Congress at Work on Maritime Programs
While much attention is being paid to the Mueller report and the internal Democratic fight regarding impeachment procedures for President Donald Trump, the 116th Congress and its respective committees are trying to do their regular work in the meantime—including passing both authorization bills and appropriation bills for fiscal year 2020. Here are some key legislative developments relevant to the marine industry.
Maritime Administration Authorization Bill
On May 15, 2019, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation reported S. 1439, the “Maritime Administration Authorization and Enhancement Act for Fiscal Year 2020,” sponsored by Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), Chairman of the Committee. S. 1439 hopes to accomplish a multitude of goals, including a 10-year reauthorization of the Maritime Security Program, a U.S.-flagged fleet of commercial ships deemed critical for defense sealift operations; and codifying President Trump’s “military to mariner” executive order (E.O. 13860), aimed at streamlining the transition of active duty and retired military into civilian maritime jobs. Read More »
This article by Joan M. Bondareff, of counsel at Blank Rome, and Jonathan K. Waldron, partner at Blank Rome, is one in a series of articles written for Blank Rome Maritime's quarterly Mainbrace newsletter. To view the other articles in the July 2019 edition of Mainbrace, please click here.