46 U.S.C. § 53405 — Obligations and rights under operating agreements

(a) Operation of Vessel. While a vessel is covered by an operating agreement, it must (1) be operated in U.S. foreign commerce, in a mix of foreign commerce and domestic trade allowed under a section 12111 registry endorsement, in foreign-to-foreign commerce, or under a charter to the United States; (2) not otherwise run in the coastwise trade; and (3) be documented under chapter 121. (b) Annual Payments by the Secretary. (1) Every operating agreement must require the Secretary, subject to available appropriations, to pay the program participant under section 53406. (2) The agreement is a contractual obligation of the U.S. Government to make those payments, but only to the extent money is actually appropriated. (c) Documentation Requirement. Every covered vessel — including one under an agreement terminated under section 53404(c)(2) — must stay documented under chapter 121 until the date the agreement would have ended under its own terms. (d) National Security Requirements. (1) A program participant stays bound by section 53407, even after a termination under section 53404(c)(2), until the date the agreement would have ended under its own terms. (2) The terms of any Emergency Preparedness Agreement signed under section 53407 stay in effect until that same date, unless the program participant, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Defense all agree to change them. (e) Transfer of Operating Agreements. A program participant may transfer its agreement — including all rights and duties — to anyone eligible for such an agreement, if the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Defense decide the transfer serves the best interests of the United States. (f) Replacement of Vessels Covered by Agreements. A program participant may swap in another vessel that is eligible to join the Fleet under section 53402(b), if the Secretary of Transportation, working with the Secretary of Defense, approves the replacement. No court has authority to review a decision by either Secretary about replacing a vessel under this section.