Marine Link
Thursday, March 28, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Harbor Maintenance Tax News

26 Jan 2021

Op/ed: Investing in America’s Critical Maritime Infrastructure

© jccain / Adobe Stock

Congress recently made a major, if little noticed, new investment in American infrastructure. As part of the year-end budget deal, lawmakers released $10 billion that had been locked away in the Harbor Maintenance Tax Trust Fund to be used for its intended purpose: dredging U.S. harbors to keep our ports open and support U.S. economic and national security.Maritime infrastructure is an indispensable national asset, which is why the U.S. Department of Homeland Security recognizes the Maritime Transportation System (MTS) as one of the seven critical subsectors within the transportation system.

27 Dec 2019

INSIGHTS: Niels Aalund

Niels Aalund was elected President of the International Propeller Club at their 93rd International Convention and Conference. The prominent maritime industry stakeholder will serve a two-year term, commencing from October 17th. Aalund, a well-known maritime subject matter expert and executive, also serves as an Officer and as Senior Vice President of the West Gulf Maritime Association (WGMA). WGMA communicates and coordinates with various governmental entities throughout the West Gulf…

29 Oct 2019

Full Utilization of HMTF Passes in U.S. House

Photo: Dredging Contractors of America

This evening the U.S. House of Representatives passed by a recorded vote the Full Utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF), H.R. 2440. The vote was 296 in favor and 109 opposed. The voting required a two-thirds super majority of the House in order to pass under “suspension of the rules.”There were  seventeen (17) bills presented in the House of Representatives today with fifteen (15) bills passing by voice vote. The Full Utilization of the HMTF was one of two bills…

23 Oct 2019

DCA to U.S. House: Fully Utilize HMT Fund

William P. Doyle, CEO and Executive Director of the Dredging Contractors of America (DCA)

The U.S. House of Representatives is set to consider H.R. 2440, Full Utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund bill on Monday October 28, 2019. The bill may be presented in the House under “suspension of the rules.”“We strongly support the Full Utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund for intended purpose,” said William P. Doyle, CEO and Executive Director of the Dredging Contractors of America (DCA). “This bipartisan bill makes it easier for Congress to appropriate any funds collected in the Trust Fund for authorized harbor maintenance needs…

11 Oct 2019

SHORTSEA SHIPPING: All the Right Moves (Finally)

The Baton Rouge-NOLA container on barge service / (CREDIT: Port of New Orleans)

Marine Highways Gain Traction in the Intermodal Supply Chain.In the United States, landside infrastructure is at a crisis point. Congestion at the big hub ports, exacerbated by imperfect intermodal interfaces with surface transport serving cargo hinterlands is at the heart of the matter. As politicians bicker over a possible infrastructure package, the Highway Trust Fund, funded by taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel, has continued its downward journey towards further deficits (now $144 billion). And, where countless U.S.

26 Jul 2018

INSIGHTS: William D. Friedman

Port of Cleveland President & CEO and newly elected Board Chairman of the American Association of Port Authorities William Friedman weighs in this month on the Port of Cleveland and its role in the all important Great Lakes trades.When the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) announced the election of Port of Cleveland President and CEO, William D. Friedman, to serve as chairman for the 2018-19 year, beginning this October, it was perhaps a conscious decision to tap someone who has a broad range of experience and skills in myriad ports, large and small. That’s Friedman in a nutshell. AAPA represents 140 of the leading maritime port authorities in this hemisphere. If you’ve seen one port; well, you’ve seen one port.

14 Mar 2018

Op/Ed: Disconnect from River to Washington

© Jeffery Everson / Adobe Stock

Just before the anticipation of good things to come on Valentine’s Day, on February 12, the inland waterways transportation industry was left feeling disappointed and puzzled after the release of the long-awaited Trump Administration infrastructure principles, and then the release of President Trump’s FY 2019 budget request. During the Presidential campaign, then-candidate Trump said he would undertake a $1 trillion infrastructure initiative that would focus on a wide array of projects, from sewer systems to bridges to Veterans Hospitals to rural broadband expansion.

12 Dec 2017

Op/Ed: Making the Mississippi River Mightier

© Vladimir Melnikov / Adobe Stock

A plan unfolds and support grows for a 50-foot Ship Channel to support economical and efficient grain exports. The Big River Coalition remains at the heart of that collaborative effort to make the Mississippi River Mightier. In 2012, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Institute of Water Resources (IWR) released a report under the direction of Congress to document the status of U.S. Ports to accept post-panamax vessels. The report, entitled, “U.S. Port and Inland Waterways Modernization: Preparing for Post-Panamax Vessels” was officially released on June 20, 2012.

15 Sep 2017

Mississippi River Deepening Project Gains Support

© Vladimir Melnikov / Adobe Stock

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) hosted its Annual Meeting in New Orleans, where NASDA President and Commissioner of Louisiana’s Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr. Michael Strain championed a motion supporting the deepening of the Mississippi River Ship Channel to 50 feet. Earlier in the week, Dr. Strain led the effort to gain the support of the Southern Association of State Departments of Agriculture (SASDA) on the same motion. “NASDA…

09 Mar 2017

Louisiana Dredging Outlook

Photo: Magnolia Dredge

When maritime stakeholders think about dredging, they typically first conjure up visions of harbor deepening projects to accommodate those giant, post-Panamax boxships. Conversely, inland players hope for maintenance dredging in the heartland to keep the nation’s 31,000 cargo barges afloat as they head for the coast. But, there is much more to it than that. In Louisiana, dredging, of course, keeps Louisiana's waterways open for navigation, provides material for coastal restoration and helps industrial plants with drainage. The biggest projects are sponsored by the U.S.

02 Feb 2017

Legislators Urge Trump to Fund Dredging

© alexmma1 / Adobe Stock

A coalition of 75 members of the House of Representatives called on President Trump to fully fund harbor maintenance programs in his upcoming Fiscal Year 2018 budget proposal. The letter, available here, noted that the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA) called for FY18 harbor maintenance expenditures to equal 74 percent of FY17 Harbor Maintenance Tax revenue. Although the specific amount is not yet known (the budget typically includes an estimate of previous year revenue), legislators urged the President to include the appropriate amount in his budget. “The U.S.

06 Dec 2016

[Op/Ed] WRDA: Dredging up Progress

© alexmma1 / Adobe Stock

Digging out the small ports and harbors that serve as the on-ramps to the maritime super highway is important work. We support the WRDA language that makes our water commerce system work productively. The Presidentially-appointed Mississippi River Commission in its public meetings alongside the members of Big River Coalition and the MVFCA has heard from interests, discussed and supported this approach for more than five years. Our navigation infrastructure must be fully maintained or the efficiencies offered by the inland navigation system…

17 May 2016

Flaws Hinder US Harbor Maintenance Fund -Report

Photo: Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure

There exist serious flaws in U.S. infrastructure funding practices that hinder the maintenance and improvement of American ports and harbors, according to a new report, “Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund: Broken or Misused?” released by the Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure (Aii). “Insufficient funding is a constant issue for large-scale infrastructure projects, but the shortfall in harbor funding is particularly problematic since waterborne cargo shippers pay an excise tax specifically aimed at solving this problem…

29 Feb 2016

CMA CGM Benjamin Franklin Calls Seattle

CMA CGM Benjamin Franklin (Photo: Northwest Seaport Alliance)

Largest cargo vessel to visit U.S. The largest cargo ship to visit the United States, the CMA CMG Benjamin Franklin, arrived Monday at The Northwest Seaport Alliance’s Terminal 18 in Seattle. The Benjamin Franklin has capacity for 18,000 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), more than double the cargo of most container ships calling at Northwest Seaport Alliance terminals. If laid end-to-end, the 18,000 TEUs would stretch from Tacoma to Everett, a distance of about 68 miles.

09 Feb 2016

Obama’s Budget ‘Grossly Imbalanced’ For US Ports -AAPA

Kurt Nagle (Photo: AAPA)

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) said today it is encouraged by the potential of significant gains for landside freight transportation programs in President Obama’s fiscal 2017 budget, bit is disappointed, however, in the proposed funding levels for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers coastal navigation programs, the Environmental Protection Agency’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grants, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Port Security Grant program.

09 Feb 2016

The Mississippi River and the 2016 Flood’s Impact on Dredging

Bonnet Carre’ Spillway Operation

The Mighty Mississippi River connects 31 states and 2 Canadian Provinces by a liquid superhighway that includes over 250 tributaries and features more miles of inland waterways than the rest of the world combined. As I contemplate my thoughts on the importance of this great river system, there is no doubt that muddy water also runs through my veins. Nevertheless, much of my advocacy involves explaining to others not so closely in tune with this economic superhighway as to just how important it truly is.

16 Dec 2015

US Seaports Eye Increased Funding

Photo: Port of Houston Authority

In reviewing the $1.15 trillion amount in the U.S. House-Senate conference agreement released last night for the fiscal 2016 omnibus appropriations bill (HR 2029), the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA)—the unified and recognized voice of seaports in America—noted that there are significant funds to enhance U.S. port infrastructure. The largest increases are for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Navigation Program and the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grants program. The agreement also includes level funding for the U.S.

26 May 2015

Snarled in Traffic, Intermodal Answers Include the Water

It was just last month that the (challenged) Keefe family packed up the SUV and set out for a little bit of spring break fun, mixed in with a college visit for my son, who will be a senior in high school next Fall. The decision to drive was, in part, an economy move but also made sense due to the relatively last minute nature of our plans. As it turned out, the trip to Florida and back from Charlotte, North Carolina, was without a doubt, the worst part of an otherwise pleasant week. The GPS tells us that the one-way trip should take approximately 9-1/2 hours but we never got that number under 12 hours. Along the way, the reasons why quickly become transparent.

01 May 2015

Ports Association Praises Harbor Funding Legislation

Kurt Nagle (Photo: AAPA)

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) lauded H.R. 2028, the U.S. House of Representatives’ fiscal 2016 Energy and Water Appropriations bill that passed today, together with two bipartisan amendments included in the bill. Of particular interest to AAPA is the portion of the bill that funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ navigation program, which manages improvements and maintenance of federal navigation channels at U.S. ports. The first amendment, offered by Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) and Rep.

19 Feb 2015

Moving Ahead With the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund

“How can we have a 21st century economy with a 20th century infrastructure?” Vice President Joe Biden recently posed this question to an audience at the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) annual meeting in Houston, Texas. He went on to say, “the greatest economic power in the world needs the most dynamic port system in the world.” I happen to agree with this statement. We must find a better way to manage the funding needs of our marine transportation infrastructure. In fact, you will find many politicians, business leaders, economists, and transportation specialists that are quite outspoken on this matter. It seems everybody talks infrastructure, and how deteriorated our roads, rails, highways, bridges, and ports have become.

25 Nov 2014

Overwhelming Support for ‘Hit the HMT Target!’

Today, the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) applauded a “Dear Colleague” letter to the leadership of the Senate Committee on Appropriations that was signed by 22 senators, urging appropriators to meet the dredging funding commitments made in the 2014 Water Resources Reform & Development Act (WRRDA), passed in May. That letter, together with a similar one circulated through the House earlier this fall to House Appropriations Committee leadership, supports the “Hit the HMT Target!” campaign to impress upon lawmakers the need to annually fund what was authorized in WRRDA. In July, the House approved fiscal 2015 appropriations that hit the HMT target, thanks to a floor amendment put forth by Cong. Janice Hahn (D-CA) and Cong.

10 Dec 2014

AAPA: FY’15 ‘Cromnibus’ Bill Supports Ports

Kurt Nagle, AAPA President & CEO

Significant increases seen for Corps’ seaport programs & EPA’s DERA grants. In reviewing the proposed $1.01 trillion Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015 hammered out in Congress late yesterday, the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) noted that there are significant increases for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) operations and maintenance (O&M) activities and construction budgets, and for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grants program.

03 Feb 2015

Funding Only Bright Spot in President’s Budget - AAPA

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA), the recognized and authoritative voice of the seaport industry, yesterday noted some positive aspects but mostly disappointment over the funding levels and programmatic changes in federal port-related programs that were proposed today in President Obama’s fiscal 2016 budget. “International trade now accounts for fully 30 percent of the U.S. economy,” said Kurt Nagle, AAPA’s president and CEO. The President’s budget includes a $478 billion, six-year surface transportation reauthorization proposal, to be paid for with transition revenue from business tax reform. The proposal would pay for repairs to existing roads and bridges…