Page 18: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 1984)

AWO — A Legislative Report by the House Public Works and

Transportation Committee in Aug. 1983.

Four other House committees—

Merchant Marine and Fisheries,

Agriculture, Interior and Insular

Affairs, and Judiciary—also acted on various portions of the measure.

Under H.R. 3678, the federal government, through the estab- lishment of a Port Infrastructure

Trust Fund, would be responsible for construction and operation and maintenance (O&M) of ports with channel depths between 14-^45 feet ("general cargo ports"). For ports deeper than 45 feet, ("deep-draft ports"), non-federal interests would be required to pay 50 percent of construction costs, as well as 50 percent of incremental O&M costs.

Ports wishing to impose user fees to recover their non-federal share would be permitted to impose such fees only on vessels requiring a channel greater than 45 feet. This latter provision is extremely im- portant to AWO members operat- ing shallow-draft vessels, with no need for deeper channels.

Also important to AWO is the bill's establishment of new cost sharing formulas of seven priority lock and dam projects: a second lock at Lock and Dam 26, Upper

Mississippi River; replacement of Gallipolis Locks, Ohio River;

Bonneville Lock, Columbia River;

Oliver Lock, Black Warrior

River; Locks 7 and 8, Mononga- hela River; and Winfield Lock,

Kanawha River, all authorized in

H.R. 3678. Under this provision, one-third of the cost of construc- tion for these seven projects would be financed from the Inland

Waterways Trust Fund. No in- crease in the currently-mandated schedule of waterway user taxes (continued on page 22)

The Barge And Towing Industry — A Legislative Review —

Dena L. Wilson, Director— Legislative Affairs

Congress left Washington, D.C. for the first part of its summer re- cess after passing omnibus water resources legislation, H.R. 3678, on June 29, by a vote of 259-33.

House passage of this legislation, which contains new comprehen- sive policy reforms, has been a major priority of The American

Waterways Operators, Inc. in the 98th Congress.

Following almost two years of intensive hearings and individual meetings, Rep. Robert A. Roe (D-

NJ), House Water Resources Sub- committee chairman, introduced

H.R. 3678 in July 1983. This bill was then approved unanimously Dena Wilson 20 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News