By Mary Kerr 202-225-6260
The House of Representatives passed by voice vote yesterday legislation to address the education and training needs of the nation’s merchant mariners. H.R. 2651, the Maritime Workforce Development Act, directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a student loan program to attract the next generation of workers to the well-paying jobs available in the maritime industry. The loan program also helps those already in the industry obtain the certifications and training they need to move ahead in their careers.
“The maritime industry anticipates a continuing shortage of qualified merchant mariners. Due to projected increases in commercial maritime traffic and a maritime workforce that is approaching retirement age, a maritime training program is needed to help ensure that our nation will continue to have skilled and experienced U.S. citizen mariners,” said Rep. James L. Oberstar (Minn.), Chairman of the Committee on Transportation. “Such a program can begin in high schools by creating maritime training curriculum for students to obtain the basic knowledge of the maritime industry and skills to gain an entry-level job.”
“In October 2007, my subcommittee held a hearing to examine trends in the maritime labor force. At that hearing, we learned that many of those who currently work in the industry are nearing retirement age. The average age of a mariner with a Master’s license is 51, while the average age of a Chief Engineer is 50,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings (Md.), Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation and original sponsor of the bill. “Additionally, significant new standards for training and continuing have been applied to mariners since 1995. Although the new requirements are necessary to improve safety in the maritime industry and reduce accidents caused by human factors, they are expensive and time consuming, particularly on those who want to move up the career ladder.”
H.R. 2651 creates a maritime-focused student loan program through which individuals can receive up to $60,000 in loans over the course of a lifetime, and the bill authorizes the appropriation of $10 million in each of fiscal years 2010 through 2015 to support loans. Additionally, H.R. 2651 authorizes the appropriation of $10 million in each of fiscal years 2010 through 2015 to enable the Department of Transportation to award grants to maritime training institutions to support their efforts to develop and implement programs to address mariner recruitment, training, and retention issues.
The House also approved other legislation over which the T&I Committee has jurisdiction, including:
H.R. 1700, National Women's History Museum Act of 2009, which authorizes the sale of federal land to establish the nation’s first museum dedicated to honoring the accomplishments of women;
H.R. 2423, which designates the federal building and U.S. courthouse located in Laredo, Texas, as the George P. Kazen Federal Building and United States Courthouse, and designates the jury room in that federal building as the Marcel C. Notzon II Jury Room;
H.R. 465, which recognizes the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association on its 10th anniversary; H.Con.Res. 138, which recognizes the 40th anniversary of the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas;
and
H.Res. 719, which commends Russ Meyer on his induction into the National Aviation Hall of Fame.
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View T&I Committee members' statements on YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/HouseTransInf
