Kevin Brady: “I and many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle are concerned about the funding provided in this bill for the…”

“I and many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle are concerned about the funding provided in this bill for the Maritime Administration, and specifically, the six State maritime academies. This year the report to accompany the House Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill has not provided the specific funding level for the State academies. At the level provided for the overall operations and training account, it is likely this would threaten the ability of the academies to carry out their Federally-mandated mission of educating and training our Nation's licensed merchant mariners. Mr. Chairman, the Texas State Maritime Academy has a ship for its use called the Texas Clipper. The ship's sole purpose is to meet the Federal mandate for training U.S.-licensed merchant mariners. Adequate funding is needed not only for this training but for the annual drydocking, fuel costs, retrofitting requirements, and general upkeep. To conclude, Mr. Chairman, the Senate report makes available approximately $9.5 million for the State academies. The Senate language is also clear that the training ships where this money is used are Federal ships training U.S. maritime officers, and that is a Federal responsibility. As we move to conference with this bill, I urge the chairman on behalf of our State Maritime Academies and on behalf of the maritime industry to work with the Senate to fully fund these academies.”