46 USC 51706 CoE

Page 383

dustry personnel in oil spill prevention, response, clean-up, and related skills.
(3) The institution shall make the vessel and
qualified students available to appropriate
Federal, State, and local oil spill response authorities when there is a maritime oil spill.
(4) The institution may not sell, trade, charter, donate, scrap, or in any way alter or dispose of the vessel without prior approval of
the Secretary.
(5) The institution may not use the vessel in
competition with a privately-owned vessel
documented under chapter 121 of this title or
titled under the law of a State, unless necessary to carry out this section.
(6) When the institution can no longer use
the vessel for its training program, the institution shall return the vessel to the Secretary.
The Secretary shall take possession at the institution and thereafter may provide the vessel to another institution under this section or
dispose of the vessel.
(Pub. L. 109–304, § 8(b), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1583.)
HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES
Revised
Section
51704(a) ......

§ 51706

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

Source (U.S. Code)
46 App.:1295d(c)(1).

Source (Statutes at Large)
June 29, 1936, ch. 858, title
XIII, § 1305(c), as added
Pub. L. 101–595, title VII,
§ 712, Nov. 16, 1990, 104
Stat. 2998.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
DEADLINE
Pub. L. 112–213, title V, § 502(b), Dec. 20, 2012, 126 Stat.
1575, provided that: ‘‘The Secretary of Transportation
shall certify the curriculum required under the amendment made by subsection (a) [enacting this section] not
later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this
Act [Dec. 20, 2012].’’

§ 51706. Centers of excellence for domestic maritime workforce training and education
(a) DESIGNATION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation, after consultation with the Coast
Guard, may designate, for a 5-year period, as a
center of excellence for domestic maritime
workforce training and education an entity
which is a covered training entity.
(2) WITHDRAWAL OF DESIGNATION.—The Secretary of Transportation may withdraw a designation as a center of excellence for domestic
maritime workforce training and education of
a covered training entity upon discovery of adverse information, including discovery of information that the covered training entity has
engaged in fraudulent or unlawful activities,
or has been subjected to disciplinary or adverse administrative action by Federal, State,
or other regulatory bodies.

The Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the department in which the Coast
Guard is operating, shall certify a training curriculum for United States mariners on the use of
force against pirates. The curriculum shall include—
(1) information on waters designated as
high-risk waters by the Commandant of the
Coast Guard;
(2) information on current threats and patterns of attack by pirates;
(3) tactics for defense of a vessel, including
instruction on the types, use, and limitations
of security equipment;
(4) standard rules for the use of force for
self-defense as developed by the Secretary of
the department in which the Coast Guard is
operating under section 912(c) of the Coast
Guard Authorization Act of 2010 (Public Law
111–281; 46 U.S.C. 8107 note), including instruction on firearm safety for crewmembers of vessels carrying cargo under section 55305 of this
title; and
(5) procedures to follow to improve crewmember survivability if captured and taken
hostage by pirates.

(b) GRANT PROGRAM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may award a
maritime career training grant to a center of
excellence designated under subsection (a) for
the purpose of developing, offering, or improving career and technical education or training
programs related to the United States maritime industry for United States workers.
(2) GRANT PROPOSAL.—To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, a center of
excellence designated under subsection (a)
shall submit to the Secretary a grant proposal
that includes a detailed description of—
(A) the specific project proposed to be
funded by the grant, including a description
of the manner in which the grant will be
used to develop, offer, or improve a career
and technical education or training program
that is suited to United States maritime industry workers;
(B) the extent to which the project for
which the grant proposal is submitted will
meet the educational or career training
needs of United States maritime industry
workers;
(C) any previous experience of the center
of excellence in providing United States
maritime industry career and technical education or training programs;
(D) how the project proposed to be funded
by the grant would address shortcomings in
existing educational or career training opportunities available to United States maritime industry workers; and
(E) the extent to which employers, including small and medium-sized firms, have demonstrated a commitment to employing
United States maritime industry workers
who would benefit from the project for
which the grant proposal is submitted.

(Added Pub. L. 112–213, title V, § 502(a), Dec. 20,
2012, 126 Stat. 1574.)

(3) CRITERIA FOR AWARD OF GRANTS.—Subject
to the appropriation of funds to carry out this

51704(b) ......
51704(c) ......

46 App.:1295d(c)
(2)(A), (4).
46 App.:1295d(c)
(2)(B), (3).

In subsection (c)(5), the words ‘‘or titled under the
law of a State’’ are substituted for ‘‘documented under
the laws of . . . any State’’ for consistency with the
terminology in 46 U.S.C. 2101(46) (which is being moved
to chapter 1 of the revised title) and 46 U.S.C. ch. 125.

§ 51705. Training for use of force against piracy

§ 51706

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

section, the Secretary shall award grants
under this subsection to centers of excellence
based on—
(A) an determination of the merits of a
grant proposal submitted under paragraph
(2) to develop, offer, or improve career and
technical education or training programs to
be made available to United States maritime
industry workers;
(B) an evaluation of the likely employment opportunities available to United
States maritime industry workers who complete a maritime career and technical education or training program that a center
proposes to develop, offer, or improve; and
(C) an evaluation of prior demand for
training programs by workers served by centers of excellence designated under subsection (a), as well as the availability and
capacity of existing maritime training programs to meet future demand for training
programs.
(4) COMPETITIVE AWARDS.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall
award grants under this subsection to centers of excellence designated under subsection (a) on a competitive basis.
(B) TIMING OF GRANT NOTICE.—The Secretary shall post a Notice of Funding Opportunity regarding grants awarded under this
subsection not more than 90 days after the
date of the enactment of the appropriations
Act for the fiscal year concerned.
(C) TIMING OF GRANTS.—The Secretary
shall award grants under this subsection not
later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of the appropriations Act for the
fiscal year concerned.
(D) REUSE OF UNEXPENDED GRANT FUNDS.—
Notwithstanding subparagraph (C), amounts
awarded as a grant under this subsection
that are not expended by the grantee shall
remain available to the Secretary for use for
grants under this subsection.
(E) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than
3 percent of amounts made available to
carry out this subsection may be used for
the necessary costs of grant administration.
(F) PROHIBITED USE.—A center of excellence designated under subsection (a) that
has received funds awarded under section
54101(a)(2) for training purposes for a fiscal
year shall not be eligible for grants under
this subsection during the same fiscal year.
(5) ELIGIBLE USES OF GRANT FUNDS.—A center
of excellence receiving a grant under this subsection shall—
(A) carry out activities that are identified
as priorities for the purpose of developing,
offering, or improving educational or career
training programs for the United States
maritime industry workforce; and
(B) provide training to upgrade the skills
of the United States maritime industry
workforce, including training to acquire covered requirements as well as technical skills
training for jobs in the United States maritime industry.
(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section,

Page 384

(1) COVERED TRAINING ENTITY.—The term
‘‘covered training entity’’ means an entity
that—
(A) is located in a State that borders on
the—
(i) Gulf of Mexico;
(ii) Atlantic Ocean;
(iii) Long Island Sound;
(iv) Pacific Ocean;
(v) Great Lakes; or
(vi) Mississippi River System;
(B) is—
(i) a postsecondary educational institution (as such term is defined in section
3(39) of the Carl D. Perkins Career and
Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C.
2302));
(ii) a postsecondary vocational institution (as such term is defined in section
102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1002(c)); 1
(iii) a public or private nonprofit entity
that offers one or more other structured
experiential learning training programs
for United States workers in the United
States maritime industry, including a program that is offered by a labor organization or conducted in partnership with a
nonprofit organization or one or more employers in the United States maritime industry;
(iv) an entity sponsoring an apprenticeship program registered with the Office of
Apprenticeship of the Employment and
Training Administration of the Department of Labor or a State apprenticeship
agency recognized by the Office of Apprenticeship pursuant to the Act of August 16,
1937 (commonly known as the ‘National
Apprenticeship Act’; 50 Stat. 664, chapter
663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.); or
(v) a maritime training center designated prior to the date of enactment of
the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2023;
(C) has a demonstrated record of success in
maritime workforce training and education;
and
(D) has—
(i) not been subject to a disciplinary or
adverse administrative action by Federal,
State, or other regulatory bodies;
(ii) no unresolved nonconformities from
administrative audits by regulatory bodies; and
(iii) not been subject to any adverse
criminal action by a Federal, State, or
local law enforcement authority.
(2) ARCTIC.—The term ‘‘Arctic’’ has the
meaning that term has under section 112 of the
Arctic Research and Policy Act of 1984 (15
U.S.C. 4111).
(3) CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION.—The
term ‘‘career and technical education’’ has the
meaning given such term in section 3(5) of the
Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act 2 (20 U.S.C. 2302).
1 So in original. Another closing parenthesis probably should
precede the semicolon.
2 The words ‘‘of 2006’’ probably should appear. See subsec.
(c)(1)(B)(i).

Page 385

§ 51707

TITLE 46—SHIPPING

(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’
means the Secretary of Transportation.
(5) TRAINING PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘training
program’’ means a program that provides
training services, as described in section
134(c)(3)(D) of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act (Public Law 113–128; 29 U.S.C.
3174).
(6) UNITED STATES MARITIME INDUSTRY.—The
term ‘‘United States maritime industry’’
means the design, construction, repair, operation, manning, and supply of vessels in all
segments of the maritime transportation system of the United States, including—
(A) the domestic and foreign trade;
(B) the coastal, offshore, and inland trade;
(C) non-commercial maritime activities,
including—
(i) recreational boating; and
(ii) oceanographic and limnological research as described in section 2101(24).
(Added Pub. L. 115–91, div. C, title XXXV,
§ 3507(a), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1914, § 54102; renumbered § 51706, Pub. L. 116–283, div. C, title
XXXV, § 3507(a), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4405;
amended Pub. L. 117–263, div. C, title XXXV,
§ 3532(a), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3089; Pub. L.
118–31, div. C, title XXXV, § 3534(k), Dec. 22, 2023,
137 Stat. 834.)
Editorial Notes
REFERENCES IN TEXT
The date of enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, referred to in subsec. (c)(1)(B)(v), is the date of enactment of Pub. L.
117–263, also known as the James M. Inhofe National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, which
was approved Dec. 23, 2022.
AMENDMENTS
2023—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 118–31, § 3534(k)(1), designated existing provisions as par. (1) and inserted
heading, inserted ‘‘, after consultation with the Coast
Guard,’’ after ‘‘Transportation’’ and ‘‘, for a 5-year period,’’ after ‘‘designate’’, and added par. (2).
2023—Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 118–31, § 3534(k)(2), added
par. (5).
Subsec. (c)(1)(D). Pub. L. 118–31, § 3534(k)(3), added
subpar. (D).
2022—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 117–263, § 3532(a)(1), added
subsec. (a) and struck out former subsec. (a) which related to designation.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 117–263, § 3532(a)(2), added subsec.
(b) and struck out former subsec. (b) which related to
assistance.
Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 117–263, § 3532(a)(3)(A), added
par. (1) and struck out former par. (1) which defined
‘‘covered training entity’’ in this section.
Subsec. (c)(3) to (6). Pub. L. 117–263, § 3532(a)(3)(B),
added pars. (3) to (6).
2021—Pub. L. 116–283 renumbered section 54102 of this
title as this section.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
GUIDELINES
Pub. L. 117–263, div. C, title XXXV, § 3532(c), Dec. 23,
2022, 136 Stat. 3092, provided that:
‘‘Not later than one year after the date of enactment
of this Act [Dec. 23, 2022], the Secretary of Transportation shall—
‘‘(1) prescribe guidelines for the submission of grant
proposals under section 51706(b) of title 46, United
States Code, as amended by subsection (a); and

‘‘(2) publish and maintain such guidelines on the
website of the Department of Transportation.’’

§ 51707. Merchant mariner recruitment, training,
and retention strategic plan
(a) 1 STRATEGIC PLAN.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year
after the date of the enactment of this section,
and at least once every five years thereafter
until the termination date under paragraph
(6), the Secretary of Transportation, acting
through the Administrator of the Maritime
Administration, shall publish in the Federal
Register a plan to recruit, train, and retain
merchant mariners for the five-year period following the date of publication of the most recently published plan under this paragraph.
(2) CONTENTS.—A plan published under paragraph (1) shall contain—
(A) a strategy to address merchant mariner recruitment, training, and retention
issues in the United States; and
(B) demonstration and research priorities
concerning merchant mariner recruitment,
training, and retention.
(3) FACTORS.—In developing a plan under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall take into
account, at a minimum—
(A) the availability of existing research (as
of the date of publication of the plan); and
(B) the need to ensure results that have
broad applicability for the United States
merchant marine workforce development.
(4) CONSULTATION.—In developing a plan
under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with representatives of the maritime industry, labor organizations, including the
Commander of the Transportation Command
and the Commander of the Military Sealift
Command, and other governmental entities
and stakeholders in the maritime industry.
(5) TRANSMITTAL TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall transmit copies of any plan published under paragraph (1) to the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the
House of Representatives and the Committee
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of
the Senate.
(6) TERMINATION DATE.—The requirement to
publish a plan under this paragraph shall terminate on the date that the Administrator of
the Maritime Administration determines that
there is an adequate number of United States
mariners for sustained strategic sealift.
(Added Pub. L. 116–283, div. C, title XXXV,
§ 3508(a), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4405.)
Editorial Notes
REFERENCES IN TEXT
The date of the enactment of this section, referred to
in subsec. (a)(1), is the date of enactment of Pub. L.
116–283, which was approved Jan. 1, 2021.

CHAPTER 519—MERCHANT MARINE AWARDS
Sec.

51901.
51902.
1 So

Awards for individual acts or service.
Gallant Ship Award.

in original. No subsec. (b) has been enacted.