Olympia Snowe: “Many of DOD's reserve and auxiliary ships are commercially built, owned, and operated, and they are chartered to DOD…”

“Many of DOD's reserve and auxiliary ships are commercially built, owned, and operated, and they are chartered to DOD under long-term lease agreements. The U.S. Navy intends to continue this approach to acquiring these needed assets in the future. Furthermore, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to completely separate a ship's defense features from its commercial features. Therefore, the implementing legislation needs to contain the definition and exemption for these types of ships or the United States will be subjected to an international trade panel's interpretation of what is, or is not, a military vessel or a defense feature.”