WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Democratic and Republican leaders of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee announced today that they have reached a bipartisan agreement on legislation that authorizes the U.S. Coast Guard and its vital missions.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), House Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA), Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD), and House Transportation Committee Ranking Member Nick J. Rahall (D-WV) released the following statement in making today's announcement: 

“Day in and day out, the dedicated men and women of the Coast Guard enforce U.S. law on our waterways and the high seas, protecting the lives of those at sea, and securing our borders against illegal drug and human trafficking.  This bipartisan, bicameral measure helps ensure that the Service has the necessary tools to carry out its important missions, and also recognizes how essential a healthy maritime transportation sector is to our economy, our competiveness, and our national security.”

House and Senate negotiations on the final measure began earlier this year, after the House approved legislation reauthorizing the Coast Guard on April 1, 2014.  The newly announced bipartisan agreement is expected to be considered in the House under suspension of the rules Wednesday, December 3^rd, and similar efforts to consider the measure will also occur in the Senate this week.

The Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 (H.R. 5769) includes provisions that:

·  Authorize the Coast Guard for fiscal year 2015 at fiscally responsible levels

·  Support Coast Guard servicemembers and their families

·  Help replace and modernize aging Coast Guard assets in a cost effective manner

·  Provide new authorities the Coast Guard needs to prepare for its operations and for the safety of maritime transportation in the Arctic

·  Encourage the Coast Guard to work with the private sector

·  Enhance Congressional oversight

·  Improve Coast Guard acquisition activities

·  Work to reduce the Coast Guard’s excess property inventory

·  Require development of a National Maritime Strategy

·  Create opportunities for veterans

·  Support U.S. flagged and crewed vessels

·  Reduce regulatory burdens to create jobs and encourage economic growth

·  Reform the Federal Maritime Commission

The legislation is named in honor of retiring Congressman and long-serving House Transportation Committee Member Howard Coble, the only current Member of Congress to have served in the Coast Guard, and a strong supporter of the Service. 

For more details about the Howard Coble Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014, click image above.

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