Kearns, James
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Suggestions for Making America’s Marine Highway Program More Effective
The America’s Marine Highways Program is one of several grant programs administered by the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) to promote more effective use of the nation’s navigable waterways. This particular program was established by Congress in 2007 to provide grants for projects that would promote water-borne alternatives to available landside transportation services, especially for freight carried by trucks.Consistent with this specific goal…
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Infrastructure Funding Opportunities for Small Ports
In the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021, Congress amended the Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) administered by the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) to reserve to smaller ports 18% of the amounts appropriated for grants under the PIDP, and increased this percentage to 25% in the NDAA for FY 2022. This replaced the minimum dollar…
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Congress Provides Last-minute Help for Small Inland and Coastal Ports
In two major pieces of legislation passed by Congress at the end of 2020 and the beginning of this year, Congress addressed the difficulty that many smaller inland and coastal ports have in obtaining funding for their infrastructure projects. First, on December 11, 2020 Congress passed the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (NDAA), and on January 1, 2021 overrode President Trump’s veto.