An Act to extend emergency foreign merchant vessel acquisition and operating authority of Public Law 101, 77th Congress, and for other purposes
PL 83-569 (S.2371), enacted 08/09/1954

68 
S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 569-AUG. 9, 1954 
675 
Public Health Service of the Department of Health, Education, and 
Welfare hereunder, are transferred for use in the administration of 
the functions so transferred. 
Any of the personnel transferred pur-
suant to this Act which the transferee agency shall find to be in excess 
of the personnel necessary for the administration of the functions 
transferred to such agency shall be retransferred under existing law 
to other positions in the Government or separated from the service. 
SEC. 5. The Act of April 3, 1952 (66 Stat. 35), and all other laws or 
parts of laws in conflict herewith, are hereby repealed. 
SEC. 6. This Act shall take effect July 1, 1955. 
Approved August 5, 1954. 
25 u s e 444-449. 
Repeals. 
Effective date. 
Public Law 569 
CHAPTER 659 
AN ACT 
To extend emergency foreign merchant vessel acquisition and operating author-
ity of Public Law 101, Seventy-seventh Congress, and for other purposes. 
August 9, 1954 
IS. 2371] 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of Avnerica ifi Congress assembled, That during any 
period in which vessels may be requisitioned under section 902 of 
the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, as amended, the President is author-
ized and empowered through the Secretary of Commerce to purchase, 
or to requisition, or for any part of such period to charter or requisi-
tion the use of, or to take over the title to or possession of, for such 
use or disposition as he shall direct, any merchant vessel not owned 
by citizens of the United States which is lying idle in waters within 
the jurisdiction of the United States, including the Canal Zone, and 
which the President finds to be necessary to the national defense. Just 
compensation shall be determined and made to the owner or owners 
of any such vessel in accordance with the applicable provisions of 
section 902 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, as amended. 
Such 
compensation hereunder, or advances on account thereof, shall be 
deposited with the Treasurer of the United States in a separate 
deposit fund. Payments for such compensation and also for payment 
of any valid claim upon such vessel in accord with the provisions of 
the second paragraph of subsection (d) of such section 902, as 
amended, shall be made from such fund upon the certificate of the 
Secretary of Commerce. 
SEC. 2. During any period in which vessels may be requisitioned 
under section 902 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, as amended, the 
President is authorized through the Secretary of Commerce to 
acquire by voluntary agreement of purchase or charter the ownership 
or use of any merchant vessel not owned by citizens of the United 
States. 
SEC. 3. (a) Any vessel not documented under the laws of the United 
States, acquired by or made available to the Secretary of Commerce 
under this Act, or otherwise, may, notwithstanding any other pro-
vision of law, in the discretion of the Secretary of the Treasury be 
documented as a vessel of the United States under such rules and 
regulations or orders, and with such limitations, as the Secretary of 
the Treasury may prescribe or issue as necessary or appropriate to 
carry out the purposes and provisions of this Act, and in accordance 
with the provisions of subsection (c) hereof, engage in the coastwise 
trade when so documented. 
Any document issued to a vessel under 
the provisions of this subsection shall be surrendered at any time that 
such surrender may be ordered by the Secretary of the Treasury. 
No 
Foreign ve ssels. 
Emergency 
a c -
quisition. 
49 Stat. 2015. 
46 u s e 1242. 
46 u s e 1242. 
Surre nd er 
document. 
o f 
676 
PUBLIC LAW 569-AUG. 9, 1954 
[68 S T A T . 
C o m p l i a n c 
waiver. 
Coastwise trade. 
39 Stat. 730. 
46 u s e 808. 
Inspection. 
Reco nd iti oni ng 
of vessels. 
41 use 5. 
49 Stat. 2001. 
4 6 u s e 
1 1 9 1 -
1204. 
Effectivity. 
Definitions. 
vessel, the surrender of the documents of which has been so ordered, 
shall, after the effective date of such order, have the status of a vessel 
of the United States unless documented anew. 
(b) The President may, notwithstanding any other provisions of 
law, by rules and regulations or orders, waive compliance with any 
provision of law relating to masters, officers, members of the crew, or 
crew accommodations on any vessel documented under authority of 
this section to such extent and upon such terms as he finds necessary 
because of the lack of physical facilities on such vessels, and because of 
the need to employ aliens for their operation. 
No vessel shall cease 
to enjoy the benefits and privileges of a vessel of the United States by 
reason of the employment of any person in accordance with the pro-
visions of this subsection. 
(c) Any vessel while documented under the provisions of this sec-
tion, when chartered under this Act by the Secretary of Commerce to 
Government agencies or departments or to private operators, may 
engage in the coastwise trade under permits issued by the Secretary 
of Commerce, who is hereby authorized to issue permits for such pur-
pose pursuant to such rules and regulations as he may prescribe. 
The 
Secretary of Commerce is hereby authorized to prescribe such rules 
and regulations as he maj^ deem necessary or appropriate to carry out 
the purposes and provisions of this section. 
The second paragraph 
of section 9 of the Shipping Act, 1916, as amended, shall not apply 
with respect to vessels chartered to Government agencies or depart-
ments or to private operators or otherwise used or disposed of under 
this Act. 
Existing laws covering the inspection of steam vessels are 
hereby made applicable to vessels documented under this section only 
to such extent and upon such conditions as may be required by regu-
lations of the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard 
is operating: Provided^ That in determining to what extent those laws 
should be made applicable, due consideration shall be given to the 
primary purpose of transporting commodities essential to the national 
defense. 
(d) The Secretary of Commerce without regard to the provisions 
of section 3709 of the Revised Statutes may repair, reconstruct, or 
recondition any vessels to be utilized under this Act. The Secretary 
of Commerce and any other Government department or agency by 
which any vessel is acquired or chartered, or to which any vessel is 
transferred or made available under this Act may, with the aid of any 
funds available and without regard to the provisions of said section 
3709, repair, reconstruct, or recondition any such vessels to meet the 
needs of the services intended, or provide facilities for such repair, 
reconstruction, or reconditioning. The Secretary of Commerce may 
operate or charter for operation any vessel to be utilized under this 
Act to private operators, citizens of the United States, or to any 
department or agency of the United States Government, without 
regard to the provisions of title VII of the Merchant Marine Act, 
1936, and any department or agency of the United States Govern-
ment is authorized to enter into such charters. 
(e) In case of any voyage of a vessel documented under the pro-
visions of this section begun before the date of termination of an 
effective period of section 1 hereof, but is completed after such date, 
the provisions of this section shall continue in effect with respect to 
such vessel until such voyage is completed. 
(f) When used in this Act, the term "documented" means "regis-
tered", "enrolled and licensed", or "licensed". 
Approved August 9, 1954.