[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4538 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4538
To adjust certain ownership and other requirements for passenger
vessels, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 13, 2024
Mr. Lee introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To adjust certain ownership and other requirements for passenger
vessels, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Open America's Ports Act''.
SEC. 2. REPEAL OF PVSA AND ADJUSTMENT OF JONES ACT REQUIREMENTS FOR
PASSENGER VESSELS.
(a) Repeal of PVSA Domestic Requirements.--Section 55103 of title
46, United States Code (commonly referred to as the ``Passenger Vessel
Services Act of 1886''), is repealed.
(b) Adjustment of Jones Act Requirements.--Chapter 121 of title 46,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in section 12103, by adding at the end the following:
``(d) Nonapplicability.--The requirements of this section shall not
apply to any vessel that transports passengers between ports or places
in the United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either directly
or via a foreign port.'';
(2) in section 12112(a)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``except in the
case of a vessel described in subparagraph (C) of
paragraph (2),'' before ``satisfies''; and
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or''
after the semicolon;
(ii) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by striking
``; and'' and inserting ``; or''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) transports passengers between ports or places in the
United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either
directly or via a foreign port; and''; and
(3) in section 12121(b), by striking ``55102, and 55103''
and inserting ``and 55102''.
(c) Adjustment of Citizenship and Navy Reserve Requirements.--
Section 8103(k) of title 46, United States Code, is amended to read as
follows:
``(k) Exemption for Passenger Vessels.--Subsections (a) and (b)
shall not apply to any vessel that transports passengers between ports
or places in the United States to which the coastwise laws apply,
either directly or via a foreign port.''.
(d) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) In general.--Chapter 551 of title 46, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) by repealing section 55104; and
(B) in section 55121--
(i) in the section heading, by striking
``and passengers'';
(ii) by striking subsection (a);
(iii) by striking ``(b)'' and all that
follows through ``States.--''; and
(iv) by striking ``sections 55102 and 55103
of this title do'' and inserting ``section
55102 of this title does''.
(2) Additional conforming amendment.--Section 11504(f) of
the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263) is amended by striking
``55103,''.
SEC. 3. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in the amendments made by this Act shall be construed to
exempt a vessel that transports passengers between ports or places in
the United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either directly or
via a foreign port, from any applicable law of the United States except
as explicitly provided in such amendments.
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