A bill to amend section 510 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936.
Public Law 93-605 · H.R. 12427 · 93rd Congress · began in the House
Signed by Gerald Ford (R) on Jan 2, 1975 · Transportation and Public Works
Sponsor: Rep. Leonor Sullivan (D-MO-3)
Cosponsors (1): Rep. James Grover
Passage votes
- HouseMethod not stated
- SenateMethod not stated
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce, within two years after enactment of this Act, to acquire mariner class vessels in exchange for obsolete vessels in the National Defense Reserve Fleet that are scheduled for scrapping.
States that the traded-in and traded-out vessels shall be valued at the higher of their scrap value in domestic or foreign markets as of the date of the exchange, provided that in any exchange transactions the value assigned to the traded-in and traded-out vessels will be determined on the same basis.
Provides that the value of a traded-out vessel shall be as nearly as possible equal to the value of the traded-in vessel plus the fair value of the cost of towing the traded-out vessel to the place of scrapping.
Sets forth conditions under which rates and charges for the barging and freighting of containers or containerized cargo by barge between points in the United States shall be filed solely with the Federal Maritime Commission in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the Commission.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee · House · referred to, reported by
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 11 actions.
- Jan 2, 1975Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- PresidentPresident · Public law 93-605.
- Dec 24, 1974PresidentPresident · Measure presented to President.
- Dec 19, 1974Resolving differencesResolving differences · House agreed to Senate amendments.
- Dec 17, 1974FloorFloor · Measure passed Senate, amended.
- Dec 13, 1974CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
- Jun 5, 1974CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
- Jun 4, 1974FloorFloor · Measure passed House, amended.
- May 31, 1974CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
- Jan 30, 1974CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.