Marine Log - March 2008 - (Page 16)

INSIDEWASHINGTON FY 2009 budget short changes many maritime interests T he final budget request of the lame duck Bush Administration has been greeted by a chorus of protests from maritime interests. The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA), which says that it is “disappointed that the Bush Administration has proposed still another annual budget that would significantly underfund the Department of Homeland Security’s Port Security Grant Program and the portion of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works Program that provides crucial navigation access to ports.” The budget request calls for a 7.6% overall increase in DHS’s budget, but recommends a huge decrease for port facility security. It recommends the Port Security Grant Program receive $210 million —the same amount recommended in the FY 2008 budget, even though both the Administration and Congress authorized $400 million for the program in the 2006 SAFE Port Act and approved a $400 million appropriation in the FY 2008 omnibus appropriations bill. The $400 million level is critical as ports are in the process of implementing the federal Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program, with its associated costs. Kurt Nagle, the port association’s president and CEO, says ports are also disappointed with the Administration’s FY 2009 budget request calling for no increase in the Corps of Engineers’ budget to pay for maintaining federal navigation channels. While at least $1.3 billion in funding from the federal Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund is needed just to maintain these channels, the budget calls for only $729 million—$6 million less than it requested for FY 2008. The American Waterways Operators is also dismayed at a proposal to phase out the inland waterway fuel tax system and replace it with a “lockage fee.” Not only would such a fee disproportionately target certain users of the system, says AWO, but it would not fix a system that spends Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF) monies inefficiently and ineffectively. AWO president & CEO Tom Allegretti explains that “inadequate budgeting, planning, and project execution are the main reasons for the projected Trust Fund deficit, not inadequate user fees.” And the FY 2009 budget is a “discouraging step backward for one of the nation’s most critical waterways,” according to the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway Association. The $2.2 million in the budget for the Corps of Engineers to dredge the Intracoastal Waterway through Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida ignores serious navigation risks that commercial and recreational users of the 1,200 mile water highway face every day, the association notes. “The budget is a token amount, given that the Army Corps needs about $30 million to properly maintain the waterway,” said David Roach, AIWA Chairman and Executive Director of the Florida Inland Navigation District. Subscribe To: Visit: www.marinelog.com/ docs/register.html • Requesting a new subscription • Renewing an existing subscription • Address Changes Or Call: 1-800-895-4389 16 MARINE LOG MARCH 2008 www.marinelog.com http://www.marinelog.com/DOCS/register.html http://www.donjon.com http://www.donjon.com http://www.marinelog.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Marine Log - March 2008

Marine Log - March 2008 Contents Editorial Second Thoughts Update Inside Washington Navy's Toughest Battle Building Future Fleet Less Fuel, Lower Emissions A New Generation of Mariners Training for the Future LNG Security: Resources Needed Models of Perfection Tech News Newsmakers Contracts Events Infodirect Website Directory ML Marketplace Opinion

Marine Log - March 2008

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