves shipwrecks or maritime heritage in the Great Lakes, unless the sanctuary designation documents do not allow taking up or discharging ballast water in the sanctuary.
 
(Sec. 603) The GAO shall audit funds credited in each fiscal year after FY2004 to the Vessel Operations Revolving Fund that are attributable to the sale of obsolete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet that were scrapped or sold.
 
(Sec. 604) The Secretary shall seek to enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) under which the NAS shall assess for Congress the federal costs of polar icebreaking missions.
 
(Sec. 605) The bill repeals the authorization and requirements for class action suits by seamen to collect penalty wages for foreign, intercoastal, and coastwise voyages.
 
(Sec. 606) A claim for damages or expenses relating to the personal injury, illness, or death of a seaman who is a citizen of a foreign nation, arising during or from the seaman's engagement by or for a passenger vessel registered under the laws of a foreign nation, may not be brought under U.S. law if:
 
 
the seaman was not a permanent resident alien of the United States at the time the claim arose;
 
the injury, illness, or death arose outside U.S. territorial waters; and
 
the seaman or the seaman's personal representative has or had a right to seek compensation for the injury, illness, or death in, or under the laws of, the nation in which the vessel was registered, or the nation in which the seaman maintained citizenship or residency, at the time the claim arose.
 
 
(Sec. 607) The Secretary may issue certificates of documentation with a coastwise endorsement for the vessels M/V Elettra III and the F/V RONDYS.
 
(Sec. 608) The Coast Guard shall report to Congress on current operations to perform the International Ice Patrol mission as well as alternatives to carry out that mission, including satellite surveillance technology.
 
(Sec. 609) The Coast Guard shall: (1) assess the effectiveness of oil spill response activities specific to the Great Lakes, and (2) report to Congress on the status of technology for detecting immediately passengers who have fallen overboard.
 
(Sec. 611) The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act is amended, with respect to enforcement of national fishery management program requirements, to specify the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii as the appropriate court for Hawaii (as under current law) or any U.S. possession of in the Pacific Ocean, and the U.S. District Court for the District of Guam as the appropriate court for Wake Island.
 
(Sec. 612) The Secretary may not carry out activities (except as necessary for the safety of human life) related to the dismantling or disposal of infrastructure comprising the LORAN-C system before notifying Congress that this infrastructure is not required to provide a positioning, navigation, and timing system to provide redundant capability in the event GPS signals are disrupted.
 
The General Services Administration (GSA), acting on behalf of the Secretary, may sell any real and personal property under Coast Guard administrative control and used for the LORAN-C system, subject to terms and conditions necessary to protect government interests and Coast Guard program requirements.
 
The proceeds of such sales, minus GSA sale costs, shall be deposited as offsetting collections into the Coast Guard &quot;Environmental Compliance and Restoration&quot; account and, without further appropriation, be available until expended for:
 
 
environmental compliance and restoration purposes associated with the LORAN-C system;
 
the costs of securing and maintaining equipment that may be used as a backup to the GPS or to meet any other federal navigation requirement;
 
the demolition of improvements on such real property; and
 
the costs associated with the sale of such real and personal property, including due diligence requirements, necessary environmental remediation, and reimbursement of GSA expenses.
 
 
This section shall replace the Secretary's general authority to acquire or construct:
 
 
military family housing on or near Coast Guard installations within the United States and its territories and possessions, and
 
military unaccompanied housing on or near such installations.
 
 
The Coast Guard may enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, and other agreements with federal entities and other public or private entities, including academic entities, to develop a positioning, navigation, and timing system to provide redundant capability in the event GPS signals are disrupted, which may consist of an enhanced LORAN system.
 
(Sec. 613) The Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 is amended to require that, through FY2017, additional parking made available at the DHS St. Elizabeth Campus in Washington, D.C., to Coast Guard personnel assigned to the Campus shall be at no cost to the Coast Guard or its members and employees.
 

action_date: 2016-02-08
text: 

Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015

 TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS 
(Sec. 101) This bill authorizes appropriations for the Coast Guard in FY2016-FY2017, including for:
 
 
the Coast Guard Reserve program,
 
acquisition of facilities and equipment,
 
environmental compliance and restoration functions,
 
alteration or removal of bridges that obstruct navigation,
 
an end-of-year strength for active duty personnel, and
 
specified average military training student loads. 
 
 
The President shall submit to Congress in FY2017, FY2019, and every four years thereafter, a Coast Guard manpower requirements plan on the same date as the presidential budget is submitted.
 
The Coast Guard may use certain funds for specified icebreaking activities, including to design an icebreaking vessel capable of enhancing icebreaking capabilities on the Great Lakes. 
 
TITLE II--COAST GUARD
 
(Sec. 201) The grade of the Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard shall be increased from vice admiral to admiral.
 
(Sec. 202) The President may designate within the executive branch, but outside of the Coast Guard or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), positions of importance and responsibility held by officers with the grade of vice admiral.
 
(Sec. 203) The Coast Guard may remit or cancel part of a person's indebtedness to the United States if: (1) the indebtedness incurred while the person was an active duty member of the Coast Guard, and (2) doing so is in the best interest of the United States.
 
(Sec. 204) The test and evaluation master plan for any major acquisition project or program must identify:
 
 
the performance data to be used to determine whether key performance parameters have been resolved; and 
 
the test and evaluation results required to demonstrate that a capability, asset, or subsystem meets performance requirements.
 
 
The Coast Guard shall:
 
 
implement a standard for tracking operational days at sea;
 
submit to Congress a revised fleet mix analysis of Coast Guard fixed wing aircraft;
 
include in the long-term major acquisitions plan, the numbers and types of cutters and aircraft to be decommissioned or acquired; and
 
report to Congress quarterly updates of the assessment of the risks associated with all current major acquisition programs.
 
 
(Sec. 205) The Coast Guard Auxiliary (also known as the Coast Guard Reserve) may patrol a waterway if: (1) the waterway is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard jurisdiction, or (2) a state or other proper authority has requested the patrol.
 
The Coast Guard shall review the waterways patrolled by the Coast Guard Auxiliary in the most recent fiscal year. 
 
(Sec. 206) The bill reduces the deadline from 90 to 30 days for the Coast Guard to notify Congress before approving a community as a Coast Guard City.
 
(Sec. 207) The Coast Guard may contract for the acquisition of polar icebreakers and associated equipment using incremental funding. The Coast Guard shall:
 
 
complete a materiel condition assessment with respect to the Polar Sea vessel, and
 
determine whether it is cost effective to reactivate the Polar Sea vessel when compared with other options as part of a strategy to maintain polar icebreaking services.
 
 
(Sec. 208) The Coast Guard shall not before January 1, 2018: (1) close an air facility that was in operation on November 30, 2014; or (2) retire, transfer, relocate, or deploy an aviation asset from such an air facility for the purpose of closing it. The Coast Guard may close or terminate operations at such an air facility after that date only if:
 
 
 remaining search and rescue capabilities maintain the safety of the maritime public in the facility's area,
 
regional or local prevailing weather and marine conditions do not require the facility's continued operation, and
 
 search and rescue standards related to search and response times are met.
 
 
The Coast Guard may implement reasonable management efficiencies within an air station and air facility network.
 
The Coast Guard shall develop and submit to Congress rotary wing strategic plans to adequately address contingencies arising from potential aviation casualties or the retirement of rotary wing airframes. 
 
(Sec. 210) The Coast Guard shall establish a process for the discontinuing of an aid to navigation (other than a seasonal or temporary aid). 
 
(Sec. 211) The Government Accountability Office (GAO) shall assess the effectiveness of the Coast Guard's Standard Operational Planning Process with respect to annual mission performance measures.
 
(Sec. 212) If the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) determines that there are communications systems certified by the Department of Defense (DOD) Joint Interoperability Test Center (JITC), DHS shall carry out a pilot program to assess the effectiveness of a communications system that:
 
 
provides for multiagency collaboration, peer invitation and acceptance based multimedia communications, and interoperability;
 
is DOD JITC-certified; and
 
is composed of commercially available technology.
 
 
(Sec. 213) The Coast Guard shall establish an education program for its members and employees that:
 
 
 offers a master's degree in maritime operations;
 
is relevant to professional development;
 
provides resident and distant education options; and
 
is conducted using existing academic programs at an accredited public academic institution located near a significant number of DHS law enforcement personnel.
 
 
(Sec. 214) The Coast Guard shall develop and implement a plan to conduct every two years a multi-rater review for each Coast Guard flag officer, member of the Senior Executive Service, and officer nominated for promotion to the grade of flag officer.
 
The Coast Guard shall also: (1) develop and offer at least annually a training course for flag officers and employees on the workings of Congress, and (2) report to Congress on Coast Guard leadership development.
 
(Sec. 215) The bill repeals specified requirements and procedures for the involuntary retirement of enlisted Coast Guard members with 20 or more years of active military service.
 
(Sec. 216) The Coast Guard shall: (1) audit annually the pay and allowances for the members transferred to new units during the year, and (2) report to Congress on alternative methods for notifying members of their monthly earnings.
 
(Sec. 217) DHS shall transfer to DOD, from amounts appropriated for Coast Guard operating expenses, an amount representing the actuarial valuation of treatment or care for current or former members of the Coast Guard and their dependents at DOD facilities. 
 
(Sec. 218) The Coast Guard may enter into an agreement with a qualified tax-exempt nonprofit organization established by the Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association to support academic research and apply for research grants on behalf of the Coast Guard Academy.
 
(Sec. 219) The Coast Guard shall not expend any appropriated funds for the engineering, design, or construction of a National Coast Guard Museum. Current law prohibits the Coast Guard from expending any appropriated federal funds for such purposes.
 
(Sec. 220) DHS shall investigate an allegation of misconduct by a flag officer or member of the Senior Executive Service serving in the Coast Guard in a manner consistent with DOD policies.
 
(Sec. 221) The Coast Guard shall issue procedures and criteria, including those of DOD, to use in determining whether the disability of a member is combat-related and therefore eligible for combat-related special compensation.
 
Such a disability shall include one incurred during aviation duty, diving duty, rescue swimmer duty, or hazardous service duty onboard a Coast Guard vessel. 
 
(Sec. 222) The Coast Guard shall promulgate new parental leave policies that are similar to and equal in both duration and compensation to policies promulgated by the Department of the Navy.
 
TITLE III--SHIPPING AND NAVIGATION
 
(Sec. 301) The bill delays implementation of a requirement that a passenger vessel be equipped with survival craft that ensures no part of an individual is immersed in water. This requirement applies to a vessel built or undergoing a major conversion after January 1, 2016. This bill exempts vessels that do not operate in cold water.
 
The Coast Guard shall revise regulations concerning the carriage of survival craft based on a review of casualties and risks. 
 
 
The GAO shall determine any adverse or positive changes in public safety after the Coast Guard's implementations of changes to regulations concerning the carriage of survival craft. 
 
 
(Sec. 302) The Coast Guard shall make a minimum of $59 million in direct loan obligations available each fiscal year for repairs or replacements of fishing vessels according to historic uses.
 
The bill amends the Fisheries Financing Act to declare that the prohibition against federal direct loans or loan guarantees for constructing or rebuilding fishing vessels exceeding specified dimensions shall not apply to vessels in specified fisheries under the jurisdiction of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council or the Pacific Fishery Management Council. 
 
(Sec. 303) A model year for recreational vessels and associated equipment shall begin on June 1and end on July 31 of the following year.
 
(Sec. 304) The Coast Guard shall establish a process to harmonize the expiration dates of merchant mariner credentials, mariner medical certificates, and radar observer endorsements for individuals applying for new or renewed merchant mariner credentials. 
 
(Sec. 305) The Coast Guard shall establish a process providing for safety zones for permitted marine events.
 
(Sec. 307) The Coast Guard shall notify Congress of actions it will take to implement recommendations on improvements to its marine casualty reporting requirements and procedures.
 
(Sec. 308) The Coast Guard shall amend regulations relating to outboard motor and related equipment for various boat horsepower ratings to reflect specified standards.
 
(Sec. 309) The bill provides for revisions of the process to receive a medical certificate necessary to qualify for a license, certificate of registry, or merchant mariner's document. 
 
(Sec. 310) The Coast Guard must complete: (1) the Atlantic Coast Port Access Route Study by April 1, 2016, and (2) the port access route study of Nantucket Sound by December 1, 2016. 
 
(Sec. 311) The Coast Guard shall issue regulations that make certificates for recreational vessels effective for five years. 
 
(Sec. 312) The Department of Transportation shall develop guidelines to promote the transportation of liquefied natural gas to the United States on U.S.-flag vessels.
 
(Sec. 313) The bill amends the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 to repeal provisions relating to the subsidy for vessels in foreign trade or in off-season cruises.
 
(Sec. 314) No individual may knowingly or intentionally:
 
 
 destroy, or attempt or conspire to destroy, property subject to forfeiture under the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970; or
 
conceal, or attempt or conspire to conceal, more than $100,000 in currency or other monetary instruments on the individual's person or in any conveyance, or article of luggage aboard a vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction if that vessel is outfitted for smuggling.
 
 
(Sec. 315) The Coast Guard is not required to disclose to the public questions or answers from any examination for a merchant seamen license, certificate, or document.
 
The Coast Guard shall develop a sample merchant mariner credential examination and outline of merchant mariner examination topics on an annual basis.
 
(Sec. 316) The bill revises the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 with regard to the application to Cape Flattery, Washington, of certain requirements relating to tank vessel response plans. 
 
(Sec. 317) The Coast Guard may treat an assessment of the effectiveness of a foreign port's antiterrorism measures conducted by a foreign government or international organization as one the Coast Guard has conducted if certain requirements are met.
 
(Sec. 318) The bill exempts from American Bureau of Shipping certification requirements certain fishing or fish tender vessels of between 50 and 79 feet in length that: (1) are built after a specified date; and (2) comply with certain safety requirements related to design, construction, and maintenance. 
 
The GAO shall report to Congress on commercial fishing vessel safety.
 
(Sec. 319) The bill amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to alter the membership of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research.
 
(Sec. 320) The bill amends the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 to provide for facility inspection coordination between the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection.
 
TITLE IV--FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION
 
(Sec. 401) The bill reauthorizes for FY2016-FY2017 the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC).
 
(Sec. 402) The FMC Chairman's duties shall include preparing and submitting to the President and Congress requests for appropriations for the FMC.
 
(Sec. 403) The FMC may not transfer any funds to it to a non-federal entity to issue an award, prize, commendation, or other honor that is not related to specified ocean shipping purposes.
 
TITLE V--CONVEYANCES
 
Subtitle A--Miscellaneous Conveyances
 
(Sec. 501) The Coast Guard shall convey 32 acres of federal land (including all buildings, structures, utilities, and facilities on the land) in Point Reyes Station, California, to Marin County, California, to be used for affordable housing or to provide a public benefit approved by the county.
 
(Sec. 502) The Coast Guard may also convey 3.25 acres of Coast Guard real property (including all improvements located on the property) in Tok, Alaska, to the Tanana Chiefs' Conference. 
 

 
Subtitle B--Pribilof Islands 
 

Pribilof Island Transition Completion Act of 2015

 
(Sec. 522) The Coast Guard shall convey specified federal property to the Alaska native village corporation for St. Paul Island (one of a group of five Pribilof Islands off the coast of mainland Alaska).
 
The Coast Guard may operate, repair, and replace any federal aid to navigation located on the property as long as the aid is needed for navigational purposes.
 
(Sec. 523) The bill amends the Pribilof Islands Transition Act to require NOAA to promptly publish and submit to the Senate a specified notice of certification related to sites and operable units covered by the Pribilof Islands Environmental Restoration Agreement. 
 
(sec. 524) The Coast Guard may enter, operate, and maintain a facility on a specified tract transferred under this subtitle if the facility is necessary to provide redundant capability with respect to positioning and navigation. 
 Subtitle C--Conveyance of Coast Guard Property at Point Spencer, Alaska 
(Sec. 533) Subject to specified conditions, the Department of the Interior shall convey certain tracts of land to the Bering Straits Native Corporation (BSNC) or Alaska. 
 
(Sec. 534) The bill prescribes environmental compliance, liability, and contamination monitoring requirements for land conveyed under this subtitle. 
 
(Sec. 535) Conveyances under this subtitle shall be subject to specified easements and rights of access. 
 
(Sec. 536) Tracts not conveyed under this subtitle shall remain withdrawn pursuant to Public Land Order 2650.
 
(Sec. 538) Interior must prepare, and make available for public inspection, specified maps and legal descriptions of tracts conveyed.
 
(Sec. 540) The Coast Guard may enter, operate, and maintain a facility on a specified tract transferred under this subtitle if the facility is necessary to provide redundant capability with respect to positioning and navigation.
 
(Sec. 541) The bill establishes the Port Coordination Council for the Port of Point Spencer.
 
TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS
 
(Sec. 601) The bill amends the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 to change the annual deadline for submission of annual reports on the distant water tuna fleet by the Coast Guard and the National Marine Fisheries Service.
 
 The Coast Guard must report on liability limits when an oil discharge results in removal costs and damages that exceed established liability limits.
 
The Coast Guard shall report to Congress within 60 days on the specifications and capabilities for interoperable communications necessary to allow the Coast Guard to carry out missions that require communications with other federal agencies, state and local governments, and nongovernmental entities.
 
(Sec. 602) The bill amends the Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 to extend the boundaries within which a vessel may take up and discharge ballast water.
 
(Sec. 603) The GAO shall audit funds credited to the Vessel Operations Revolving Fund that are attributable to the sale of obsolete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet.
 
(Sec. 604) The Coast Guard shall enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to assess the federal costs of polar icebreaking missions.
 
(Sec. 605) The Coast Guard may issue coastwise endorsements to specified vessels.
 
(Sec. 606) The Coast Guard shall report to Congress on current operations to perform the International Ice Patrol mission and alternatives to carry out that mission, including satellite surveillance technology.
 
(Sec. 607) The Coast Guard shall assess the effectiveness of oil spill response activities specific to the Great Lakes.
 
(Sec. 608) The Coast Guard shall report on the status of technology that immediately detects when passengers fall overboard.
 
(Sec. 609) The bill amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to modify provisions related to jurisdictions. 
 
(Sec. 610) The Coast Guard may not carry out activities (except as necessary for the safety of human life) related to the dismantling or disposal of infrastructure comprising a specified radio navigation system before notifying Congress.
 
The General Services Administration may sell any property under Coast Guard's administrative control that is used for the system, with profits from such sales to be used for specified purposes.
 
(Sec. 611) The bill requires that additional free parking at the DHS St. Elizabeth Campus in Washington, D.C., be made available to members and employees of the Coast Guard.
 
(Sec. 612) Specified load requirements shall not apply to a vessel that is on a domestic voyage in the Gulf of Mexico and does not operate more than 15 nautical miles seaward of the base line.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-02-08
text: Became Public Law No: 114-120.
action_date: 2016-02-08
text: Became Public Law No: 114-120.
action_date: 2016-02-08
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2016-02-08
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2016-02-04
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2016-02-04
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2016-02-01
text: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2016-02-01
text: On motion that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment Agreed to by voice vote. (text as House agreed to Senate amendment: CR H402-418)
action_date: 2016-02-01
text: Resolving differences -- House actions: On motion that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment Agreed to by voice vote.(text as House agreed to Senate amendment: CR H402-418)
action_date: 2016-02-01
text: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on the motion to suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment to H.R. 4188.
action_date: 2016-02-01
text: Mr. Hunter moved that the House suspend the rules and agree to the Senate amendment. (consideration: CR H402-420)
action_date: 2015-12-18
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2015-12-18
text: Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote.
action_date: 2015-12-18
text: Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote.
action_date: 2015-12-18
text: Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S8908)
action_date: 2015-12-14
text: Received in the Senate, read twice.
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H9223-9239)
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H9223-9239)
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 4188.
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H9223-9242)
action_date: 2015-12-10
text: Mr. Hunter moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
action_date: 2015-12-09
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation.
action_date: 2015-12-08
text: Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
action_date: 2015-12-08
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2015-12-08
text: Introduced in House

Enacted as: number: 114-120