46 U.S.C. § 53701 — Definitions
submitted 20 years ago by Pub. L. 109-304 to r/title-46-SHIPPING · 1,217 words · no verdicts yet
This section defines the key terms for the shipbuilding loan guarantee program, including "actual cost," "obligation," "obligor," "vessel," and "Vessel of National Interest." It sets citizenship and construction requirements for qualifying vessels and fishery facilities. Here, "Secretary" means the Secretary of Commerce for fishing vessels and fishery facilities.
(1) Actual Cost. "Actual cost" means the total of (A) everything the obligor has paid, as of the date a determination is made under section 53715(d)(1); plus (B) everything the Secretary or Administrator reasonably expects the obligor will still have to pay for building, rebuilding, or reconditioning the vessel — including guarantee fees under section 53714 for all obligations tied to that work and to the finished vessel or equipment.
(2) Administrator. The "Administrator" is the Administrator of the Maritime Administration.
(3) Construction, Reconstruction, and Reconditioning. These terms include designing, inspecting, outfitting, and equipping the vessel.
(4) Depreciated Actual Cost. A vessel's "depreciated actual cost" is: (A) if it was never rebuilt or reconditioned, its actual cost depreciated evenly over its useful life (as the Secretary or Administrator sets), capped at 25 years from delivery; or (B) if it was rebuilt or reconditioned, the sum of (i) its actual cost depreciated evenly from delivery to the rebuild date using its original useful life, then depreciated further using a new useful life the Secretary or Administrator sets; and (ii) whatever was paid or owed for the rebuild, depreciated evenly over a useful life the Secretary or Administrator sets.
(5) Fishery Facility. (A) Subject to (B), a "fishery facility" means: (i) on land, a structure or attachment built to unload, receive, process, hold, or distribute fish from a fishery, plus the land it needs and the equipment needed to run it; (ii) off land, a U.S.-built vessel used, equipped, or normally used to process fish; or (iii) for aquaculture, on land or elsewhere, a structure or attachment built for aquaculture (plus its needed land and equipment), or a U.S.-built vessel used, equipped, or normally used for aquaculture. (B) The structure, land, equipment, or vessel must be owned by a U.S. citizen individual, or by an entity that is a U.S. citizen under section 50501 and at least 75 percent owned by U.S. citizens.
(6) Fishing Vessel. "Fishing vessel" has the meaning in section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Any reference in this chapter to a vessel mainly designed for commercial fishing use means a fishing vessel.
(7) Historical Uses. "Historical uses" includes: (A) fixing, rebuilding, or replacing fishing-vessel equipment without much increasing its catching capacity; (B) buying a used fishing vessel; (C) buying, building, expanding, or reconditioning a fishery facility; (D) refinancing existing debt; (E) reducing fishing capacity; and (F) upgrading a fishing vessel's technology, gear, or equipment to improve data collection and reporting, reduce or avoid bycatch, improve gear selectivity, reduce gear's harmful impacts, or improve safety.
(8) Mortgage. "Mortgage" includes (A) a preferred mortgage as defined in section 31301; and (B) a vessel mortgage that will become a preferred mortgage once it's filed or recorded under chapter 313.
(9) Obligation. "Obligation" means a debt instrument issued for a purpose listed in section 53706, except (A) one issued by the Secretary or Administrator under section 53723; and (B) one eligible for fund investment under section 53715(f) or 53717.
(10) Obligee. The "obligee" is whoever holds the obligation.
(11) Obligor. The "obligor" is the party mainly responsible for paying the obligation's principal or interest.
(12) Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Facility or Plantship. This means an at-sea facility or vessel — mobile, floating, moored, or resting on the seabed — that uses ocean-water temperature differences to make electricity or usable energy. It includes: (A) equipment on it that turns that energy into a product; (B) a cable or pipeline delivering the electricity, fresh water, or product to shore; and (C) other equipment and attachments located seaward of the high-water mark.
(13) Secretary. "Secretary" means the Secretary of Commerce, for fishing vessels and fishery facilities.
(14) Vessel. "Vessel" means any type of vessel, built or being built, including: (A) a cargo vessel; (B) a passenger vessel; (C) a combined cargo-and-passenger vessel; (D) a tanker; (E) a tug or towboat; (F) a barge*; (G) a dredge; (H) a floating drydock able to lift at least 35,000 tons with a beam of at least 125 feet between its wing walls; (I) an oceanographic research vessel; (J) an instruction vessel; (K) a pollution treatment, abatement, or control vessel; (L) a fishing vessel that meets the citizenship rules of section 50501 for coastwise trade; and (M) an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship that is or will be documented under U.S. law.
(15) Vessel of National Interest. This means a vessel the Administrator — working with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary over the Coast Guard (when it's not under the Navy), or other federal agency* heads — decides is of national interest, based on characteristics described in section 53703(d).
In this chapter:
The term “actual cost” means the sum of—
all amounts paid by or for the account of the obligor as of the date on which a determination is made under section 53715(d)(1) of this title; and
all amounts that the Secretary or Administrator reasonably estimates the obligor will become obligated to pay from time to time thereafter, for the construction, reconstruction, or reconditioning of the vessel, including guarantee fees that will become payable under section 53714 of this title in connection with all obligations issued for construction, reconstruction, or reconditioning of the vessel or equipment to be delivered, and all obligations issued for the delivered vessel or equipment.
The term “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Maritime Administration.
The terms “construction”, “reconstruction”, and “reconditioning” include designing, inspecting, outfitting, and equipping.
The term “depreciated actual cost” of a vessel means—
if the vessel was not reconstructed or reconditioned, the actual cost of the vessel depreciated on a straight line basis over the useful life of the vessel as determined by the Secretary or Administrator, not to exceed 25 years from the date of delivery by the builder; or
if the vessel was reconstructed or reconditioned, the sum of—
the actual cost of the vessel depreciated on a straight line basis from the date of delivery by the builder to the date of the reconstruction or reconditioning, using the original useful life of the vessel, and from the date of the reconstruction or reconditioning, using a useful life of the vessel determined by the Secretary or Administrator; and
any amount paid or obligated to be paid for the reconstruction or reconditioning, depreciated on a straight line basis using a useful life of the vessel determined by the Secretary or Administrator.
Subject to subparagraph (B), the term “fishery facility” means—
for operations on land—
a structure or appurtenance thereto designed for the unloading and receiving from vessels, the processing, the holding pending processing, the distribution after processing, or the holding pending distribution, of fish from a fishery;
the land necessary for the structure or appurtenance; and
equipment that is for use with the structure or appurtenance and that is necessary for performing a function referred to in subclause (I);
for operations not on land, a vessel built in the United States and used for, equipped to be used for, or of a type normally used for, the processing of fish; or
for aquaculture, including operations on land or elsewhere—
a structure or appurtenance thereto designed for aquaculture;
the land necessary for the structure or appurtenance;
equipment that is for use with the structure or appurtenance and that is necessary for performing a function referred to in subclause (I); and
a vessel built in the United States and used for, equipped to be used for, or of a type normally used for, aquaculture.
Under subparagraph (A), the structure, appurtenance, land, equipment, or vessel must be owned by—
an individual who is a citizen of the United States; or
an entity that is a citizen of the United States under section 50501 of this title and that is at least 75 percent owned (as determined under that section) by citizens of the United States.
The term “fishing vessel” has the meaning given that term in section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802), and any reference in this chapter to a vessel designed principally for commercial use in the fishing trade or industry is deemed to be a reference to a fishing vessel.
The term “historical uses” includes—
refurbishing, repairing, rebuilding, or replacing equipment on a fishing vessel, without materially increasing harvesting capacity;
purchasing a used fishing vessel;
purchasing, constructing, expanding, or reconditioning a fishery facility;
refinancing existing debt;
reducing fishing capacity; and
making upgrades to a fishing vessel, including upgrades in technology, gear, or equipment, that improve—
collection and reporting of fishery-dependent data;
bycatch reduction or avoidance;
gear selectivity;
adverse impacts caused by fishing gear; or
safety.
The term “mortgage” includes—
a preferred mortgage as defined in section 31301 of this title; and
a mortgage on a vessel that will become a preferred mortgage when filed or recorded under chapter 313 of this title.
The term “obligation” means an instrument of indebtedness issued for a purpose described in section 53706 of this title, except—
an obligation issued by the Secretary or Administrator under section 53723 of this title; and
an obligation eligible for investment of funds under section 53715(f) or 53717 of this title.
The term “obligee” means the holder of an obligation.
The term “obligor” means a party primarily liable for payment of the principal of or interest on an obligation.
The term “ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship” means an at-sea facility or vessel, whether mobile, floating unmoored, moored, or standing on the seabed, that uses temperature differences in ocean water to produce electricity or another form of energy capable of being used directly to perform work, and includes—
equipment installed on the facility or vessel to use the electricity or other form of energy to produce, process, refine, or manufacture a product;
a cable or pipeline used to deliver the electricity, freshwater, or product to shore; and
other associated equipment and appurtenances of the facility or vessel to the extent they are located seaward of the high water mark.
The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Commerce with respect to fishing vessels and fishery facilities.
The term “vessel” means any type of vessel, whether in existence or under construction, including—
a cargo vessel;
a passenger vessel;
a combination cargo and passenger vessel;
a tanker;
a tug or towboat;
a barge*;
a dredge;
a floating drydock with a capacity of at least 35,000 lifting tons and a beam of at least 125 feet between the wing walls;
an oceanographic research vessel;
an instruction vessel;
a pollution treatment, abatement, or control vessel;
a fishing vessel whose ownership meets the citizenship requirements under section 50501 of this title for documenting vessels to operate in the coastwise trade; and
an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship that is or will be documented under the laws of the United States.
The term “Vessel of National Interest” means a vessel deemed to be of national interest that meets characteristics determined by the Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating when it is not operating as a service in the Department of the Navy, or the heads of other Federal agencies, as described in section 53703(d).
Source credit: (Pub. L. 109–304, § 8(c), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1601; Pub. L. 109–163, div. C, title XXXV, § 3507(a)(1)(A), (b)(1), Jan. 6, 2006, 119 Stat. 3555; Pub. L. 110–181, div. C, title XXXV, § 3522(a)(1), (10)(B), (b), Jan. 28, 2008, 122 Stat. 596, 598; Pub. L. 114–120, title III, § 302(a)(1), Feb. 8, 2016, 130 Stat. 51; Pub. L. 116–92, div. C, title XXXV, § 3506(a), Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 1970.)
- 2006Enacted · Pub. L. 109-304 · 120 Stat. 1601
- 2006Amended · Pub. L. 109-163 · 119 Stat. 3555
- 2008Amended · Pub. L. 110-181 · 122 Stat. 596, 598
- 2016Amended · Pub. L. 114-120 · 130 Stat. 51
- 2019Amended · Pub. L. 116-92 · 133 Stat. 1970
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 109-304 on 2006-10-06.
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