119-hres463

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 463 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
H. RES. 463

 Condemning the illegal, international use of flag-of-convenience 
 practices.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 June 3, 2025

 Mr. Moylan (for himself, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Case, Mr. Huffman, Mr. 
 Garamendi, and Mrs. Radewagen) submitted the following resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition 
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to 
 be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
 committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

 RESOLUTION

 Condemning the illegal, international use of flag-of-convenience 
 practices.

Whereas many flag-of-convenience ships are not under a binding contractual 
 obligation to serve United States needs in emergencies, and this 
 practice undermines the United States merchant marine fleet for the 
 purposes of United States commerce and military auxiliary in time of war 
 or national emergency;
Whereas many flag-of-convenience ships may not be readily available or compliant 
 during crises, despite being United States-owned, leaving the United 
 States not fully prepared for future threats, and moreover, flag-of-
 convenience ships may be caught between conflicting national interests, 
 making their reliability in emergencies uncertain;
Whereas flag-of-convenience ships are often used to avoid tariffs, sanctions, 
 and other economic policies, and furthermore, it is unlikely that flag-
 of-convenience ships will transition back to the United States flag 
 because of a lack of international oversight capacities and criminal 
 opportunity;
Whereas the lack of transparency in the global fishing sector, such as flag of 
 convenience, is a key enabler of illegal, unreported, and unregulated 
 fishing;
Whereas the United States Coast Guard has identified illegal, unreported, and 
 unregulated fishing as a main contributor to the collapse or decline of 
 fisheries that are critical to the economic growth, food systems, and 
 ecosystems of numerous countries around the world;
Whereas flag-of-convenience practices threaten American maritime-related 
 industries, like supporting illegal, unreported, and unregulated 
 fishing, which has cost the global seafood industry approximately 
 $50,000,000,000 annually;
Whereas the use of flag of convenience by fishing vessels impairs detection 
 capabilities in the fishing sector, impeding efforts to identify, track, 
 and sanction all beneficiaries of the illegal, unreported, and 
 unregulated fishing activities;
Whereas flag-of-convenience practices enable crimes such as illicit trafficking, 
 forced labor, and terrorist financing, demonstrating how the lack of 
 international oversight has promoted maritime crime and smuggling;
Whereas a 2002 congressional panel determined that al-Qaida was operating ships 
 under flag-of-convenience practices, exemplifying how lax shipping 
 oversight allows criminals and terrorists to move arms, money, or even 
 weapons of mass destruction;
Whereas the use of flag of convenience reduces employment opportunities for 
 American seafarers by bypassing United States labor standards, and 
 furthermore, ships that operate under United States labor laws may be 
 sold to foreign owners to maintain cost competitiveness through flag-of-
 convenience practices;
Whereas shipowners use flag of convenience to avoid and undermine existing 
 United States laws, including fair wages, up-to-date onboard safety 
 conditions, adequate food and clean drinking water, and reasonable 
 working hours;
Whereas, according to the International Transport Workers' Federation, workers 
 onboard flag-of-convenience vessels are more likely to experience low 
 wages, poor onboard conditions, insufficient food and clean drinking 
 water, and long periods of work without proper rest;
Whereas nations that offer flag-of-convenience practices may lack the capacity 
 to enforce maritime labor and safety regulations effectively, and 
 additionally, these nations may not have the capabilities to determine 
 if vessels host substandard conditions and a crew that suffers from 
 inadequate working and living conditions;
Whereas some registry nations benefit from international status and fees but may 
 purposefully not ensure compliance with international standards, and 
 some landlocked nations offer open ship registries with minimal 
 oversight for cost saving and criminal usage; and
Whereas the flag-of-convenience practices undermine President Trump's Restoring 
 America's Maritime Dominance initiative by attracting United States-
 built ships to reflag to another nation, and moreover, America's 
 shipbuilding and ship repair industries are put at a disadvantage 
 because of other nations' lower ship standards: Now, therefore, be it
 Resolved, That the House of Representatives--

    (1) recognizes the need for more funding, employment 
 opportunities, and protections for the United States maritime 
 industry;

    (2) supports initiatives that seek to address critical 
 shortfalls in the United States shipbuilding and ship repair 
 industries while reiterating the need for a capable, reliable 
 United States maritime auxiliary;

    (3) reaffirms the congressional support for United States 
 businesses that rely on robust and reliable maritime shipping, 
 shipbuilding, fishing, and tourism industries;

    (4) condemns the international use of flag of convenience 
 to avoid tariffs, sanctions, workplace rights, and basic safety 
 standards, as well as supporting criminal opportunity, illegal, 
 unreported, and unregulated fishing, and terrorist operations;

    (5) reiterates the mission of the United States Coast Guard 
 and encourages further international maritime collaborations 
 through vital shiprider agreements;

    (6) strongly condemns countries that purposefully ignore 
 maritime safety standards and mariners' workplace rights;

    (7) emphasizes the importance of Port State Control 
 Agreement, including the Abuja Memorandum of Understanding, the 
 Black Sea Memorandum of Understanding, the Caribbean Memorandum 
 of Understanding, the Indian Ocean Memorandum of Understanding, 
 the Mediterranean Memorandum of Understanding, the Paris 
 Memorandum of Understanding, the Riyadh Memorandum of 
 Understanding, the Tokyo Memorandum of Understanding, and the 
 Vina del Mar Agreement;

    (8) strongly supports the efforts of the International 
 Transport Workers' Federation to prevent and mitigate the 
 effects of flag-of-convenience practices; and

    (9) calls on the United Nations, the International Maritime 
 Organization, and the International Labour Organization to 
 condemn flag-of-convenience practices globally and assist 
 member nations in upholding global maritime standards.
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