Page 28: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2014)

28 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • NOVEMBER 2014

Member Garamendi, which would re- quire that lique? ed natural gas exports be shipped on ships built in the U.S. Chair- man Hunter stated at the hearing on the merchant marine that he would ask the

Maritime Administrator to appear before the Subcommittee after the Maritime

Administration releases its long-awaited maritime strategy. The strategy is sched- uled to be released sometime this year for public comment.

The Maritime Security Program

Funding for the MSP continues to be controversial and is having a major impact on U.S.-? ag carriers. The Ad- ministration requested $186 million to fully fund MSP in FY2015. Although the Senate Transportation/Housing and

Urban Development (THUD) Appro- priations Bill provided the full amount requested for MSP, the House THUD

Appropriations bill contains only $166 million for the program. The House and

Senate Appropriations Committees have not yet settled on the level of funding for

MSP or worked out a ? nal version of the

FY2015 THUD bill.

The issue of MSP funding was also raised during the House Coast Guard

Subcommittee hearing, mentioned above. Two witnesses, one represent- ing a MSP carrier and the other a U.S. maritime labor organization, urged for an increase in the per vessel support lev- els currently authorized for ships in the

MSP. The witnesses cited declining De- partment of Defense (“DOD”) and non-

DOD government cargoes, and a need to achieve a more level playing ? eld and commercial viability for MSP vessels when competing against foreign-? ag vessels, as justi? cation for the MSP per vessel stipend increase.

The TIGER

The Transportation Investment Gen- erating Economic Recovery, or TIGER

Discretionary Grant program, provides a unique opportunity for the U.S. De- partment of Transportation (“DOT”) to invest in road, rail, transit, and port projects that promise to achieve critical national objectives. Over the years, Con- gress has dedicated millions of dollars for TIGER Grants to fund projects that have a signi? cant impact on the nation, a region, or a metropolitan area. While the outcome of the FY2015 budget is un- clear, agencies are continuing to spend

FY2014 dollars. For example, DOT just announced the award of 72 TIGER grants in 46 states and the District of Co- lumbia. The awards for intermodal proj- ects of national and regional signi? cance included a number of port-related proj- ects, including $20 million for a mod- ernization project at the Port of Seattle, $15 million for a new international ter- minal at the Virginia Port Authority, and $10.84 million for the rehabilitation of a terminal in Charleston, South Carolina.

Looking ahead to 2015, there is a major discrepancy in the budget for this very popular infrastructure grant program be- tween the House ($100 million) and the

Senate ($600 million) bills, which will have to be resolved in any ? nal FY2015 spending bill.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it has been a very dis- appointing year-to-date, to say the least, with regard to Congressional action in many areas, including the maritime sec- tor. In addition, many of the key mem- bers of Congress in the maritime sector face tough elections. Even if these mem- bers win their elections, it is entirely unclear what action Congress will take when it returns following the elections and which party controls the Senate. As to the Coast Guard Authorization Bill, which has many of the key legislative provisions our industry is following, if the cruise industry continues to oppose cruise passenger protection provisions, it seems likely that the bill will not move this year even if the key leaders of the

Senate want to push it. There is a good chance we will be stating the oft-used phrase, “Let’s try again next year.”

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LEGAL BEAT

The Author

Jonathan K. Waldron, partner at Blank

Rome, concentrates his practice in mari- time, international, and environmental law, including maritime security. Mr. Wal- dron served in the U.S. Coast Guard for 20 years, and is recognized as a leader in shipping law. Mr. Waldron may be reached at t: 202.772.5964 e: [email protected]

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