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Adds a new subsection (c) providing that section 55103 'shall not apply to any vessel with 800 or more passenger berths.'
Adds a new subsection (d) stating the requirements of section 12103 shall not apply to any vessel with 800 or more passenger berths that transports passengers between ports or places in the United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either directly or via a foreign port.
Modifies paragraph (1) and paragraph (2) of subsection (a) (including subparagraphs) to add an exemption for vessels with 800 or more passenger berths that transport passengers between ports or places in the United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either directly or via a foreign port (added as subparagraph (C)).
Rewrites subsection (k) to provide that subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply to any vessel with 800 or more passenger berths that transports passengers between ports or places in the United States to which the coastwise laws apply, either directly or via a foreign port.
Amends 8 U.S.C. 1282(a) by (1) replacing the phrase 'he may, in his discretion,' with 'the officer may,' (2) replacing the phrase 'a period of time, in any event, not to exceed' with a rule tying the permitted period to possession of a valid, unexpired visa, and (3) striking existing paragraphs (1)–(3) (which contained numeric duration limits and a 180-day cargo-transfer exception) and inserting two new subparagraphs specifying permitted landing locations.
Amends U.S. maritime and immigration law so very large passenger vessels (those with 800 or more passenger berths) are exempt from specified provisions of title 46 (including certain passenger vessel seamen act and Jones Act citizenship/crew rules) when transporting passengers between U.S. ports; revises rules for temporary landing permits for foreign crew by tying shore leave to a valid unexpired visa and the inspecting officer’s satisfaction and by clarifying permitted landing locations; and expressly states these changes should not be read as creating other implicit exemptions from U.S. law.
The bill changes which vessels are covered by selected cabotage and crew/citizenship rules, clarifies how and where alien crewmen may be given temporary shore leave, and preserves the effect of other U.S. laws except where the bill explicitly alters them.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Introduced July 30, 2025 by Mike Lee · Last progress July 30, 2025
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Introduced in Senate