S. Hrg. 104-183 HEARING ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA- ^%xr TIONS FOR THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD '^ IN nSCAL YEAR 1996 104-183 Y 4. C 73/7; S. HRG. Hearing on Authorization of Appropr... HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON OCEANS AND FISHERIES OF TlLl COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION MARCH 15, 1995 Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation DEC 4 1995 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 8a-301CC WASHINGTON : 1995 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-047735-2 S. Hrg. 104-183 HEARING ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA- ^ TIONS FOR THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD c IN nSCAL YEAR 1996 104-183 4, C 73/7; S. HRG. aring on Authorization of Appropr... HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON OCEANS AND FISHERIES OF THii; COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION MARCH 15, 1995 FVinted for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation DEC 4 1995 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 8»-301CC WASHINGTON : 1995 ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-047735-2 COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION LARRY PRESSLER, South Dakota, Chairman BOB PACKWOOD, Oregon ERNEST F. ROLLINGS, South Carohna TED STEVENS, Alaska DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii JOHN MCCAIN, Arizona WENDELL H. FORD, Kentucky CONRAD BURNS, Montana J. JAMES EXON, Nebraska SLADE GORTON, Washington JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West Virginia TRENT LOTT, Mississippi JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine RICHARD H. BRYAN, Nevada JOHN ASHCROFT, Missouri BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota Patric G. Link, ChiefofStaff Kevin G. CURTIN, Democratic ChiefCounsel and StaffDirector Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries TED STEVENS, Alaska, Chairman BOB PACKWOOD, Or^on JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts SLADE GORTON, Washington DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana (II) CONTENTS Page Hearingheldon March 15, 1995 1 StatementofSenatorBreaux 28 Statement ofSenatorHoUings 32 Prepared statement 32 StatementofSenatorKerry 2 Prepared statement 3 Statement ofSenatorSnowe 25 Statement ofSenatorStevens 1 Prepared statement 2 List of Witnesses Kramek, AdmiralRobertE., Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard 4 Prepared statement 7 Letterto SenatorKerry, fromAdm. Kramek, datedJuly 26, 1995 36 Appendix Gayer, Jeff, President North Central International Association of Boating Law Administrators, NCIABLA 43 Murray, RichardA., Director, Massachusetts Environmental Police 45 Rhinehard, Major Larry G., National Association of State Boating Law Administators 46 Questions asked by Subcommittee on Oceans & Fisheries and answers there- toby: U.S. CJoast Guard 64 (HI) HEARING ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO- PRIATIONS FOR THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD IN FISCAL YEAR 1996 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15, 1995 U.S. Senate, Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries, Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 3:03 p.m., in room S-211, the Capitol, Hon. Ted Stevens, presiding. Staff members assigned to this hearing: Thomas O. Melius, pro- fessional staffmember, and John Trevor McCabe, professional staff member; and Penelope D. Dalton, minority senior professional staff member, and Lila H. Helms, minority professional staffmember. OPENING STATEMENT SENATOR STEVENS Senator Stevens. Admiral, welcome. I apologize to you and Captain Cross and Captain Brown for our space. This is the only place we thought we could get and still be near the Senate floor. But this is a famous old room. It is the Lyn- don Baines Johnson Room, as a matter offact. We are happy to have you here. As I said at your confirmation hearing, I am pleased that you bring Alaska experience with you, including your master's degree. So this is sort of a family hearing this afternoon. I will put my basic statement in the record, but I want you to know that we fought hard to get this new concept ofour committee, oceans amd fisheries, so that we could focus on issues such as your annual authorization bill. Senator Kerry and I now have worked together for some time, trying to assure that we provide the funding and the support that you need to carry on your vital activities. We want to thank you again for your courtesy in assisting us to hold the hearings in New England just 2 weeks ago. We were most pleased. We will be going out to Seattle this weekend and then up to Alaska the next weekend to continue on the reauthorization of the Magnuson bill. But we are here today to listen to your testimony on the 1996 request of the Coast Guard. On the whole, I might say, I think we are pleased with the request. There is a slight increase, 2 percent. We want to hear your spe- cifics on the budget request, and we are interested in your com- (1) ments on the legislative request that was made by the Department on February 24. We hope to get your thoughts on draft legislation we prepared based on your request. The draft is also based upon the efforts we made last year but which we were not able to get through. I do believe that we will be able to work out a bipartisan bill. We will try to see if we can get the bill through the Senate early this year. I want to say at the beginning that we have a request from Sen- ator Inouye that he be noted as being absent. He has a very serious ear infection that gives him a problem with vertigo, so he is not going to be here with us today. But let me recognize my good friend and co-chairman, Senator Kerry. [Prepared statement ofSenator Stevens follows:] Prepared StatementofSenatorStevens • CallSubcommittee hearingto order. • Thankyou to Admiral Kramek, CaptainTerry Cross andErroll Brown forbeing here. • Apologies forthe postponementlast week. • As I said at your confirmation—hearing last year, Admiral, I'm pleased with the experience you bring fromAlaska includingyour Master's degree from ouruniver- sity when your were Chief ofNaval Engineering for the 17th District (1972-1975). • I probably don't need to remind this committee that Alaska has over halfthe coastline ofthe United States, and that we catch well over halfofthe nation's fish ofTAlaska. • I can't emphasize enough how important the Coast Guard is to Alaska and to the safety ofAlaskans whose lives dependon the use ofouroceans and rivers. • Part ofthe reason I requested the creation of a new Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries was to allow a greater focus on important issues such as the annual Coast Guard authorizationbill. • The Coast Guard provides vitalfunctions to all ofthe nation'scoastal states and in ourinland waterways. • We are here today to listen to your testimony on the fiscal year 1996 budget request for the Coast Guard, as well as on the authorization needs of the Coast Guardinthe 104th Congress. • On the whole, we are pleased with the Coast Guard budget request for FY96, which represents a modest two percent increase over the enacted FY95 appropria- tions level. • I look forward to listening to your testimony on the specifics ofthis budget re- quest. • In addition, the Subcommittee is interested inyour comments on the legislative package submittedbySecretaryPena on February 24, 1995. • We also hope to get your thoughts on the draft legislation preparedby the Sub- committee whichyou havebeen provided. • The draft is based on the Coast Guard package from last year which did not passbefore the close ofthe 103rd Congress. • We hope to introduce a bipartisan bill which combines the Coast Guard's prior- ities with our framework draft in the nextweek ortwo. • We are committed to tryingto move a bill through the Committee and the Sen- ate early thisyear. • In the interest oftime, I will now recognize the other Committee members for briefstatements. • Ihave a numberofquestions to ask when the testimony iscompleted. • Again, thank you Admiral Kramek for being here today, and sorry again about any inconvenience fromlast week. STATEMENT OF SENATOR KERRY Senator Kerry. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. As always, it is a pleasure to continue to work with you, whether you are hold- ing the gavel or I am. We have always had a fairly bipartisan and easy-going approach here. Our interest, obviously, is to safeguard the mission of the Coast Guard. Admiral, thank you for taking time to come and visit per- sonally. And thank you, also, for your efforts in supporting the hearings that we have had, which are a very important adjunct to your responsibilities. This is obviously a very difficult time here in the Congress, and in the—country, and we are all facing tough fiscal choices. This—com- mittee and I think that Senator Stevens shares this view ^has not been profligate in this arena. On the contrary, we have been cutting substantially through the past years. On the other hand, the mission of the Coast Guard has been growing simultaneously. And whether it is Haiti or oil spills or in- creased fishing enforcement, there are significant role increases for the Coast Guard, significant pressures on the quality of the fleet, and significant pressures on the personnel and their capacity to be distributed appropriately. So we are open minded and sympathetic to the notion that there have to be some changes in restraints. On the other hand, as we discussed in my office, we need to measure carefully the value of saving $6 million against a significant number of station closings and the impact of such closures on communities, on perception, on lives. So we will measure those factors as carefully as we can and try to make a judgment whether the proposed closures, measured against other possibilities, is the best choice. We are not challeng- ing your judgment necessarily in arriving at that decision. I just think there may be different views, and that is part of this testing process. But I want to say that obviously those of us in Massachusetts and Alaska and all the coastal states have an interest in what we decide to do here. So I join with Senator Stevens in saying that we really look for- ward to trying to put together a consensus approach. Hopefully, it will not lend itself to contentiousness, and we can arrive at an expedited procedure that will try to move this very im- portant set of budget choices forward. I look forward to hearing your testimony. Senator Stevens: Yes, sir. Please proceed. [Prepared statement ofSenator Kerry follows:] Prepared statementofSenatorKerry Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to be here today for this important hearing on Coast Guard programs and activities. In this time ofdraconian cuts and dramatic changes in our society and in ourgov- ernment, there are some things worth protecting within the Hmitations ofobvious budgetary considerations. One of them is the work of the United States Coast Guard. And I would hope that the prevailing words in this process will be common- sense. Mr. Chairman, the Coast Guard is vital to my State ofMassachusetts, with hun- dreds and hundreds ofmiles ofmagnificent coastline, and thriving recreational and boating attractions thatbringmillions ofvisitors to myState everyyear. It is vital to the safety and well-being of citizens in every coastal State, and in every State with navigable waters; we know that over 50 percent ofthe U.S. popu- lation lives within the coastal zone, and directlybenefits fromthe services the Coast Guard provides. But, indirectly, the Coast Guard, in the performance ofits mission, protects every American. In fact, more than two-thirds of the total Budget for the Coast Guard goes to operating expenses to protect public safety and the marine environment, to enforce laws and treaties, maintain aids to navigation, prevent illegal drugtraffick- ing and illegal immigration, and preserve defense readiness. I believe it is our responsibility to ensure that the Coast Guard has adequate re- sources to achieve its existing mandates and that we take into consideration the Coast Guard's recognize ever-expanding role in our navigable waters and beyond. I believe we need to adequately, albeit, responsibly invest in important Coast Guard programs to increase marine safety, enforce maritime law, and protect our fragile coastal environment that is ofextraordinary importance tourism and to the overall economies ofStates that enjoythe magnificence ofAmerica's dramatic coast- line. I come from a State that can boast about one ofthe most talked-about and writ- ten-about coastlines in America, and I, for one, thank the Coast Guard for the work ithas done to protect it. But, we all know that the Coast Guard's mission does not end at our shore. We all know that it protects our interests throughout the world. From supporting U.S. peacekeepers in Haiti, to responding to oil spills in the Persian Gulf", the Coast Guard is there. Their work has been exemplaiy, but it seems that, in spite of our budgetary re- strictions and, consequently, the limitations we place on the Coast Guard's capabili- ties, we are always asking them to do more with less. I am especially concerned with some aspects ofthe Coast Guard's plan for consolidating and streamlining op- erations. These may be necessary measures to respond to current budget realities, but my concern is the safety of the nation's boaters and fishermen, and the protection of ourcoastal resources. I do not want to see them placed at risk because ofthe pres- sures our actions place on the Coast Guard to successfully live up to the high stand- ardofexcellencethat ithas set overthe years. I look forwardto Admiral Kramek's testimonythis afternoon, and to workingwith the administration to develop authorization legislation that allows the men and women ofthe Coast Guard to continue their proudtradition ofservice. Ithank the Chairman. And, on behalfofmyState, Ithank the Coast Guard. STATEMENT OFADMIRAL ROBERT KRAMER, COMMANDANT, E. U.S. COAST GUARD Admiral Kramek. Well, Senator, I have written testimony that I would like to submit for the record and make a short oral sum- mary ofthat. Senator Stevens. We will put your statements in full in the record. Admiral Kramek. It is certainly a pleasure to be here to present to you the Coast Guard's 1996 budget request and some plans be- yond 1996, which we call our multi-year budget strategy, but better known in the Administration and on the Hill as streamlining. At the table with me is Captain Terry Cross, my Chief of Pro- grams, on my right, and Captain Erroll Brown, my ChiefofBudget, on the left. Our Coast Guard today is a team that we can all be proud of, both you and I, and the American public are proud of it. During this hearing, I will try to discuss the budget in the context of who the Coast Guard is and what we do for our public. Business is very good for the Coast Guard. I travel extensively. I spend a lot of time with my operational commanders. They are very, very concerned about the amount of work they have to do. I tell them that business is good, and we have about 10 or 15 percent more than we can do and accomplish all at once, if we were to do it all at once. But we manage our workload based on national security and mission priorities, and I think it is healthy for all ofour people that