State House News

Max Vekich was sworn-in today as a Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission for a term expiring June 30, 2026.First nominated by President Joseph R. Biden on June 24, 2021, and then again on January 4, 2022. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 10, 2022, and is the 43rd person to serve on the Federal Maritime Commission.“Commissioner Vekich assumes office when his lifelong experience working on the waterfront will be especially beneficial. He understands port and supply chain issues from the perspective of a worker on the frontlines of making cargo move.

Alaska's North Slope oil production is forecast to decline 1.8 percent for the fiscal year ending June 30 instead of falling 3 percent as predicted in December, according to a report released this week. The Alaska Department of Revenue predicts production of 521,800 barrels a day (bpd) versus its December forecast of 508,200 bpd. By 2023, North Slope production will fall to 315,000 bpd. The annual spring report comes four months after the state began cutting oil production taxes with hopes of spurring new investment and stemming the decline. Alaska gets more than 80 percent of its state tax revenue from oil production. North Slope production comes largely from leaseholders BP Plc, ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil Corp, and has been in a steady decline.

Approval clears way to create nation’s largest deepwater containerized cargo transfer terminal, enhancing U.S. competitiveness as Panama Canal expands. Transshipment facility off Louisiana coast intended to improve America’s strained shipping infrastructure, streamline international trade flow and create long-term jobs in 32 states. Louisiana State Senator A.G. Crowe’s vision of making America more competitive and capitalizing on the Gulf of Mexico’s deep-water resources has taken…

For Vigor Industrial, a privately-held shipbuilding and repair company headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the future looked bright and a bit ominous at the same time. Work was coming in, dock space was filling up, future orders were signed, and new properties purchased; in short, business was booming. But dark clouds crept in around the edges of this rosy picture. As recruiters set out to find new talent to meet the growing demand, they encountered a candidate pool without the necessary skills to pick up a welding torch and go to work.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today administered the oath of office to former U.S. Congresswoman Betty Sutton who becomes the tenth Administrator of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC). “We are pleased to welcome Betty Sutton to the Department as the new Administrator of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation,” said SLSDC Deputy Administrator Craig H. Middlebrook. “She brings a wealth of experience from her years of service at the city, county, state and federal levels of government.

The Michigan Boating Industries Association (MBIA) thanks the Michigan State House and Senate for speedy support of bills. The package included assistance to public and private marinas and helped streamline the regulatory process within the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The package received near unanimous support from both sides of the aisle and is headed to the Governor for his signature. "We commend the Senate and House for their commitment to help Michigan's marinas and Michigan's boaters," said MBIA Board Chairman Jim Coburn . "We are pleased our legislators recognize the importance of Michigan's boating industry to the future of Michigan. Thanks also needs to be given to Governor Snyder for identifying the crisis in early January and issuing a call to action.

On April 28, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar approved the Cape Wind renewable energy project on federal submerged lands in Nantucket Sound, but will require the developer of the $1b wind farm to agree to additional binding measures to minimize the potential adverse impacts of construction and operation of the facility. “After careful consideration of all the concerns expressed during the lengthy review and consultation process and thorough analyses of the many factors involved, I find that the public benefits weigh in favor of approving the Cape Wind project at the Horseshoe Shoal location,” Salazar said in an announcement at the State House in Boston. The Cape Wind project would be the first wind farm on the U.S.

The National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) President Tom Fry issued the following statement on Feb. “The National Ocean Industries Association applauds yesterday’s vote in the Virginia State Senate supporting energy development off the State’s Coast. The vote, backed by Governor Bob McDonnell (R-VA), demonstrates a strong bipartisan commitment by the Commonwealth to allow OCS exploration off its coast and actively work with Congress and the Administration to move forward with OCS Lease Sale 220. “Over the past five years, political leaders in Virginia’s State House, the Governor’s mansion and among the delegation in Congress have repeatedly expressed a desire to see the offshore energy resources of their state opened to development.

According to a March 13 report from South Coast Today, the Mass. state Department of Environmental Protection has stopped awarding contracts for its controversial rescue tug program designed to assist distressed, double-hulled oil tankers transiting Buzzards Bay. DEP Commissioner Laurie Burt announced Thursday at a Statehouse hearing that the agency will back a House bill proposed by SouthCoast legislators. The bill, which amends an oil spill law enacted in August 2008, would require escort tugs to shadow double-hulled tankers throughout their transit rather than wait at the dock to respond to an emergency call from a tanker. (Source: South Coast Today)

According to a March 11 report from the Cape Cod Times, a new bill designed to strengthen rules for tugboats escorting double-hulled oil barges through Buzzards Bay is the subject of a legislative hearing at the Statehouse. The bill was recently introduced by Rep. John Quinn, D-Dartmouth. (Source: Cape Cod Times)

The Hawaii State Legislature honored Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard (PHNSY) for the first time March 18 with a House resolution and a Senate commendation lauding the Shipyard's 100 years of service to the Navy. PHNSY will hold its official 100-year anniversary celebration on May 13. PHNSY finds its roots in the 1800s, as the world's navies explored and established ports throughout the . Congress passed an Act officially creating Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, , in May of 1908 and authorized nearly $3 million to help build it. Rep. Lynn Finnegan sponsored the resolution, which was signed by all members of the Hawaii State House of Representatives. PHNSY Commander, Capt. Gregory Thomas and four other shipyard leaders were recognized on the House chamber floor.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Florida state House and Senate leaders, and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced a partnership designedto strengthen security at the State's seaports. The partnership, formalized in a Memorandum of Agreement signed in mid-February, will define requirements for background checks and state-of-the-art identification credentials for truck drivers, dockworkers and others who require unescorted access to the secure areas of the seaports. TSA will provide the infrastructure of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), which offers a giant leap in transportation security by balancing the needs of commerce and individual privacy with those of security.

As previously reported, as a result of the May 2003 oil spill in Buzzards Bay in the U.S. (an oil barge grounding spilled 55,000 gallons of fuel oil, polluting 93 miles of the Massachusetts coastline), the Massachusetts legislators have introduced new legislation, which was adopted last week by both the State House of Representatives and the State Senate. The bill was now been submitted to the Massachusetts Governor for final signature. The Governor Mitt Romney has a deadline by end of this week to sign or to veto the bill. This proposed unilateral state legislation is of importance to our members since some of its provisions will directly affect their trade to Massachusetts ports.

The South Carolina Senate amended and then approved General Bill 3002, which would prohibit certain "cruise to nowhere" gaming operations. As passed by the Senate, the bill would impose a general prohibition against gambling on cruises that begin and end in the state, and which do not make an intervening stop within the boundaries of another state or a foreign country. The measure provides an exemption from the general prohibition for voyages and voyage segments that begin and end in the state, are part of a voyage to another state or a foreign country, and in which the vessel reaches the outer state or foreign country within three days after leaving the state in which the segment begins.

The South Carolina Senate amended and then approved General Bill 3002, which would prohibit certain "cruise to nowhere" gaming operations. As passed by the Senate, the bill would impose a general prohibition against gambling on cruises that begin and end in the state, and which do not make an intervening stop within the boundaries of another state or a foreign country. The measure provides an exemption from the general prohibition for voyages and voyage segments that begin and end in the state, are part of a voyage to another state or a foreign country, and in which the vessel reaches the outer state or foreign country within three days after leaving the state in which the segment begins.

Cruise companies would pay a fee of $50 for each passenger sailing Alaskan waters under a bill being considered by the state legislature. The bill, which passed the state Senate by a 14-6 vote and is now under review by the state House, is one of several proposals at the state and local levels to better control the burgeoning cruise ship crowds in Alaska. Over 600,000 cruise passengers visited the Inside Passage in the state's southeast panhandle last year, more than double the number recorded a decade ago. State Sen. Rick Halford, the measure's sponsor, said the fee was a bargain for companies that reap huge financial rewards selling Alaska tours. The companies pay a $10-per-passenger fee in Vancouver, British Columbia and other ports of embarkation, he said in floor debate.