§55332 Designating American Great Lakes Vessels

Summary

The Secretary of Transportation must label a vessel an American Great Lakes vessel if the owner applies under the Secretary’s rules, the ship is documented under U.S. law, it is at least 1 year old and normally no more than 6 years old (or up to 11 years old if suitable ships are not available), it has never had that designation before, and the owner signs the required agreement. Under that agreement, if the Secretary says the ship is needed for U.S. defense and the designation is later revoked, the U.S. government alone has 120 days to buy the vessel. The purchase price must be the higher of the ship’s world market value or the owner’s cost minus reasonable depreciation. If the government does not buy, the owner may register the ship in another country or sell it to a non‑U.S. person. The Secretary must make rules for how to apply.