33 U.S.C. § 414 — Vessel removal by Corps of Engineers

(a) Removal of obstructive vessels (1) In general. If a sunken vessel, boat, or similar wreck blocks or endangers navigation on a river, lake, harbor, canal, or other U.S. navigable water for more than 30 days, the Secretary of the Army can break it up, remove it, sell it, or get rid of it some other way. The Secretary does not have to pay the owner for any damage this causes. If the wreck counts as legally abandoned sooner than 30 days, the Secretary can act sooner. Before acting, the Secretary may choose to publish a notice — addressed "To whom it may concern" — in the newspaper closest to the wreck, giving at least 30 days' warning (or less if the wreck is legally abandoned) and telling people to remove it. The Secretary may also ask contractors to submit sealed bids to remove the wreck, giving at least 10 days' notice of that bidding, to happen as soon as possible after the 30-day notice period ends if the wreck is still there. Under these contracts, the wreck and everything on it — cargo included — can become the contractor's property, and the job goes to whichever bidder offers the government the best deal. The winning bidder must post security guaranteeing the work gets done. Any money the government makes from selling a wreck, or that a contractor pays for the right to remove one, goes into the U.S. Treasury. (2) Liability of owner, lessee, or operator. The vessel's owner, lessee, or operator must pay the government back for removal, destruction, and disposal costs that are more than what the government already recovered from selling the wreck or awarding the contract. Any extra money collected from the owner beyond the sale proceeds goes into the Treasury's general fund. (b) Removal of abandoned vessel (1) In general. The Secretary may also remove a "covered vessel" (defined below) even if it is not blocking navigation, but only if: (A) the Secretary decides — after consulting with any State or Indian Tribe with authority over where the vessel sits — that removing it serves the public interest; and (B) if the vessel is not already under federal control through seizure or forfeiture, the Commandant of the Coast Guard has determined the vessel is abandoned. (2) Interagency agreements. To remove a covered vessel, the Secretary may make an agreement with another federal agency that controls the vessel, and may accept money from that agency to help pay for the removal. (3) Liability. The vessel's owner must pay the government's costs of removing, destroying, and disposing of the vessel. (4) Covered vessel defined. (A) A "covered vessel" is one the Coast Guard Commandant has determined is abandoned, or one already under federal control because it was seized or forfeited under some law. (B) But "covered vessel" does not include: (i) a vessel the Secretary already has removal authority over under subsection (a) or under section 415 of this title; (ii) an abandoned barge the Coast Guard Commandant can already remove under chapter 47 of title 46; or (iii) a vessel whose owner is unknown — unless the Commandant has determined it's abandoned anyway — or whose owner has not agreed to pay for its removal, destruction, or disposal. (5) Authorization of appropriations. Congress may spend up to $10,000,000 each year, for fiscal years 2025 through 2029, to carry out this section.