Press Releases
Congress Passes Coast Guard Authorization“This is an excellent, comprehensive bill, and I’m happy it has passed. Alaska numbers 44,000 coastal miles and is greatly affected by what happens on our waterways.” -Rep. Young
Washington, D.C.,
April 24, 2008
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Coast Guard Authorization bill (H.R. 2830) today which would authorize appropriations for the Coast Guard for fiscal year 2008. Alaskan Congressman Don Young voted in favor of this bill. Included in the legislation was a provision that would transform the USCG Cutter STORIS, a decommissioned Coast Guard cutter, into a Museum and Maritime Education Center in Juneau. Commissioned in 1942, it is the oldest cutter in the Coast Guard fleet and was routinely used to patrol the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. Also included in this bill is language that would require the Coast Guard to carry out comprehensive risk assessments in Cook Inlet and the Aleutian Island chain to more fully analyze the issues and risks associated with oil exploration and transportation as part of the oil spill planning, prevention, and response process in these areas. "The Coast Guard is an integral part of our national security and a vital source to Alaska. Kodiak is home to the largest Coast Guard base in the country, and therefore home to hundreds of Alaska’s finest men and women. This authorization bill contains numerous key provisions that will benefit our entire Country and many provisions important to Alaska specifically. "One of the provisions I’m most excited about is the cold Weather Survival Training program to continue to be administered throughout Alaska. This will allow Coasties from the Lower 48 to adapt to the extreme conditions Alaska has to offer by receiving life saving courses. Wil Milam, a senior rescue swimmer at Air Station Kodiak who was recently recognized by President Bush for his heroic efforts, has said this training saved his life twice. "This is an excellent, comprehensive bill, and I’m happy it has passed. Alaska numbers 44,000 coastal miles and is greatly affected by what happens on our waterways. A good example of that is the ballast water exchange provision. This will require vessels to exchange their water on the high seas before they bring foreign aquatic species into Alaska waters, a problem that has been especially prevalent in Prince William Sound. "I thank Chairman Oberstar and the Transportation Committee as a whole for their work on this bill and for working with me to ensure Alaska’s waters, one of our most precious resources, are taken care of." Key Alaskan provisions included in this bill: Non-federal sales taxes on goods and services may be levied on vessels operating on any navigable water subject to the authority of the United States Conveyance of Coast Guard Cutter STORIS to Juneau for a museum Cold Weather Survival Training program to continue to be administered throughout Alaska, taught by Sitka locals familiar with the process to Coast Guard personnel Vessel traffic risk assessments in Aleutian Chain and Cook Inlet to consider impact of increased traffic, and environmental damage Ship emission reduction study #### |