Jeff Van Drew Discusses Cooperation Between The Federal Maritime Commission And The Coast Guard

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During a House Transportation Committee hearing in July, Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) discussed the importance of cooperation between the Federal Maritime Commission and the Coast Guard.

Transcript

00:00I recognize Mr. Vandrew for five minutes.

00:02Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:05Commissioner, thank you for being here.

00:06We appreciate your time.

00:09The Coast Guard, as you know, and you know all this already,

00:11has recently accelerated the removal of navigational aids

00:15under Eitan Modernization Plan.

00:19350 buoys are currently slated for removal,

00:22as you also know, across the Northeast,

00:25with plans to expand this effort as we move along.

00:28I support the innovation.

00:30I support the Coast Guard.

00:32I support all of you.

00:34But I'm concerned that we might be moving too quickly

00:36and that we at least should have some more local input on this issue.

00:40And I'm going to tell you why.

00:41We already are seeing some consequences.

00:43I have my district as a coastal district in the state of New Jersey.

00:47We're seeing some grounding on shoals,

00:49near misses involving commercial and recreational vessels,

00:53and increasing uncertainty in waterways

00:56that were once considered safe,

00:58and now there are some concerns among real people

01:00that I talk to that are out in the water.

01:03They're not isolated.

01:04They really exist.

01:05They're happening now.

01:06And I think we can prevent them.

01:07I think the work you're doing is good.

01:09The focus is good.

01:10But we have to make sure that we're doing this in a careful and circumspect way.

01:15In my district, many of the small manors, including commercial operators,

01:18do not have advanced, believe it or not, electronic navigation systems

01:23that the modernization effort assumes.

01:26And I think that's something we have to keep in mind as well.

01:29And some of them will not have it even into the near future.

01:33Even when the systems are available,

01:34you've got shifting tides, narrow passages, bad weather.

01:37You know the deal.

01:39It's no longer just a safety issue.

01:41It's also a commerce issue, a commercial issue.

01:44If commercial or fishing lanes become less predictable,

01:47we have more commercial problems.

01:50And I guess, you know,

01:51the committee included a provision in the Coast Guard Authorization Act.

01:54I don't guess.

01:55I know we did.

01:56To study the effects of removing these buoys,

01:58and that's a good thing.

02:00And that's going to pass this week on house suspension.

02:03Commissioner, until that point,

02:05have you been coordinating with the Coast Guard on this initiative?

02:08Could you fill us in a little bit on it?

02:10We have not on those issues.

02:14Okay.

02:14But I was six years on active duty with the Coast Guard.

02:17And I still have, at one point,

02:23some of my students were admirals on the highest level.

02:29You can be sure that on anything that involves them,

02:33we will work with them.

02:36Good.

02:37And that's what I would hope.

02:38And I would say the same thing to the Coast Guard Authorization Act.

02:40Sometimes the intention is good,

02:43and I think the result will be good.

02:45But I think we just have to be a little bit careful as we go about it.

02:47Make sure, like everything else we do in government,

02:50make sure we get it right.

02:52Thank you for your time.

02:53I yield back.

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