Commercial Vessel Discharges Reform Act of 2011
Latest action. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 178.
Commercial Vessel Discharges Reform Act of 2011 - (Sec. 2) Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to allow a person owning, operating, or chartering by demise a commercial vessel to discharge ballast water into navigable waters only if the discharge: (1) meets the ballast water performance standard, qualifies as a safety exemption, meets the requirements of an alternative method of compliance and the vessel operates exclusively within a geographically limited area or operates pursuant to a geographic restriction; and (2) is in accordance with an approved ballast water management plan. Defines "commercial vessel" to mean a watercraft or other artificial contrivance used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water that is engaged in commercial service.
Applies such restrictions to the owner or operator of a commercial vessel that is designed, constructed, or adapted to carry ballast water if the commercial vessel is: (1) documented under the laws of the United States, or (2) operating in navigable waters on a voyage to or from a point in the United States. Exempts from such requirement owners or operators of: (1) a commercial vessel that carries all of its ballast water in sealed tanks that are not subject to discharge, (2) a commercial vessel that continuously takes on and discharges ballast water in a flow-through system, (3) any vessel in the National Defense Reserve Fleet that is scheduled to be disposed of through scrapping or sinking, (4) a commercial vessel that discharges ballast water consisting solely of water taken aboard from a municipal or commercial source that meets the applicable regulations or permit requirements for such source under the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Clean Water Act's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), or (5) a commercial vessel that is three years or fewer from the end of its useful life when such restrictions become effective for the vessel.
The summary continues for 22 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to House with amendment(s)" stage on November 3, 2011. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on November 3, 2011: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 178.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 112th Congress (2011-12), 283 of the 10,618 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
FRANK LOBIONDO (R-NJ) introduced it on September 2, 2011, and 7 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 6 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 2, 2011, 5534 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5472 days ago, on November 3, 2011.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 112th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2013 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers