Coast Guard Bill Advances in U.S. House of Representatives

On February 11, 2014, the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure favorably reported the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 (H.R. 4005). The Committee considered a number of amendments, but the only substantive amendment adopted was a manager’s amendment making a number of changes to the introduced legislation. Among other things, the manager’s amendment strengthens U.S. Maritime Administration cargo preference enforcement authority and requires reports on the international competitiveness of U.S. mariner licensing and training practices and the possibility of imposing a U.S.-flag requirement on liquefied natural gas exports. An amendment offered to require that LNG be exported on U.S.-flag vessels was offered and withdrawn.