COASTWISE OIL SPILL RESPONSE COOPERATIVES.

SEC. 4205. COASTWISE OIL SPILL RESPONSE COOPERATIVES. Section 12106 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: “(d) (1) A vessel may be issued a certificate of documentation with a coastwise endorsement if— “(A) the vessel is owned by a not-for-profit oil spill response cooperative or by members of such a cooperative who dedicate the vessel to use by the cooperative; “(B) the vessel is at least 50 percent owned by persons or entities described in section 12102(a) of this title; “(C) the vessel otherwise qualifies under section 12106 to be employed in the coastwise trade; and “(D) use of the vessel is restricted to— “(i) the deployment of equipment, supplies, and personnel to recover, contain, or transport oil discharged into the navigable waters of the United States, or within the Exclusive Economic Zone, or “(ii) for training exercises to prepare to respond to such a discharge “(2) For purposes of the first proviso of section 27 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1920, section 2 of the Shipping Act of 1916, and section 12102(a) of this title, a vessel meeting the criteria of this subsection shall be considered to be owned exclusively by citizens of the United States.”.