Merchant Marine Act Bulk Shipping Amendments of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
Merchant Marine Act Bulk Shipping Amendments of 1979 - Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, to allow proposed ship purchasers or United States' shipyards to apply to the Secretary of Commerce for financial aid for the construction and operation of vessels to be used in essential bulk cargo carrying services. Makes such vessels, once constructed pursuant to plans and specifications approved by the Secretary and once documented under the laws of the United States, eligible for per diem financial assistance payable for each day the vessel is operated in foreign trade. Stipulates that such vessels shall be entitled to engage in all domestic trades without restriction of any kind and shall be entitled to enter or leave domestic trade upon giving the required notice as set forth in this Act. Stipulates that such assistance shall consist of a construction component and an operating component. Establishes a method for computing such assistance. Reduces the time period during which a vessel which has received a construction-differential subsidy must remain documented under the laws of the United States. Stipulates that if such a vessel has held such documentation for less than 25 years then the net proceeds of the sale of the vessel must be transferred to the seller's Capital Construction Fund if the vessel was transferred to another nationality. Requires that such construction funds be committed within a period of two years to the construction of a qualified replacement vessel. Stipulates that capital construction funds may be used to build vessels to operate in the coastwise, intercoastal, or noncontiguous trade. Makes it unlawful for any individual receiving an operating-differential subsidy or a charter of a vessel owned by the Department of Commerce to act as an agent for, or operate, any foreign-flag vessel which competes with, any American-flag service determined to be essential by the Secretary of Commerce. Requires each Federal department or agency to develop an affirmative action plan to insure that at least 50 percent of the cargoes procured or furnished by the agency or department shall be carried on United States-flag vessels. Subjects such plans to the approval of the Secretary. Prohibits any deviation from such a plan without the Secretary's approval.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on August 2, 1979. 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 August 2, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
- 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 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 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?
PAUL TRIBLE (R-VA) introduced it on August 2, 1979, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Democrat.
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 August 2, 1979, 17253 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17253 days ago, on August 2, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 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