§50114. National maritime strategy
(a)
(1) a national maritime strategy; and
(2) not less often than once every five years after the submission of such strategy, an update to the strategy.
(b)
(1) An identification of—
(A) international policies and Federal regulations and policies that reduce the competitiveness of United States-documented vessels with foreign vessels in domestic and international transportation markets; and
(B) the impact of reduced cargo flow due to reductions in the number of members of the United States Armed Forces stationed or deployed outside of the United States.
(2) Recommendations to—
(A) make United States-documented vessels more competitive in shipping routes between United States and foreign ports;
(B) increase the use of United States-documented vessels to carry cargo imported to and exported from the United States;
(C) ensure compliance by Federal agencies with chapter 553;
(D) increase the use of short sea transportation routes, including routes designated under section 55601(b), to enhance intermodal freight movements;
(E) enhance United States shipbuilding capability;
(F) invest in, and identify gaps in, infrastructure needed to facilitate the movement of goods at ports and throughout the transportation system, including innovative physical and information technologies;
(G) enhance workforce training and recruitment for the maritime workforce, including training on innovative physical and information technologies;
(H) increase the resilience of ports and the marine transportation system;
(I) increase the carriage of government-impelled cargo on United States-documented vessels pursuant to chapter 553 of title 46, section 2631 of title 10, or otherwise; and
(J) maximize the cost effectiveness of Federal funding for carriage of non-defense government impelled cargo for the purposes of maintaining a United States flag fleet for national and economic security.
(c)
(d)
(Added Pub. L. 117–263, div. C, title XXXV, §3542(b)(1), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3096.)
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Accountability for National Maritime Strategy
Pub. L. 118–31, div. C, title XXXV, §3537, Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 835, provided that:
"(a)
"(1)
"(2)
"(b)
"(1) Recommendations for a whole-of-Government approach to orchestrating national instruments of power to shape all elements of the maritime enterprise of the United States, domestic and international, on the high seas or domestic waterways.
"(2) An assessment of great power competition in the maritime domain, to include opportunities for increased cooperation with allied and partner global maritime industry leaders to improve national shipbuilding and shipping, while promoting the international rules-based maritime order.
"(3) An analysis of existing shipyards to build and capitalize on the virtuous cycle between commercial and military shipbuilding and repair, including areas of improvement.
"(4) An analysis of opportunities for private or public financing to increase the capacity, efficiency, and effectiveness of United States shipyards, including infrastructure, labor force, technology, and global competitiveness.
"(5) An analysis of potential improvements to national or cooperative arrangements for sealift capacity and shipping, including for contested logistics.
"(c)
"(1) the congressional defense committees [Committees on Armed Services and Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives];
"(2) and [sic] the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives; and
"(3) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate."
Deadline for Submission of Strategy
Pub. L. 117–263, div. C, title XXXV, §3542(b)(2)(B), Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3098, provided that: "The Secretary [of Transportation] shall submit the national maritime strategy required under section 50114(a)(1) of title 46, United States Code, as added by paragraph (1), not later than six months after the date on which the Secretary receives the study under subsection (a)."
Executive Documents
Ex. Ord. No. 14269. Restoring America's Maritime Dominance
Ex. Ord. No. 14269, Apr. 9, 2025, 90 F.R. 15635, provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:
Rectifying these issues requires a comprehensive approach that includes securing consistent, predictable, and durable Federal funding, making United States-flagged and built vessels commercially competitive in international commerce, rebuilding America's maritime manufacturing capabilities (the Maritime Industrial Base), and expanding and strengthening the recruitment, training, and retention of the relevant workforce.
(b) The OMB Director, in coordination with the APNSA, shall be responsible for all legislative, regulatory, and fiscal assessments related to the MAP.
(c) The MAP shall, to the extent permissible and consistent with applicable law, including the Buy American Act ([see] 41 U.S.C. 8301–8305), reflect actions taken pursuant to sections 4 through 21 of this order.
(a) identify key maritime components in the supply chain that are essential for rebuilding and expanding the Maritime Industrial Base and that should be prioritized for investment;
(b) ensure that their recommendations of public and private investments are made according to a clear metric, derived in consultation with the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, of return on invested capital for the United States taxpayer and to the economic and national security of the United States; and
(c) ensure that their recommendations take into consideration the projected increases to commercial and defense capabilities, the projected growth in economic activity, and the projected benefits for taxpayers and the workforce.
(i) coordinate with appropriate agencies to collect additional information, as appropriate and to the extent permitted by law, in support of administering such actions; and
(ii) coordinate with the Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security to take appropriate steps to enforce any restriction, fee, penalty, or duty imposed pursuant to such actions.
(b) Based on the USTR's determinations arising out of its Section 301 investigation into the PRC's targeting of the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors, the USTR shall also consider taking all necessary steps permitted by law to propose the following actions:
(i) tariffs on ship-to-shore cranes manufactured, assembled, or made using components of PRC origin, or manufactured anywhere in the world by a company owned, controlled, or substantially influenced by a PRC national; and
(ii) tariffs on other cargo handling equipment.
(a) require all foreign-origin cargo arriving by vessel to clear the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) entry process at a United States port of entry for security and collection of all applicable duties, customs, taxes, fees, interest, and other charges; and
(b) ensure any foreign-origin cargo first arriving by vessel to North America clearing the CBP process at an inland location from the country of land transit (Canada or Mexico) is assessed applicable customs, duties, taxes, fees (including the HMF), interest, and other charges plus a 10 percent service fee for additional costs to the CBP, so long as the cargo being shipped into the United States is not substantially transformed from its condition at the time of arrival into the country of land transit (with the discretion for such decisions to be determined by CBP).
(a) model these maritime prosperity zones on the opportunity zones established pursuant to section 13823 of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–97, 131 Stat. 2054) [enacting sections 1400Z–1 and 1400Z–2 of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code, amending section 1016 of Title 26, and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 1016 of Title 26], which I signed into law during my first Administration;
(b) include stipulations for appropriate regulatory relief in the establishment of such zones; and
(c) provide for zones that are outside of traditional coastal shipbuilding and ship repair centers and are geographically diverse, including river regions as well as the Great Lakes.
(a) any Federal programs that provide financial and regulatory incentives for United States shipping, shipbuilding, and shipbuilding supply chains, including the training of shipbuilders and United States-credentialed mariners;
(b) Maritime Administration programs such as the Tanker Security Program, Cable Security Fleet, Maritime Security Programs, Maritime Environmental and Technical Assistance Program, Title XI, Assistance to Small Shipyards, Port Infrastructure Development Program, the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), and programs that support the State Maritime Academies;
(c) existing domestic cargo preference laws, including the Military Cargo Preference Act of 1904, as amended, ([see] 10 U.S.C. 2631) and the Cargo Preference Act of 1954 [sic], as amended, (46 U.S.C. 55304), and whether and how they can be used to ensure that United States cargo is transported on United States-built and flagged vessels, including a review of the existing waiver process and all current waivers to ensure they are consistent with the promotion of American domestic shipping;
(d) other available means that could further support the industry, including modifications of existing programs, establishment of new programs, and tax and regulatory relief; and
(e) in coordination with the National Security Council and the Office of Management and Budget, the costs and benefits of increased cargo preference rates, including on liquid cargo carriers, tankers, and military useful vessels, and options for increasing cargo preference compliance and directing open market procurement of shipping to meet urgent military needs for maritime vessels.
(a) In preparing their report, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Education, and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall consult, as needed, with industry stakeholders including private industry and labor organizations.
(b) The report shall:
(i) include the current number of credentialed mariners and estimate the additional credentialed mariners required to support the policies described in this order;
(ii) analyze the impact of establishing new and expanding existing merchant marine academies as a means of educating, training, and certifying the additional credentialed merchant mariners estimated under subsection (b)(i) of this section;
(iii) identify any requirements for credentialing mariners that are unnecessary, insufficient, or unduly burdensome and provide recommendations for reform;
(iv) inventory existing educational and technical training grants and scholarships to colleges and vocational-technical training institutions for critical shipbuilding specialties and other maritime studies, and provide recommendations for enhancement; and
(v) assess the United States Coast Guard credentialing program applicability to United States Navy Active Duty and Reserve sailors to increase opportunities for sailors to transfer into the Merchant Marine with validated skills.
(c) Consistent with the findings of the report and in conjunction with the formulation of the President's Budget, the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Education, and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall deliver a legislative proposal to the APNSA and the OMB Director that:
(i) reflects the recommendations of the report required under this section;
(ii) establishes national maritime scholarships to send promising maritime experts abroad to learn cutting edge techniques and subjects, such as innovative maritime logistics, clean fuels and advanced nuclear energy, human-machine teaming, and additive manufacturing and other advanced technologies; and
(iii) offers scholarships to maritime experts from allied countries to teach at United States institutions.
(i) within 30 days of this order consistent with applicable law and available appropriations, take action to hire the necessary facilities staff and reprogram budgetary resources needed to execute urgent deferred maintenance projects and any other mission critical repair works at the USMMA;
(ii) take immediate action to finalize a long-term master facilities plan (LMFP) for the modernization of the USMMA campus and submit such plan to the APNSA and OMB Director for concurrence; and
(iii) within 90 days of the concurrence described in subsection (a)(ii) of this section, in consultation with the Department of Government Efficiency, submit a 5-year capital improvement plan (CIP) consistent with the LMFP to the APNSA and OMB Director that includes capital project budgets, schedules, and sequencing, as well as an inventory of deferred maintenance items necessary to sustain campus operations through completion of the CIP.
(b) All actions taken pursuant to this section shall be detailed in the MAP.
(a) have as its objective providing American shipbuilders with market forecasting needed to justify investments in infrastructure, workforce, and intellectual property to meet United States demand;(b) include reforms recommended by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security related to:
(i) staff structure and innovations in acquisition strategies that will improve Federal vessel procurement; and
(ii) reductions of the layers of approval needed to execute, build, and improve the vessel acquisition process, including by utilizing commercial acquisition and modular design practices that reduce complexity and prevent frequent changes to ship designs;
(c) identify for elimination excessive requirements, including the number of Government reviews and onerous regulations that add to ship design and acquisition delays; and
(d) consider use of broad industry standards and American-made readily available parts and components to drive up production volume while shrinking the iterative design process, which historically has led to delays and cost increases.
(a) is designed to ensure that adequate cubed footage and gross tonnage of United States-flagged commercial vessels can be called upon in times of crisis, while limiting the likelihood of Government waste;
(b) provides incentives that will:
(i) grow the fleet of United States built, crewed, and flagged vessels that serve as readily deployable assets for national security purposes; and
(ii) increase the participation of United States commercial vessels in international trade; and
(c) enhances existing subsidies to include coverage of certain construction or modification costs in a manner designed to enhance incentives for the commercial shipping industry to operate militarily useful ships that trade internationally under the flag of the United States.
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
Donald J. Trump.